Dear Community Leaders,

We are proud to share that our Partnership and Grant Program application for our 2027-2028 cohort is now available!

Blue Cross seeks to partner with organizations that share our commitment to create more equitable and just communities across Massachusetts. Central to this commitment is our corporate citizenship work, which mobilizes our people, resources, and partnerships to address the most pressing challenges facing our communities — with a current focus on food and essential items.

The Blue Cross Partnership & Grant Program provides selected organizations with a two-year financial contribution providing $50,000 in general operating support and up to $25,000 in skills-based support annually, with a total support of up to $150,000.

• Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, September 11, 2026.
• Read the attached overview to learn more about this signature program, including details about our focus, eligibility requirements, key dates, and application questions and instructions.

Questions? Join us for a Program Information Session via Zoom on Wednesday, August 19 at 12:15 p.m. Members of our team will share an overview of the program, eligibility requirements and frequently asked questions. The session will be recorded if you cannot attend. Based on anticipated interest, our team does not have the capacity for individual consultations regarding your application.

Thank you for your unwavering commitment to our communities. We look forward to this opportunity to partner together!

With gratitude,

2027 – 2028 Partnership & Grant Program Guidelines and Application Instructions ABOUT US

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (Blue Cross) has put our members at the center of health
care for 90 years. We show up for everyone like they're the only one and guide our members to the
exceptional health care they deserve — affordably, equitably, and seamlessly.

As a community-focused, not-for-profit health plan, we are deeply committed to helping all
Massachusetts community members lead healthier lives. Central to this commitment is our corporate
citizenship work, which mobilizes our people, resources, and partnerships to address the most
pressing challenges facing our communities — with a current focus
on food and essential items.

We operate within a framework of respect and trust-based philanthropy, a core set of values aimed
at advancing equity and building mutually accountable partnerships between Blue Cross and the
not-for-profit community. We approach this work in a spirit of humility and collaboration.

OUR 2027-28 FOCUS: FOOD & ESSENTIAL ITEMS
An urgent crisis faces Massachusetts families: the rising cost of food and essential items. Access
to quality food and basic daily essentials is fundamental to health equity, and no one should ever
have to choose between a meal and a medical visit.

Food insecurity has nearly doubled since 2019, now affecting 37% of Massachusetts households and
driving $1.6 billion in avoidable healthcare costs every year.1  Rates are disproportionately high
among Hispanic households (62%), LGBTQ+ households (58%), and Black households (46%) — all well
above the state average. Nationally, 53% of children who experience chronic hunger develop severe
depression. 2

Through this Partnership & Grant Program, we invest in systemic solutions that tackle the root
causes of inequity, so all Massachusetts community members can access quality food and essential
items with dignity.

OUR APPROACH
To support our neighbors navigating this affordability crisis while building toward a healthier
future, we activate our food and essential items strategy through three distinct levers:


1  Source: Annual Massachusetts Food Access Report, Mass General Brigham and The Greater Boston
Food Bank
2  Source: Academy of Pediatrics


2027 – 2028 Partnership & Grant Program

Driving Systemic Change for Tomorrow
Through our Partnership and Grant Program, we invest in systemic change through multi-year funding,
skills-based volunteering, and capacity-building for select not- for-profits dismantling the
barriers that prevent equitable access to food and essential items.

Meeting Today's Urgent Needs
We combine financial resources with high-impact volunteer service, mobilizing year- round associate
engagement and our annual corporate-wide Service Day to deliver immediate, hands-on relief to
organizations strengthening the social safety net.

Addressing Gaps in a Shifting Landscape
We provide rapid-response support during unanticipated crises and seed innovative health solutions
as they emerge because community needs are never static.

HOW WE DEFINE SYSTEMIC CHANGE
The Partnership & Grant Program specifically invests in organizations addressing the economic,
social, and political structures and systems that create the need for direct relief. Examples
include: changing local food procurement policies; building community-owned food infrastructure; or
dismantling institutional barriers that limit equitable access. While direct relief efforts, such
as food pantries, diaper distribution, and meal delivery, are vital to strengthening the social
safety net, that work is primarily supported through our volunteer engagement and rapid-response
funding initiatives. We invite organizations to apply whether their work focuses exclusively on
systemic change or combines it with direct service delivery.

