Health Foundation of South Florida

07/08/2026

A mother came to Legal Services of Greater Miami after a Medicaid denial left her facing nearly $47,000 in medical bills following a brief hospitalization. The denial wasn't a question of eligibility; it was the result of outdated records and an incorrect household composition on file.

Through the Medical-Legal Partnership, funded by the Health Foundation of South Florida, she was connected with an attorney who filed a formal appeal, corrected the record retroactively, and secured her Medicaid coverage under the Medically Needy Program. Her hospitalization costs were covered in full.

Read more: https://www.legalservicesmiami.org/client-stories-and-more/gymsb39yerahhtcn9snykuijipis5q

We are deeply grateful to Legal Services of Greater Miami for recognizing our support and for the vital work they do every day to ensure that barriers never stand between our neighbors and the care they deserve.

Legal Services continues to make a profound difference in the lives of individuals navigating the complexities of public benefits systems. Among those we have had the privilege of serving is Maeva*, a 41-year-old mother who came to us in the wake of a deeply stressful experience: a Medicaid applica

07/04/2026

This Independence Day, we celebrate the freedom to dream of a healthier, more equitable South Florida, and recommit to the work of making that dream real.

Last month, more than 500 community members, health leaders, and changemakers gathered at the Black Health Summit to explore what Truth, Trust, and Transformation can look like in our communities. That spirit of collective purpose is exactly what drives us forward.

Wishing everyone a safe and joyful Fourth of July!

07/01/2026

The Black Health Summit 2026 would not have been possible without the engagement of our table hosts. Their support of this work is an investment in the health and well-being of South Florida’s Black communities, and we are honored by your partnership.

Thank you to our Table Hosts:
Memorial Healthcare System | Florida International University | Jackson Health System | University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine | University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center | Barry University | YMCA of South Florida | VITAS Healthcare | Broward County Department of Human Services | Baptist Health South Florida

Your presence at the table, literally and figuratively, made this day richer and more impactful. Thank you for believing in this work and in the communities it serves.

Want to see the moments that made this Summit unforgettable? View the full photo gallery here https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCXoSQ

The conversation continues. Stay tuned for our Black Health Summit 2026 Summary Report coming soon at HFSF.org. Follow us for updates on Black Health Summit In Action and the investments and initiatives that grow from this day.

06/30/2026

The Health Foundation of South Florida was honored to join Broward Health in celebrating a proud milestone for our community, the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Broward Health Lighthouse Point Emergency Room.

Representing the Health Foundation of South Florida at the ceremony were President & CEO Loreen Chant; CFO Alecia Dillion; Melida Akiti, former Health Foundation Board Chair and Corporate Transformation Executive at Broward Health; and Board Member David J. Clark, Senior Vice President of Operations at Broward Health. Their presence reflected the connections between the two organizations and made today's milestone especially meaningful and a powerful testament to the shared commitment they bring to the health and well-being of South Florida communities.

The Broward Health Lighthouse Point ER represents a significant investment in emergency care for residents of Lighthouse Point and surrounding communities, bringing critical services closer to those who need them. This is exactly the kind of systems-level progress the Health Foundation exists to support and celebrate.

Congratulations to the entire Broward Health team on this remarkable achievement! South Florida is stronger and healthier because of you.

Read more here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/broward-health_this-week-we-celebrated-the-soon-to-open-activity-7468404184074342400-mYfM?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAADKLUoBHB2Umj8OUSJSkogKENb36C5Wnmk

06/29/2026

At Black Health Summit 2026, we did something we had never done before. We welcomed a live musical performance to the Summit stage, and Jeffrey Gerald of Guitars Over Guns delivered something that stopped the room.

Jeffrey’s story is one worth knowing. A self-taught Haitian-American musician from North Miami, he discovered music at age 9 and taught himself guitar with no formal training. What changed the trajectory of his life was Guitars Over Guns. Through GOG’s after-school program, he found music education, experienced musician mentors, and a safe space to develop his voice and his confidence.

That environment produced something remarkable. Jeffrey wrote an original song that helped him earn a full scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston, becoming one of the first students from his high school to be accepted. He shared that story on our stage. And the room heard it.

