NJ SNIP: Supporting Behavioral Health Access Through Trust-based Grantmaking
Amid shifting federal health care funding, grants that enable health care safety net entities to respond to the changing landscape can unlock immense value. This form of grantmaking puts daily program-related decisions in the hands of people doing the work, allowing organizations to develop and sustain staff positions, workflows, and programs that reflect their priorities.
Leaning Into Radical Collaboration Will Advance Your Focused Mission
At this year’s GIH annual conference, I found myself surrounded by hundreds of philanthropic leaders deeply committed to improving the health and well-being of their communities. Again and again, I met funders whose work was grounded in a particular place, population, or issue. These funders know their communities intimately. They understand local history, relationships, and the needs of their communities. Their focus is one of their greatest strengths.
Changing the Vaccine Conversation Before It’s Too Late—What Can Philanthropy Do?
In July 2026, the United States reached a grim milestone when the number of confirmed cases of measles exceeded the total for all of 2025. On August 10, 2026, the White House issued an executive order directing changes to the federal childhood vaccine schedule and categories, and calls for availability of separate measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines. The science has not changed, but the new framework could significantly slow down the delivery of protective immunizations from these serious diseases.
Community Focused Strategies to Improve Health in West Baltimore
For far too long, residents of west Baltimore have faced continuous uphill battles to access basic amenities, services, jobs, and quality of life. Racism, redlining, eminent domain, disinvestment, school closures, poverty, violent crime, chronic health conditions, failed affordable housing, and the outmigration of businesses and residents have left behind vacant housing and dilapidated commercial corridors. These challenges result in a 17-year difference in life expectancy between residents of west Baltimore neighborhoods compared to other parts of the city.
GIH Health Policy Update Newsletter
An Exclusive Resource for Funding Partners
The Health Policy Update is a newsletter produced in collaboration with Leavitt Partners and Trust for America’s Health. Drawing on GIH’s policy priorities outlined in our policy agenda and our strategic objective of increasing our policy and advocacy presence, the Health Policy Update provides GIH Funding Partners with a range of federal health policy news.
Philanthropy @ Work – Grants and Programs – October 2025
The latest on grants and programs from the field.
Responding to a Rural Hospital Closure: The Importance of a Phased, Multi-Pronged Approach
It has been over a year since the August 31, 2024, closure of a beloved community hospital in Ayer, Massachusetts following the bankruptcy of the private equity-backed Steward Health Care system. The impacts of the Nashoba Valley Medical Center closure continue to reverberate across this rural working-class region, adding to a growing sense of abandonment and frustration that has accumulated over waves of health care service cuts.
The Role of Health Philanthropy in Improving Maternal Health for Underserved Populations
Although the United States is a high-income nation, it experiences a significant burden of maternal mortality incidence relative to other countries. In 2023, non-expansion Medicaid states had 27.7 percent higher pregnancy-related deaths than expansion states. The COVID-19 pandemic also exacerbated racial disparities in pregnancy-related deaths. Historically, marginalized populations, including low-income populations and Black and Indigenous communities are more vulnerable to preventable pregnancy-related deaths.
Designing Inclusive and Equity-Centered Health System Improvement Projects—Lessons from Three Initiatives
Disparities in access to health care persist for individuals with low incomes and Black, Hispanic/Latinx and Native American/Native Alaskan individuals and are particularly acute in behavioral health. Behavioral health care utilization rates among Black, Hispanic, and Asian adults are less than half those of White adults. These disparities exist because of barriers in access such as limited provider networks, poor language access, a lack of culturally-aligned services, and technological barriers to telehealth. Working with health providers to create inclusive and accessible services is essential to building more equitable access to behavioral health care, and to healthier and happier families and communities.
To Improve Youth Mental Health, Funders Must Center Youth Voices
As youth mental health challenges continue to grow nationwide, a new initiative in Greater Cincinnati believes transformational change begins when youth are empowered to lead.
Measuring and Communicating Impact: How Philanthropy Can Show and Tell Its Impact to Rally the Public in Defense of Research
If research evidence falls in the vast forest of journals and grant reports, but no one outside hears it, can it inform policy? In today’s political climate, grantmakers must do more than generate knowledge. They must ensure that its real-world impact is visible, measurable, and defensible.