October 2022

From the President - Committing to the Long Game of Advancing Better Health Through Public Policy

Every year around this time, we participate in a time-honored process of voting for candidates we believe align with our values. As people across the country prepare to vote in state and local elections, those of us working in health philanthropy should take a moment to reflect on what we can do to support policies to advance better health outcomes.

Read the Full Letter →

VIEWS FROM THE FIELD

Promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Health Care Workforce

Yasmine R. Legendre, Program Associate, Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation

The Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation is the only national foundation solely dedicated to improving the public’s health by advancing change in the education of health professionals. The foundation’s current focus is the clinical learning environment where the health care workforce both acquires skills and delivers care. Within this focus, our aim is to make those environments more inclusive and equitable so that all can feel welcome and participate in a robust system of care that meets the evolving needs of the population.

VIEWS FROM THE FIELD

The Gilead Foundation: Advancing Health Equity Through Education Equity in the U.S.

Smita Pamar, Director, Gilead Foundation, Creating Possible Fund
Kate Wilson, Executive Director, Gilead Foundation

While the COVID pandemic and most recent racial reckoning galvanized the traditional health philanthropy community, many corporate funders made their first foray into supporting racial and social justice efforts as well as health equity. Corporate social responsibility efforts were, and continue to be, scrutinized as merely cosmetic public relations efforts with no real long-term, institutional commitments to driving meaningful change in Black and Brown communities that have long been historically, intentionally marginalized. When Gilead Sciences endowed and re-launched the Gilead Foundation with $200 million in 2021, it did so with the intention and institutional commitment to not only address the upstream drivers of health inequity but also change the way traditional corporate funders invest support in the most heavily impacted communities.

VIEWS FROM THE FIELD

Health Philanthropy’s Equity Blind Spot: Syringe Services Programs

Christine Rodriguez, Senior Program Manager, Harm Reduction, AIDS United

Syringe services programs (SSPs) have existed, mostly under the radar, in the United States since the early days of the response to the HIV epidemic. Illegal then, and still illegal in many jurisdictions across the country today, sterile syringe access is a bedrock of harm reduction—a service created by people who use drugs to save their own lives and those of their loved ones. Despite the many misconceptions about what they do and how they operate, SSPs enjoy a long history of robust evidence for their effectiveness in impacted communities. While the provision of sterile syringes and other drug use supplies is a core offering, the range of services an SSP might offer with adequate resources is nearly limitless and defined only by local needs. Services can and do often go far beyond just substance use and infectious disease response.

GIH NEWS

CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure Joins GIH Fall Forum

We are excited to announce that Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), will deliver the Lauren LeRoy Health Policy Lecture at GIH’s upcoming Fall Forum on November 16 - 18, 2022 in Washington, DC. Register here to attend. Please note that this year’s Fall Forum is in-person only; no virtual option is available. Click here for more information about the event.

2023 GIH Annual Conference: Call for Proposals

We invite you to submit a session proposal for the 2023 Grantmakers In Health Annual Conference on Health Philanthropy, Advancing Philanthropy’s Commitment to the Long Game, which will be held in-person on June 7 - 9, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 4, 2023. Click here for more information.

Call for Nominations Open for 2023 Grantmakers In Health Awards

GIH has opened the 2023 nominations for the Andy Hyman Award for Advocacy and Terrance Keenan Leadership Award in Health Philanthropy. Nominations for both awards may be submitted online through the GIH website until Friday, December 9, 2022.

GIH President and CEO Cara James Interviewed on TED Health Podcast

GIH President and CEO Cara V. James was interviewed by Shoshana Ungerleider on the September 21, 2022 episode of the TED Health podcast about challenges faced by the U.S. public health system. Click here to listen.

PHILANTHROPY @ WORK

Grants & Programs

Austin-Bailey Health and Wellness Foundation (Canton, OH) • The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Foundation (Detroit, MI) • Blue Shield of California Foundation (San Francisco, CA) • The John A. Hartford Foundation (New York, NY) • The Merck Foundation (Rahway, NJ) • The Mt. Sinai Health Foundation (Cleveland, OH) • RRF Foundation for Aging (Chicago, IL) • The Weinberg Foundation (Owings Mills, MD)

Transitions and Appointments

Oxiris Barbot (United Hospital Fund) • Paul DiLorenzo (Salem Health and Wellness Foundation) • Carolyn Wang Kong (Asian Pacific Fund) • Dr. Lourdes J. Rodríguez (David Rockefeller Fund) • Nancy Zweibel (RRF Foundation on Aging)