Featured Resources
New America Report Examines Subminimum Wage for Disabled Workers
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are allowed to pay disabled workers less than the federal minimum wage, which has significant impacts on these workers’ health and well-being. A report from New America examines, state by state, the policies that drive the use or elimination of the subminimum wage, as well as the programs each state provides to more comprehensively support individuals with disabilities as they seek meaningful employment and fair wages.
The People Say: A New Older Adult and Caregiver Policy and Research Tool
An online research hub features first-hand insights from older adults and caregivers on the issues most important to them, as well as feedback from experts on policies affecting older adults. The project particularly focuses on the experiences of communities often under-consulted in policymaking, including older adults of color, those who are low income, and/or those who live in rural areas where healthcare isn’t easily accessible.
The Story of Care: A Snapshot of the Care Narrative Change Landscape
At some point, every one of us will need care or need to provide care. The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the extraordinary contributions of caregivers and exposed the failings caused by our nation’s lack of care policies, especially for communities of color. Deploying narrative-change strategies across care-related issues will help create the conditions for cultural and policy progress. The goal of this report is to share with funders the promising narrative-change strategies and tactics that have been identified, a directory of funders and grantees who are supporting this work, and how philanthropy can best support this effort.
GIH Advocacy for the Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA)
The OAA provides critical services that address the social drivers of health for older adults. Grantmakers In Health (GIH) and Grantmakers In Aging (GIA) are partnering to engage funders in advancing the reauthorization of this important piece of legislation.
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Investing in Inclusion: How Health Philanthropy Can Prioritize the Needs and Perspectives of Individuals with Disabilities
One in five children in the United States has a special health care need requiring more than routine health services, and one in four adults report having a disability. As 70 million adults and 14.5 million children in the United States have a disability, the population impacted by issues in the aging out process and in the health care system more broadly is far from insignificant. Despite these numbers, disability-related grants represent just 2 percent of total philanthropic giving and are primarily directed towards services and supports that seek to fix or cure disabilities and perpetuate the ableist assumption that people with disabilities are unable to make decisions about their own care.
Supporting Community Health Workers to Achieve Their Full Potential: What Role Can Philanthropy Play?
Community Health Workers (CHWs)—frontline public health professionals who have a unique and trusted relationship with the communities they serve—have proven their ability to help create just, equitable, and thriving communities. As a CHW for over a decade and a CHW ally for over 35 years, we have never witnessed a time of greater interest and investment in the CHW workforce. Amidst a rapidly changing CHW funding landscape, the philanthropic community has an important role to play in assuring that CHWs are able to make an optimum contribution to communities and to the health system.
Safeguarding Health Care Access for Transgender Communities
For decades, LGBTQ+ Americans have been at the forefront of powerful movements championing the freedom for all individuals to be themselves and pursue their dreams. This grassroots organizing has led to unprecedented public support for LGBTQ+ equality and increased visibility for transgender people within our society. However, despite growing acceptance, a dangerous political backlash threatens the progress made in securing health care access for transgender communities.
Health and Social Care Integration: Five Years of Progress on a National Academies Report
Historically, social determinants of health (SDOH) have not been addressed in health care visits. However, whether someone has a safe place to live or healthy food to eat directly impacts health. Other SDOH outlined by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion include economic stability, education access and quality, neighborhood and build environment, social and community context, and healthcare access and quality. It is critical that health care providers understand individuals’ experience of these domains; without this, the care provided is not patient-centered and does not fully address health and well-being.
John A Hartford Foundation: October 2024
A national survey, “Meeting the Growing Demand for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads,” released by Age Wave and The John A. Hartford Foundation, found 82 percent of older adults say the United State health care system is not prepared for the growing and changing needs of America’s aging population. After reviewing all survey findings, five key recommendations were identified to improve health care for older adults and promote healthier, happier aging.
The Commonwealth Fund: October 2024
The Commonwealth Fund released a report, Mirror, Mirror 2024: A Portrait of the Failing U.S. Health System, to compare health system performance in 10 countries, including the United States, to glean insights for United States improvement. It conducted an analysis of 70 health system performance measures in five areas: access to care, care process, administrative efficiency, equity, and health outcomes.
Publications and Reports
2024 Survey Summary: Firearm Violence Prevention Strategies
GIH conducted a survey in September 2024 about funder engagement in firearm violence prevention. This fact sheet summarizes the survey results with a total sample of 81 health funders. This public health crisis and social justice issue is preventable, and health funders have an important role to play in advancing firearm violence prevention efforts.
Progress Report: Older Americans Act Reauthorization Campaign
In October 2023, Grantmakers In Aging (GIA) and Grantmakers In Health (GIH) launched an 18-month initiative to engage funders in the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA). This report highlights key activities and takeaways and previews future programming.
Fact Sheet: Five Ways Congress Can Strengthen the Older Americans Act, and What Philanthropy Can Do
First signed into law in 1965, the Older Americans Act (OAA) provides critical services that address the social drivers of health for older adults such as nutrition, transportation, senior centers, elder rights protections, caregiver support, and health promotion. A popular, bipartisan, and effective law, the OAA is set to expire on September 30, 2024, if it is not reauthorized. Foundations play a critical role at every stage of the OAA, from the time Congress begins reauthorizing the law, to the appropriation of funding, to the implementation of OAA programs. Now is the time to act.
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