Alabama Foundation for Oncology


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Patient Grant Program

The Alabama Foundation for Oncology has provided financial assistance to cancer patients with critical needs like housing, food, and utilities. All applications for assistance must be made through a Social Worker, Oncology Nurse, or Physician. It must be demonstrated that the patient is in financial need and specific needs must be identified. If a grant is approved, we pay bills directly to the companies, never to the patient. We provide assistance for patients at every major hospital in the Greater Birmingham area. Many of these patients are UAB, UAB Hospice, and Children's Hospital patients. Our patient assistance fund is a vital resource for cancer patients in need. We have worked hard to make our application and approval process as efficient as possible for medical professionals so that we can get patients help as quickly as possible.

Grant Guidelines for Processing / Administration

Needy cancer patients undergoing treatment or within the hospice setting in need of assistance are eligible for one-time assistance from the Foundation in the form of a patient grant. Grants are currently limited to patients with a cancer diagnosis. Need must be identified by a licensed hospice or hospital social worker, physician, or through an accredited social agency, and the patient case must be put before the hospice or care team involved with this patient to establish a real need for support before a grant application is submitted to the Foundation for review.
All grant requests should be made prior to purchasing or ordering of patient care equipment, etc. All grant requests should be made in writing. A grant request form and expense form should be completed for each patient by a licensed social worker or physician. Please make sure to identify all patient income and expenses on the form or a separate sheet. We also request a written explanation explaining the situation surrounding the request, a defined request with the amount needed, and a description of other resrouces being accessed or attempted to fulfill the patient's needs. Also, please define a time period when assistance will be needed. Send all completed grant requests to the Alabama Foundation for Oncology, P.O. Box 660833, Birmingham, AL 35266-0833. Attach all bills, invoices, etc. that apply to the grant request. All invoices should be made out to the Alabama Foundation for Oncology, not a specific hospice.
Please allow 7 business days for review of each grant request. If a grant request is approved, the patient's social worker will be notified by telephone or in writing. The social worker will be responsible for contacting all services, companies, etc. who will receive payment from a grant request. For bookkeeping purposes, list the Alabama Foundation for Oncology on all invoices, along with the name of the patient. The social worker directs invoices to their address and must review each invoice, identify which grant it applies to and make sure that the bill is correct before forwarding it to the Foundation for payment.
Grants will not exceed $500 per patient. The Alabama Foundation for Oncology reserves the right to limit one grant per patient per year, and to limit the amount of funds dispersed for individual grants within the calendar year.
No grant requests will be considered to benefit the estate of a patient.
No grant requests can directly benefit a for-profit hospital, agency, or hospice.

For more information about receiving a patient grant, please contact Sissy at the Foundation office, 877-2225. You must be a Social Worker, Oncology Nurse or Physician to apply.