Health Care Grants

One of the largest percentages of grant awards here in the United States goes to health care grants. The federal government, state and local municipal governments, private organizations, and corporations, universities, and private donors all award grants for health grants for research, child health care, breast cancer and other diseases, primary care grants, grants for health care facilities, and other types of grants for medical and health care programs.

Health Care Centers are heavily funded by government grants under Section 330 of the Public Health Services Act -Consolidated Health Center Program. Five different types of grants are available to private and charitable foundations that have tax-exempt non-profit status or have a co-applicant arrangement. These grants include the following:

• Community Health Center Program – section 330(e)
• Migrant Health Center Program – section 330(g)
• Health Care for the Homeless Program – section 330(h)
• Public Housing Primary Care Program – section 330(i)
• School-Based Health Center Program – section 330(e)

Where to Learn About Health Care Grants?

The grants.gov website is one of the best resources to find health care grant information and funding opportunities. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is in charge of administering the federal government grants.gov grants relating to health care. You should also go to your state website and search grants for health care to find out what agencies in your state manage awards and what types of state and local municipal grants are available that your organization may qualify for. You can also find private and corporate grant opportunities by looking on foundation website directories for health care grant award funding opportunities.

New Health Care Innovation Challenge Program

The government’s new Health Care Innovation Challenge Program, which was funded by the Health Care Reform Bill passed in 2010, is awarding up to $1 billion in grant awards by March of 2012 to applicants that have the most innovative and creative ways to save money for consumers who are enrolled in Medicaid, Medicare and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The Challenge Program hopes to support programs and projects that focus on “rapid workforce development.” To find out more about the Challenge Program, visit the grants.gov website or the Department of Health & Human Services website

Large Foundations

Here is a list of some of the largest foundations that award grants for health care:

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
• David and Lucile Packard Foundation
• Pew Charitable Trusts, Starr Foundation
• W.K Kellog Foundation
• California Endowment
• Open Society Institute
• Rockefeller Foundation
• New York Community Trust
• Kresge Foundation

For information on their grant award opportunities, you can visit their websites.

When applying for grant for health care, read the funder’s guidelines and exclusions carefully to make sure your program is eligible so you don’t waste your time applying for a grant that you are not eligible for. Most health care grants are awarded to non-profit organizations, health care agencies, universities and colleges, municipal governments and schools. Health care grants may be awarded to for profit organizations if their programs are related to medical research or job creation and training.