Grant Dates for 2023 are TBD
Funding provided from the Rural Health Care Fund, established by Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska.
This time-limited grant program was established in late 2019 by Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska, which has generously provided $3 million for the fund. It is being administered in partnership with Rasmuson Foundation and the Alaska Community Foundation.
Eligible organizations: Defined as community health centers, outpatient clinics, Alaska Native organization and tribal government-operated clinics and/or hospitals, critical access hospitals, sole community hospitals located in rural and remote locations of Alaska. Organizations must be based in Alaska, either have 501(c)(3) status and classified as a “not a private foundation” under section 509(a) of the tax code, or units of government, such as a city or tribal government. Organizations may receive multiple grants if projects are at different sites of service.
Grant Requests: Requests may be up to $100,000. Eligible projects are short-term capital projects, including the purchase of medical and dental equipment, technology, vehicles, and ancillary equipment for emergency services, facility renovations, and restorations, and furnishings. Preference will be given to projects that improve healthcare delivery quality, as demonstrated by evidence-based research. The Fund will generally not support: a reimbursement for already purchased items or completed project components; projects associated with core government functions, including but not limited to roads, utilities, and public safety; K-12 education; general operations, administrative, indirect, or overhead costs; deficits or debt reduction; endowments; scholarships; or fundraising events or sponsorships.
Evaluation: Applications will primarily be evaluated on the following criteria: The organization’s history, fiscal capacity, an active board of directors, staff experience, financial support and the project’s other funding sources, sustainability, and benefit to the organization and community and/or region served. The Fund will prioritize projects to distribute grant funding, to the extent feasible, equitably across Alaska’s geographic regions.
To best position your application for success, applicants are strongly encouraged to connect with ACF staff ahead of time to discuss their project by emailing grants@alaskacf.org or calling 907-334-6700.
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Please note: These forms are for your draft work ONLY; any submissions must be completed within our online grants management portal.
For grantee convenience, below is a list of Word (.doc) versions of the grant application and final report forms for this grant opportunity. Click the links below to download the .doc version of the form you’d like to work with. Play with the character counts in your draft, and when ready, copy/paste those words into the online version of the form in our system. The character count (not word count) in your .doc version will align with the character count in our system. The forms are provided here for your PREPARATION convenience. You CANNOT use these forms for your actual submission – that must be done online within our portal.
“We are glad to partner with Premera on this new grantmaking venture, specifically to serve the needs of rural Alaska, the small village clinics and critical access hospitals,” Diane Kaplan, Rasmuson Foundation president and CEO, said when Premera announced the Rural Health Care Fund. She referenced a plane crash in Unalaska that cut off air service to the Aleutian Islands community. “It’s not uncommon for rural communities to be cut off from higher level medical service than available at home because of weather or other circumstances. The Premera partnership will enable local clinics to acquire the critical equipment they need as first responders. Lives will be saved.”
In October 2019, Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield announced an investment of $5.7 million in Alaska including $3 million for the new Rural Health Care Fund.
In announcing the new Rural Health Care Fund, Premera cited a 2017 study from the National Rural Health Association. Researchers found that people living in rural areas suffer worse health outcomes than their urban counterparts. They are sicker, poorer, and older and are more likely to experience higher rates of premature death, disability, and chronic disease. In Alaska, more than 200,000 people, or about 32% of the state’s population, live in rural communities. With about 200 villages off the road system and only reachable by boat, aircraft, snowmachine, or four-wheeler, the state faces unique challenges to providing timely and quality care for all its residents.
“We’re proud to support the work that Alaska organizations, the university, and ANTHC are doing to serve the health care needs of Alaska’s rural communities,” said Jeff Roe, president and CEO of Premera Blue Cross. “Many of Alaska’s communities are hundreds of miles from a regional medical center, and in most rural communities there is not an adequate number of physicians, primary and mental health care providers, and sufficient facilities. It is critical to invest in effective, long-term solutions to close the growing gap between urban and rural health care access.”