In 2022, Arizona established the Arizona Health Innovation Trust Fund as a vehicle to drive the creation of health innovations that can improve quality of life for people of Arizona and increase opportunities for the high quality jobs Arizona Health Innovators create. The FY2023 appropriation was $100,000 to allow the initial set up of the fund. In 2023, two bills at the Arizona Legislature (HB2253 and SB1084) propose a $200 million dollar one-time investment into the Arizona Health Innovation Trust Fund.
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About the Arizona Health Innovation Trust Fund
Established under the Arizona State Treasurer’s Office (ASTO) the Arizona Health Innovation Trust Fund (AHIT) can accept public monies and private donations to the trust fund that will be invested by ASTO with the State Treasurer serving as Trustee. Monies invested must mature for five (5) years from the date of deposit prior to the prescribed 4% distributions being made to a contracted Arizona non-profit that will deploy the distributions in programs focused on workforce development, entrepreneurial support, and mission related investments designed to help the Arizona small businesses that are creating the health innovations grow and move Arizona’s health innovations forward faster. The statute also requires annual progress reporting to the Treasurer, the Legislature, and the Governor.
ASTO completed its RFI and RFP process in December 2022 and on December 29th, the Arizona State Board of Investment approved an Arizona Endowment Trust Fund (AETF) agreement between ASTO and the Opportunity Through Entrepreneurship Foundation (OTEF), an Arizona 501c3 public charity that will receive the AHIT distributions perform the required services under its AZAdvances initiative. For more information on this initiative, visit www.AZAdvances.org.
HB2253/SB1084: appropriation: Arizona Health Innovation Trust Fund
HB2253/SB1084 requests a one-time $200 million appropriation from the state general fund in fiscal year 2023-2024 to the Arizona health innovation trust fund established by section 41-177, Arizona Revised Statutes.
Upon maturity, AHIT will provide a continuous stream of funding that will support the needs of Arizona’s growing life science and healthcare sector as it strives to achieve top-ten status nationally and then maintain that status.
The return on investment will be substantial. The chart below shows where Arizona is today and where it can be in the future.
| 2021 | JOBS | FIRMS | AVG WAGE | ECONOMIC IMPACT | VENTURE CAPITAL |
| Arizona Rank
Arizona Metric |
22 36,410 |
14
2,912 |
22
$99,585 |
20
$38.54B |
25 $ .6B |
| #10 State
#10 Metric |
IN 65,290 |
CO
3,359 |
IL
$124,121 |
MN
$78.17B |
MD $3.4B |
Arizona’s public and private investments in our research institutes, universities and healthcare systems have helped get us where we are today. A one-time investment in AHIT in the 2023-2024 budget will begin to bridge the development gaps that are holding Arizona back from reaching our full potential.