The Commonwealth Fund

What The Commonwealth Fund does

The Commonwealth Fund is a private, nonpartisan foundation founded in 1918 by Anna M. Harkness with an initial endowment of nearly $10 million, headquartered at 1 East 75th Street in New York with an additional office in Washington, D.C. For over a century the organization has pursued the mission of promoting a high-performing, equitable U.S. healthcare system, with particular focus on coverage and access, healthcare costs, health equity, and international comparative learning. The Fund supports independent research on healthcare policy and practice, makes grants to organizations working on care delivery reform, and operates leadership development programs through its Harkness Fellowships and university-hosted fellowships at Harvard and Yale.

The Fund's core products center on three interactive data platforms—the International Health Care System Profiles covering 31 countries, the State Health Data Center for state-level performance benchmarking, and the Medicaid Managed Care Database spanning 39 states plus D.C.—together with a continuous research output of over 1,000 publications annually, including surveys (the annual International Health Policy Survey across 11 countries and the Biennial Health Insurance Survey), issue briefs, the To the Point blog, The Dose podcast, and Featured Maps. The underlying technology stack is a conventional research publication and interactive data visualization platform rather than an AI-native system. Distribution is entirely open-access: research, data, and tools are freely available through commonwealthfund.org.

The Fund operates on a foundation endowment revenue model rather than commercial sales; it is funded by investment returns on its century-old endowment, deploys capital through grants and fellowships, and disseminates its outputs to federal and state policymakers, academic researchers, health equity advocates, and the international health policy community at no charge. Strategic partnerships with Harvard, Yale, Brookings, Urban Institute, AcademyHealth, Georgetown, and Manatt Health, along with the Harkness Fellowships across 11 partner countries, form the core ecosystem that extends the Fund's policy influence beyond its internal staff of 51-100 employees.

Name

The Commonwealth Fund

Legal name

The Commonwealth Fund

Website

https://commonwealthfund.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1918

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation founded in 1918 that funds independent research, data platforms, and policy publications to advance equitable, affordable U.S. healthcare, serving federal and state policymakers, researchers, and advocacy organizations free of charge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Policy Research Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health Research Funding Agencies (Public/Quasi-Public) (HLAJALAB), Community Health & Prevention Program Funding (HLAJALAF), Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

Keywords

• Health policy research
• Healthcare data platforms
• Comparative health systems
• Grantmaking foundation
• Healthcare fellowships

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Endowment: The Commonwealth Fund operates as a private foundation funded primarily through its endowment, which was established in 1918 with an initial gift of nearly $10 million from founder Anna M. Harkness. The Fund generates revenue from investments and uses these resources to support independent research, grants, fellowships, and organizational operations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that conducts and funds independent research on healthcare policy and practice. It operates data and research platforms (including international country profiles, state-level health data, and Medicaid managed care analytics), publishes policy briefs and reports, administers grants to healthcare researchers and advocacy organizations, and runs fellowship programs. Its work targets better healthcare access, quality, and efficiency, with particular emphasis on vulnerable populations and international comparative analysis.