CURRENT FUNDING & PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITY
The 2027–2028 Partnership & Grant Program is grounded in strong collaboration. Following the
selection process, we work closely with each grantee to design a customized partnership that
leverages Blue Cross's people, expertise, and resources to advance each our partner’s mission.  
Each partnership includes:
•     Financial investment: Two-year general operating support (see details in chart below)
•     Skills-based volunteering: Defined capacity-building projects delivered by Blue Cross
associates with relevant expertise
•     Peer-learning community: Trainings, convenings, and networking opportunities that connect
partners with fellow grantees working in this space
•     Strategic thought partnership: Ongoing collaboration with Blue Cross team members to help
navigate challenges and advance organizational priorities

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2027 – 2028 Partnership & Grant Program

The Partnership & Grant Program is a two-year financial commitment providing:

YEAR 1         $50,000 in general operating support

YEAR 2

Up to $25,000 in skills-based support
$50,000 in general operating support Up to $25,000 in skills-based support

Up to $150,000 in total support per organization

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
The program is open to organizations that:
•     Are a registered 501(c)(3) community-based organization or use a fiscal agent with 501(c)(3)
status.
•     Serve communities located within Massachusetts.
•     Actively work to address the root causes of inequity related to accessing food and essential
items (e.g., basic household resources including hygiene items, clothing, and diapers).
•     Employ at least one full-time equivalent (FTE) staff member with the bandwidth to participate
in relevant capacity-building projects and development opportunities provided by Blue Cross.

Ideal partner organizations will embrace Blue Cross's shared values around trust-based
philanthropy. We are looking for organizations that:
•     Facilitate the involvement of historically excluded groups in their work.
•     Strive for leadership, governing structures, and staff that are representative of the
communities served.

KEY DATES & APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
Applications must be completed and submitted electronically by Friday, September 11, 2026 through
our online portal. Only completed applications will be reviewed. We cannot accept proposals
submitted after the deadline or via email.

ACTIVITY
General Information Session: An overview of the program, eligibility criteria, and frequently asked
questions.

Click here to register. Proposal Deadline Application Evaluation

Finalists Contacted

2026 KEY DATES
Wednesday, August 19, 12:15-1:00 p.m.

Friday, September 11 by 11:59 p.m. Monday, September 21 – Friday, October 16
Friday, October 23

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2027 – 2028 Partnership & Grant Program

Finalist Conversations over Zoom

Selected Partners Notified
Official Public Partner Announcement

Thursday, November 5 between 12:00
– 2:00 p.m. or Friday, November 6 9:00 – 11 a.m.
Friday, November 20
December 2026

KEY TERMS
As you prepare your application, here are key terms as defined at Blue Cross:

Direct & Immediate Relief: Meeting urgent, short-term needs such as food pantries, diaper
distribution, or meal delivery. This work is primarily supported through our volunteer engagement
programs and rapid-response funding (see Our Approach above).

Essential Items: Basic household resources — such as hygiene products, clothing, diapers, and
personal care necessities — that are fundamental to health, dignity, and daily well- being.

Food & Essentials Equity: A state where every community member has the power, resources, and access
to secure quality food and basic household resources (such as hygiene items, clothing, and diapers)
with dignity — regardless of race, income, or geography.

Food Systems: The interconnected structures — including policies, supply chains, infrastructure,
and institutions — that determine how food is grown, distributed, and accessed within a community.
Inequities within food systems are a root cause of food insecurity.

Systemic Change & Root Causes: Addressing the economic, social, and political structures that
create the need for direct relief. For more detail on how this program distinguishes between
systemic change and direct relief, see Understanding Our Focus above.

2027–2028 GRANT APPLICATION QUESTIONS
Please limit your application responses to a maximum of 3 pages in PDF format.

Section 1: About Your Organization (max one page)

1.     Share your organization's mission statement and speak to the unique impact your organization
has on the populations and communities served and/or the not-for- profit sector.

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2027 – 2028 Partnership & Grant Program


2.    Share your annual operating budget and current number of employees.

3.    Comment on how your leadership, staff, volunteers, and/or board are connected to and
reflective of the communities you serve.

4.    If you operate as a program within a larger parent organization, how are resources allocated
specifically to support your work in this space?

Section 2: Investing in Systemic Change (max two pages)

1.     How is your organization working to dismantle the root causes and systemic barriers that
limit access to healthy food and essential items?

2.    Looking ahead, what are your top two strategic priorities for advancing this work over the
next three years? Please describe any anticipated challenges (e.g., funding gaps, policy shifts,
operational hurdles) that could affect your ability to achieve these goals.

3.    A core part of this grant is a skills-based partnership. Please share one or two potential
capacity-building projects where support from Blue Cross associates could help you overcome a
challenge or advance one of your strategic priorities.

4.    How do you see your organization contributing to and benefiting from a peer- learning
community?

CONTACT INFORMATION

Questions? Join our information session on August 19, 2026. We will not be available for individual
consultations regarding your application. For general questions about the application portal, email
citizenship@bcbsma.com.

Disclosure statement: Blue Cross will lend its support in ways that bring value to our members and
associates by serving the community with no discrimination by age, race, sex, religion, sexual
orientation, gender identity or expression, or disability. We will not support individuals;
religious organizations for sectarian or religious purposes (secular programs of faith-based
organization that meet criteria will be considered); fraternal, political, or lobbying
organizations; school groups; and organizations based in or that serve communities outside of
Massachusetts or entities that are not 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organizations.