Kate Gallagher, MPH joined the Healthcare Anchor Network as a Project Manager of Place-Based Investing and Policy Initiatives in 2023. The Healthcare Anchor Network (HAN) is a national collaboration of 70+ nonprofit healthcare systems who are leveraging their economic assets to build more equitable and inclusive local economies. In her role, Kate focuses on activating the health system’s financial assets to impact the community conditions that drive health outcomes, with a particular focus on improving the built environment and increasing economic opportunity in under-resourced communities. Kate works closely with HAN members to accelerate place-based impact investing, upstream community giving, and local policy advocacy to address root causes of health disparities and advance health equity in communities.

Prior to joining HAN, Kate worked as an economic development practitioner in San Diego County, where she led research projects and programs designed to understand and address economic inequities. Much of her work focused on the role of large regional employers in inclusive economic development, for example through their hiring and purchasing practices, and in collaboration with other anchor institutions. She also worked in academia as a health equity researcher, synthesizing evidence on various health equity topics, including practices for equitable community engagement and the structural determinants of health. Kate holds a Master’s degree in Public Health Policy from Tulane University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from University of California, Santa Cruz. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.