Giving to health-related causes rose 16 percent last year to a record $7.01 billion, the Association for Health Philanthropy reports in a recently released study.
Donations to health-focused Canadian organizations also surged, growing 11 percent to $1.2 billion according to 2005 data, the most recent year for which information is available.
Individuals in the U.S. provided the bulk of all contributions, some 60 percent, AHP President William McGinly told The Examiner, with U.S. businesses providing 18.2 percent of the funds.
Non-corporate foundations contributed 12.7 percent, and civic groups and public agencies chipped in another 9.9 percent. More than 300 institutions participated in the AHP survey.
The growth is being fueled by greater interest in medical issues among donors — an interest that is being tapped by nonprofits more keenly focused on raising money than they have been in the past.
“We’re seeing more CEOs of hospitals making fundraising a priority, and there is also growth in planned giving, especially by patients and their families,” said McGinly.
He also pointed to rising rates of public knowledge and understanding of the role that health-related philanthropy can play in supporting health facilities.
“We are educating the public more about health care, and how much even for-profit facilities give back into their communities,” he said. “Health philanthropy can’t solve the health care problem, but it can play a significant and vital role.”
The increased interest in hospitals and other health-centric nonprofits is helping local organizations.
“We are benefiting from grateful patients and their families,” said Julia Bilicki, Senior Director of Development, the National Rehabilitation Hospital in D.C. The 20-year-old facility receives grants from many former patients or others interested in specific issues, such as rehabilitation of children and orthopedic research.
“Our funders have helped us build an outdoor rehabilitation park with the latest tools and equipment, as well as new research centers here,” Bilicki told the Examiner.
NRH is the only hospital of its kind for children in the region. The District facility serves 2,200 in-patients and more than 300,000 out-patients a year. The money also goes into the hospital’s patient care assistance fund, Bilicki said, to help those without health insurance.
Both McGinly and Bilicki pointed to rising costs of operating health facilities as cutting increasingly into their bottom lines, leaving little left over for profit‚ or to reinvest in new equipment.
“When you look at that shrinking number, health-related giving is absolutely essential,” McGinly said.
Have information about area nonprofits? Contact Frank Sietzen at [email protected].
