Costs of Care
Costs of Care is a Boston-based non-profit that educates and trains medical students, trainees, and clinicians in healthcare affordability and resource stewardship through its STARS program, frameworks, and case-based learning platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersBoston, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Costs of Care does
Costs of Care is a Boston-based 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2009 by Dr. Neel Shah with a stated mission of cultivating change agents who make healthcare more affordable and equitable. Its core products are organized around two flagship programs: STARS (Students and Trainees Advocating for Resource Stewardship), which has scaled to 800+ students across 60+ medical schools since its 2017 launch, and the Affordability Moonshot, an initiative to identify and disseminate cost-of-care improvements. Supporting content assets include the Understanding Value-Based Healthcare textbook (published by McGraw-Hill), the COST Framework, the Affordability Framework, HealthValueLab (a case-based learning platform for clinicians, students, and trainees), and publications in outlets such as NEJM Catalyst and JAMA Network Open.
The organization's business model is non-profit and primarily grant-, donation-, and sponsorship-funded. Educational content and program participation are provided free to learners. Revenue-side mechanisms include event sponsorships (with tiered amounts of $5,000 Travel and $2,500 Meal at the National Conference) and institutional partnerships with organizations such as the ABIM Foundation, Family Reach, the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, and the CVS Health Foundation. Outflows include student mini-grants of up to $500 per learner and conference programming costs. A new commercial-adjacent line, the Affordability Accelerator, engages health systems and payers as a second customer segment alongside the academic medical audience. Headcount is small (1-10 employees), and the operating model relies heavily on distributed student and faculty champions across partner institutions rather than on a large internal staff.
Costs of Care firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Costs of Care
- Legal name
- Costs of Care
- Website
- https://costsofcare.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Costs of Care is a Boston-based non-profit that educates and trains medical students, trainees, and clinicians in healthcare affordability and resource stewardship through its STARS program, frameworks, and case-based learning platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Costs of Care industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Healthcare Education & Advocacy
- NAICS
- Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Health Care and Social Assistance (62)
- SIC
- Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Cost of Care, Spend Analytics & Financial Performance Management (HLACAHAJ)
Keywords
Where Costs of Care is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Costs of Care business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Grants: Costs of Care is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that accepts tax-deductible contributions. All payments made to Costs of Care are tax-deductible as permitted by the IRS.
- Sponsorship Revenue: The organization generates revenue through national sponsorship opportunities for the STARS program and STARS National Conference. Sponsorship tiers include Travel Sponsor ($5,000) and Meal Sponsor ($2,500).
- Mini-Grant Program Revenue: STARS Mini-Grants provide up to $500 per student and up to 2 students per school for advancing STARS-specific projects and initiatives.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free Educational Resources |
| Other | Others | Mini-Grants up to $500 per student |
| Other | Annual | Conference Sponsorship Tiers |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Costs of Care product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Costs of Care is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that cultivates change agents for affordable and equitable healthcare through educational programs, training, and storytelling. It operates two flagship programs — the STARS student leadership program and the Affordability Moonshot initiative — and develops free digital curricula such as HealthValueLab used by medical students, faculty, and health system leaders across more than 60 medical schools worldwide.
Product overview
Costs of Care is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating change agents who will lead the creation of a more affordable and equitable health system. The organization operates primarily through two flagship initiatives: the STARS (Students and Trainees Advocating for Resource Stewardship) program and the Affordability Moonshot initiative. The STARS program engages medical students across 60+ schools nationwide, providing educational resources, awards, mini-grants, a national speakers bureau, clerkship task forces, and an annual conference. The Affordability Moonshot encompasses an Affordability Accelerator that convenes healthcare stakeholders, paired with an Affordability Framework. Key educational products include the HealthValueLab interactive case-based platform, the Understanding Value-Based Healthcare textbook, the COST Framework for value improvement projects, Cost Conversations Toolkit, and a High-Value Care Curriculum. Since 2009, Costs of Care has collected personal accounts illustrating opportunities to improve care delivery value.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- STARS Program
- Affordability Moonshot
- HealthValueLab
- Storytelling Publications
Quantifiable outcome
- STARS program has engaged 800+ students from 60+ schools, driving 100+ quality improvement projects
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Costs of Care
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Costs of Care technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Costs of Care partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.
- Family ReachcoreCosts of Care partnered with Family Reach (a nonprofit) to virtually convene the Affordability Accelerator meeting on September 17-18, 2021. The partnership brought together patients, financial navigators, social workers, healthcare managers, billing specialists, national leaders, payers, and clinicians to develop ideal clinical-financial care pathways.
- ABIM FoundationcoreLong-standing partnership with ABIM Foundation to develop the Teaching Value Project and support the STARS program. Dr. Vineet Arora led the initial partnership, and Daniel Wolfson (immediate past EVP/COO) joined the Costs of Care Board of Directors. The ABIM Foundation also sponsors essay contests for STARS students.
