Health Funding Watch

April 16, 2008

In this issue of Health Funding Watch, the Foundation Center's newsletter devoted to health-related topics, you'll learn about a recent foundation-sponsored conference that determined mainstream institutions such as schools, prisons, and social services agencies can play a crucial role in addressing the mental health conditions in their populations — but only if they're given the proper tools. You'll also find links to other health-related news, resources, funding opportunities for individuals and organizations, and job listings. Health Funding Watch is available exclusively to visitors who register at the Foundation Center's Web site.

Mental Health, Policy Experts Call for New Mental Health Care Agenda

Mental health and other policy experts have called for legislators, policy makers, and funders to acknowledge the critical role of mainstream institutions in providing mental health services via America's informal mental health system. The experts, who gathered last week at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's Fundamental Policy: Spotlight on Mental Health conference in Washington, D.C., noted that some 30 percent of Social Security recipients, 18 percent of people in prison, 25 percent of juvenile offenders, 25 percent of the homeless population, and 10 percent of youth in schools have serious mental health conditions, yet many agencies within these sectors do not have the tools to properly address such conditions. Read the article»

Recent Health News from Philanthropy News Digest

Health Care Trails As Top Issue in Presidential Election, Report Finds
A new report from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation found that as of February, only 21 percent of registered voters said health care was the most important issue determining their vote, lagging the economy (43 percent) and Iraq (29 percent)....
Posted: 4/16/08

USC Receives $1.8 Million From Gates Foundation, California Endowment for Health Communication
The grants will be used to expand the Hollywood, Health & Society program at the USC Annenberg School for Communication's Norman Lear Center, which supplies writers and producers with accurate health information for health-related storylines....
Posted: 4/13/08

Massachusetts Drug Makers Turning to Foundations, Charities for Funding
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation said it has awarded more than $300 million over the past decade to for-profit companies such as Lexington-based Epix Pharmaceuticals....
Posted: 4/11/08

Medicare Spends More, Gets Worse Results Than Other Healthcare Systems, Report Finds
The report from the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice found that regions and states that use more services per patient do not necessarily have higher quality care....
Posted: 4/10/08

More health news»

Funding Opportunities

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Announces New Round of Active Living Research Grant Program
Grants totaling $3.3 million will be awarded to organizations in the United States researching policy and environmental strategies for increasing physical activity among children and adolescents, particularly in low-income communities....
Deadline: 5/14/08

Michael J. Fox Foundation Initiative to Support Development of Web-Based Tools to Increase Patient Participation in Parkinson's Clinical Trials
Grants totaling $1 million will be awarded to public and private nonprofit organizations in the United States and abroad working to design a Web-based clinical assessment program that enables patients to participate in clinical research from home....
Deadline: 5/14/08 (Pre-proposals)

Tufts Health Plan Foundation Accepting Applications for Community-Based Health Programs
The foundation is accepting letters of inquiry from nonprofit organizations working to improve health and welfare in Massachusetts communities, with a focus on consumer health, disparity awareness, and nursing education....
Deadline: 7/07/08 (Letter of Inquiry)

ADA Foundation: Samuel Harris Fund For Children's Dental Health
Grants of up to $5,000 will be awarded to community-based nonprofits working to improve oral care for low-income children through community education and outreach....
Deadline: 7/17/08

More requests for proposals»

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Health Funding Watch is mailed the third Wednesday of the month to more than 55,000 subscribers with a stated interest in health. For information about our advertising rates, contact Mitch Nauffts at (212) 807-2433 or mfn@foundationcenter.org.

Foundation Center -
San Francisco Focuses
on Health Funding

Funding for Health and Human Services Month is officially underway at the Foundation Center – San Francisco! Throughout April, attend free classes and special events — and explore the many Web resources related to health and human services funding. Classes focus on program design, marketing strategies, corporate giving, and more, while several programs offer opportunities to meet with health and human services grantmakers. To learn more, see the calendar of events.

Where Public Health
Funding Goes

According to a new report from the
Trust for America's Health, federal funding for public health varies significantly state to state, with a per capita low of $13.61 in Kansas to a per capita high of $69.76 in Alaska. The national average is $17.23 per person — a fraction of what is spent on healthcare costs. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the report, Shortchanging America's Health 2008: A State-by-State Look at How Federal Public Health Dollars Are Spent (144 pages, PDF), makes the case for a national health strategy focused on prevention.

Did You Know…?

…that in only three years, Autism Speaks has become the nation's top private funder of autism research, making grants of $30 million last year alone? Also one of the largest autism advocacy organizations in the world, this nonprofit David became a Goliath through mergers with the Autism Coalition for Research and Education in 2005, the National Alliance for Autism Research in 2006, and Cure Autism Now in 2007.

Job Opportunities

Medical Director
Free Medical Clinic
Cleveland, Ohio
Posted: 4/16/08

Registered Nurse
Public Health Solutions
New York, New York
Posted: 4/16/08

Senior Program Associate
Grantmakers In Health
Washington, D.C.
Posted: 4/13/08

Senior Scientific Program Manager
Canary Foundation
San Jose, California
Posted: 4/10/08

More job opportunities»

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