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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Cedars-Sinai Medical Center awarded a record $36.5 million in grants and sponsorships over the last year, the organization announced Friday.
The funding went to more than 200 local nonprofits working in healthcare, civic engagement and other sectors of the health care industry.
"Cedars-Sinai is committed to improving the health of everyone in our community by investing in the organizations dedicated to transforming the lives of vulnerable Angelenos," said Thomas M. Priselac, president and CEO of Cedars-Sinai. "These grants help community-based nonprofits realize their critical mission of improving life and health for all."
In each of the last four years, Cedars-Sinai has given out $5 million more in grants than the previous year.
This year's grants include $15 million to organizations working to improve homeless services, $10 million to groups working in health care and $6 million to organizations in civic engagement.
The Homeless Outreach Program Integrated Care Services, a South Los Angeles-based agency for housing and behavioral health services, received $150,000 in funding.
"We are at a pivotal moment in terms of our organizational growth," said Veronica Lewis, the organization's director. "The demand for our expertise and services is rising at unprecedented rates, and we believe it is our responsibility to expand our impact to address the growing homelessness crisis, particularly in South Los Angeles.
"This health equity grant will enable us to develop meaningful, usable plans to be effective and sustainable as we work to ensure equity within our organization, among our partners, and throughout the communities and populations we serve," she said.
The grants also include $250,000 in humanitarian relief funding, which will aid agencies working in Ukraine and Haiti, along with the International Institute of Los Angeles' Refugee Resettlement Coalition.
``Cedars-Sinai's mission inspires us to expand our work beyond the walls of the hospital to impact the broader Los Angeles community," said Jonathan Schreiber, vice president of Community Engagement. ``Our grants reflect Cedars-Sinai's values as we and our community partners work to strengthen the safety net and bring greater health access and equity to the vulnerable populations."