Medica Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Medica Foundation makes grants for behavioral health, children’s health and health organizations serving rural areas. Grants are currently limited to organizations in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Iowa, though the foundation is considering opening grant programs in other states.
IP TAKE: Medica supports health and mental health organizations serving communities in the states of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Iowa through its grantmaking programs for behavioral health, early childhood health and rural health. More than half of all grants remain in Minnesota. This funder appears to prioritize small, community-based health organizations, but has given to a number of larger hospital systems as well. Faith-based and indigenous groups have also received support.
Medica accepts applications from organizations in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Grantmaking for Nebraska and Iowa is by invitation only, and the foundation aims to expand to a few more states in the coming years. This is a relatively accessible funder that is also responsive.
PROFILE: The Medica Foundation was established in 1992 as the philanthropic arm of Medica Health Plans, a nonprofit HMO based in Minnesota. The foundation seeks to fund “community-based initiatives and programs that support the needs of […] customers and the greater community by improving their health and removing barriers to health care services.” Medica’s grantmaking has three primary focus areas: Behavioral Health, Early Childhood Health and Rural Health.
Grants for Mental Health
Medica’s Behavioral Health grants support early interventions for mental health and prioritize “a continuum of behavioral health programs that make it easier for people to receive a full range of medical and behavioral health services.” Specific areas of interest include gaps in service, integrating physical and mental health, backing case management services and supporting evidence-based screening, assessment, diagnostic, treatment and prevention services. The foundation also offers grants to groups that address the mental and physical health of people living with disabilities and organizations that provide addiction services. Behavioral health grants are awarded in amounts of up to $50,000. Grantees include Mental Health Resources of St. Paul and Life House, Inc. of Duluth, Minnesota.
Grants for Public Health
Medica’s grantmaking for public health stems from its Early Childhood Health and Rural Health funding programs. Early childhood grants support “early intervention programs that focus on developing healthy families to foster optimal growth and development of young children,” and can reach $25,000. The foundation prioritizes proposals from groups “exhibiting trauma sensitive practices and using a strengths-based approach to care.” Past grantees include Minneapolis’s Washburn Center for Children and Saint David’s Center for Child and Family Development in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
Rural health grants support organizations that focus on community-led solutions to health and access issues in rural areas. The foundation believes rural regions understand their own specific health needs best, and that funding should complement rather than distract from this. Rural health grants are awarded in amounts of up to $5,000. Recent grants have gone to organizations including the Douglas County Community Health Clinic in Wisconsin and the Volunteer Interfaith Network Effort in Mankato, Minnesota.
The foundation also awards Emergency Relief Grants of $10,000 to $50,000 to support local indigenous and public health clinics and organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recipients include Minnesota’s Big Lake Community Food Shelf and the Community Action Partnership of Mid-Nebraska.
Important Grant Details:
The Medica Foundation has made between $1 and $2 million in grants a year over the past several years. Medica accepts applications for funding from groups serving Minnesota. Its Nebraska grants are by invitation only. Its North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin focus area is still being determined, and it is not currently making grants within its Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arizona funding area. This funder supports organizations ranging from large regional healthcare systems to small community-led groups, including several faith-based and indigenous groups. To learn more about Medica grantees, explore its Grant Recipients page.
Applicants should read the foundation’s grant application page before submitting materials. General inquiries may be directed to the foundation via email or telephone at 952-992-2060.
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