ONE STEP CLOSER TO DEVELOPING A GROUNDBREAKING
‘PAY FOR SUCCESS’ MODEL FOR MEALS ON WHEELS
We were happy to announce earlier this month that we received $250,000 from the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) as part of a federal effort powered by the Corporation for National and Community Service’s Social Innovation Fund to address entrenched social problems. The funds will allow Meals on Wheels America, in partnership with Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland and Quantified Ventures, to structure a replicable Pay for Success project in Baltimore, MD to provide nutritious meal delivery, in-home safety checks, socialization, and case management services to vulnerable older adults at risk of acute care utilization.
The aim of this project is to improve quality of life for seniors and avoid unnecessary healthcare costs through the provision of services aimed at improved health outcomes for seniors. This model is consistent with the larger shift in healthcare from fee-for-service to value-based care. It is our hope that this groundbreaking project will serve as a replicable model for the Meals on Wheels network to scale across the country.
Meals on Wheels America’s award is one of several subgrants from NFF's Social Innovation Fund allocation, designed to address areas of social need, including economic opportunity, healthy futures, and youth development.
PAY FOR SUCCESS 101
While relatively new, Pay for Success is an approach to contracting that ties payment for service delivery to the achievement of measurable outcomes – an approach that we feel could be a complete win-win for the Meals on Wheels network and communities at large. The movement towards Pay for Success contracting is a means of ensuring that high-quality, effective social services are working for individuals and communities. To learn more about Pay for Success, check out the Nonprofit Finance Fund’s Pay for Success 101.
With more than 12,000 Americans turning 60 each day, traditional funding sources lagging, and the healthcare system overburdened, it is the goal of Meals on Wheels America to leave no stone unturned in advancing our evidence-based model. We look forward to keeping Members abreast of this project’s success as it develops.
JOIN US AT CONFERENCE TO LEARN MORE
Eric Letsinger, Founder and President of Quantified Ventures, will be exploring how Pay for Success and Social Impact Bonds could be used to scale your organization’s operations and enhance the important services you provide to your customers at the 2016 Meals on Wheels Annual Conference and Expo in Nashville. Join us for Emerging Trends in Social Investing – Future Revenue Opportunities on Wednesday, August 31 from 2:45 – 4:00 p.m.
COMMON POLICY MYTHS DISPELLED THROUGH RECENTLY RELEASED EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Dispelling Myths: Support Public Policy for Greater Impact and Sustainability is the result of a year-long research project funded by the Retirement Research Foundation aimed at increasing our network’s understanding of the opportunities and limitations that exist within states’ policy that guide the implementation of the Older Americans Act Nutrition Program. The newly released Executive Summary aids in achieving just that by identifying and debunking the most commonly cited policy myths.
Thanks to your participation in various focus groups and surveys, we were able to not only identify common myths, but also understand why they were formed to begin with and identify the promising solutions to further increase our network’s knowledge of persistent policy and programmatic barriers and their ability to address these challenges.
ACCESS THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY HERE
JOIN US FOR A FULL DEBRIEF
Research Policy Fellow Lindsay Houff is leading a free informational webinar on August 10 at 3:30 p.m. EDT to go over the project’s high-level findings and address any research-related questions you may have.
REGISTER NOW
EIGHT BUSINESS ACUMEN MINI-GRANTS OF $10,000 EACH AWARDED
Eight Mini-Grants of $10,000 each, offered by the National Resource Center on Nutrition and Aging (NRCNA), were officially awarded to cover consultant and other business expenses associated with forging partnerships with healthcare entities. Please join us in congratulating the following programs:
Community Emergency Service, Minneapolis MN
Elmview Senior Nutrition, Ellensberg, WA
Meals on Wheels Northwest Indiana, Merrillville, IN
Minuteman Senior Services, Bedford, MA
Meals on Wheels of Greater Pittsburg, Pittsburg, PA
Southern Maine Agency on Aging, Scarborough, ME
St Joseph Community Services, Inc, Merrimack, NH
Visiting Nurses Association-Meals on Wheels, Dallas, TX
Online and in-person training, in addition to late-breaking reports and resources are available on the NRCNA’s site here. For more information, please contact the NRCNA at 703-548-5558 or resourcecenter@mealsonwheelsamerica.org. The NRCNA is hosted by Meals on Wheels America as part of a cooperative agreement with the Administration on Aging, part of the Administration for Community Living. Visit www.nutritionandaging.org to learn more about the NRCNA and to access more valuable resources for the national aging network.