Grantmakers In Health’s five-year strategic plan elevates leadership and influence as one of four strategic pillars for our work. GIH seeks to take a more active role in defining the key issues that will advance better health for all. We are also supporting health philanthropy with the thought leadership and programming to create lasting impact by influencing advocacy, policy, and funding in targeted areas.
This policy agenda identifies our public policy priorities for the coming year. Informed by health funders, these priorities will guide our programming, influence decisions related to issuing public statements on timely policy issues, and focus our emerging advocacy efforts. We hope these priorities will also inspire the field of health philanthropy and encourage greater collaboration and commitment to common policy goals among funders. We look forward to working with funders and others to advance this agenda.
GIH Health Policy Update Newsletter
An Exclusive Resource for GIH Funding Partners
In an effort to help our Funding Partners better understand the changing health policy landscape in the new administration and Congress, Grantmakers In Health (GIH) is expanding the GIH Health Policy Update newsletter to three issues per month. Working in collaboration with Leavitt Partners, a leading health care policy consultancy, we are adding new installments of the newsletter on the first and third Wednesdays of the month, while we will continue to partner with Trust for America’s Health on the installment released on the second Wednesday of the month.
2025 Federal Health Policy Timeline
This timeline previews expected and potential federal regulatory and legislative health policy events in 2025. Funding Partners interested in state legislative sessions should visit NCSL’s State Legislative Session Calendar.
A curated, exclusive resource for GIH Partners
GIH Advocacy for the Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA)
The OAA provides critical services that address the social drivers of health for older adults. If the OAA is not reauthorized, it is set to expire on September 30, 2024. Grantmakers In Health (GIH) and Grantmakers In Aging (GIA) announced a partnership last year to engage funders in advancing the reauthorization of this critical piece of legislation.
OAA News and Updates
In October 2023, Grantmakers In Aging (GIA) and Grantmakers In Health (GIH) launched an 18-month initiative to engage funders in the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA). This report highlights key activities and takeaways and previews future programming.
Download the Report →Upcoming Policy & Advocacy Events
We don't have anything scheduled at the moment but please check back soon for details on future Policy and Advocacy events.
Resources from Policy & Advocacy Events
Latest Resources
“Acting Bigger” by Partnering with Government
In the spring of 2014, the Southeastern Council of Foundations (SECF) convened more than a dozen health legacy foundation CEOs from throughout the southeastern United States to reflect on the Monitor Institute’s monograph, What’s Next for Philanthropy: Acting Bigger and Adapting Better in a Networked World.
Reflections on Building the Advocacy Capacity of Nonprofit Organizations
The Kansas Health Foundation reflects on a series of multiyear, targeted investments to build Kansas Action for Children’s advocacy capacity, and shares several lessons learned along the way.
Stepping Out: One Foundation’s Lessons Learned from Leading a Ballot Initiative
The Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City (HCF) shares lessons learned from an evaluation of its involvement in Missouri’s 2012 tobacco tax ballot initiative, one of the first times when HCF stepped into the public sphere in support of an issue.
Sustaining Health Care Improvement Initiatives through Policy
Many foundations now recognize their own responsibility and the opportunity to improve the sustainability of grant projects by taking active roles in advocating for important public and private policy changes. By partnering with grantees and by capitalizing on their unique roles, foundations can work with policymakers to continue successful programs through ongoing policies that sustain transformative efforts.
Gun Control: A Health Policy Issue?
Although the health-related consequences of gun violence are undeniable, the need for stronger gun control policies to address these health outcomes is hotly contested. Is the field of health philanthropy particularly “gun shy” about engaging in the contentious policy debate surrounding gun control? A number of health funders have supported grants and initiatives related to violence prevention, but relatively few have explicitly recognized gun control as a health policy objective.
Policy Statements
