Want to See Lasting Systemic Change and Transformation to Build Health Equity? Invest in Power Building
Despite a commitment to transformation, equity, and rebalancing the scales of justice, philanthropy often operates in ways that undermine its very purpose. Historically, the philanthropic field has taken a siloed and narrow approach to change, offering investments in short-term funding cycles and attempting to create change from the top down.
Health Philanthropy Impacting the Health and Well-Being of Family Caregivers
More than 53 million Americans—21 percent of the US population—are caregivers for loved ones who are older adults or adults living with chronic, disabling, or serious health conditions. Increasingly, the US health and long-term care systems rely on family caregivers. In 2017, family caregivers in the US provided a staggering 80 percent of long-term care, valued at $470 billion, and in 2021, 38 million family caregivers spent 36 billion hours caring for older adults, amounting to an estimated $600 billion in unpaid caregiving.
As More Americans Gain Health Care Coverage, Advocates Fight for Higher-Quality Insurance
People’s Action and our allies fought hard to win health care for millions through the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion. 91 percent of Americans now have health insurance, even though there is still work to do to ensure everyone can get coverage, particularly immigrants and those living in holdout non-expansion states.
Philanthropy’s Role in Equitable Medi-Cal Expansion
California has more people enrolled in Medicaid than any other state—almost 15 million of 93 million enrollees nationwide, and the state’s efforts to equitably address the enrollment churn make it worth watching. When the pause on Medicaid redeterminations ended in April, up to 3 million Medi-Cal enrollees, California’s program, were at risk of losing coverage. Most at risk are those often eligible but inconsistently enrolled in Medi-Cal—if at all. Many of these individuals are from poorly served communities who often experience longstanding discrimination in accessing health care. They commonly live in extremely rural areas and lack access to the internet and transportation; have unstable housing; are reluctant to enroll due to their immigration status; and have limited English proficiency, live with a physical disability, or have behavioral health needs. If Medi-Cal is to be a true driver for health equity, we need to close the enrollment gap in these communities.
Medica Foundation
“The Medica Foundation especially values programs that utilize tools to deliver mental health care where it’s most needed, and that overcome obstacles like race, language, economic status, geographic location, or historical distrust of the health care system. Both telehealth and mobile health care units are reaching communities and populations that were previously unrepresented and making inroads to building trust in the health care system. We are proud to partner with programs that are delivering care to people through innovative new methods and models.”
The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation: July 2023
The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation announced a call for proposals for its Special Initiatives grant program. In addition, the foundation is now recruiting applicants for the 12th cohort of emerging leaders in the health leadership program that begins this fall.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation: July 2023
This study, commissioned in collaboration with the Health Equity Compact, aims to quantify that economic burden associated with solutions for reducing inequities in health (which require investments of time and resources for which there will always be competing priorities.)
Philanthropy @ Work – Grants and Programs – July 2023
The latest on grants and programs from the field.
2023 Grantmakers In Health Annual Conference on Health Philanthropy Plenary Videos
Video recordings of the 2023 Grantmakers In Health (GIH) Annual Conference on Health Philanthropy plenary sessions are now available to registered attendees. An email with the passcode was sent to all attendees and speakers July 18. If you have not received the passcode, please contact us to request it. Welcome Message from GIH President and…