CMS Opens $100 Million MAHA ELEVATE for Preventive Medicare Care

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has launched MAHA ELEVATE, a $100 million program that will fund up to 30 organizations to deliver preventive, whole-person care interventions to traditional Medicare beneficiaries. Letters of intent are due April 10 — three days from now — making this one of the most time-sensitive federal grant opportunities of the spring.

What MAHA ELEVATE Funds

Short for Make America Healthy Again: Enhancing Lifestyle and Evaluating Value-based Approaches Through Evidence, MAHA ELEVATE funds three-year cooperative agreements focused on evidence-based interventions that Original Medicare currently does not cover. Target areas include nutrition counseling, physical activity programs, sleep improvement, stress management, harmful substance avoidance, and social connection initiatives.

Each award can reach up to $3.3 million over three years. Three of the 30 awards are specifically reserved for dementia-focused initiatives — a carve-out that reflects growing pressure to address cognitive decline through lifestyle interventions before symptoms become irreversible.

The CMS Innovation Center frames the program as a direct response to the chronic disease epidemic, testing whether upstream preventive care can reduce Medicare spending while improving beneficiary health outcomes.

Who Should Apply

Eligible applicants include physician practices, health systems, accountable care organizations, community-based organizations, state and local governments, tribal health services, and senior living communities. The common thread is demonstrated experience delivering evidence-based, whole-person interventions to populations served by traditional fee-for-service Medicare.

Health centers with substantial Medicare populations are particularly well-positioned, especially those already offering lifestyle medicine services that lack a Medicare billing code. Senior living communities and ACOs with existing wellness programming may also find a natural fit.

Letter of Intent Due Thursday

The mandatory Letter of Intent deadline is April 10, 2026, with full applications due May 15. CMS plans to launch the first cohort in October 2026, with a second cohort following in 2027.

For organizations that have invested in preventive care infrastructure but struggled to sustain it without reimbursement, MAHA ELEVATE represents a rare federal opportunity to prove the model with CMS backing and a pathway to permanent Medicare coverage. Detailed application guidance is available on the Granted blog.