The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation announced it has awarded 538 grants totaling $165 million to support nonprofit organizations addressing the health-related needs of low-income residents and underserved communities across New York State in 2023.

In the four years since its inception, the Foundation has now awarded approximately 2,200 grants totaling nearly $635 million.

Newly funded grantee initiatives will target New York’s evolving needs by expanding access to food, education, support for mental health, along with access to healthcare and social services.

Grant recipients include community-based organizations, food banks, healthcare providers, nursing homes, schools, federally qualified health centers, and trade associations addressing the needs of key populations: low-income individuals and families; older adults; youth and young adults; persons with special needs; immigrants and migrant workers; veterans; formerly incarcerated individuals; and young children, pregnant women, and new moms.

Efforts will address urgent challenges including New York’s healthcare workforce shortage and current migrant crisis. Over 60 grants totaling $17 million will support immigrants and migrants fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries and those encountering significant challenges upon arrival to the U.S., a roughly 30% increase in funding from the previous year. In addition, 55 grants totaling $14 million will allow organizations to focus on recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce, especially as the state continues to face an urgent shortage of nurses and healthcare practitioners.

“At a moment when New York State’s health needs are both acute and wide-ranging, the Foundation is supporting hundreds of programs addressing the needs of vulnerable New Yorkers and underserved communities across the state. From building up our healthcare workforce and providing essential resources for immigrants and migrants, to investing in community-based providers that address chronic challenges from mental health to food insecurity, funding this year will again offer much-needed support to underserved communities,” said Alfred F. Kelly, Jr., Executive Chairman of Visa and Chair of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation Board.

“When Mother Frances Cabrini arrived in New York as an Italian immigrant in 1889, she dedicated herself to serving fellow immigrants and underserved New Yorkers. This year, New York has welcomed tens of thousands of new immigrants seeking a new home, and the Foundation is proud to follow in our namesake’s footsteps by increasing our support for nonprofits helping immigrants and migrant workers. As the needs of New Yorkers continue to evolve, the Foundation is committed to ensuring our grants have the greatest impact possible,” said Msgr. Gregory Mustaciuolo, Chief Executive Officer of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation.

“In our fourth year of grantmaking, the Foundation continues to support nonprofits with whom we have established long-term partnerships while also uplifting new, innovative programs. In every corner of the state, our grantees tirelessly serve their communities while mitigating impediments around social determinants of health and breaking barriers to improve health outcomes,” said Kathryn Ruscitto, Chair of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation’s Regional Grants Committee.

The Foundation’s new round of grants include:

●  $22 million toward expanding educational opportunities as a pathway for economic mobility, including a grant to BISON Children’s Scholarship Fund to support scholarships for thousands of low-income, K-12 students in Western New York, as well as a grant to the Thrive For Life Prison Project to expand support for formerly incarcerated individuals pursuing college and career training programs.

●  $15 million toward fighting increasing food insecurity in New York, including a grant to the Met Council to support its food distribution network including a mobile pantry and home delivery program, as well as Capital Roots to provide holistic food access to low-income residents of the Capital Region.

●  $14 million toward increasing mental and behavioral health services, including a grant to the Asian American Federation to expand access to linguistically and culturally competent mental health services for Asian communities across New York State, as well as to Covenant House New York to provide mental health services for homeless youth and young adults.

●  $14 million toward workforce development to expand the healthcare workforce and job opportunities for low-income New Yorkers, including a grant to Upwardly Global to help immigrant and refugee professionals secure thriving-wage employment commensurate with their training and education, and Niagara University to help support nursing students and increase nurse retention.

●  $9 million toward increasing access to healthcare resources, including a grant to the Community Service Society of New York for an outreach campaign to inform low-income New Yorkers about the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency and resulting changes to their healthcare coverage, as well as a grant to Westchester Institute for Human Development to provide mobile primary care for individuals with disabilities.

●  $7 million toward improving access to quality long-term care for older adults and New Yorkers with long-term disabilities, including a grant to Loretto Health and Rehabilitation Center for capital improvements to strengthen the behavioral safety net for older adults with dementia in Central New York, as well as a grant to ArchCare at Ferncliff Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center for the establishment of the Center for Advanced Memory Care for adults with neurodegenerative disease.

●  $84 million toward addressing other critical health needs, including care and case management, housing assistance, child and family wellbeing, community health, healthcare system improvement, home care, community health, legal services, medical and rehabilitation services, and early childhood and youth development.

In 2020, the Foundation launched an initial round of strategic grants to provide three years of sustained funding for identified areas of need. The year-end 2022 grants include $13.6 million to expand the Foundation’s strategic grants focused on three areas: a third year of grants to increase access to oral healthcare services, a second year of grants to address early childhood disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes, and a second year of grants to mitigate healthcare disparities by diversifying the healthcare workforce. Strategic grants include:

●  $6 million to increase access to oral health services through grants that will provide specialty dental care for New Yorkers with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and mobile dental health vans that will reduce barriers to accessing care. Grantees include the Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation in Queens and the University of Buffalo’s UB S-Miles To Go program. Across the three years of funding, the Foundation has awarded 35 oral health strategic grants totaling $15.2 million.

●  $3 million to address early childhood disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes with grants focused on maternal health and wellbeing. Grants support mental health programming and culturally informed interventions for asylum-seekers, survivors of trafficking, and recent immigrants. Grantees include Montefiore Health System for its Terra Firma Project, and InterFaith Works of Central New York.

●  $5 million to mitigate healthcare disparities by diversifying the healthcare workforce by funding programs to grow and support the workforce, and through scholarships and fellowships to change the faces of New York’s healthcare delivery system to better reflect those it serves. Grantees include the Associated Medical Schools of New York and the Hunter College Foundation for its Cabrini-Hunter Fellowships for Social Work and Nursing Students.

“The Foundation’s strategic grants dedicate long-term resources to key issues affecting health equity in New York. Three years of funding for oral healthcare initiatives has had a positive impact for underserved New Yorkers, especially in rural areas, while helping to bridge the gap in systemic barriers to healthcare,” said Kathryn Connerton, President and CEO of Lourdes Hospital in Binghamton and Chair of the Foundation’s Statewide Grants Committee overseeing strategic grants.

In spring 2022, the Foundation invited organizations to apply for funding through an open process, receiving over 1,500 letters of interest, both from returning grantees and new organizations. Approximately 46% of the grants were for $250,000 or more.

Click here for a list of year-end 2022 Mother Cabrini Health Foundation grantees.

The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the health and well-being of New Yorkers, bolster the health outcomes of vulnerable communities, eliminate barriers to care, and bridge gaps in health services. Named after a tireless advocate for immigrants, children, and the poor, the Foundation funds programs and initiatives across New York State that provide either direct healthcare services or address the social determinants of health. For more information, visit the Cabrini Health website.