For a decade, the Healthy Aging grant program has represented the Health Fund’s commitment — embedded in our mission — to the idea that all people in our state should have opportunities and support to age well.
On November 5, the Health Fund Board of Directors approved 27 new grants totaling $9.2 million for work that supports the health, well-being, and independence of older adults across Michigan. Grants support work around four primary strategic areas: access to care, caregiving, elder justice, and support for Michigan residents living with dementia.
“Our team is proud to support our partners in this new cohort as they carry out innovative and proven ways to improve care and support for older adults all across Michigan,” said Phil Lewis, Healthy Aging Director.
“We see this year’s projects complementing our previous investments in many key areas and anticipate them having far-ranging impacts, including increasing access to oral health, vision, and palliative care, providing more inclusive care for LGBTQ+ older adults, ensuring better identification of elder mistreatment in emergency departments, and improving cancer care in Tribal Health Centers.”
Across all proposals, the Healthy Aging team looked for projects that center the voice and dignity of older adults in their approach, advance health equity and remove barriers to care, and work collaboratively to impact issues at every level through interconnected, systems-level solutions. Many projects addressed all of these important areas.
For example, a grant to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center will support an 18-month planning process that will lay the groundwork for a holistic caregiver identification, engagement, and support program with Michigan health care organizations.
This effort aims to close critical gaps within health care systems that often leave caregivers overlooked, unsupported, and left out of important clinical decisions and processes. Older adults, caregivers, and clinicians will play important roles in shaping and co-designing solutions.
Other supported work includes a trio of projects that address key regional or statewide needs to advance elder justice. For example, a grant to Macomb County will support integrated emergency housing and supportive services for older adults in the county who experience abuse.
Meanwhile, a grant to Henry Ford Health will create a statewide model to identify and respond to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation in emergency departments. And a grant to Michigan Statewide Advocacy Services will create a web-based hub of legal information and resources for people subject to guardianship or conservatorship — restrictive legal mechanisms that can severely limit autonomy and independence for older adults.
In addition to those grants approved today, the Healthy Aging program invested more than $770,000 in six projects earlier this year. These grants were awarded outside our traditional grant timeline to address strategic, time-sensitive opportunities for impact. Combined, grantmaking for Healthy Aging in 2026 totaled just under $10 million across 33 projects.
A complete list of our latest Healthy Aging grants can be found below. Visit our grant database to learn more about these and all of our current and past grants.
HEALTHY AGING GRANTS
Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired
Vision Rehabilitation Assistive Technology for Older Adults — $132,500
Battle Creek Community Foundation (Sponsored organization: Miles for Memories)
CARDS — $245,000
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Planning a Holistic Approach to Identify, Engage and Support Care Partners in Clinical Settings — $300,000
Birmingham Area Seniors Coordinating Council DBA Next
Music and Art Therapy with Caregiver Support for Alzheimer’s and Dementia Wellness — $63,340
Gay Elders of Metro Detroit DBA MiGen
Michigan LGBTQ+ Elders Network (MiGen) LGBTQ+ Inclusive PACE Project – Phase 2 — $300,000
Greater Flint Health Coalition
Advancing “What Matters” in Age-Friendly Systems of Care — $363,879
Hannan Center
Community Based, Community Powered Respite — $442,000
Henry Ford Health System
Advancing a Statewide Model for Identification and Response to Elder Mistreatment in Emergency Care — $594,468
Hospice of Muskegon County Inc DBA Harbor Hospice
Improving End of Life Care with A Pilot of Advanced Therapy in Hospice (A-PATH) — $449,066
Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan
Enhancing Cancer Screening Access for Tribal Elders Through Patient Navigation — $500,000
Literacy Center of West Michigan
Improving Healthcare for Older Adults by Addressing Healthcare Worker Shortage — $500,000
Lorenzo’s House
Plan for and Build a Younger-Onset Dementia (YOD) Informed and Supportive Michigan — $247,000
Macomb County
Safe Haven Macomb — $215,000
Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute for Texas
Healthy Aging Through Integrated Behavioral Health & Dementia Care in Michigan — $400,000
MHA Keystone Center
Michigan Caregiver Navigation: Scaling Implementation Across a Multi-Hospital Health System — $450,043
Miami University
U.P. Creative Aging Learning Collaborative: Connecting Rural Michigan Through Creative Aging — $234,786
Michigan Center for Rural Health
Advancing Age-Friendly Emergency Care and Community Support for Rural Older Adults — $547,642
Michigan Peer Review Organization DBA iMPROve Health
Healthy Smiles for Older Adults: Improving Oral Health Care and Access — $163,510
Michigan Statewide Advocacy Services
MEJI/MAGIC & Michigan Legal Help Guardianship Education, Information, and Tools Project — $196,702
PACE Southeast Michigan
Bringing Care Home: A Mobile Clinic Pilot for High-Risk Older Adults — $300,000
Pope Francis Center
Capacity Building to Develop a Coordinated Aftercare Model for Older Adults — $125,000
Regents of the University of Michigan
A Telehealth Model to Scale the “Hands and Health at Home” Program for Homebound Older Adults — $393,164
Resthaven
Expanding Certified Medication Aide (CMA) Utilization in Skilled Nursing — $291,106
Tawas Wellness Warriors Inc
WISE WARRIOR PROGRAM – Wellness Programming for Aging Adults — $148,750
The Senior Alliance Area Agency on Aging 1-C
Steadfast Caregiver Program — $507,347
Thunder Bay Community Health Service, Inc.
Integrated Healthy Aging & Geriatric Service Line — $750,000
Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine
A Medical Home for the Unhoused: Supporting Healthy Aging Through Health and Housing Partnerships — $404,190