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A YEAR IN HEALTH MICHIGAN HEALTH ENDOWMENT FUND'S 2019 YEAR IN REVIEW

Investing in a healthier Michigan.

This past year was a whirlwind of activity at the Health Fund. We'd like to take you on a tour of some of the publications, stories, partnerships, and investments that made 2019 our most exciting year yet.

More than $33 million in new funding.

We had five grant rounds this year, with awards totaling about $33.4 million. Grant programs included:

  1. Community Health Impact$4.2 million given to 50 projects. Each aligned with one of our eight focus areas.
  2. Behavioral Health$7.8 million given to 20 projects, focused on expanding access, integrating care, and growing the workforce.
  3. Nutrition & Healthy Lifestyles$7.9 million given to 19 projects, centered around nutrition, wellness, and food access.
  4. Healthy Aging$7.9 million given to 25 projects, supporting older adults and those who care for them.
  5. Special Projects & Emerging Ideas$5.8 million given to 15 projects, chosen by invitation only for their potential for replication, expansion, or breakthroughs in their respective fields.

Learning—about Michigan and about ourselves.

Reports and publications help us better contextualize the work that we're doing and the gaps that we can help fill. We published a few in 2019, including our 2018 annual report, a technology report, and a behavioral health access study.

2018 ANNUAL REPORT

Is the work we’re supporting having the intended effect? Is it improving the health of Michigan residents? Is it leading to long-term change?

Every year, we look back at our funding from the year before and point out the highlights and trends. The 2018 report spotlights cognitive-behavioral therapy, caregiving, and culinary medicine, as well as a CEP survey that stacked us up against other funders.

THE ROLE OF HEALTH TECHNOLOGY IN MICHIGAN

Even within short windows of time, technology-based programs can be adaptable, straightforward, and have significant positive impacts on health, so long as they are seen as tools rather than the solution itself.

Health technology is one of the Health Fund's eight priority areas. This report highlighted the trends and standouts from nearly $13 million of funding in that area, and it explored how we can continue to fund programs that maximize our impact.

ACCESS TO BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CARE IN MICHIGAN

Of the 1.76 million Michiganders experiencing a mental illness, about 62% receive treatment, leaving 38%, more than 666,000 people, with unmet need.

We commissioned Altarum to study access and barriers to behavioral health services in the state. The report, released in July, made waves for its characterization of the critical unmet need for care in the state. We hope that the recommendations of the report not only improve our funding decisions, but also have an impact on policy and programming statewide.

Sharing your stories.

One of our favorite things to do is to spread the word about the great work our grant partners are doing, and we got a lot of chances to do that in 2019. From writing blog posts that provided an inside look at notable grant programs to promoting outside media content, we did our best to get the word out.

FEATURED ON THE BLOG

We periodically provide more in-depth profiles of projects we fund and our motivations behind the funding in our blog. Some highlights from this year:

PULLED FROM THE MEDIA ROOM

We love when our grant partners make the news! We keep tabs on media mentions in the media room on our website. Here are some notable examples:

A FINGER ON THE PULSE

As important and impressive as our partners' work is, our interest in Michigan health goes beyond our own funding. Partnerships with Bridge's Michigan Health Watch and Second Wave Media's State of Health help us make sure health leaders and all that are interested can stay informed about pressing health challenges, important policy decisions, and promising solutions across the state and country.

Reporters for Michigan Health Watch cover the intersection of policy and health and the state's breaking news in the health realm:

Second Wave Media's State of Health series is turning its focus to integrated healthcare and the ways that approach can improve the health of Michigan residents:

Thank you!

To all of our grant partners and applicants, as well as all who work with us on a daily basis—thanks. Your passion for protecting the health of Michigan residents inspires us to dream bigger. Every grant round brings us a new boost of energy as more innovative, ambitious, and grounded proposals appear in our portal. We're so grateful. See you in 2020.

- The Health Fund