Health Equity

Direct Relief’s Fund for Health Equity expands access to healthcare and improves health outcomes for marginalized communities.

In Brief

Through the Fund for Health Equity, Direct Relief supports grassroots organizations tackling health inequities.

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These organizations—deeply embedded in their communities—are diversifying the healthcare workforce, reducing health disparities, and leveraging technology to improve access to reliable care.

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Health outcomes are shaped by multiple factors, including education, employment, income, social support, community safety, air and water quality, housing, transportation, and personal behaviors. The Fund prioritizes organizations addressing these critical determinants of health.

Addressing Inequities in Health

Marginalized communities have long experienced worse health outcomes and are less likely to receive the medical care they need. That’s true of people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, people experiencing homelessness, and others as well.

These striking injustices are one of the modern-day effects of a long history of discriminatory practices, policies, and traditions.

Access to health care is just a single aspect of a person’s health. Race and ethnicity, housing situation, employment status, living environment, and spoken language, among other interrelated factors, will all play significant roles in an individual’s health outcomes.

The Fund for Health Equity

Direct Relief’s Fund for Health Equity provides financial support to community health centers, free and charitable clinics, educational institutions, and other grassroots organizations working to close health gaps.

The Fund is guided by an Advisory Council with deep expertise in communities affected by socioeconomic disparities.

Advisory Council Members:

• Co-Chair:Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA – 18th U.S. Surgeon General, Founder of BayouClinic, Inc.
• Co-Chair:Byron Scott, MD, MBA – COO and President, Direct Relief
• Martha Dawson, DNP, MSN, RN, FACHE – Associate Professor, University of Alabama at Birmingham; Former President, National Black Nurses Association
• Jane Delgado, Ph.D., MS – President & CEO, National Alliance for Hispanic Health
• Gail Small, JD – Head Chief Woman, Northern Cheyenne Tribe

Funding Priorities

The Fund for Health Equity supports organizations making measurable progress in three key areas:

1. Diversification of the Healthcare Workforce

Direct Relief’s goal is to support people from all backgrounds as they undergo the certification and training to become nurses, community health workers, health navigators, and other essential health care workers and make these career paths more accessible to diverse groups of people.

2. Elimination of Health Disparities

A wide range of factors, from the living environment to financial situations, will play a role in a person’s health outcomes. Direct Relief funds organizations working to reduce these disparities while improving population health, preventing disease, and responding to behavioral health and substance abuse challenges.

3. Support of Technology and/or Innovation

Many organizations use new technology – including telehealth platforms, mobile medical units, and renewable energy – to expand access and deliver better patient care through innovative technology that enhances providers’ ability to support patients and respond to the needs of their respective communities.

Impact & Reach

Since 2021, Direct Relief has granted more than $59 million to 184 organizations across the U.S. through the Fund for Health Equity.

Applications to the Fund are by invitation only.

Fund for Health Equity Grantees

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