DAYTON, OHIO – The Family Medicine Education Consortium (FMEC) has been announced as one of 80+ organizations that were awarded funding through Action for Women’s Health, a $250 million global open call, launched in 2024 to support organizations working to improve women’s mental and physical health around the world. Organizations received between $1 million and $5 million in funding. Funding will support and expand the IMPLICIT Network, a project of the FMEC.
Although women make up half of the world’s population, they face inequities in nearly every aspect of their health. Women’s health is chronically underfunded and under-researched, and even when resources and solutions do exist, they often aren’t reaching the women who need them. “The FMEC has a long history of developing innovative programs. The IMPLICIT Network, with its 20-year growth and evolution, is our most significant achievement,” said Dr. Pam Vnenchak, FMEC President and Program Director, Family Medicine Residency Program at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Hospital. “We are thrilled that these resources will help us share IMPLICIT’s models, training and support to residency programs and clinics throughout the country.”
IMPLICIT stands for Innovations for Maternal and PerinataL Care ImprovemenT. Since 2004, family physicians and other healthcare providers have come together under the IMPLICIT Network to improve birth outcomes and promote the health of women, birthing people, infants and families. IMPLICIT focuses on innovative models of care, quality improvement, and the professional development of current and future physicians. Recognizing that prenatal care alone is not enough to improve maternal morbidity and mortality, the IMPLICIT Network has developed, implemented, and evaluated two care models – Interconception Care (ICC) and 4th Trimester Care (4TM) – which provide enhanced opportunities to address maternal health risks before, during, and after pregnancy.
As of 2025, the IMPLICIT Network consists of 51 sites in 12 states across the eastern and midwestern United States. Funding will allow the FMEC and IMPLICIT to expand to new states and new sites, integrate our care models into diverse communities and training programs, provide learning and leadership opportunities at health systems nationwide, and strengthen patient and family voices in our work through new partnerships with community-based and advocacy organizations. “The Action for Women’s Health funding will be transformative in enhancing the capacity of our Network,” said Mario DeMarco, MD, MPH, IMPLICIT Leadership Council member and Associate Professor of Clinical Family Medicine and former Director of Family Medicine Obstetrics in the Penn Medicine Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. “Primary care based innovations to improve maternal health before, after and in between pregnancies will be a key strategy to improve pregnancy outcomes in the US – particularly for the growing populations that face barriers to accessing healthcare.”
Over 4,000 organizations from 119 countries applied, offering solutions across the lifespan for women. After a rigorous peer and expert review process, 80+ organizations have been identified, many of whom have historically lacked access to major funding streams. This funding will have real impact for women across geographies, life stages, and identities.
Action for Women’s Health is funded by Pivotal, a group of impact organizations founded by Melinda French Gates, and managed by Lever for Change, an organization with a track record of identifying bold ideas to solve the world’s most pressing problems.
More information about the initiative and awardees is available at: https://leverforchange.org/open-calls/action-for-womens-health.
