On March 12, 2020, the Healthcare Anchor Network convened its members in Washington, D.C. for its second Housing for Health Policy Day, an event on Capitol Hill which saw Congressional staff, national healthcare associations, and housing advocacy groups attend a federal policy briefing about the impact of structural determinants of health and the universal need for stable, affordable, and healthy housing. 19 HAN member health systems participated in the event either in-person or virtually, and 22 health systems signed onto a Principles for Healthy and Affordable Housing document that was shared with Congressional members.
Continue ReadingAnchor institutions working with diverse entrepreneurs to build wealth, improve food access, and create jobs
HAN members Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital, along with other Boston anchor institutions, are procuring local and unique products from diverse, locally owned food start-up businesses. CommonWealth Kitchen, a nonprofit kitchen in Dorchester, MA, is incubating more than 50 small, mostly minority-owned, and community-based food start-up businesses. It adopted a strategy to help grow the start ups by connecting them to the product needs of Boston’s 20 hospitals and 31 universities, that comprise 18% of Boston’s employees.
Continue ReadingHospital investments to create affordable housing
A new collaboration was announced between Healthcare Anchor Network member RWJBarnabas Health, Pennrose, LLC, the City of Newark, and the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (NJHMFA) under the agency’s Hospital Partnership Subsidy Program. The program views housing as key to maintaining good health and looks to the role of hospitals as anchor institutions in the community to partner with. Under the program, NJHMFA will match funding contributions from RWJBarnabas Health to develop 65-70 affordable rental apartments in Newark’s South Ward for low- and moderate-income families and for special needs residents.
Continue ReadingYale New Haven Health
Based in New Haven, Connecticut, Yale New Haven Health serves patients with five hospitals – Yale New Haven, Bridgeport, Greenwich, Lawrence + Memorial and Westerly – and is affiliated with Yale University and its Yale School of Medicine.
Continue ReadingAnchor Mission Communications Toolkit
Hospitals and health systems and other anchor institutions from across the country are adopting an “anchor mission” to tackle the underlying economic and social determinants of community health outcomes and community well being. But how can both the what and the why of this new transformative approach be effectively communicated, inside and outside your institution?
Continue ReadingAnchor Mission Communications Toolkit Resources
Toolkit Links Below are links to the resources and information referred to in the Anchor Mission Communications Toolkit, produced by the Healthcare Anchor Network (HAN) in collaboration with Rush University Medical Center (Rush). Rush’s Anchor Mission Playbook Rush’s Chicago Magazine article Rush’s Total Health Collaborative video Embracing an Anchor Mission: ProMedica’s All-In Strategy HAN’s Anchor Philanthropy Initiative Group’s draft table comparing […]
Continue ReadingKaiser Permanente pledges $25 million to California Access to Housing and Services Fund
Kaiser Permanente, a member of the Healthcare Anchor Network, is further responding to the California affordable housing crises by committing an additional $25 million to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Access to Housing and Services Fund. The health system has already pledged $200 million in impact investments to support community health, particularly on affordable housing.
Continue ReadingAnchor Mission strategies of HAN health system leaders spotlighted in Modern Healthcare series
Modern Healthcare ran a series highlighting how Healthcare Anchor Network (HAN) members have been stepping up efforts to reduce socio-economic, racial, and ethnic disparities in their communities and to build community wealth. The HAN members covered in the series include AMITA Health, Cleveland Clinic, Kaiser Permanente, Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Rush University Medical Center, The MetroHealth System, and University Hospitals.
Continue ReadingAdvancing the Anchor Mission of Healthcare
In December 2016, leaders from 40 health systems gathered in Washington, DC to explore the potential to more fully harness their economic power to inclusively and sustainably benefit the long-term well-being of American communities. This report summarizes the events of the convening and presents the health systems’ collective vision of the Healthcare Anchor Network.
Continue ReadingHealthy Communities Policy Framework
This document, created by the Aligning to Advance Policy Initiative Group of the Healthcare Anchor Network, outlines the foundational elements of a policy agenda to create equitable, engaged, connected and economically strong communities.
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