Our Strategy

CHF currently focuses its grantmaking in these two areas:

  • Ensuring equitable access to quality health care
  • Addressing the social determinants of health which are the social and economic conditions that shape the health of communities and individuals and advance health equity

In 2009, CHF launched the Advocacy for Health Care Access and Health Justice Initiative, which funded organizations that use advocacy strategies to create positive social change in these two areas. Because the Foundation recognizes that advocacy and policy change takes time, most of these groups will be applying for a fourth year of renewed funding. Therefore, we are not soliciting new requests in 2012.

However, we are always open to discussing new ideas, particularly if they align with the Foundation’s logic model or our grantmaking strategies highlighted below. Please feel free to contact Ria Pugeda, Program Officer, if you have further questions at ria@consumerhealthfdn.org.

CHF’s grantmaking strategies include:

Advocacy:  Advocacy grants are focused on initiatives that engage consumers in advocating for their health and their community and on initiatives that seek to change policies and systems to create health equity. In our health care access work, we focus on policy and systems changes that will produce a more integrated, affordable, high quality, culturally and linguistically appropriate health care delivery system. In our social determinants of health work, we focus on policy and systems changes at the intersection of health and other critical issues such as housing, employment, education and community development.

Health Care Systems: Health care systems grants are focused on coalition-based efforts to strengthen and support community health centers and other nonprofits that provide health care services to low-income and uninsured patients. These organizations help develop systems and policies that benefit groups of clinics and the patients they serve and create innovative models for care delivery to improve the quality of care.

Safety Net: Safety net grants are used to provide general operating support to community health centers that provide health care services to underserved patients in the metropolitan Washington, DC region. CHF currently focuses these grants on non-Federally Qualified Health Centers in DC and community health centers in Prince George’s County, MD.

Innovations/Special Projects: Innovations/Special Projects grants help organizations that implement creative, new and experimental programs to improve the health of individuals and communities. These grants are often time limited and involve a strong evaluation component.

Organizational Development: Organizational development grants fund intermediaries that help strengthen non-profit organizations and develop their capacities.

Knowledge Capital: Knowledge capital grants help organizations to share their educational resources and organize outreach activities that will increase awareness on various health and related issues and develop partnerships.