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Closing Remarks: 2025 Health Policy Exchange
President and CEO of Grantmakers In Health (GIH), Cara V. James, delivered closing remarks at the 2025 Health Policy Exchange, “Protecting the Freedom to Give” in Alrington, Virginia.
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.
The Importance of Ballot Measure Access and Race-Conscious Policymaking
In this interview, Grantmakers In Health’s Maya Schane spoke with Elizabeth DiLauro and Giridhar Mallya of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation about the importance of race-conscious policymaking and protecting access to ballot measures as key tools for advancing health and racial equity.
Investing in Collective Well-Being: Committing to a Future Where People and Planet Flourish
In this moment of widespread burnout and fragmentation, philanthropy has a crucial role in supporting communities redefining what it means to thrive. That means moving beyond narrow metrics and embracing a broader vision of collective well-being rooted in belonging, purpose, and dignity. The philanthropic sector must rise to the challenge of helping build an equitable future where both people and the planet can truly flourish.
Reports and Publications
Funder Approaches to Youth Behavioral Health Equity
Even before the pandemic, the mental health and well-being of adolescents and young adults was worrisome and worsening. COVID-19 has exacerbated these trends and heightened existing disparities. GIH surveyed its Funding Partners in October 2021 to better understand how health foundations are addressing youth behavioral health equity. The survey results are summarized in an infographic that provides a useful snapshot of primary funding areas, types of populations supported, and top funding strategies.
Improving Data on Race and Ethnicity: A Roadmap to Measure and Advance Health Equity
The second of two reports, Improving Data on Race and Ethnicity: A Roadmap to Measure and Advance Health Equity, provides more details about race and ethnicity data collection in federally administered health programs and an expanded list of recommendations for improving the data. The recommendations consider actions for states and the private sector as well as actions for the federal government.
Federal Action Is Needed to Improve Race and Ethnicity Data in Health Programs
Grantmakers In Health, in collaboration with the National Committee for Quality Assurance, interviewed a variety of stakeholders across the country, representing all levels of the health system. Federal Action Is Needed to Improve Race and Ethnicity Data in Health Programs, identifies tangible actions to help improve the completeness, accuracy, and usability of race and ethnicity data.