CIVHC and The Colorado Health Foundation Launch $1 Million Health Equity Fund to Support Local Non-profits

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Denver, CO – [May 7th, 2024] – The Center for Improving Value in Health Care (CIVHC) and The Colorado Health Foundation (CHF) are excited to announce the launch of the Health Equity Fund, a new initiative dedicated to advancing health equity across Colorado. The fund will provide $1 million in support over the next four years, helping community-based nonprofit organizations harness the power of data to improve health outcomes and reduce disparities.

The Health Equity Fund is designed to make CIVHC’s evaluation services and data from the Colorado All Payer Claims Database (CO APCD) more accessible to non-profits working in critical areas of health equity. Each year, a total of $250,000 will be available, with a maximum of $50,000 per project, to offset the costs associated with accessing CO APCD data and CIVHC’s evaluation services. The aim of the funding is to help organizations that often face barriers accessing data unlock the information they need to accelerate their health equity work.

Community-based non-profits in Colorado with annual operating revenues under $10 million are eligible, though those with larger revenues may also be considered. A community-based organization is defined as a nonprofit that represents the community and can demonstrate how community members drive its work and directly benefit from its services and mission.

Primary focus areas for support include organizations working on housing access, food security, and maternal and fetal health. Primary care, and mental health, particularly related to early childhood social and emotional well-being, and other areas of health equity for various populations including Coloradans of color, and LGBTQ+ will also be considered.

Examples of projects currently funded through the Health Equity Fund pilot program include:

• Colorado Food Cluster – Receiving support from CIVHC to evaluate the program's implementation process, leveraging enrollment and member shopping cart data, as well as evaluate the impact of the program on health outcomes using data in the CO APCD.
• Youth Healthcare Alliance – CIVHC is providing an evaluation of School-Based Health Center (SBHC) services to understand the long-term effects of SBHCs on population health and health care utilization in Colorado and to demonstrate the return on investment for expanding services to students and their families.
• The Denver Indian Health and Family Service Center's Mobile Health Unit – CIVHC is providing a geographic analysis of access to health care services for the American Indian and Alaskan Native (AIAN) population in Colorado to inform outreach and service delivery to AIAN populations in the State.

“These funds will help connect communities to CIVHC’s services and data and to the information and insights we can provide. This collaboration will help our non-profit community organizations understand the impact of their work, refine their services, and generate lasting change for Coloradans,” said Kristin Paulson, President and CEO of CIVHC. “Our partnership with CHF will make data and evaluation services accessible for the organizations that are advancing health equity and serving marginalized communities across the state.”

Applications for the Health Equity Fund will be accepted on a rolling basis and reviewed by a committee that includes a diverse team of data experts, community engagement leaders, and external partners.

Khanh Nguyen, senior officer, impact investing, The Colorado Health, emphasized "We understand the importance of recognizing the unique needs and strengths of each community in addressing health disparities. The design of the Health Equity Fund supports organizations that are deeply connected to their communities and are vigorously striving to overcome the various obstacles to health – whether those are social, systemic, or both. This is a collaborative effort to create a system that serves and works for all Coloradoans.”

For more information or to find out if your organization qualifies for support from the Health Equity Fund, please contact equityfund@civhc.org.