Each year, the CAC Review Committee examines the work of Health Forward on behalf of the Community Advisory Council, which represents the communities within Health Forward’s geographic region of service. We reviewed the work of Health Forward throughout 2023 and then met with board members and staff to discuss our questions and findings. Following this assessment, we issue this review that offers highlights of outstanding work, appreciation for continued efforts, and recommendations for improvement.
We would like to thank the board of directors and the Health Forward leadership team and staff for their sustained excellence year after year, and for the gift of their time while we conducted this review.
CAC REVIEW COMMITTEE
JaNia Motley, Chair
Alan Flory
Helen J. Hurley
Susan Lynn
Marshanna Smith
THE FOLLOWING ARE SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OF HEALTH FORWARD’S OUTSTANDING WORK IN 2023.
PURPOSE - DRIVEN INVESTMENT PROGRAM
The purpose-driven investment program is a new type of funding for Health Forward. This program offers lowinterest loans and equity investments to organizations that advance the foundation’s four purpose areas, with an initial focus on affordable housing and home ownership as a part of the Place purpose. The board approved an initial, three-year phase of $20 million for the program, and has already committed $7 million to three recipients, who each received a five-year, 2-percent interest loan.
We are impressed that Health Forward is once again improving the region with its ability to reimagine how it approaches funding. The introduction of low-interest loans expands Health Forward’s funding sphere to include those who are working toward goals that mirror the foundation’s purpose, but may not otherwise qualify for more traditional funding. The interest collected from these loans will cycle back into the program and will fund future borrowers, which is a net positive for our communities.
NEW HEADQUARTERS LOCATION
For the past six years, the board of directors has deliberated on a permanent location for Health Forward’s headquarters that will serve both the needs of the staff and the community. In 2023, the foundation announced its purchase of the third floor of the Offices at Overlook, a new development not yet under construction. The Overlook, currently undergoing design completion and final financing, is located on the East Side of Kansas City, Missouri. This new home will place Health Forward into the heart of the community it serves.
By investing in the area, Health Forward is directly contributing to the transformative economic development of a ZIP code that has experienced historical disinvestment by public and private developers.
This location will also bring more visibility and community recognition to Health Forward and its work in the Kansas City community. We anticipate that Health Forward’s influence will bring housing improvements and other businesses to the area.
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about the new headquarters
NEW FUNDING STREAMS
2023 marked the first full year of funding under Health Forward’s five-year purpose plan. The new streams emphasize funding fewer but more impactful grants over a longer timespan, a contrast to legacy funding that supported mainly single-year grants to many partners. More than 30 percent of the grants issued were funded over multiple years. By recognizing that organizations need time to create sustained change in our communities, Health Forward’s gift of multi-year funding is an important display of trust in our communities and a commitment to long-term change. Multi-year funding also alleviates the stress that accompanies an annual grant application process.
Some 2023 grants included invitation-based funding to support whole-person care and open funding to build up civic engagement and community leaders, which we believe is an important step toward creating a pipeline of future elected leaders who will advocate for their communities.
PORTFOLIO HEALTH AND DIVERSIFICATION OF INVESTMENT MANAGERS
Over the past two years, the finance and investment team, along with the board of directors’ Finance Committee, have worked diligently to bring into balance the race, gender, and ethnicities of its fund managers. Health Forward’s rapid success of maintaining a healthy investment portfolio while diversifying managers has garnered national attention, with foundations contacting Health Forward for advice on how to accomplish diversification in a financially responsible way.
Diversity in any endeavor is a positive approach. In this instance, the new investment managers have introduced investment opportunities that reach industries and geographic regions of the U.S. that Health Forward was previously not exposed to. These are all resulting in differentiated returns that boost the overall investment portfolio. While making major investment changes, the leadership of Health Forward has demonstrated a high degree of oversight and nimble decision-making to address issues as they arise.
NEW APPROACH TO MEDICAID ENROLLMENT
Health Forward has been an active leader in the effort to expand Medicaid in Missouri and promote enrollment. In 2023, Health Forward continued this leadership by providing a streamlined funding application and then contracting with GPS Influence, a local strategic communications firm, to provide marketing materials, bilingual messaging, and sustained guidance and realtime assessment throughout the campaign. Health Forward funding supported 22 health care and social service partners, who then used the funding to create an enrollment strategy that was partner-led and best suited their community’s needs. This approach is a testament to the board and staff’s efforts to trust their partners to both design and execute solutions unique to the communities they serve. We are proud of our Missouri communities that worked tirelessly to guarantee that eligible community members had access to health care.
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about Health Forward’s trust-based approach to Medicaid enrollment