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Roles for Philanthropy as Medicaid Changes Take Effect
For those of us who have worked toward health equity, who have spent the past few years building toward incremental gains and pushing for larger change, the events of this year can feel like one big backslide. At times, it’s overwhelming. Yet this is not the time to get bogged down by the size of the challenge or by analysis paralysis. From where I sit, I see five roles that philanthropy can play in the rollout of changes to Medicaid.
Protecting Children’s Access to Health Care in Schools: The Impact of Medicaid Cuts on School Health Services
“Due to the remote area we serve, our students have little to no access to medical services otherthan those provided in schools.”—Superintendent from a rural school district in Michigan. Schools are essential places for children to access health services. An estimated 40 percent ofschool-aged children have at least one chronic health condition (National Survey of Children’sHealth, 2019). Among low-income children with special health careneeds, approximately 87percent do not receive necessary care, primarily due to financial costs and limited access (Childand Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative, 2022). Providing health care at school, where children spend most of their days, is crucial to addressing these concerns.
Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust: October 2025
Three new fact sheets inform funders about how recent federal budget cuts will impact health care access, food assistance, and the health of immigrant families. The fact sheets detail what is being cut, when the cuts will take effect, and what to do next.
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.
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.
Publications and Reports
Getting Prescription Drugs to Those Who Need Them Most
There are major changes taking place in the way elderly and disabled people pay for prescription drugs. These changes are being ushered in by the new Medicare law, which, if it lives up to its promise, will be incredibly helpful to some of the most vulnerable members of our society. What are the details of the new law? How many people will it affect? How will low-income people be assisted? What are the implementation challenges? How are they being addressed by the federal government? What can grantmakers do to help?
New Choices and Hard Decisions: Helping Seniors Navigate Medicare
Educating seniors on the changes to the Medicare program will be a challenge for both the public and private sectors. Reaching the nation’s 41 million Medicare beneficiaries — 35 million of whom are over the age of 65 — will require a mix of customized, one-on-one assistance and broad education campaigns. This Issue Focus proposes that providing information and referral services for seniors and their families is an area ripe for foundation work, and outlines a number of opportunities for grantmakers.
Addressing Maternal Depression
Maternal depression affects not only a woman herself, but also her family, friends, and coworkers. Of particular concern is maternal depression’s link to problems in children’s health, mental health, and development. This Issue Focus highlights ways that health grantmakers can address maternal depression and its consequences, including educating women and health care providers, promoting screening and treatment, integrating mental health services into programs serving pregnant and parenting women, and supporting research.