Health Care Archives

Health Care Donors Urged to Take a Stand Amidst Ongoing Funding Cuts

Editor’s Note: As a healthcare provider myself, this statement from Cara V. James, President and CEO of Grantmakers in Health, struck a deep chord. Now is the time for funders to do what they can to mitigate the damage of the US government’s extreme and unprecented withdrawal of funding for health.

Cara V. James, President and CEO of Grantmakers In Health and former Director of the Office of Minority Health at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), urges health care funders to take action to protect health care nationally. (Image Credit: GIH)

This week marks 100 days since the start of the current administration. In that time, we have experienced a wave of harmful policies; devastating funding cuts; significant federal workforce reductions; and direct threats to freedom of speech, democracy, and the rule of law. As a country, we have witnessed the use of unlawful executive actions to intimidate, restrict, or punish organizations for addressing important societal challenges. While much remains uncertain, it is clear these changes will not make us healthier, and they threaten the foundation of our democracy. In the end, it is people—especially the most vulnerable—who will suffer the consequences.

Don’t Stop Believing and Fund Like a Feminist: Together Women Rise

I believe it was Elizabeth Barajas-Román who I first heard use the compelling phrase “fund like a feminist.” I’d like to borrow that phrase to talk about a number of things going on in the women’s funding hemisphere in the midst of the national and international cuts to services for women, people of color, and many other marginalized groups.

Children in Nepal participating in a rural health programs funded by Together Women Rise. (image credit: Together Women Rise)

It’s never been more important to fund like a feminist, and that’s why it gives me hope to share about Together Women Rise and its grants to support women in the Global South.

Starting May 6th, Together Women Rise will be accepting applications for its Featured Grants to be awarded in 2026. (Guidelines here.) Together Women Rise’s Featured Grants program funds 12 grants per year, ranging from $35,000 to $50,000 each.

Expert Interview on the Fight for Women’s Bodily Autonomy

Vice-President Kamala Harris issued a stinging rebuke to the “hypocrisy” of conservatives in a speech delivered on the anniversary of the overturning of Roe v Wade, in which she pointed out that conservatives continuously seek to restrict access to health care. “How dare they?” she demanded.

Kamala Harris speaks out for women everywhere.(Image credit: ABC News video screenshot)

There are reasons for her charges. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently published a study showing that the number of women aged 18-30 choosing to undergo tubal ligation has increased dramatically since Roe was overturned. The rate of vasectomies has also increased, but only at half the rate of tubal ligations. It appears that, in the age of shrinking space for abortion rights, women are now much more fearful about their own bodily autonomy.

Dr. Janet Wormack is the New CFO and COO of The Steve Fund

Since women are both the primary producers and consumers of mental health services, it’s heartening to see women being elevated into positions of leadership and influence in this arena.

Dr. Janet Wormack, new Chief Financial and Operations Officer at The Steve Fund. (Image credit: The Steve Fund)

The Steve Fund announced the appointment of Dr. Janet Wormack as the organization’s new Chief Financial and Operations Officer. The Steve Fund is a leading nonprofit organization focused on promoting the mental health and emotional well-being of young people of color.

“Dr. Janet Wormack brings a wealth of experience in public and higher education administration to The Steve Fund,” said David McGhee, CEO of The Steve Fund.

Women Face Uphill Survival Odds in Health, US Talks But Does Not Walk

The healthcare profession has been promising to increase the number of women included in clinical trials for decades. To be blunt, this has not happened. Women are still woefully underrepresented in virtually all clinical trials. Even the majority of lab mice are male.

The White House has announced a new initiative totalling $900 Million to Launch women in the economy. (Image Credit: Biden Harris Administration)

Not only do researchers fail to include enough women in clinical trials, they often don’t look for differences between how men and women respond to treatments.

The results of this neglect are tragic:

Women are twice as likely as men to die from heart attacks.
When a nonsmoker dies of lung cancer, it’s twice as likely to be a woman as a man.
Women suffer more than men from Alzheimer’s and autoimmune disease.

