THE COALITION
ACT on Health Equity is a powerful and growing national network of local public health departments, hospitals, and community-based organizations focused on creating health equity. The coalition, convened by BARHII (Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative), seeks to establish a durable infrastructure sustained by private and public long-term funding that allows communities to forge and sustain well-being for all.
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First brought together by SPARCC (Strong, Prosperous, and Resilient Communities Challenge), BARHII convenes national partners who are joining forces to advance health equity. ACT on Health Equity is powered by Mile High Connects in the Denver Metro region (a collaborative focused on equitable investment into community solutions), the Center for Transforming Communities (CTC) in Memphis (which focuses on community-building initiatives), and the Atlanta Regional Collaborative for Health (ARCHI) (which uses housing to achieve health equity).
PRINCIPLES
We are on the cusp of another tectonic shift in social justice, where communities are using their power to mobilize and loudly state that there will be no justice without health and racial equity. We are moving forward, honoring a long history of positive change, but undoing 400 years of increasingly institutionalized oppression will take time and require long-term financial commitments.
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For change to take root, we must recognize and address the legacy of racially-driven inequities that have led to today's economic and health crisis. To grow, we need humble recognition and ownership of the errors we inherited from our predecessors. This damage can be undone with long-term, sustained funding that reaches beyond any one administration and focuses on the deep roots of well-being. Without financing the leadership of those who, for centuries, we have discriminated against and relegated to the margins, we will achieve no progress.
Center Racial Justice Now
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The time to reimagine our public health infrastructure is now. We cannot wait any longer to center all health-related funding and activities around an inclusive and long-term view of health equity built on racial justice.
Prioritize Health as Human Rights
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The absolute right to health has no restrictions or expirations. Health is neither a threat to nor a condition of individual freedom. It is, at its core, a matter of connecting individual and community well-being. Health is a societal good.
Unleash the Power of People—Fund Community-Led Ingenuity
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Equitable health will sprout from strong community coalitions with the power to advocate for change when they're heard and supported by every branch of government. And, perhaps most importantly, it will be sustained by a tightly-knit social fabric of organized individuals and grassroots organizations watching our backs.
Require an All-Government Response
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Equitable health will not become part of our society's DNA by building bigger hospitals, developing more modern diagnostic equipment, or increasing funding to any discrete branch of government. Our health is dependent on safe, affordable housing, just economic conditions, and communities that hold us rather than traumatize us. Health equity will truly arrive when it is spread across society through transparent cross-pollination of ideas and practices.
Invest in Entrepreneurs
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Genius, revolutionary new ideas—the kind that transforms society—are constantly devised by underrepresented innovators who challenge our society's status quo. This innovation, community innovation, is born from curiosity, lived experiences, solution-seeking, human interaction, and, most importantly, support. Social entrepreneurship powered by community innovation shouldn't take an arm and a leg. We cannot afford to deny them the funding on societal support they require.
OUR MEMBERS
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A BOTTOM-UP FUNDING APPROACH
The Federal Health Equity For All Act will subvert traditional funding priorities by putting first in line individuals and organizations that have been ignored by sustainable investments.
Community Coalitions
Social Entrepreneurs and innovators
Local and regional government systems