Attention to public health, specifically health disparities, comes and goes as health crises arise and abate. Today, the COVID-19 pandemic and the disproportionate impact it has on racially and ethnically diverse communities and individuals from low-income backgrounds have brought social and racial justice to the forefront of public health. Through their first Catalyze Health Equity Cohort, New Profit, in collaboration with Deloitte’s Health Equity Institute (DHEI), will soon announce the selection of eight nonprofit organizations working to transform the conditions that keep health inequities in place. 

“At DHEI, we believe health and health equity extends well beyond clinical care and health services,” said Jay Bhatt, Executive Director of DHEI and Deloitte Center for Health Solutions. “Our efforts to advance health equity have to address the root causes of inequitable health outcomes and support the leaders on the ground championing innovative solutions, and our work with New Profit is focused on doing just that.”

Health care itself is only one factor that affects a person’s health—and oftentimes it is not the most important factor. A person’s zip code, race, income, and other social, environmental, and economic conditions play a significant part in their health status and life expectancy. Addressing health inequities is a crucial element in driving toward inclusive prosperity in the U.S. Therefore, New Profit’s Health Equity Cohort focuses on entrepreneurs tackling root causes of health inequity such as:

• non-medical drivers of health (access to healthy food, jobs, housing, etc.);
• racism and bias inside and outside the healthcare system (institutional practices, cultural representations, prejudices and attitudes toward certain groups);
• structural flaws in the healthcare system (barriers to timely, affordable, and quality health care, which includes providers, payers, and other players influencing health care).

The eight organizations selected for the cohort will receive a one-year $100,000 investment of unrestricted resources, in-kind capacity building support, and participation in a peer learning community through a collaboration between New Profit and Deloitte’s Health Equity Institute (DHEI). DHEI is a data-driven social innovation and knowledge development organization that advances health equity as an outcome through pro bono programs, philanthropy, and cross-industry collaborations.

“Everyone deserves the resources and opportunity to be healthy and fulfill their human potential,” said Stacie Garnett-Cook, Associate Partner at New Profit who is facilitating the cohort. “So many aspects of our lives contribute to our physical, mental, and spiritual health, which in turn affect our education, career, family, community and beyond. We need a broad lens to address these challenges and believe that systems change entrepreneurs who are proximate to the communities disproportionately experiencing health disparities should be at the helm of leading these efforts.”