On Long Island, philanthropists help fuel healthcare forward

Kenneth and Elaine Langone’s recent $200 million gift to NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine drew its share of fanfare.

The gift extends the school’s guarantee of full-tuition scholarships to every student, regardless of need, in perpetuity.

“By providing our future doctors with an affordable education, we are investing in a brighter and healthier future for all, particularly here on Long Island, where Elaine and I grew up,” Kenneth Langone, co-founder of Home Depot and chair of NYU Langone Board of Trustees, said at the time.

Philanthropy plays an important role in healthcare. It comes at a time when donors seek to “take a leading role in helping to solve the biggest issues of our time,” according to a 2023 report from UBS that featured insights of 100 of its philanthropy experts.

Across Long Island, philanthropists are contributing to causes they are passionate about, especially healthcare. Their contributions fund new buildings, research and innovations. They also fund endowments, address inequities and like the Langones’ generous gift, pay for medical education.

“This extraordinary gift from Ken and Elaine ensures that … students for generations to come can follow their passion for medicine, regardless of their background and financial status,” Dr. Robert Grossman, CEO of NYU Langone Health and dean of the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in Manhattan, said last week.

While philanthropists with deep pockets help fuel healthcare forward, donors needn’t be at the top of the “wealth spectrum” to have impact, according to UBS.

Consider Northwell’s current “Outpacing the Impossible” $1.4 billion fundraising campaign. It aims to fund programs, accelerate research, improve outcomes, expand access to care for the underserved and more. Launched in 2018, the campaign generated more than 185,000 donors in its communities, raising $1.14 billion toward its goal.

Healthcare “is not a high-margin business,” Brian Lally, senior vice president and chief development officer of Northwell Health, told LIBN. “Everything we make, we push back into the organization.”

Earlier in July, Scott Rechler, CEO and chairman of RXR, and his wife Debby, gave the health system a $10 million grant to help tackle health disparities. The gift to Northwell, and its research arm, Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, funds the launch of the Scott and Debby Rechler Center for Health Outcomes at Feinstein. Through large-scale data models and artificial intelligence, the center aims to identify and address healthcare disparities and patient risk factors to identify problems early and improve care.

The Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell credits philanthropic support for its ability to attract students.

“Thanks to Donald and Barbara Zucker’s generous donation in 2017, we have been able to offer substantial scholarships to a vast number of our students,” said Dr. David Battinelli, the medical school’s dean. “This endowment allows us to attract the best and brightest to Long Island and helps us continue educating the physicians of tomorrow, creating a workforce ready to serve a diverse and growing population, not just on Long Island, but around the world.”

This was a cause that the Zuckers were passionate about, Lally said.

“For a school as new as ours, welcoming our first class just 12 years ago, an endowment like this is unique and has been transformative to the lives of our students as well as to the evolution of our school,” Battinelli said.

At Stony Brook Medicine, philanthropy is supporting a number of initiatives. This includes $10 million from various donors for the Presidential Innovation and Excellence Fund, supporting the Center for Healthy Aging.

It includes a $6.2 million investment from the Baszucki family to develop Neuroblox, a software platform developed by biomedical engineer and neuroscientist Dr. Mujica-Parodi to model brain circuits and treat brain disorders.

“Philanthropy and community partnerships are fundamental to our ability to deliver care to a range of patient populations, and we are exceptionally grateful for the support of our donors,” Dr. Hal Paz, CEO of Stony Brook University Medicine, said.

“Through their shared support of our mission, Stony Brook Medicine faculty are changing lives with lifesaving inventions and therapies,” he added.

Stony Brook received more than $4.5 million from several donors supporting the Pediatric Emergency Department Expansion Fund. It received a $4 million commitment from Kavita and Lalit Bahl to establish the Kavita and Lalit Bahl Endowed Cancer Center Directorship. It received $3 million from The Valerie Fund toward psycho-social support services for pediatric hematology/oncology patients. It received $2.55 million from Lester Kallus supporting emergency medicine residents. And it received a $1.5 million commitment from The Sanguinity Foundation to establish The Lourie Endowed Chair in Women’s Health.

Over in Oceanside, Mount Sinai South Nassau received $5 million from The Louis Feil Charitable Lead Annuity Trust in February for a four-story, 100,000-square-foot building. Scheduled to open in 2024, the Feil Family Pavilion will double the size of the current emergency department, increase critical and intensive care inpatient capacity and add nine new operating rooms.

The funding “will have a direct impact on improving patient care on the South Shore,” Dr. Adhi Sharma, Mount Sinai South Nassau president, said at the time.

In 2021, more than $3.3 million was raised to create the Alan D. Guerci, M.D. Endowment for Cardiovascular Research, honoring Guerci, the former Catholic Health and St. Francis president and CEO. This initiative aims to expand the scope and scale of research at the DeMatteis Cardiovascular Institute. The endowment provides seed funding for initiatives that include new hires and preparing new studies across the hospital’s cardiovascular specialties and more.

“Research funded through the Guerci Endowment will continue to be a driving force behind St. Francis Hospital’s advanced care options it offers to its patients,” Catholic Health President and CEO Dr. Patrick O’Shaughnessy said.

In 2021, the St. Francis Hospital Foundation created the Endowment for Nursing Leadership and Education as a permanent resource for essential funding for training, mentoring and formal education for all nursing staff. Patients and benefactors contributed more than $4 million toward this initiative.

The need for philanthropy, especially in healthcare, will continue. But those who step up to the plate are helping to make a difference in their communities, and maybe inspire others, with deep pockets or not, to do the same in whatever way they can.

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