Amazon Web Services said it hopes to further address health equity and improve healthcare access with $20 million in additional funding for its ongoing global health equity program focused on underserved communities. 

AWS said it has now distributed more than $30 million to organizations that have leveraged cloud technology to provide care to historically underserved populations across 28 countries in its funding announcement Thursday

“We’ve seen participants in the Health Equity Initiative create incredible solutions that effectively address the equity gaps in accessing quality health services," Danielle Morris, global health equity lead at AWS, said in a statement.

"From helping build more diverse health data stores to using artificial intelligence (AI) for early stroke diagnoses, these organizations are developing solutions that are changing the game for populations with otherwise limited access."

Participants include startups, nonprofits and large enterprises that address disease surveillance, follow-up care, transportation needs and more. AWS is looking for applicants that are developing cloud-hosted technologies to increase access to health services, leverage data to promote equitable and inclusive systems of care, advance equity in diagnostics and screening, and reduce disparities by addressing social determinants of health.

Along with the additional funding, AWS said it wants to focus on addressing climate change's impact on health, and the initiative will now prioritize applicants and projects that specifically:

• Increase access to high-quality, culturally responsive health services.
• Promote resilient communities by increasing access to responsive social and community support.
• Mitigate the impact of climate change on health and quality of life.

Applications for the next funding round, which offers a maximum request per application capped at $250,000 in AWS promotional credit that requires a 25% match, is March 31.

Andrea Fox is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Email: afox@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.