Funding Priorities

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We recognize the numerous opportunities to improve the health care system for people in Maryland, Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia.

To be truly successful in encouraging and supporting change, we strive to focus our efforts in programs where we can make the most impact. Periodically, we conduct a health needs assessment to verify what areas need the most attention in our communities.

Our business practices and community efforts reflect four major priorities:

Health Care Quality and Safety

Each year, we invest in programs designed to improve patient safety and reduce medical errors. These programs benefit our members and non-members alike, helping raise the bar on health care quality and safety throughout the region.

Safety & Quality in America
In America, a little-known and disconcerting reality is that this country spends more on health care than any other industrialized nation, and still 44,000 to 98,000 Americans die each year as the result of medical errors.

Problem
Many patients with conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and asthma don't have their care managed adequately. As a result, billions of dollars are unnecessarily spent each year to address these shortcomings.

The need for improvement in health care quality and safety is evidenced by much more than mortality statistics.

Access to Health Care

While CareFirst can't control all the factors affecting health care costs, as a not-for-profit insurer, we take seriously our responsibility to keep health care affordable and accessible.

From a business perspective, CareFirst continues to make administrative and care management improvements to ensure our members get the most for their health care dollar.

To provide more options to the uninsured, CareFirst has focused on working closely with regulators and elected officials on important public programs to make health care coverage more widely available. CareFirst also seeks to contribute funds towards programs and initiatives that increase accessibility to health care services for underserved populations.

Health Care Disparities

The communities served by CareFirst are more diverse than ever. Hispanics represent the fastest growing minority group in CareFirst's Mid-Atlantic service area and the health risks of African American, Asian and other populations are creating new challenges for health care providers. Lack of health care insurance, language barriers, and variations in cultural norms mean that too many of the region's residents don't always receive the appropriate care to identify and treat illness.

CareFirst is building partnerships with organizations that understand the specific needs of these individual communities.

Health and Wellness

By focusing on wellness, preventive care and better managing chronic conditions, CareFirst can help keeps its members and the community healthier and reduce the costs associated with treatment of serious illness.

CareFirst is especially focused on supporting health care initiatives that focus on:

  • Asthma
  • Cancer
  • Cardiovascular
  • Childhood Obesity
  • Diabetes
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Maternal and Child Health

Focus of our Funding

We focus our funding efforts on four major priorities: