(Press-News.org) Boston, MA – Today, the Kraft Center for Community Health at Mass General Brigham announced the launch of the inaugural Kraft Prize for Excellence and Innovation in Community Health. This national prize seeks to honor a transformative organization, program or innovation that is making a measurable impact on health outcomes and has the potential to become a scalable model for addressing community health.
“We established The Kraft Center for Community Health with a mission to expand access to high-quality, cost-effective healthcare for medically underserved patients, families, and communities,” said Robert Kraft, chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group. “We are proud to offer this prize and support innovative approaches that have the potential to make transformative changes in community health.”
The recipient of the Kraft Prize will be awarded $100,000 and be provided entry and travel accommodations for up to two people to present at the Mass General Brigham World Medical Innovation Forum (WMIF). The WMIF brings together more than 2,000 global leaders from across industries to collaborate on transformative health solutions. The Kraft Center for Community Health will also provide tailored and unique support to the prize-winning team, including access to Mass General Brigham’s extensive Innovation MESH Network and MESH Core, linking them to other innovators, collaborators, and resources to enhance and further their important work. Additionally, two finalists will receive $10,000 each and will be invited to attend the WMIF.
Priority areas for the prize include cardiometabolic disease, substance use disorder, cancer, and maternal health. These would also include efforts to address social factors such as housing stability, food insecurity, and economic mobility that impact health outcomes. Applicants should demonstrate a clear and measurable impact on community health in at least one of the priority areas and be able to show community engagement in the development and implementation of the innovation.
“At the Kraft Center for Community Health, we take great pride in our innovative programming to bring critical addiction services, maternal health care, and cancer care to populations with the greatest need,” said Elsie Taveras, MD, MPH, Chief Community Health and Health Equity Officer at Mass General Brigham and Executive Director of the Kraft Center for Community Health. “This prize will recognize the exceptional work that is being done across the country to develop creative solutions for some of the most pressing issues in community health.”
Eligibility is open to U.S.-based community health practitioners, healthcare professionals, non-profit organizations, private-sector leaders, innovators and inventors. Applicants will be required to apply through the Application Portal and submit two letters of support from community partners or organizations by April 4, 2025. Additionally, at least one member of the winning team must attend and present at the 2025 WMIF on September 15-17, 2025 in Boston.
The WMIF is an annual event that brings together global leaders to address the latest opportunities and challenges in the investment landscape, key technology developments, manufacturing, and regulatory barriers. The Kraft Prize winner will join other thought leaders at this event, where cutting-edge innovations in healthcare will be explored across a variety of therapeutic areas.
Application Timeline:
Application Opens: February 6, 2025
Applications Due: April 4, 2025
Application Review Period: April–May 2025
Prize Recipient and Finalists Notified: June 2025
World Medical Innovation Forum: September 15–17, 2025
For more information about the Kraft Prize and to apply, visit massgeneralbrigham.org/kraftprize.
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About the Kraft Center for Community Health
The Kraft Center for Community Health at Mass General Brigham was established with the mission to expand access to high-quality, cost-effective healthcare for medically underserved patients and communities. Founded in 2011 through a generous donation by Robert Kraft, the Center aims to catalyze innovative solutions to real world community health problems, execute solutions locally, and make them scalable and ready to spread nationally to improve health outcomes for disadvantaged populations nationally. The Kraft Center is an innovation leader across the Mass General Brigham system, specializing in programmatic design and implementation to improve healthcare equity and reduce disparities. For more information, please visit kraftcommunityhealth.org.
About Mass General Brigham
Mass General Brigham is an integrated academic health care system, uniting great minds to solve the hardest problems in medicine for our communities and the world. Mass General Brigham connects a full continuum of care across a system of academic medical centers, community and specialty hospitals, a health insurance plan, physician networks, community health centers, home care, and long-term care services. Mass General Brigham is a nonprofit organization committed to patient care, research, teaching, and service to the community. In addition, Mass General Brigham is one of the nation’s leading biomedical research organizations with several Harvard Medical School teaching hospitals. For more information, please visit massgeneralbrigham.org.
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