OVERVIEW: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is the largest U.S. health philanthropy. Its public health grantmaking overlaps with issues of racial equity, health care access, community development and policy.
IP TAKE: With assets of over $13 billion, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is not only a major health grantmaker, but one of the largest foundations in the United States. In recent years, RWJF has increasingly targeted health equity and the social and racial factors that contribute to health outcomes. In 2025, foundation president Richard Besser reaffirmed the foundation’s commitments in light of “the severe consequences” that the Trump administration would likely wreak on “health in America.” RWJF is known for supporting evidence-based solutions, seeking multi-sector collaborations, and tackling advocacy and policy change. Its support for movement building and grassroots health organizations has steadily increased, though it still mainly gives to major institutions and larger nonprofits.
RWJF is a transparent funder and fairly accessible, issuing multiple calls for proposals and grant opportunities open each year. Opportunities change frequently, however, so grantseekers are advised to sign up for funding alerts via the RWJF newsletter and to check back often for updates. Some previous grantees have advised that networking and developing a relationship with RWJF program officers can go a long way toward securing funding.
PROFILE: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation was founded by General Robert Wood Johnson II, son of Robert Wood Johnson I, co-founder of pharmaceutical and medical supply giant Johnson & Johnson. Originally founded as the Johnson New Brunswick Foundation, its original mission was to address the needs and well-being of Middlesex County, New Jersey. In 1952, the foundation took on its current name and expanded its mission beyond New Jersey. Since 1972, RWJF has made grants for medical school student aid, health and medicine, public health, medical research, healthcare policy, and human services.
In 2016, the foundation reformulated its strategy to bring all of its grantmaking under the umbrella of creating a “Culture of Health.” RWJF is dedicated “to taking bold leaps to transform health in our lifetime” by “side-by-side with communities, practitioners, and institutions to achieve health equity faster and pave the way, together, to a future where health is no longer a privilege, but a right.”
This funder’s four focus areas include Transforming Health and Healthcare, Healthy Communities, Healthy Children and Families, and Leadership for Better Health. Within these four overarching focus areas, sub-areas include public and community health, healthcare coverage and access, equitable community development, housing policy and practice, and nurses and nursing, among other programs. RWJF posts active funding opportunities on its website.
Grants for Public Health, Racial Equity and Community Development
Public health is RWJF’s primary concern, but giving also addresses community health and the elimination of racial disparities in health outcomes. The foundation supports and promotes research, policy reform, impact investment, leadership development, and advocacy across all four of its focus areas:
- The foundation’s Transforming Health and Healthcare focus area aims to help “hospitals, health departments, insurers, community groups, and others work together to better understand and improve health equity and achieve better health for all.”
- A subprogram for Improving Healthcare Quality and Value works collaboratively with providers, consumers and policymakers to “ensure that everyone in America receives the right care at the right price” and that “everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible.”
- Closely related work stems from the foundation’s Expanding Healthcare Coverage and Access program, which specifically funds “research and programs to identify key gaps in healthcare coverage, access, and equity.”
- This focus area also makes grants that center on Strengthening Our Public and Community Health. This work aims to “expand our thinking” on community health by engaging stakeholders beyond healthcare providers in the health of the communities they serve.
- Grantees of the Transforming Health and Healthcare focus include the Pubic Private Strategies Institute, Insurance for Good, the People’s Action Institute of Chicago and Community Catalyst of Boston, which received funding for its Coverage and Care initiative to expand and improve Medicaid coverage and benefits.
Healthy Communities supports programs working to “create communities where the physical, economic, and social conditions ensure all residents have a fair opportunity to thrive.”
- Grants for Equitable Community Development, focus on “transforming neighborhoods to improve health and well-being.” Grats support research, community improvement and investment projects and “rural transformation” projects, among other areas of interest.
- Health Disparities funding works to “expose and combat structural racism, which is often at the core of health disparities throughout the U.S.” This subprogram is research-focused, but also supports communication and resources to improve community health.
- The focus area for Social Determinants of Health works to support communities as they “expand their commitment to addressing the social determinants of health so that everyone can live the healthiest life possible.” Areas of priority include housing, education, neighborhood safety and economic opportunity.
