FAQs - Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky
Q. What is the mission of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky?
A. To make grants, contributions and related investments, and sponsor or participate in activities, designed to address the unmet health care needs of Kentuckians by developing and influencing health policy, improving access to care, reducing health risks and disparities among groups, and promoting health equity.
Q. How was the foundation founded and funded?
A. Anthem Inc. agreed to place $45 million in charitable assets into a new foundation as a settlement to the lawsuit brought by Kentucky’s Attorney General, Ben Chandler, regarding Anthem’s 1993 merger with Kentucky Blue Cross and Blue Shield and subsequent conversion from a non-profit to a for-profit company.
Q. Who runs the foundation?
A. The foundation is governed by a 15-member volunteer board of directors. The Board of Directors has 12 members who are nominated by the Community Advisory Committee and three members appointed, two by the Governor and one Anthem, Inc. Board members must be residents of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The Board selects and employs an executive director who is responsible for the day-to-day operations and staff of the foundation.
Q. What is the Community Advisory Committee?
A. The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is a 31-member committee of Kentuckians who advise the board regarding overall policy direction and adherence to the foundation’s mission and serve as a link between the foundation and the people of the commonwealth.
Q. How were the foundation's areas of focus decided?
A. Because the Foundation's mission is broad, the Board of Directors decided to select two-high impact focus areas that will shape initiatives. To assist in the selection of focus areas, FHKY held a series of Community Planning Workshops throughout Kentucky during the months of May, June and July, 2002. About 350 concerned Kentuckians attended and participated in these meetings.
Q. What are the foundation’s focus areas?
A. Using the research findings from community meetings held throughout Kentucky, the foundation’s board of directors has established two initial focus areas for its initiatives:
#1. Health education and prevention programs for children and families with emphasis on nutrition and fitness and on youth smoking and substance abuse prevention.
#2. Access to health services and care with emphasis on low-income, uninsured and rural populations with special focus on access to integrated mental health services.
Q. Who are the foundation’s endowed chairs?
A. The Foundation donated $1 million to the University of Kentucky and $1 million to the University of Louisville to establish endowed chairs in health policy. Both donations were matched through the state’s Research Challenge Trust Fund ("Bucks for Brains"). Dr. Michael Samuels at UK focuses on rural health policy. Larry Palmer at U of L focuses on urban health policy. Both are nationally recognized experts in their respective fields.
Q. Why did the Foundation establish the endowed chairs?
A. The board of directors found it important to establish endowed chairs in an effort to enhance Kentucky’s research capacity related to health policy. The opportunity to have the Foundation’s gifts matched by the Research Challenge Trust Fund made this a unique opportunity to attract nationally recognized experts to Kentucky.
Q. Who has the Foundation funded?
A. Since 2001, the Foundation has committed $8 million to grantmaking beginning with its first grants of $1 million each to the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville to establish endowed chairs in health policy. Most recently, the Foundation sponsored several grant initiatives including small grants to community based organizations, general support grants to health advocacy organizations, planning grants to communities to develop strategies for comprehensive primary care services. To read about the Foundation’s grantmaking and current initiatives visit What We Fund on this website.