Product overview

The Commonwealth Fund operates as a foundation focused on health care policy research and advocacy, offering a portfolio of data platforms, research products, and professional development programs. The core offerings include the International Health Care System Profiles (country profiles, comparison tool, download center), the State Health Data Center (state-level health performance data), and the Medicaid Managed Care Database (state contract terms). These data platforms are complemented by the Fund's research products including surveys (International Health Policy Survey, Biennial Health Insurance Survey), publications (blog, issue briefs, fund reports, podcasts), and Featured Maps. The Fund also operates grantmaking and fellowship programs to develop health care leaders and promote policy improvements. The portfolio functions as a unified research and data resource rather than a commercial product suite.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• International Health Care System Profiles Comparative profiles of healthcare systems across 19+ countries, designed for policymakers, researchers, and journalists who need authoritative cross-national benchmarks on coverage, financing, quality, and access.
• State Health Data Center Interactive data platform providing state-level indicators on healthcare access, quality, coverage, and outcomes across the United States, for policymakers, researchers, and advocates.
• Medicaid Managed Care Database Database providing data and analysis on Medicaid managed care plans, intended for researchers, state Medicaid agencies, and policy advocates working on low-income and vulnerable populations.
• Commonwealth Fund Surveys Proprietary survey instruments including the Biennial Health Insurance Survey and International Health Policy Survey, providing primary data on healthcare access, affordability, and patient experience for researchers and policymakers.
• Publications (Issue Briefs, Fund Reports, Blog, Podcasts) Editorial publication program covering healthcare policy analysis, including issue briefs, fund reports, blog posts, and podcasts, distributed free of charge to policymakers, researchers, journalists, and the general public.
• Featured Maps Geospatial visualizations of healthcare data (e.g., coverage rates, mortality, provider supply) for use by researchers, journalists, and advocacy organizations.
• Commonwealth Fund Grants Program Grantmaking program that funds external researchers, advocacy organizations, and health system leaders working on healthcare access, quality, equity, and reform.
• Fellowship Programs (including Harkness Fellowships) Fellowship programs placing mid-career professionals from multiple countries in U.S. policy settings, research institutions, and newsrooms to build leadership capacity in healthcare policy.
• Responses to Policy Proposals Public-facing analytical responses to active federal and state healthcare policy proposals, providing independent assessment for legislators, regulators, and the media during policy debates.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 72 million Medicaid enrollees are affected by policies informed by Commonwealth Fund research
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Harvard UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarvard University hosts the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in Health Policy Leadership, a two-year program training future health policy leaders. The partnership includes collaborative research and fellowship placement.
• Yale UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYale University partners with the Fund on the Pozen-Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in Health Equity Leadership, focused on developing leaders in health equity.
• International Partner Countries (UK, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France, Switzerland)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Harkness Fellowships span 11 countries in Western Europe and the Pacific Rim, advancing international understanding of health care practice and policy through exchanges and collaborative research between the U.S. and partner nations.
• SSRSmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSSRS serves as a key survey research partner for the Commonwealth Fund's Biennial Health Insurance Survey and other health policy surveys, providing methodological expertise and data collection capabilities.
• AcademyHealthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademyHealth collaborates with the Fund on health services research, policy analysis, and dissemination of research findings to improve health care.
• Brookings InstitutionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBrookings Institution works with the Fund on health policy research and analysis, contributing to policy discussions on healthcare delivery system reform.
• Urban InstitutemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUrban Institute partners on health policy research, particularly around Medicaid, coverage, and health equity issues affecting vulnerable populations.
• Georgetown UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeorgetown University researchers collaborate on health policy analysis, particularly around coverage, access, and healthcare reform.
• Manatt HealthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerManatt Health, a healthcare consulting firm, partners on policy analysis and research related to Medicaid, healthcare delivery, and payment reform.
• U.S. Congress and Federal Agencies (HHS, CMS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Fund provides formal policy responses and comments to Congressional requests and federal agency proposed rules affecting healthcare policy, including HHS, CMS, and Senate HELP Committee inquiries.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Urban Institute: Nonprofit research organization with deep health policy, Medicaid, and coverage research portfolio. Comparable in data-driven policy research and federal/state engagement, though broader in scope beyond health.
• New America Foundation: Think tank with a health policy program covering coverage, equity, and digital health. Overlapping capabilities in policy analysis and federal engagement, though operating across many issue areas.
• RAND Corporation: Global policy research institution with a sizable health division producing comparative health system research. Comparable in independent, nonpartisan research approach and federal agency engagement, though much larger and broader.
• Brookings Institution: Established think tank with a substantial health policy program. Overlapping capability in policy research and direct engagement with federal agencies, but operates across many policy domains beyond health.

Direct peers

• Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF): Independent nonprofit foundation focused on health policy research, polling, and journalism. Directly comparable in mission, funding model (endowment-based), and audience of policymakers, journalists, and researchers.
• AcademyHealth: Professional society and research organization for health services research, with strong dissemination and convening role. Directly comparable audience of health services researchers and policy analysts.
• Peterson Center on Healthcare: Foundation focused on improving U.S. healthcare cost and quality through data, research, and partnerships. Comparable as a private foundation targeting health system performance with a research and convening model.
• Milbank Memorial Fund: Operating foundation focused on health policy, population health, and state health system performance. Direct peer in foundation structure, scale, and focus on evidence-based state and federal health policy.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Large U.S. private foundation dedicated to health and health equity, funding research, policy analysis, and grant programs. Closely comparable operating model and end-markets, though with broader social determinants focus.

Others

• Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: Academic institution conducting health policy research and hosting the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship. Adjacent as a research and talent partner rather than a direct competitor, but produces overlapping health policy analysis used by similar audiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/commonwealthfnd
• Facebookfacebook.com/commonwealthfund
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/50360

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments2 records

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Frequently asked questions about The Commonwealth Fund