Annual Impact Report

Building a Roadmap for Michigan Veteran-Friendly Communities

The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency (MVAA), in partnership with Altarum, created the first-ever “Veteran-Friendly Community” (VFC). This will give 562,000 Veterans better access to services and create a blueprint for other states.

Message from Our CEO – Max Entman

Image of CEO Max Entman

2025 was a year of tremendous change for Altarum and for other organizations across the public health landscape. Even in this uncertain environment, our commitment to doing work that drives measurable mission impact remains steadfast. The support we provide to our partners is even more important as they look to build capacity with constrained resources. The projects detailed in the 2025 Impact Report demonstrate the type of tangible results we deliver for our clients and the populations they serve.

Now in 2026, we are harnessing the power of emerging technologies to deliver flexible solutions that improve health outcomes for all. We are doing this with an audacious goal in mind—one I fully believe we can achieve: to meaningfully improve the lives of more than 100 million people by delivering innovative solutions.

I look forward to sharing the outcomes of these efforts in the years to come.

Max Entman
President and Chief Executive Officer

Partner With Us

Exploring Innovative Paths to Greater Impact

At Altarum, we are passionate about building alliances that deliver exceptional results for the organizations we serve and the people who rely on them. We believe the most effective collaborations bring together different expertise, perspectives, and resources.

We are committed to fostering deep partnerships and co-creating strategies that maximize our collective potential. Whether you are a small or large business, a government agency, a foundation, or an individual professional, we welcome conversations about how together we can create meaningful change and improve health for all.

We invite potential partners to contact our growth team to discuss how we can achieve more together: info@altarum.org.

About Altarum

Advancing Health Missions

Altarum, founded in 1946, is a mission-driven nonprofit empowering government agencies and other organizations to advance their missions and improve health for all.

We provide integrated research and analysis, technical assistance and on-the-ground expertise, digital solutions, and tailored communications that drive actionable, evidence-based change, and measurable outcomes.

Our goal in every client engagement is to build sustainable capacity to improve the health and wellbeing of the populations you serve, such as Veterans and military families, children, older adults, individuals living with disabilities, and people with limited access to care.

The Altarum CARE Framework guides our work, ensuring insights-driven strategy, creative messaging, and ongoing engagement.

Our Organization

Altarum comprises three parts that work as one to transform systems of care, modernize public health infrastructure, and engage communities to drive sustainable change:

  • Altarum Institute: Public health systems technology, applied research, analytics, and community health.
  • Palladian Partners: Strategic communications, digital experience design, and creative services.
  • Altarum Medicare-Medicaid Services for States (AMMS): Tailored Medicaid solutions.

Read more about the members of our Board of Trustees online at: altarum.org/our-team.

Impact Stories

Altarum’s innovative solutions and proven processes lead to better health for all. Explore the impactful changes driven by Altarum across our domains through the stories below.

Transforming Service Delivery

The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency (MVAA), in partnership with Altarum, created the first-ever “Veteran-Friendly Community” (VFC). This will give 562,000 Veterans better access to services and create a blueprint for other states.

  • Michigan is the first state to define “Veteran-Friendly Community”
  • ~562,000 Michigan Veterans receive better support
  • 3,500+ Veterans surveyed
  • A replicable roadmap and actionable recommendations for each county
  • Interactive GIS map with detailed source data and scoring calculations 

Most states face persistent shortages and high turnover in the direct care workforce for individuals needing long-term services and supports, and demand is projected to grow 44% by 2035. Individuals needing care are struggling to find qualified caregivers. DirectCareCareers.com (DCC), jointly developed by Altarum and ADvancing States, addresses these gaps.

  • 3,496 total candidates
  • 139 active job postings
  • 94,391 potential matches 

The Center for Maternal and Child Medicaid Partnerships, led by Altarum in collaboration with the Center for Health Care Strategies, Family Voices, and the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs, helps states strengthen partnerships between Medicaid, CHIP, and Title V programs.

  • 36.8M children served, including 14M with special health needs
  • 100+ professionals engaged monthly
  • 7 states in 2025 Cohort (year 1) 

In partnership with Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Aging and Disability Services, and Office of MaineCare Services, Altarum Medicare-Medicaid Services for States helped to strengthen programs serving individuals eligible for Medicare and Medicaid.

  • Strategies to close service gaps and improve enrollee experience
  • Essential training for state staff
  • Enhanced oversight and integration of Medicare and Medicaid 

Advancing Public Health

The National Institute on Aging Small Business Programs manage the largest source of early-stage funding for aging-related research and development. Palladian Partners’ effective, long-term strategies have helped NIA consistently reach new entrepreneurs, supporting new breakthroughs in aging-related research and development.

  • NIA provides nearly $150M in grants annually
  • Fosters new entrepreneurs 

The All of Us Research Program is a historic effort to collect and study data from one million or more people living in the United States. The goal of the program is better health for all people. Palladian Partners has provided strategic, technical, logistical, administrative, communications, and outreach and engagement support for the program’s rich  community of participants, researchers, and partners.

  • 20 Presentations developed and supported for All of Us CEO and staff, presented to national and international audiences
  • ~150 program awardees supported
  • ~750 consortium onboardings and exits supported 

Integrating Public Health and Service Delivery

Tennessee needed support to strengthen its integrated care model for residents dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. Too often, this population faces fragmented care and complex benefit coordination.

The state turned to Altarum Medicare-Medicaid Services for States (AMMS) to help it meet evolving Medicare Advantage Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (D-SNP) regulations and better serve its residents.

  • Up to 2,500% anticipated increase in FIDE SNP enrollment eligibility in 2026
  • Workplan and communication strategy aligned with federal regulations through 2030
  • Building state capacity and internal subject matter expertise
  • Plain-language materials to help enrollees understand benefits

New federal requirements mandate the standardization of state vital record data exchange to support interoperability. Altarum partnered with states to implement Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) standards for vital records reporting. FHIR enables both broad and highly specific data exchange, allowing for flexibility and precision.

  • 4 States Live: Washington, Colorado, North Dakota, Michigan
  • 1 State in Process: Wisconsin
  • Reporting time reduced from days to hours
  • Automating manual steps led to: fewer errors, faster results
  • Greater workforce efficiency 

Learn More

Explore exciting career opportunities, learn how your organization can partner with us to drive impactful change together, and more.