John A. Hartford Foundation
OVERVIEW: The John A. Hartford Foundation’s grantmaking focuses on improving healthcare for elderly people in the U.S.
IP TAKE: Hartford’s current grantmaking priorities research on best practices in eldercare and the dissemination of evidence-based research findings in this area. The foundation has also made several grants for the recognition of and collaboration with family caregivers by large-scale health organizations. Grants have been awarded in amounts of up to $2 million. The foundation does not accept unsolicited applications, but contact information for program officers is available at the foundation’s staff page.
PROFILE: Founded in 1929, the Manhattan-based John A. Hartford Foundation was established as a philanthropic outlet for John A. Hartford and his brother George L. Hartford, both former chief executives of the Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, which was also known as the A&P grocery chain. Though it started out in the field of biomedical research, the foundation has increasingly become focused on geriatric research, access and care. Today it focuses exclusively on improving “the care of older adults” through its three grantmaking areas: Age-Friendly Health Systems, Family Caregiving and Serious Illness and End of Life.
Hartford’s Age-Friendly Health Systems grants focus on evidence-based approaches to the improvement of eldercare and the integration of community supports in the care of older people. The Family Caregiving program, meanwhile, supports recognition and support of family caregivers by large-scale health systems. The Serious Illness and End of Life initiative aims to “increase access to high0quality palliative care,” as well as professional development in the area of palliative care and policy that supports the needs of families and patients. The foundation’s recent grantees include the diverse Elders Coalition, the Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging and the University of California Los Angeles, which received funding for a study of sustainable dementia care.
The John A. Hartford Foundation makes between $10 and $20 million a year in grants. Grants range anywhere from $10,000 to $2 million, with an average grant size of about $100,000. Most of the foundation’s larger grants support research on best practices in elder care and the dissemination of information that is likely to effect significant and wide-spread change in elder care. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s grants database.
This funder does not appear to run an open application program. However, the foundation offers contact information for its program officers on its staff page. The foundation may also be reached by telephone at 212-832-7788.
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