Health Affairs

It is time for a “people post” to bring you news of comings and goings in health philanthropy. Sylvia Mathews Burwell, president of the Walmart Foundation, has been nominated by President Barack Obama to be director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Read about one of the Walmart Foundation’s focus areas: Hunger and Healthy... Read the rest of this entry »

This blog post, with the original title of “Checking In with Grantmakers In Health’s New President and CEO,” first appeared on Health and Environmental Funders Network blog, which is called Giving InSight, on February 11: http://blog.hefn.org/2013/02/11/checking-in-with-grantmakers-in-healths-new-president-and-ceo/  ____________________________ HEFN [Health and Environmental Funders] Director Kathy Sessions spoke with Faith Mitchell, Grantmakers In Health’s [GIH's] newly appointed President and... Read the rest of this entry »

The author, the CEO of Weight Watchers International, describes a new initiative that the company launched with the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Cities can apply now (please see below). Cities today face huge health challenges. For residents, cities are the guardians of public health. For municipal employees, cities serve as health care providers. In both cases, mayors... Read the rest of this entry »

As a former state legislator and foundation CEO, I worry about how the majority opinion of Chief Justice John Roberts on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius) may affect our approach to prevention programs. Funding environmental health may be the best way to go. In... Read the rest of this entry »

The Colorado Health Foundation hosted a debate on July 25 as part of its annual Colorado Health Symposium. The conference sold out, as it has many other years. GrantWatch Blog asked Chuck Reyman, vice president of communications at the foundation, who organized the debate, to write a post sharing his observations. Statistically speaking, there’s not... Read the rest of this entry »

The May GrantWatch column in Health Affairs focuses on efforts of foundations around the United States to address the problems of ‘food deserts’—low-income communities where there are limited locations for residents to buy reasonably priced fresh fruits and vegetables. The topic of food deserts can be controversial in some quarters: Did you see the recent... Read the rest of this entry »

Derek Yach, senior vice president for global health and agriculture policy at PepsiCo, was one of the plenary speakers at the recent Grantmakers In Health (GIH) Annual Meeting, held in Baltimore. A strategist, Yach previously has held positions at the Rockefeller Foundation, Yale University, and the World Health Organization (WHO). His remarks provided “food for... Read the rest of this entry »

An e-alert describing a new report caught my eye. Who would have anticipated these results? The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), which announced back in 2007 that it would commit at least $500 million to reversing the childhood obesity problem by 2015, funded the work that led to the report (described below) about the effects on business... Read the rest of this entry »

We list below the three most-read posts during the month. Take a look in case you missed one of these when the original tweet or e-alert went out. 1. “Foundation Blogs Round-up: Health Reform, Disparities, Global Health, Obesity, and More,” by Lee-Lee Prina (Feb.17, 2011). Heading the top-three list is a round-up (selected sampling) of... Read the rest of this entry »

This is the second in a series of short posts on my trip to Los Angeles to cover the Grantmakers In Health (GIH) Annual Meeting earlier this month. Humans need physical activity as much as they need food. Unfortunately, they have no internal prompt to be active, and they are programmed to be sedentary, said... Read the rest of this entry »

Below, we list the three most-read posts of the month. Take a look in case you missed one of these when the original tweet or e-alert was sent out. 1. “Update on What Foundations Have Been Doing in Oral Health Care” (Jan. 27, 2011). Read about the efforts of a number of foundations all over... Read the rest of this entry »

As my work week draws to a close, I have put together a quick listing of some foundation-related posts that I think you might want to check out. If your foundation has a blog about health care and it is not listed on GrantWatch Blog’s Blogroll, let me know about it! Disparities in Health: “Poll... Read the rest of this entry »

At the end of each year, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) staffers look at research published during the past twelve months and choose several peer-reviewed articles that the staff deems to have “had major impact on research or influenced the field,” according to the foundation’s web site. All articles on the list are written by... Read the rest of this entry »

I have pulled together a list of links to philanthropy-related blog posts that have come across my desk in recent weeks. I hope that you will see a few that pique your interest. During this short week between the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, I am keeping my “roundup” post—covering several important topics—short! Happy New... Read the rest of this entry »

It’s time again for a roundup of recent posts on philanthropy-related blogs that you may want to check out—perhaps during a slower-than-normal week at work or as you kick back at home during the holiday season. I have also included a link to a new Foundation Center document on foundations’ “policy-related activities” and a Baltimore... Read the rest of this entry »

Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), sent out a Letter to the Field on Dec. 14. The letter’s audience was RWJF grantees and partners (and for “the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted solely to the public’s health,” that encompasses a big group). Here is some of what she... Read the rest of this entry »

The Foundation Center has just released a short publication on grantmakers’ use of social media, including blogs. (I include here some examples of posts by foundation presidents that have appeared in recent months on the GrantWatch Blog. Subjects range from health reform to HIV/AIDS to smoking prevention.) Also recently released is a report on what... Read the rest of this entry »

Below, we have tabulated a list of the three most-read GrantWatch Blog posts in August 2010. (GrantWatch Blog launched in March 2010.) Here is a chance to take a gander at these posts if you missed them when the original Tweet or e-alert came out. “The Relief of Suffering from Serious Illness: How Foundations Can... Read the rest of this entry »

With First Lady Michelle Obama’s interest in fresh produce from the garden, we are reminded of how good it is, especially this time of year, to indulge in fresh fruits and vegetables. Check out this four-color magazine recently released by a foundation in Pittsburgh. The Heinz Endowments recently released the first “food issue” of its... Read the rest of this entry »

Diabetes has been in the news this week what with a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel ruling on the diabetes drug Avandia. So, today’s post focuses on a foundation-funded program to reduce disparities in care for people who have this chronic disease. The Alliance to Reduce Disparities in Diabetes, which is funded by... Read the rest of this entry »