Massachusetts Community Health Fund

In 2019, the Advisory Committee for the Community Health Fund developed a road map to guide and achieve the Fund’s long-term vision. The vision: that all Massachusetts residents have an equitable opportunity to achieve the highest quality of life possible. With this goal, the Community Health Fund invests in innovative approaches for change. These approaches are centered in the community and target the root causes of inequitable health outcomes.

The Community Health Fund is guided by the following:

The social determinants of health (SDoH) account for significant variations in health outcomes.
Policies, systems, and social/physical environments are historically based in structural and institutional racism and other forms of oppression.
These forms of oppression need to be understood and disrupted to eliminate health inequities and address the social determinants of health.

Vision of the Community Health Fund: Massachusetts communities are transformed so all residents have an equitable opportunity to have the highest quality of life possible.

Mission of the Community Health Fund: To invest in community-centered innovative change opportunities targeting the root causes of inequitable health outcomes.

Community Health Fund Focus, Strategies, and Outcomes

Focus: Activities that benefit communities outside of Boston that have not historically and routinely benefited from previous local Determination of Need (DoN) community health funding AND have high rates of health inequities. Strategies: Multi-year investments and capacity building. Policy, systems, and environmental change approaches. Community health improvement planning processes. Evaluation process for improved community health initiatives. Outcomes: Disruption of structural and institutional racism and other forms of oppression. Improved population health outcomes. Improved cross-sector/community-centered collaboration.

Learn more about the funding opportunities within the Community Health Fund: