NYHealth’s 2019 Progress Report

Progress

• Protected and promoted Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to New Yorkers. This includes opposing federal proposals to restrict eligibility requirements and limit benefits, as well as recommending how incentives to buy fresh produce could be better incorporated into the SNAP program.
• Identified effective suicide prevention strategies for veterans used in other states and convened diverse stakeholders to jumpstart replication in New York.
• Responded to a range of requests for public comments, including on new price transparency requirements and for making health care information more easily available to patients.

Progress

• Facilitated peer-to-peer learning between communities. Neighborhood leaders and local organizations shared strategies and lessons learned on issues ranging from neighborhood safety to cultivating resident participation.
• Replicated successful strategies across neighborhoods. Syracuse’s Near Westside and Niagara Falls installed new murals on walking trails depicting messages about healthy eating. Niagara Falls is also replicating the Near Westside’s Kitchen Table Talks model.

Progress

• Activated approximately 15 parks and public spaces in 2019, including an inclusive play space for children of all abilities.
• Grantees in Lower East Side will activate alternative spaces in anticipation of local park closures for construction. East Harlem audited the Community Walking Trail and trained residents to use the 311 system app as a strategy for improving the built environment.
• Launched the Try Five Challenge to promote physical activity, led by the Clinton County Health Department.

Progress

• Supported new access points to healthier food; including an African Heritage food co-op in Niagara Falls and a food market in downtown Syracuse.
• Expanded access to a wider selection of healthier food options at existing access points, such as at locally-owned convenience stores, small grocery stores, and local eateries in Clinton County.
• Identified incentive programs across the State that increase the consumption of fresh produce by low-income New Yorkers. Recommended ways to make it easier for residents and vendors/food producers to participate in these programs.
• Niagara Falls completed its Local Food Action Plan, which was adopted by the City Council.

Progress

• Created new transparency tools and resources to arm New Yorkers with health care information:
  • Launched a consumer-driven campaign in partnership with local media to educate the public about price variations in shoppable health care services in New York City.
  • Invested in the development of a consumer-friendly interface for the all-payer database that New Yorkers will be able to use as a centralized go-to source for information on provider networks, prices, and quality.
  • Northeast Business Group on Health (NEBGH) partnered with Yelp to begin publishing maternity care measures for more than 50 hospitals across New York City and Long Island.
• Supported one of New York State’s largest self-insured employers to develop a High Value Maternity Network.
• Supported implementation of OpenNotes at federally qualified health centers to make doctors’ clinic notes accessible and actionable for patients.
• Released a statewide quality transparency survey that gathered New Yorkers’ perspectives on the types of health care quality measures that matter to them.

Progress

• Piloting a Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC) model that employs a technology platform to broaden patient voices in practice transformation.
• Supported a cohort of hospitals across New York State to achieve Planetree designation, an intensive training and reorientation process that positions a hospital to be a leader in patient and family engagement and person-centered care practices.
• Piloted a training program at 40 New York State hospitals to improve family presence and general visitation policies, including 24-hour presence programs, hospital website communications, and best practices for caregiver resources. An evaluation found that visitation policies improved, but there is more work to be done.

Progress

• Worked to add more consumer representatives to the New York State Public Health and Health Planning Council.
• Advised New York City Council on creating an Office of the Patient Advocate.
• Trained New Yorkers, especially in marginalized communities, to advocate for policy change on critical health issues and to communicate their stories, needs, and policy priorities.
• Supported campaign to increase patients’ capacity to drive health care reform, beginning with efforts to simplify medical billing.

Progress

• Organized numerous public events related to veterans’ issues, including:
  • “Conversation With” events with the former Secretary of Veterans Affairs, New York State’s newest director of Veterans’ Services, and the new leader of an emerging post-9/11 veteran service organization, as well as on issues facing veterans in upstate New York.
• Spoke at 17 events sponsored by others, including:
  • Grantmakers in Health
  • NYS Division of Veterans’ Services
  • NYS Division of Human Rights
  • The Council on Foundations
  • America’s Warrior Partnership
  • New York Funders Alliance
• Released a blueprint to increase effectiveness of the State’s division of veterans’ services.
• Convened a multi-stakeholder group to expand Veterans Treatment Courts (VTCs) across the State and create universal access for justice-involved veterans. Educated key policymakers on the benefits of VTCs. Garnered significant media attention and organized a coalition of supporters. By the end of 2019, both chambers of New York State’s Legislature introduced bills to create universal VTC access.

Progress

• Invested in veteran competency trainings for clinicians in New York City.
• Piloted a model for improving access and the quality of care veterans receive at a community health center. The work will test a model for replication by other community health centers.

Progress

265 letters of inquiry received:

• Nearly half of Special Projects Fund grants awarded in 2019 were to new grantees not previously funded by NYHealth.

Progress

• In 2019, Special Projects Fund grants addressed a wide range of topics, including access to mental health services by students of color to reduce campus suicide rates, health assessments for refugee/asylum seekers, and improving HPV vaccination rates among adolescents.
• Replicated programs proven to be effective in addressing the opioid crisis in other states, including The Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program, an evidence-based, harm-reduction oriented program designed to reduce low-level arrests and recidivism while promoting better health outcomes.
• Created a social media surveillance system designed to help New York’s public health officials, health care systems, and providers counter vaccine and other health disinformation initiatives occurring throughout the State.

Progress

• Produced analyses on pressing issues, including:
  • The potential impact of the new law to eliminate religious exemptions for school vaccination requirements in New York State.
  • Cost trends in New York’s commercial insurance market, highlighting the role of prices versus utilization in the growing costs.
  • Vaping in New York State, as a national outbreak of illnesses linked with vaping products continued to rise and health officials grew increasingly concerned.
  • The impact of New York’s surprise bill law, as well as considerations for further enhancements that can be made to continue New York’s leadership on an issue that is increasingly receiving attention nationally.

• Published peer-reviewed journal publication on the variation in health care spending across New York State, discussing potential implications for provider payment and delivery system reform.
• Published blog posts on the state of hospital price transparency efforts and alternative methods for setting public health benchmarks for counties across the country.

Progress

Publishing 

• Published 20 reports and 16 commentaries, in addition to 32 grant outcome reports.
• Published 8 op-eds and letters to the editor.

Traditional Media

• Received 165 media hits.

E-mail/Social Media

• Maintained more than 13,000 contacts on our e-mail lists.
  • Averaged 25% open rate for e-mail blasts (industry standard is 19%).
• Nearly 6,500 Twitter followers.

Convening

• Held 33 convenings; highlights include:
  • Large external conferences on the Foundation’s program areas of Building Healthy Communities and Veterans’ Health.
  • More than 3,700 views of NYHealth events via Facebook Live.

Website

• Continued to refine the website to support publications that are less text-heavy, more digestible, and more shareable and interactive.
• Continued to experiment with dynamic infographics on website and social media to increase engagement.

Progress

• As of December 31, 2019, the 3-year compound annual return on endowment investments was 9.6%, net of fees.
• Investment performance relative to peers for the 3-year period ending September 30, 2019 (latest comparison available) ranked in the 81st percentile.¹
• Maintained return of 6.7% since inception (July 2006).
• When compared with the benchmark of 5% plus CPI (Consumer Price Index) since inception, NYHealth was 0.1% below the benchmark.

¹ Peer data is based on a survey conducted by Cambridge Associates; “Peers” are defined as foundations with less than $500 million in assets. There are currently 60 foundations contributing such data.

Progress

• For 2018, NYHealth was certified with another clean audit.
• The average rating by grantees of NYHealth staff members responsiveness was 6.1 (out of a 7-point scale), placing NYHealth highly relative to peer foundations.²
• In 2019, all grantees received their initial payment within an average of 11 days of receiving an award notice.

²  Based on the 2019 Center for Effective Philanthropy Grantee Perception Survey.