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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Latest Resources
Reimagining Rural Health and Well-being
To inform positive change, Grantmakers in Health (GIH) and the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) are partnering to reimagine a unified vision for health and well-being in rural America. The Georgia Health Policy Center (GHPC) was engaged to conduct a landscape analysis and facilitate listening sessions with rural health stakeholders at the local, state, and national levels.
GIH President and CEO Cara V. James Joined The Rural Impact Podcast for a Conversation about the Intersections of Policy and Philanthropy
On December 4, 2025, Cara V. James, President and CEO of Grantmakers In Health (GIH), was featured in an episode of The Rural Impact podcast. She joined Michelle Rathman, host of The Rural Impact and strategic communications advisor in health care policy, for a conversation on the intersections of policy and philanthropy, challenges with rural health funding, and more. “Policies that are impacting rural communities are…
Grantmakers In Health’s Partnership with Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders Highlighted in Inside Philanthropy Article
Due to cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in H.R.1, along with the program’s suspension during the longest government shutdown in American history, Grantmakers in Health (GIH) is partnering with Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders (SAFSF) on a funder working group to coordinate philanthropy’s response. This partnership, along with SAFSF’s broader work, was highlighted in a November 13, 2025 Inside Philanthropy article. In the piece, Clare Fox, SAFSF’s…
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.
Publications and Reports
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.
Connecting Children to Ongoing and Coordinated Health Care
Ongoing and coordinated care for children has been linked to better health outcomes, as well as lower overall costs. This Issue Focus highlights opportunities for grantmakers that include improving access to medical homes, coordinating care for children with chronic diseases, educating providers, colocating services, and reducing emergency department use.
Connect With Funder Peers on Population Health
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