May 4, 2000 | Read Time: 2 minutes
Foundations formed when non-profit hospitals and other health-care providers converted to for-profit status now hold more than $15.6-billion in assets, according to a new report.
The foundations focus the great majority of their grants on health issues.
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ALSO SEE: Growth of Health-Care “Conversion” Foundations Report on New Health-Conversion Foundations |
Because private foundations are required to pay out an average of 5 percent of their assets annually, these new entities have the potential to provide at least $780-million in health-related funds a year, according to a report issued by Grantmakers In Health, a Washington group that works with health foundations. That would account for a large share of all health-related grants, which the Foundation Center estimated to total $1.9-billion in 1995.
The report is based on data from 122 foundations.
Most of the health foundations have been created since 1994, as non-profit hospitals, healthcare systems, and health-insurance plans were sold to or merged with for-profit companies or other non-profit groups. Many states require that some or all of the assets of such organizations continue to be used for charitable purposes, usually relating to the original charity’s mission.
The study found that 70 percent of the new foundations gave at least half of their grants to support health-related causes. “Many of them gave 100 percent for health issues,” says Saba Brelvi, a co-author of the report. She adds that the survey also asked foundations how much they gave to issues such as education — which some people might also consider health-related. Thus, Ms. Brelvi says, the actual amount going to finance health-related issues may be even higher than the foundations reported.
Some local citizens groups have repeatedly complained, however, that too much of the money goes to areas that have nothing to do with health care, such as the arts. Some have also argued that not enough of the original charities’ assets have ended up with the new foundations.
While the new foundations together hold significant assets, the size of the philanthropies varies greatly, the study found. The largest foundation, the California Endowment, had $3.5-billion in assets in 1999. The smallest, Andalusia Health Services, in Alabama, had $2.3-million. The median asset level (the amount at which half the funds held more and half held less) was $60.5-million.
Free copies of the report can be obtained by contacting Grantmakers In Health, 1100 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 1200, Washington 20036; (202) 452-8331; or sending an e-mail to mwiley@gih.org
| Year of conversion |
Number of health foundations |
Total assets |
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| 1999 | 4 | $177,000,000 |
| 1998 | 12 | $1,350,200,000 |
| 1997 | 10 | $459,300,000 |
| 1996 | 24 | $2,875,400,000 |
| 1995 | 22 | $2,455,100,000 |
| 1994 | 14 | $4,729,000,000 |
| 1993 | 2 | $74,900,000 |
| 1992 | 3 | $1,208,400,000 |
| 1991 | 1 | $102,700,000 |
| 1990 | 1 | $138,000,000 |
| 1989 | 1 | $40,300,000 |
| 1988 | 1 | $19,700,000 |
| 1987 | 2 | $100,900,000 |
| 1986 | 3 | $127,200,000 |
| 1985 | 7 | $1,194,700,000 |
| 1984 | 11 | $429,100,000 |
| 1983 | 2 | $26,700,000 |
| 1981 | 1 | $2,300,000 |
| 1973 | 1 | $36,100,000 |
| Total | 122 | $15,596,200,000 |
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| SOURCE: Grantmakers In Health | ||