Jeffrey is not just a musician. He is a mentor. He works every day with young people in South Florida, using music as a vehicle for healing, connection, and hope. Guitars Over Guns has served more than 9,700 youth across Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City, with 94% of students making or maintaining academic gains. Jeffrey is both the product of that mission and one of its most powerful proof points.

His performance at the Summit was a living example of everything our afternoon sessions were about: the pathways to better health for Black youth run not only through clinics and classrooms, but through art, voice, and the adults who show up for them with intention.

We are so grateful to Jeffrey and the Guitars Over Guns family for sharing this moment with us.

The conversation continues. Stay tuned for our Black Health Summit 2026 Summary Report coming soon at HFSF.org. Follow us for updates on Black Health Summit In Action and the investments and initiatives that grow from this day.

06/25/2026

We are proud to share that Barbara Fonte, Chair of the Health Foundation of South Florida’s Board of Directors, authored a letter to the editor published in the Miami Herald following the Black Health Summit 2026.

Barbara’s letter captures what we believe was the most important takeaway from June 16th: that the data matters, but what we do with it matters more.
“The future health of South Florida will not be determined by what we know, but by what we do next.”

She highlighted Dr. Roger Mitchell’s call to civic action, that voting is a social determinant of health, and the sobering disparities that make this work urgent: Black women in Miami-Dade County were eight times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes last year. Black men across our region are up to three times more likely to die from hypertension.

More than 500 community leaders gathered at the Summit to confront these truths. Barbara’s letter is a reminder that the conversation doesn’t end when the doors close.

Read Barbara’s letter: https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article316216416.html

(Please scroll down. The letter appears further down on the page.)

We also want to take a moment to thank our extraordinary Board of Directors, many of whom joined us on June 16th. Their leadership, vision, and commitment make the Black Health Summit and everything that grows from it possible. We are grateful.

06/24/2026

We're excited to share that our Director of Programs, , has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Carrfour, one of Florida's leading nonprofit providers of permanent supportive housing for individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

Megan brings expertise in community health and program strategy to this role, and her service on the Carrfour board reflects our shared belief that stable housing is foundational to well-being.

In Megan's words:

"I'm incredibly honored to join the Carrfour Board of Directors. As someone committed to community well-being through my work at the Health Foundation of South Florida, I find that being part of an organization that provides supportive housing to those who need it most is truly meaningful. I'm excited to roll up my sleeves and bring my experience to the table as Carrfour deepens its impact across our region."

Congratulations, Megan, we couldn't be prouder!

06/23/2026

When nonprofits strengthen their capacity to pursue funding, the whole community benefits.

That's why we're proud to share that AnyKarina Balza, the Health Foundation’s Grants Management and Operations lead, joined as a panelist at this year's Nuts and Bolts of Grants and Fundraising Day of Learning, hosted by Miami Dade College .

This annual professional development workshop brings together local nonprofits and grant-seeking organizations for a full day of practical learning, covering everything from grant search strategies and proposal development to budgeting, logic models, and data collection.

Any participated in the Funder's Panel, sharing insights from the funder's perspective to help organizations build stronger, more competitive submissions. Conversations like this one, where funders and community organizations sit at the same table, are exactly the kind of ecosystem investment we believe in.

Thank you to Miami Dade College and the MDC Foundation for creating this space year after year.

06/20/2026

The Health Foundation of South Florida is proud to recognize Sunshine Health as a Silver Sponsor of Black Health Summit 2026.

Sunshine Health’s mission to provide access to quality healthcare for Florida’s most vulnerable populations aligns directly with the work at the heart of the Black Health Summit. Their investment in this event is an investment in the communities they serve every day and a powerful signal that advancing health equity requires the full participation of our state’s health systems.

We are grateful for Sunshine Health’s partnership and its commitment to making a meaningful difference in the lives of South Floridians.

06/19/2026

Today we pause to honor Juneteenth, a day that celebrates the long arc of freedom and the resilience of a people who never stopped believing in it.

At the Health Foundation of South Florida, we draw inspiration from that resilience every day. The pursuit of health equity is, at its core, the pursuit of the same promise Juneteenth represents: that every person deserves to live in the fullness of their humanity, healthy, dignified, and free.

We celebrate this day with gratitude and with purpose.