New Hampshire’s Healthcare Consumer Protection Trust Fund Is Open for Proposals
An Opportunity to Invest in Community Health Needs After Hospital Mergers
The Attorney General and New Hampshire’s Healthcare Consumer Protection Advisory Commission have recently opened the door for the submission of funding proposals to the Healthcare Consumer Protection Trust Fund with a deadline of June 30, 2026.
The Healthcare Consumer Protection Advisory Commission was established in 2023 to ensure that funds from healthcare merger settlements are used transparently and strategically to benefit consumers across New Hampshire. The Commission’s work includes evaluating the community impacts from healthcare consolidation, examining the factors that are contributing to rising healthcare costs and making recommendations for investments and reforms that will improve affordability and access for Granite Staters.
The latest grant proposal process is outlined on the Attorney General’s website - organizations can submit ideas for the use of funds to benefit healthcare consumers across the state. For those unfamiliar with the Commission or the Trust Fund, some background and context might be useful.
Where the Money Comes From—and Why It Matters
The Trust Fund exists because of healthcare consolidation. When hospitals merge or are acquired, the state often receives dedicated funds through negotiated settlements or agreements. Those dollars are not general revenue for the state. They are specifically set aside in a Trust Fund to benefit healthcare consumers.
That’s important. Because the same forces in the health care market that generate these funds—consolidation and system change—are also reshaping access, cost, and care delivery across New Hampshire, and not always in consumer-friendly ways.
This fund is, in effect, a feedback loop.
The system changes. The state maintains a fund to address the impacts. And now, the public and the Commission have a role in determining how those funds will be used to respond to the changing conditions.
A Small Pot with Big Expectations
Over ten years, the Trust Fund is expected to bring in roughly $19 million. That’s meaningful—but it’s not transformative on its own, especially when spread across a decade. And some of those funds are earmarked to specific community needs and issues.
The Commission and the Attorney General want to prioritize proposals that maximize impact, reach the greatest number of people, and respond to real, demonstrated needs—especially those that are tied to the effects of healthcare consolidation.
Listening to Community Voices: Input from Local Leaders, Patients and Families
As one key strategy for collecting public input, the Commission has conducted community listening sessions in 3 different regions to hear directly from individuals impacted directly by the changing health care landscape. Meetings were held in Rochester, Claremont and Exeter. These are all communities where local hospitals have been acquired by larger organizations through a merger within the past five years. You can read a summary of each of these meetings at the corresponding links above.
The community input received at these meetings will be relevant in the evaluation of funding proposals. While the Commission continues to analyze the merger landscape and evaluate health care markets, it is now at a stage where it is looking to fund impactful projects in 2026.
What They’re Looking For
The Commission has established Guidelines and Criteria for Proposals and a Grant Proposal Form and these resources are instructive for developing and submitting proposals.
In its guidance, the Commission identifies some practical questions for consideration in the evaluation of Trust Fund proposals:
How is the applicant organization involved in charitable healthcare and/or reaching underserved communities?
Who and how many healthcare consumers will benefit? In which geographic regions?
Does this proposal address a demonstrated gap in access to care?
Does it lower or offset increased costs for consumers?
Is the need to be addressed tied to the impact of healthcare consolidation?
Does it reflect what local voices or community health assessments have identified as priority needs?
How will this proposal make things better for healthcare consumers?
A Timely Opportunity
The deadline for proposals is June 30, 2026. Between now and then, organizations, providers, and community groups have a window to step forward—with proposals and ideas grounded in real experience.
For all the complexity of health care consolidation, this grant process acknowledges a familiar scenario:Healthcare in New Hampshire is changing. Market consolidation is rapidly shifting the priorities and the control of our local hospitals. Costs are rising. Access is uneven. Families and communities are feeling strained by the impacts.
The Trust Fund is one of the few mechanisms designed to respond directly to those realities —using resources generated by the underlying transactions.
While the Healthcare Consumer Protection Trust Fund can’t solve every challenge that results from hospital consolidation, if invested wisely it can help create a more affordable and more consumer-focused healthcare system.
Now is the time to turn this opportunity into action and ensure the Trust Fund delivers lasting value for New Hampshire residents.