Deadline: 27-Oct-2025
The NIHCM Foundation is offering an exciting opportunity for journalists and educators to pursue projects that can inform managed care organizations, policymakers, health care consumers, and other stakeholders about critical issues in the U.S. health care system.
With a focus on improving affordability, quality, and public understanding, these grants are designed to support reporting and educational initiatives that highlight key challenges and opportunities in health care, ultimately contributing to better health outcomes and more effective care delivery.
One major area of interest is affordability. The Foundation seeks projects that explore the many factors influencing the cost of health care and that can shed light on policies or industry practices impacting affordability. These efforts aim to provide clarity on issues that directly affect patients and policymakers. Pharmaceutical access and pricing is another priority, with particular emphasis on drug patents, transparency, and strategies for lowering costs. Special attention is being given to work around GLP-1 agonists and similar medications, given their growing role in patient care.
Provider consolidation and changing market dynamics also feature prominently among the Foundation’s interests. Projects that examine how mergers, acquisitions, and competition affect patient access, pricing, and quality of care are encouraged. Similarly, the Foundation is looking to support reporting that unpacks evolving health care delivery models and evaluates how they can balance cost control with efficiency and improved patient outcomes.
Chronic disease management is another vital theme. The NIHCM Foundation welcomes projects that delve into the complexities of long-term health conditions and explore how innovation in care and policy can reduce costs while improving the quality of life for patients. Additionally, the transformative potential of artificial intelligence and machine learning in health care is an area of growing interest. Projects that investigate how AI tools are shaping health care delivery, efficiency, patient outcomes, and even challenges like coding intensity and security concerns are particularly encouraged.
Support from the program can be used for a range of activities, including investigative reporting, in-depth writing, data visualizations, short-form videos, and engagement strategies for documentaries. The funding is not intended for full production costs but instead emphasizes initiatives that strengthen understanding of health care management, financing, organization, and delivery.
Applications are open to a wide pool of professionals. Journalists from local and national print, broadcast, and digital outlets are encouraged to apply, regardless of whether they are affiliated with nonprofit or for-profit organizations. Freelancers are welcome to participate, as are universities, nonprofits, and documentary filmmakers, provided their proposals focus on the U.S. health care system. This opportunity gives storytellers and educators the resources to produce impactful work that can shape public awareness, inform decision-makers, and contribute to meaningful improvements in American health care.
For more information, visit NIHCM Foundation.