Despite this, the research into these conditions, and many more, generally fails to examine women as a separate population from men. It’s even less likely to look at disparities affecting women of color – why, for instance, Black women are nearly three times more likely to die in pregnancy than white women are.

We Are Changed By the People We Love, and Other Feminist News

Greetings, my dear friends in the feminist giving community and beyond. I’m here to talk to you today about a very serious problem: editors and publishers who will not allow women to have their own voice.

The Everyday Feminist, by Latanya Mapp Frett, will be released for publication on March 8,2023. (Image credit: Wiley Books)

I think part of the issue comes down to the fact that we are changed by the people we love. Along with being changed by the people we love, I also believe we are changed by writing that impacts us emotionally. In the editorial world, that translates into being changed by a piece of writing because it is written in a new way and does not adhere to outdated concepts. Margaret Atwood is famous for saying something to the effect of, “if your writing is not making anyone angry, you’re not really writing,” and I tend to agree. Real writing makes both friends and enemies because real writing can change the game. It can cause people to think differently, to make new connections in how their thoughts align with their behaviors day-to-day.

Filling the Feminist Giving Media Gap, and Print Book Update

Well hello my philanthro-friends! How have you been? I’ve missed you, but have been busy with edits for the print version of Feminist Giving, as well as the ongoing work that goes with being a full-time therapist, and, over the past year, the nursery childcare provider for St. Stephen’s in Providence (smoky Steve’s!). Never a dull moment around here!

Feminist Giving is now available on Amazon, and this past week we finally finished the print version, and I have ordered the proof copy of the hardcover edition. The book has over 240 citations, so it took a lot of formatting work to put together the full print bibliography. My special thanks go out to Maggie May who has been sticking with it to make this project a reality. Thank you so much, Maggie. I literally couldn’t do it without you, and I appreciate your work every day.

Alarming, Affirming, Challenging: It’s HERE! Order Feminist Giving TODAY!

The wait is over for Philanthropy Women Editor-in-Chief Kiersten Marek’s new book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change! Critics are describing the book as “alarming, affirming, and challenging,” and an “important new resource” for philanthropy and social justice movements.

It’s here!! Order *Feminist Giving* on Kobo and Lulu today!

Out TODAY as an eBook on Kobo and Lulu, Feminist Giving features some of the best research and insights from the feminist giving sphere in the last five years. Hard copy and Amazon editions are coming soon (cheer on those processors!), and we’ll be sure to let the whole world know as soon as they are available.

Coming October 4th: Kiersten Marek’s New Book, Feminist Giving!

Pre-orders are now available for Philanthropy Women Editor-in-Chief Kiersten Marek’s next book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change!

*Kiersten Marek’s new book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change, arrives in digital and hardcover copies on October 4th, 2022! Click here to pre-order your copy!*

Out October 4th in hard copy and digital formats, Feminist Giving features some of the best research and insights from the feminist giving sphere in the last five years. Pre-order your copy today so you don’t miss a moment of the latest and greatest research in feminist giving!

This exquisitely researched resource is packed with real-world examples and interviews with the best and brightest of the philanthropy world. Pre-order your copy today, and celebrate with us on October 4th!

Feminist Giving In the News: Top 10 Women’s Funding Countdown

This batch of feminist funding news spans from state-based government funding for childcare workers (brilliant stuff!) to ten new additions we have made to the funders listed in our Gender Equality Funder Database. Enjoy!

Lauren Y. Casteel, President and CEO of The Women’s Foundation of Colorado. (Image credit: WFC)

1: Women’s Foundation of Colorado Makes Goal of 100% Gender Lens Investable Assets

“As the only community foundation in the state focused on gender, racial, and economic equity, it was time to unapologetically integrate all assets of our operation and programs around our goals to ensure the success of our strategic framework,” said Lauren Y. Casteel, president and CEO of The Women’s Foundation. “We are proud to align our money with our mission, and to use all of our available resources to maximize donor impact.”

Category: Health Care