- High Value Practice Alliance (HVPA)majorHVPA is a sponsor partner of the STARS program. The organizations collaborate on national conferences, with dedicated submission tracks for STARS students at the HVPA National Conference.
- The Leapfrog GroupcoreLeading healthcare organization partnered with Costs of Care for healthcare value initiatives.
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)coreIHI is a leading healthcare organization partnered with Costs of Care for healthcare value improvement initiatives.
- Dell Medical SchoolcoreDell Medical School at UT Austin helped develop the Discovering Value-Based Health Care Interactive Learning Modules and serves as a partner institution.
- Medical Schools (60+ institutions)coreOver 60 medical schools participate in the STARS program, providing faculty mentors and institutional support for student-led high-value care initiatives.
- Dollar FormajorDollar For is a national nonprofit that crushes medical bills by helping patients access charity care. They partner with Costs of Care through the Patient Affordability Intern program for medical debt case discussions.
- Choosing Wisely CanadamajorPartnership with Choosing Wisely Canada for international collaboration on resource stewardship in healthcare education.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Costs of Care competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI): IHI is a broad incumbent in healthcare quality improvement with a much larger footprint than CoC. It is a CoC partner and shares the mission of improving healthcare value, but its scope (patient safety, quality, innovation) is far broader than CoC's medical-education focus.
- The Leapfrog Group: Leapfrog is a broad incumbent and CoC partner; it rates hospitals on safety and quality and publishes employer-facing value data. It overlaps with CoC on the 'value' theme but is far larger and employer-rather-than-trainee-facing.
Others
- Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: RWJ Foundation is a major funder of CoC and a central node in the healthcare value ecosystem. It is not a competitor but a foundation partner that shapes the field through grantmaking, comparable to other philanthropy-driven ecosystem participants.
Emerging players
- Dollar For: Dollar For is an emerging nonprofit player in the same patient affordability space; it helps patients access hospital charity care. CoC partners with Dollar For through its Patient Affordability Intern program, indicating overlapping mission in medical debt and affordability.
Direct peers
- High Value Practice Alliance (HVPA): HVPA is a direct peer and explicit STARS program sponsor partner. It convenes clinicians around high-value practice and co-hosts conference activities with CoC, sharing the same target audience (front-line clinicians and trainees) and the same value-based care content category.
- ABIM Foundation: ABIM Foundation is a direct peer: a healthcare nonprofit that runs the Choosing Wisely campaign promoting high-value, cost-conscious care. It is a long-standing CoC partner and sponsor of STARS, and operates in the same value-based care advocacy niche.
- Lown Institute: Lown Institute is a direct peer: a nonprofit focused on equitable, high-value healthcare, operating the Right Care Alliance and the Lown Index for hospital value. It competes with CoC for the same donor pool and mindshare on healthcare value and affordability.
- Choosing Wisely Canada: Choosing Wisely Canada is a direct international peer and explicit CoC partner on resource stewardship in medical education. It originated the STARS program in 2015, which CoC adapted for the US, making it both a partner and a closely comparable peer in the same content category.
- Family Reach: Family Reach is a direct peer and active CoC partner that co-convened the first Affordability Accelerator. Both are nonprofits tackling patient financial toxicity in healthcare, though Family Reach leans more toward direct financial assistance while CoC leans toward education and convening.
- Healthcare Value Hub: Healthcare Value Hub is a direct peer: a nonprofit research and policy center producing analyses on healthcare cost, quality, and equity issues. It targets overlapping audiences (consumers, employers, policymakers) and is funded by the same major foundation ecosystem.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Costs of Care social profiles
Digital presenceCosts of Care financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Costs of Care leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Costs of Care funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Costs of Care M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Costs of Care
What does Costs of Care do?
Costs of Care is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that cultivates change agents for affordable and equitable healthcare through educational programs, training, and storytelling. It operates two flagship programs — the STARS student leadership program and the Affordability Moonshot initiative — and develops free digital curricula such as HealthValueLab used by medical students, faculty, and health system leaders across more than 60 medical schools worldwide.
Is Costs of Care a public or private company?
Costs of Care is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Costs of Care founded?
Costs of Care was founded in 2009. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Costs of Care based?
Costs of Care is headquartered in Boston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Costs of Care make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Donations and Grants are the primary driver. The others are sponsorship Revenue and mini-Grant Program Revenue.
Who are Costs of Care's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and The Leapfrog Group. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is listed as an others. Dollar For is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are High Value Practice Alliance (HVPA), ABIM Foundation, Lown Institute, Choosing Wisely Canada, Family Reach and Healthcare Value Hub.
Does Costs of Care have an API?
No public API is recorded for Costs of Care.
What industry is Costs of Care in?
Costs of Care's product category is Healthcare Education & Advocacy. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLACAHAJ, Cost of Care, Spend Analytics & Financial Performance Management. Its NAICS code is 624190 and its SIC code is 8090.