A Lasting Legacy

Then-Attorney General Ben Chandler files suit to keep the charitable assets from Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Kentucky.

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The Community Advisory Council is formed and advises on the structure and mission of the new Foundation.

The Foundation is officially created.

Endowed Chairs are created at the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville.

Rita Moya was named executive director.

Community planning workshops are held across the commonwealth.

The Foundation holds its inaugural health policy forum.

The Foundation invests in 17 school districts to implement its Coordinated School Health Initiative.

Grants for increased media coverage of health policy issues begin. Grantees include Louisville Public Media, KET (Kentucky Educational Television), and the Institute for Rural Journalism.

Susan Zepeda joins the Foundation as chief executive officer.

The Foundation joins with Leadership Kentucky to convene the first Kentucky Leadership Institute on Health.

The Foundation helps form Kentucky Voices for Health to work on health care access in the commonwealth.

In addition, the Foundation funds 28 community grants focused on local solutions to local issues.

The Kentucky Health Issues Poll, in partnership with Interact for Health, is launched. The poll captures a snapshot of Kentucky adults’ views on various health topics.

KentuckyHealthFacts.org is developed to provide county-level health data.

The Kentucky Healthy Futures Initiative matches $3 million in Federal Social Innovation Fund grants at the Foundation and local levels to invest $12 million to increase health services in underserved communities in 91 Kentucky counties.

Health for a Change launches as a series of in-person workshops and online webinars to build capacity of grantees and other nonprofit health organizations.

The Foundation also helps establish Grantmakers in Kentucky, a statewide coalition of funders.

The Foundation launches the Investing in Kentucky’s Health and Promoting Responsive Health Policy initiatives.

The first Kentucky Health Coalitions Directory is published and the Foundation commissions the Kentucky Parent Survey.

The Foundation holds its first Data! Forum.

The Foundation opens (c)space, a coworking space for community minded businesses and nonprofits.

The Foundation launches a 34-month study of the impact of the Affordable Care Act in Kentucky. Read the reports.

The Foundation convenes Medicaid Waiver stakeholders and testifies before state lawmakers on a Medicaid reform proposal.

Ben Chandler is named Preisdent and CEO of the Foundation.

Adding Tobacco-Use Reduction to the Foundation’s health priorities, FHKY launches and leads the Coalition for a Smoke-Free Tomorrow, bringing together more than 160 organizations to advocate for research-based policies that reduce tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke and other emissions.

The Kentucky Health Policy Champion Award program is created to recognize individuals and organizations dedicated to improving Kentucky’s health through policy change.

Creating a Culture of Health in Appalachia: Disparities and Bright Spots, a joint report with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Appalachian Regional Commission, and Foundation lays the groundwork for policy advocacy efforts in the region.

The Foundation united with The Friedell Committee for Health System Transformation to strengthen advocacy for state and local policies for improving health in Kentucky.

The Kentucky Healthy Policy Champions Award is renamed the Gil Friedell Health Policy Champion Award.

Focus on Flu campaign, in partnership with the Kentucky Medical Association and Kentucky Foundation for Medical Care, launches to encourage Kentuckians to get their annual flu shot.

FHKY leverages relationships with elected leaders, state agencies and community partners to help prevent 100,000 Kentuckians from losing health insurance. Read the case study here.

Tobacco-Use Reduction-related wins include passage of the first excise tax on e-cigarettes, the Tobacco 21 law, and tobacco-free school campuses law. The Foundation also launches the “I Just Didn’t Know” campaign that featured Kentucky teens talking to teens about the dangers of e-cigarettes.

The Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children launches to advocate for policies and programs in the school setting to improve children’s health.

In 2019, Russell County, KY Schools and Lake Cumberland District Health Department were selected for a rural pilot of Healthy Kentucky’s ACEs program. Implemented by the Bounce Coalition, work included professional development for teachers, staff and bus drivers; student peer support groups; and education for parents, caregivers and the entire community.

Watch: Building Resistance, Improving Health and Academic Outcomes

The Rural ACEs Project concluded in 2022.

In the face of a worldwide pandemic, the Foundation added on public education efforts to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Kentucky. The “Wear It For Me” campaigns asked Kentuckians to prepare, protect and disinfect. “Raise Your Guard, KY,” meantime, encouraged Kentuckians to schedule their annual visit with their health care provider and stay up-to-date on immunizations.

In addition, the Foundation supported the Co-Immunity Project, a COVID-19 wastewater testing program, which provided early warning of potential outbreaks, in Louisville, Graves County, and Northern Kentucky.

The Foundation launches COVID-19 vaccine public service announcement campaigns. “Take It From Me” features health care providers and survivors from across the commonwealth. “I Got the Shot” directly responds to questions and concerns about the vaccines voiced by Black Kentuckians. “High Five for Health” speaks to parents of children ages 5 – 11 years about the COVID-19 vaccine.

2021 – 2022 Healthy Kids in Schools (CATCH Grants)

Healthy Kentucky awarded eight Appalachian schools $6,250 grants to implement the Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH) Program during the 2021 – 2022 school year. The evidence-based program is designed to improve nutrition, increase physical activity, prevent obesity, and create a culture of wellness supported by school policies.

The schools were:

• Adair County Middle, Columbia, Adair County

• Bevins Elementary, Sidney, Pike County

• Blaine Elementary, Blaine, Lawrence County

• Louisa East Elementary, Louisa, Lawrence County

• Catlettsburg Elementary, Catlettsburg, Boyd County

• Fairview Elementary, Ashland, Boyd County

• Hustonville Elementary, Hustonville, Lincoln County

• Owsley County High, Booneville, Owsley County

Public Service Campaigns
Healthy Kentucky earns three grants to support work educating Kentuckians about the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines and boosters and encouraging them to talk to their health care providers and make the right decision for themselves and their families. Grant partners included Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Kentucky Department of Education and Kentucky Association of Health Plans. Grants totaled more than $1,255,000.

ACEs Work
FHKY expands its work to increase the number of trauma-informed schools and communities to Fayette County Public Schools and Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, as well as work with the Family Resource and Youth Service Centers (FRYSC).

The Rural ACEs project with Russell County Schools and the Lake Cumberland District Health Department wraps up in June. Key successes include:

• Train the trainer” – now 26 trainers in LCDHD and RCSD. Continuing the work in the community.

• Elementary student suspensions decreased by 50 percent.

• Climate survey showed improved outcomes on 71 percent of survey items such as, “caring,” “belonging,” and “safety” for elementary students.

• Teachers reported increased ability to respond to students’ needs: from 43.6 percent to 97.1 percent reporting “adequate” or “extensive” skills.

Hope for a healthier future: community addresses childhood trauma

West End Opportunity Partnership
The Foundation contributes $100,000 to the West End Opportunity Partnership, an initiative to subsidize new development in west Louisville. The donation helped the partnership reach a $10M fundraising goal that unlocked $10M from the state and $10M from Louisville Metro.

Medicaid Expansion
Governor Andy Beshear asks Foundation President and CEO Ben Chandler to speak at an news conference announcing the expansion of Medicaid services to 900,000 to include dental, vision, and hearing care. The move will improve lives and boost workforce participation.