HealthWell Foundation
When health insurance is not enough.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
To ensure that no patient goes without health care because they cannot afford it.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
HealthWell Copayment and Premium Assistance Programs
The HealthWell Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2003 that is committed to addressing the needs of individuals with insurance who cannot afford their copayments, coinsurance, and premiums for important medical treatments. Our vision is to ensure that no patient goes without health care because they cannot afford it.The HealthWell Foundation provides financial assistance to people with inadequate insurance who are living with chronic or life-altering illnesses. To date, HealthWell has awarded assistance to over 405,000 patients in over 65 disease areas.
Where we work
Awards
4-Star Charity 2017
Charity Navigator
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Average grant amount
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
HealthWell Copayment and Premium Assistance Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of patients assisted
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
HealthWell Copayment and Premium Assistance Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Life-to-date total number of patients assisted through 2024: 1 million+
Total dollar amount of grants awarded
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
HealthWell Copayment and Premium Assistance Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In 2023, we awarded $1,081,984,824 through 217,740 grants
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Our vision is to ensure that no patient, adult or child, goes without essential medical treatments because they cannot afford them.
HealthWell recognizes its responsibility as a charitable patient assistance organization to operate both efficiently and with utmost integrity. We strive to be the industry leader and innovator in the copay space adhering to practices that are of the highest ethical and compliance standards. To that end, our core goals are to:
• Assist the maximum number of patients each year with their cost-sharing obligations based on available funding
• Achieve and maintain efficient operations to maximize the proportion of each donated dollar going directly to patients
• Expand HealthWell's viability and sustainability by helping patients in new disease areas and with new areas of copayment assistance
• Increase revenue while maintaining low fundraising costs.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Our commitment to those we serve has always been to make their HealthWell experience as seamless and as user-friendly as possible.
HealthWell continues to leverage its capabilities to further improve customer experience and program efficiency through a series of operational, IT and administrative enhancements. We recently implemented program enhancements to make it even easier – and faster – for patients, providers and pharmacies to apply for and manage their HealthWell grants. This includes streamlining our grants process by offering secure online portals, instant grant approvals and real-time pharmacy cards which makes if possible for applicants to get approved instantly and begin using their grant the same day they apply.
In addition, HealthWell continues to diversify its funding streams and expand assistance to new diseases areas as well as new areas of copayment assistance. To date, HealthWell has awarded more than 368,000 grants in over 50 therapeutic categories to more than 250,000 underinsured Americans in need of financial assistance.
HealthWell is also expanding its support of America's underinsured. While we continue to provide grants to help patients access life-changing medical treatments, we are moving beyond traditional copayment assistance to address patient needs for premium assistance as well as assistance with out-of-pocket costs for supplies, supplements, surgeries and more.
We take pride in being consistently lean so we can stretch our dollars and provide maximum direct financial support to people who come to us. This is our mission and our commitment. All administrative and fundraising costs are financed by HealthWell and are not taken out of any donation, which means that 100% of every donated dollar goes directly to patient grants and services.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
For well over a decade, the HealthWell Foundation has supported America's underinsured by providing them with a financial lifeline. Since our founding in 2003, we have assisted more than 250,000 patients with grants to help them with their cost-sharing obligations for essential medical treatments. HealthWell has moved beyond traditional copayment assistance to address patient needs for premium assistance as well as assistance with out-of-pocket costs for supplies, supplements, surgeries and more.
Donors, patients, providers and patient support communities place their trust in HealthWell because we take our responsibilities seriously and strive to be the industry leader in practices that meet the highest ethical and compliance.
HealthWell is governed by an independent Board of Directors that includes professionals in the fields of health care administration, clinical practice and research, direct patient care, patient advocacy and health law. HealthWell's dedicated staff of twelve oversee and manage the day-to-day program.
HealthWell has a proven track record of using donations effectively and efficiently. HealthWell received Charity Navigator's Four Star Charity rating indicating that it exceeds industry standards and outperforms most peer organizations. Additionally, HealthWell is ranked on The Chronicle of Philanthropy's annual “Philanthropy 400" list of America's largest charities.
Through our relationships with national organizations who are key influencers in a variety of disease communities, we have mutually expanded awareness of our programs and services resulting in a broader reach to those who need us most.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Since launching our first fund in 2004, HealthWell has provided over $630 million in assistance to more than 250,000 patients covering more than 50 disease areas. In 2016, HealthWell celebrated a record year in corporate and individual donations to support the launch of new funds and the continued operation of existing programs.
Demand for HealthWell's services continues to grow each year.
Moving forward, our focus will remain on diversifying and strengthening our funding streams to meet growing patient demand in addition to expanding assistance to new diseases states and new areas of copayment assistance.
On the operational side, utilizing state-of-the-art technologies, we will continue to identify ways to realize more program efficiencies to help even more patients in need.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
HealthWell Foundation
Board of directorsas of 11/05/2024
David Knowlton
Donald Liss, MD
Stephen Weiner
Nancy Carteron, MD, FACR
David Knowlton
Suzanne Miller, PhD
Jerri Scarzella, BSN
Cathleen Bennett, Esq.
David Ertel
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No