Community Organizing to Secure Universal Health Care [ March 30, 2006 ]

This audioconference featured the work of the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut which has launched a major community organizing initiative as part of its efforts to secure passage of a concrete proposal for universal health care in the state. 

2006 Annual Meeting on Health Philanthropy [ February 22, 2006 ]

GIH's 2006 Annual Meeting on Health Philanthropy, From the Ground Up: Improving Community Health Inspiring Community Action, was held in Phoenix, Arizona.  

AHRQ Reports on Health Care Disparities and Quality [ February 15, 2006 ]

During this audioconference, Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), discussed the agency's annual reports on health care quality and disparities.  The 2005 National Healthcare Quality Report and 2005 National Healthcare Disparities Report indicate that there are pervasive disparities related to race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status in the American health care system, but that improvement is possible. 

A Briefing on the IOM Report Food Marketing to Children: Threat or Opportunity? [ February 9, 2006 ]

A recent Institute of Medicine report highlights the strong evidence that marketing of foods and beverages to children influences their preferences, influences their preferences, requests, purchases, and diets.  Health funders face the challenge of counteracting the deluge of advertisements directed to children. This audioconference provided an opportunity to  learn about the main findings and recommendations of the IOM report, Food Marketing to Children: Threat or Opportunity?  Our speaker was Dr. Michael McGinnis, chairman of the committee that produced this report.  

Making Investment in Early Care and Education a Public Policy Priority [ January 25, 2006 ]

The George Gund Foundation is funding the Center for Community Solutions to develop and advance a state budget agenda focused on care and education of the Ohio's youngest children.  The goal of this ambitious and creative campaign is to make increased state investment in early care and education a priority in the 2006 gubernatorial campaign and in the state 2008-2009 biennial budget and beyond.  During this audioconference, Marcia Egbert from the George Gund Foundation and Lori McClung from the Center for Community Solutions described the research and advocacy activities already underway.

Opportunities to Address Childhood Obesity Through School Wellness Policies [ November 29, 2005 ]

With the dramatic increase in childhood obesity over the past twenty years, many policymakers are focused on improving school policies as part of the solution to promote better childhood nutrition and physical activity. Additionally, the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 (PL 108-265) now requires all schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program to have a local wellness policy in place by June 2006.  How can foundations contribute to better school policies?  Join this audioconference to hear about the school wellness policy requirement, an initiative to provide technical assistance to school districts developing wellness policies, and perspectives from a funder experienced in working with schools.

Recent State and Federal Medicaid Developments [ November 15, 2005 ]

This update on the latest plans to reform Medicaid featured Robin Rudowitz of the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured.  Click the title above for a copy of her presentation and additional resource materials. 

2005 Fall Forum: The Intersection of Health Policy and Philanthropy [ November 3, 2005 ]

GIH's Fall Forum is the one time each year when we focus exclusively on the intersection of health policy and health philanthropy.  The program offered two day-long Issue Dialogues on public policy strategies and children's coverage, bridged by a plenary session, "The War of Ideas," on Thursday evening and our traditional breakfast roundtables on Friday morning.  

The Use of Electronic Health Records in Community Clinics [ October 26, 2005 ]

This discussion about how foundations are supporting community clinics in the use of electronic health records featured Veenu Aulakh of the California HealthCare Foundation, Jane Stafford of the Tides Foundation, and Thomas Aschenbrener of the Northwest Health Foundation.  Click the title above for a summary of the audioconference and additional resource materials. 
 

2005 The Art & Science of Health Grantmaking [ September 26, 2005 ]

Health grantmakers gathered in Boston September 26-27, 2005 for GIH's two-day, two-track workshop focused on five key areas of foundation operations:  governance, finance and investments, grantmaking, evaluation and communications. 

Engaging Faith Communities [ September 20, 2005 ]

This audioconference considered how health funders can engage faith-based organizations in the fight against fat.  Our guest speakers shared the experiences of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, a health foundation now working to promote physical activity and healthy nutrition among United Methodist congregations throughout Kansas. A summary is now available.

Medicare Rx: Outreach Activities for the Low-Income Subsidy [ June 20, 2005 ]

The Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) are working together to implement the low-income subsidy program for the new Medicare prescription drug benefit.  SSA's role in this partnership is to help the public understand how they may qualify and apply for extra help paying for their prescription drugs.  During this audioconference, Beatrice Disman of the Social Security Administration discussed the application process for the low-income subsidy program and an overview of SSA's outreach and education efforts.  Click the title above for a summary of the call and a list of resource materials.

State Actions on Overweight and Obesity [ June 16, 2005 ]

Amy Winterfeld of the National Conference of State Legislatures briefed us on how legislation related to overweight and obesity fared in 2005 legislative sessions.  A summary is now available.

The Importance of Data Collection in Reducing Health Care Disparities and Improving Quality [ June 7, 2005 ]

The second call in this series focused on the importance of data collection in reducing racial and ethnic health disparities and improving quality of care.  Romana Hasnain-Wynia, senior director for research and evaluation at the Health Research and Educational Trust/ American Hospital Association and Anne Beal, senior program officer at The Commonwealth Fund were our guest speakers.   

Children's Preventive Services [ May 23, 2005 ]

A comprehensive, coordinated set of preventive services, including medical, dental, developmental and mental health services, is crucial for children.  During this audioconference, Melinda Abrams from The Commonwealth Fund and Elizabeth Lee from the Michael Reese Health Trust discussed current trends and challenges in the field of children's preventive services, using recent grant programs as illustrative examples. 

The Implications of the Medicare Drug Benefit for States [ May 16, 2005 ]

States will need assistance reaching out to both dual eligibles and other low-income Medicare beneficiaries to inform them of changes in their drug coverage options, as well as financial assistance to help them pay for medications.  As part of its ongoing work, Grantmakers In Health (GIH) held an audioconference to bring grantmakers together with representatives of organizations working to ensure vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries are fully aware of the new drug program, the critical choices they must make, and subsidies available to them.  Click the title above for a summary of the call and a list of resource materials.

Strategies to Improve Participation in Public Programs [ April 26, 2005 ]

A significant number of the 41 million Americans without health insurance are eligible for, but not enrolled in, publicly funded health and human service programs.  Several innovative strategies have the potential to increase participation in public programs, by making enrollment and renewal procedures more efficient and by coordinating the application processes of multiple programs serving low-income families.  During the audioconference, Laura Hogan of The California Endowment and Tim Henderson of the Quantum Foundation, Inc. discussed how funders are supporting these efforts.  Click the title above for a summary of the audioconference.

Measuring Progress: AHRQ Reports on Health Care Disparities and Quality [ April 19, 2005 ]

In an effort to highlight the important relationship between reducing health disparities and improving quality of care, GIH is sponsoring a series of audioconferences to bring together grantmakers working on these issues and hear from experts in these fields.  The first call in this series featured a conversation with Carolyn Clancy, director of the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ). 

Medicaid Defense Strategy [ March 11, 2005 ]

Medicaid is the subject of hot debate in the U.S. Congress and state legislatures.  This audioconference provided an opportunity to learn about how Medicaid advocates are planning their defense strategy and how the work of national advocacy organizations is connected to activities at the state and local level. 

Our guest speakers were Ellen Nissenbaum and Vikki Wacchino of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. A summary is now available.

2005 Annual Meeting on Health Philanthropy [ February 23, 2005 ]

The theme of GIH's 2005 annual meeting was Agents of Change: Health Philanthropy's Role in Transforming Systems.  Speeches, photos, and the portfolio of resources produced for this meeting are available for download.