Opportunity Overview
CommonSpirit Health’s 2027 Community Health Improvement Grants are currently open for eligible Colorado nonprofits serving communities around participating Mountain Region hospitals. The program supports defined 9-12 month community-health projects that address significant needs identified in each participating hospital’s current Community Health Needs Assessment or implementation strategy, with emphasis on underserved and vulnerable populations and stronger local service systems.
Deadline and Grant Period
The controlling CommonSpirit program page lists the application period as July 20 through September 18, 2026. No specific closing time or time zone is published, so applicants should submit before the date rather than assume end-of-day acceptance. Funding decisions are expected on or about January 20, 2027. Agreements and payments follow in February-March 2027. Funded projects run from April 1, 2027 through March 31, 2028, with a mid-year report due November 12, 2027 and final report due May 12, 2028.
Colorado Award Ranges and Participating Hospitals
Funding is set by participating hospital or granting cluster. The CommonSpirit hospital list updated August 30, 2026 identifies the following Colorado opportunities: Penrose Hospital, $20,000-$35,000; St. Francis Hospital and St. Francis Hospital Interquest cluster, $20,000-$35,000; St. Anthony North Hospital, $20,000-$35,000; St. Anthony Hospital and OrthoColorado Hospital cluster, $20,000-$35,000; St. Anthony Summit Hospital, $20,000-$35,000; St. Mary-Corwin Hospital, $20,000-$35,000; St. Thomas More Hospital, fixed $16,000; Mercy Hospital Durango, $20,000-$35,000; Longmont United Hospital, $20,000-$35,000; and St. Elizabeth Hospital, fixed $8,000.
Who Can Apply
Applicants must be IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in good standing, or have an eligible 501(c)(3) fiscal agent capable of administering the grant. Projects must serve people within the relevant hospital service area, include underserved or vulnerable populations, address one or more CHNA-identified needs, and provide sustained activity for approximately 9-12 months.
Colorado Health Priorities
For Penrose, the St. Francis cluster, St. Anthony North, the St. Anthony and OrthoColorado cluster, St. Anthony Summit, Mercy Hospital Durango and Longmont United, the published priorities are Access to Healthcare, Mental Health and Substance Use. St. Mary-Corwin lists Mental Health and Substance Use. St. Thomas More lists Access to Healthcare, Mental Health and Substance Use. St. Elizabeth lists Access to Healthcare, Behavioral Health, Substance Use and Food Access. Ashleigh Phillips is listed as the Local Grant Leader for the participating Colorado hospitals.
Collaboration Requirement
CommonSpirit distinguishes small grants of up to $19,500 from standard grants of $20,000 or more. Applications requesting $20,000 or more must include at least two collaborating partner organizations, not including the granting hospital. Partners may be nonprofit or public organizations and must have distinct, complementary and substantive roles. Collaboration is encouraged but not mandatory for small-grant requests.
Allowable and Ineligible Costs
The current program overview permits equipment purchases up to $5,000 and computer equipment up to $2,500, with total equipment costs not exceeding 50% of the grant request. Vehicles are treated as equipment. Indirect costs may be included up to 10% of the request.
The program does not fund unrestricted general operating support, event sponsorships, activities shorter than nine months, capital projects such as buildings or renovations, lobbying or political campaigns, or contracts for services. A proposal structured principally as a purchase of a vendor’s services or products for a hospital or its patients is not an eligible grant model.
Application Requirements
Applications are submitted online through the hospital-specific link in CommonSpirit’s current Hospital List for Grant Applicants. The application requests organizational and tax information, the IRS determination letter, current W-9, board information, the most recent audit, review or financial statement, project and partner information, CHNA alignment, service population, activities, outcomes, sustainability and a detailed project budget. Applicant-controlled documents and certifications must be supplied by the applicant and should never be inferred or fabricated.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 94/100. This is a strong statewide Colorado community-health funding pathway with multiple hospital markets and direct alignment to healthcare access, behavioral and mental health, substance use and selected food-access needs.
N9+ Fit Score: 38/100, conditional. A limited equipment pathway exists because eligible projects may include up to $5,000 in equipment plus up to $2,500 in computer equipment, subject to the 50% equipment cap. The Nonagon N9+ remote physical examination platform could only be considered where a specific applicant-led access-to-care project can legitimately fit its allowable hardware and technology costs within those limits. It should not be positioned as a stand-alone vendor sale or hospital service contract. QC Healthcare Fit: 5/100 because contracts for services are expressly ineligible.
Next Action
Do not begin or continue new cold outreach to previously unsent applicants because the controlling CommonSpirit page does not publish a closing clock time or time zone and fewer than 48 hours remain. For already-engaged eligible Colorado 501(c)(3) applicants serving a participating hospital’s service area, confirm the relevant CHNA priority and award range, assemble two or more substantive partners for any request of $20,000 or more, verify the budget and equipment limits against the proposed project, and, if they independently choose to proceed, complete submission through the hospital-specific CommonSpirit application portal before September 18, 2026.
Official sources: CommonSpirit Health — Community Health Improvement Grants; 2027 Hospital List for Grant Applicants; 2027 Program Overview.