The Common Health Challenge is a new, annual call-to-action for Common Health Coalition members and partners to rally around a critical health system-wide issue for which the solution relies on improved partnership between health care and public health. Learn more.
The 2025 Challenge – Community Health Workers: Catalysts for a Reimagined Health System
The inaugural Common Health Challenge spotlights Community Health Workers (CHWs) as trusted professionals who build bridges among clinical, public health, and community organizations to facilitate access to services and improve health.
Community Health Workers are a linchpin for effective collaboration across health care and public health. While we saw a burgeoning of CHW programs during the pandemic, that progress is now in jeopardy as COVID-19-related funding and attention ebbs across the nation. But a different path is possible, where CHWs are stitched into the fabric of our health system.
The 2025 Common Health Challenge will support communities throughout the U.S. by advancing, encouraging, and amplifying locally driven, collaborative CHW initiatives that bridge the divides between health care and public health. With expert advising from the National Association of Community Health Workers and HealthBegins, the Coalition will actualize a three-pronged approach:
- Amplify and educate about the importance of CHWs to health outcomes and health equity.
- Identify and articulate the mutual benefit to organizations that integrate CHWs into systems and workflows.
- Propose and encourage adoption of “CHW Compacts” that operationalize evidence-based, accountable, and sustainable partnerships.
Tell us about your work with CHWs
Help us better understand the scope and scale of your organization’s work that involves integrating Community Health Workers across sectors or to strengthen partnerships between health care and public health.
Take the survey
Take the Challenge
Take the Challenge by committing to take an action that improves partnership between health care and public health by integrating Community Health Workers as a bridge.
Ready to take action? Join today!
Nominate an Organization for a Common Health Challenge Catalyst Award
The Catalyst Awards will fund organizations that demonstrate a strong capacity to integrate Community Health Workers (CHWs) in ways that strengthen partnerships between health care and public health in communities. Awardees will contribute to a nationwide movement aimed at bridging the health care and public health sectors.
Awardees will propose locally based initiatives that can demonstrate significant progress in one year and support the establishment of sustainable relationships between health care and public health service providers. Ten organizations will be selected to receive a Catalyst Award of $30,000.
- The Coalition welcomes nominations for a Catalyst Award through January 24, 2025.
- All organizations nominated for a Catalyst Award will be invited to join a Community of Practice.
- Self-nominations will be accepted.
The Coalition will review nominations and in February 2025 invite applications from select organizations for further consideration to receive a Catalyst Award.
The Coalition will host an optional virtual meeting on December 18, 2024 to share more information about the Catalyst Awards. Register for the meeting.
For more information about the Catalyst Awards including eligibility and organizational capacity criteria, please refer to the FAQ.
Nominate an organization for a Catalyst Award