- The foundation also names health factors of importance, including data collection and analysis, community organizing for health equity, housing policy and investment in health infrastructure for underserved regions and communities.
- This focus area also includes the RWJF Culture of Health Prize, which “celebrates communities where people and organizations are collaborating to build solutions to barriers that have created unequal opportunities.”
- Grantees include Tulane University’s School of Public Health, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Minneapolis’s American Indian Cancer Foundation and Princeton University, which received funding for a study of structural racism in New Jersey and its impact of health in communities of color.
Healthy Children and Families supports organizations that work to “ensure that all parents and caregivers have the resources they need to ensure their children and families can thrive,” especially with a view to preventing obesity and its attendant health issues later in life.
- A subprogram for Economic Inclusion for Family Wellbeing addresses the underpinnings of “systems and policies” that create inequity throughout the economy and, particularly, with regard to health. A recent signature project, Every Family Forward, consists of public “conversations” on “how we can change policies and systems to help all families thrive.”
- The Valuing Caregivers and Families focus aims to increase recognition of caregivers and provide the “resources they need to raise healthy, thriving children.” See the Caregiving Library for information about research and initiatives that the foundation has supported.
- Grant recipients include the Little Lobbyist Family Alliance, the Center for Taxpayer Rights, the Women’s Funding Network in San Francisco and the Topos Partnership, which develops tax policy that “enable children and families to thrive.”
Leadership for Better Health supports the development of Health Leadership and the empowerment of Nurses and the Nursing Profession.
- The Health Policy Research Scholars program is an opportunity for doctoral students of any discipline who “want to apply their research to help build healthier and more equitable communities.” The program’s goal is to achieve “greater diversity in future generations of researchers” so that “solutions can be more inclusive and relevant to a broader range of communities.” This program accepts applications annually. Sign up for the program’s newsletter for updates.
- The Interdisciplinary Research Leaders program supports “action-oriented and community-engaged research to create healthier communities.” This is a three-year program that supports research teams in any region of the U.S. Themes change from cycle to cycle, with the program’s most recent grants targeting research on structural racism and family and child health. Subscribe for updates at the bottom of the program site.
- The Summer Health Professions Education Program is a free program offered at participating universities through which undergraduate students can “explore their interests in medicine, dentistry, nursing, optometry, pharmacy, physical therapy, public health, and more.”
- The Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program supports faculty members of medical, dental and nursing programs who wish to “enhance their influence as leaders researchers and advisors.” Up to ten recipients each year receive a $75,000 stipend, plus a $30,000 research grant and support. This program accepts applications each year and provides detailed guidelines here.
- The Health Policy Research Scholars program is an opportunity for doctoral students of any discipline who “want to apply their research to help build healthier and more equitable communities.” The program’s goal is to achieve “greater diversity in future generations of researchers” so that “solutions can be more inclusive and relevant to a broader range of communities.” This program accepts applications annually. Sign up for the program’s newsletter for updates.
Important Grant Details:
Grants typically range from $50,000 to $1 million, but are sometimes in the several millions.
- While it has focus areas dedicated to health systems, public health, childhood development, and health leadership, it often prefers to fund programs that take a holistic approach that combine aspects of multiple focus areas.
- For such a large grantmaker, RWJF is unusually open to providing smaller grants to a large swathe of nonprofit organizations alongside its larger grants.
- RWJF supports organizations across the United States, but some legacy programs may prioritize giving in New Jersey, where the foundation was originally incorporated.
- The foundation boasts a comprehensive, searchable grants database dating back to 1972, as well as blogs, press releases, research reports, datasets, and policy briefs, which are all linked to its insights page.
- RWJF accepts applications to any of its Active Funding Opportunities. Deadlines vary by grant, but often fall in the spring. Grantseekers should review the foundation’s Grants Process page before applying.
- RWJF does not generally fund basic biomedical research, drug therapy or device research or lobbying.
- Grantseekers may contact the foundation at mail@rwjf.org or the inquiry form on its contact page. Alternatively, reach out to the program officer assigned to a specific opportunity for further inquiries. The foundation’s phone number is (877) 843-7953.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS: