Vital Strategies Inc

Foundation · Grantmaker NEW YORK, NY EIN: 22-3419667 Website

International, Foreign Affairs & National Security

Vital Strategies Inc is a global public health nonprofit organization based in New York City. Established in 1995 in New Jersey, the organization is a 501(c)(3) public charity dedicated to strengthening public health systems and addressing complex health challenges worldwide. The organization operates with a workforce of 208 employees and works in partnership with governments to design evidence-based, locally driven solutions that can scale rapidly to improve public health outcomes.

Key facts about Vital Strategies Inc

EIN: 22-3419667
Latest 990 filing: Form 990-PF, 2024
Annual giving (2024): $8,779,800
Grants made (2024): 79
Average grant: $111,137
Median grant: $77,500
New grantees (estimate): 30% first-time grantees (24 of 79, 2024)
Total assets: $114,309,166
Primary geography: New Jersey (18% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated June 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).

Who Vital Strategies Inc funds

By grant dollars, the top recipient states for Vital Strategies Inc's 79 itemized 2024 grants were New Jersey (18%), New York (16%) and Kentucky (15%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (9 grants), Philadelphia, PA (6 grants), Lexington, KY (4 grants) and Paterson, NJ (4 grants). None of its 79 grants with a stated purpose were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Overdose Prevention (opioid)" (62 grants), "Partnership for Healthy Cities" (6 grants) and "Data for Health" (3 grants).

Is Vital Strategies Inc open to new grantees?

30%

first-time grantees, 2024

In 2024, 24 of 79 grantees (30%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $82K; repeat grants $124K. How we count

Medians: $53K first-time, $98K repeat.

65% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
Giving fell 61% from 2021 to 2024. Method

Estimate from itemized IRS Form 990-PF grant lists (2020–2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.

Financial Overview

From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$114.3M

+19.0% YoY

Annual Giving

$8.8M

-20.7% YoY

Grant Count

+3.9% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$111K

-23.7% YoY

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated April 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

Mission: Vital Strategies works in partnership to reimagine evidence-based, locally driven policies and practices to advance public health. The organization aims to help governments strengthen their public health systems to contend with the most important and difficult health challenges, working toward a world where everyone, everywhere is protected by equitable and effective public health systems.

Primary Focus Areas:

Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems strengthening
Cardiovascular health and hypertension management
Tobacco control systems
Overdose prevention and harm reduction
Eye health initiatives
Nutrition and salt-reduction interventions
Cause of death data improvement using artificial intelligence
Social media marketing regulation related to harmful products

Grantmaking

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

Vital Strategies operates across three primary regions: Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Specific countries mentioned in recent work include:

Ethiopia
China
India
Bolivia
Kenya
Nigeria

The organization also maintains programming in the United States, with recent initiatives in Kentucky and New Mexico focused on overdose prevention.

Grant Distribution by State

New Jersey $1.6M (18%)

New York $1.4M (16%)

Kentucky $1.3M (15%)

North Carolina $778K (9%)

Wisconsin $752K (9%)

All other $2.9M (33%)

Share of all 79 itemized 2024 grant dollars.

Cities

PhiladelphiaNew YorkWashingtonDetroitChicagoMilwaukeeBostonPittsburghSeattleAlbuquerqueNew HavenLexingtonPatersonBrooklynDurhamFlintLouisvilleRaleighSan FranciscoAnn Arbor

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

As of 2024:

Total Assets: $114,309,166
Total Revenue: $132,394,975
Total Expenses: $109,267,610
Total Liabilities: $23,400,000
Total Grants Distributed: $41,859,735
Number of Employees: 208

Tax Status: Tax-exempt since October 1996 EIN: 22-3419667 Location: 100 Broadway, Floor 4, New York City, NY 10005-4517

Revenue

Expenses

Qualifying Distributions

Net Investment Income

Metric	2024	2023	2022
Total Assets	$114,309,166	$96,073,073	$142,331,793
Revenue	$132,394,975	$69,535,230	$104,242,576
Expenses	$109,267,610	$110,225,088	$153,227,177
Qualifying Distributions	—	—	—
Net Investment Income	$1,534,320	$886,041	$373,327
Distributable Amount	—	—	—

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

March 2, 2026 IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

Grant Size Distribution

361 grants across all recorded years

Open Grants

3 open opportunities from Vital Strategies Inc

Foundation

Data for Health Global Grants Program

VITAL STRATEGIES INC

Amount

Varies

Deadline

Rolling / Open

Foundation

North Carolina Opioid Settlement Funds Matching Grant Program

VITAL STRATEGIES INC

Amount

Up to $210,000 over three years

Deadline

Rolling / Open

Foundation

Racial Equity Advancement in Communities through Harm Reduction in Pennsylvania (REACH PA)

VITAL STRATEGIES INC

Amount

$450,000 total ($50,000 per grantee)

Deadline

Rolling / Open

One-time

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

Among its reported 2024 grants, the largest recipients include Legal Action Center of the City of New York Inc ($516,060), New Jersey Harm Reduction Coalition ($438,607), Newark Community Street Team Inc ($408,329).

Recipient	Purpose	Amount
LEGAL ACTION CENTER OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK INC NEW YORK, NY	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$516,060
NEW JERSEY HARM REDUCTION COALITION ABSECON, NJ	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$438,607
NEWARK COMMUNITY STREET TEAM INC NEWARK, NJ	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$408,329
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY BALTIMORE, MD	RESET ALCOHOL, DATA FOR HEALTH, AND OBESITY PREVENTION & FOOD POLICY	$389,249
DREAM CORPSDREAMORG OAKLAND, CA	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$380,000
COMMUNITY ADVOCATES FOR RESOURCES AND EMPOWERMENT INC LOUISVILLE, KY	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$277,360
BAD RIVER TRIBE ODANAH, WI	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$254,968
NEXT HARM REDUCTION NEW YORK, NY	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$242,000
PORT CITY HARM REDUCTION WILMINGTON, NC	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$225,888
BLACK LIVES MATTER PATERSON PATERSON, NJ	OVERDOSE PREVENTION (OPIOID)	$221,814

Leadership & Key People

Officers and directors from IRS filings

Compensation Overview

From 2024 IRS filing

Name	Title	Hours	Compensation
Dr Mary-Ann Etiebet Pres	CEO (as of Sep 2024), Trustee Prior	40	$174,936
Jose Luis Castro	President & CEO Thru Jun 2024	38	$276,639
Wallace D'souza Interim CEO	Thru Sep 2024, Cfao	40	$390,373
Bruce Mandell	Chairperson	5	—
Dr Masae Kawamura	Vice Chair for Programs	3	—
Meron Makonnen	Secretary	3	—
Marc Sznajderman	Treasurer	3	—
David a Caputo	Trustee	2	—
Frank G Colella	Trustee	2	—
Scott Halstead	Trustee	2	—
Dr Kelly Henning	Trustee	2	—
Ping Hsieh	Trustee	2	—
Renata Reis Phd	Trustee	2	—
Eric Rosenbaum	Trustee	2	—
Jack Salvo	Trustee	2	—
Dr Neil W Schluger	Trustee	2	—
Dr Dean Schraufnagel	Trustee	2	—
Andrew Rendeiro SVP Chief	Strategy Officer (thru Aug 2024)	40	$293,857
Adam Karpati	SVP Public Health Programs	40	$347,090
Sandra Mullin	SVP Pac	40	$291,956
Daniel Kass	SVP Environmental Health	40	$298,406
Barrett Prinz	General Counsel	40	$265,200
Quan Gan	Director, Tobacco Control	40	$248,781
Laurel Wade	SVP, Partnerships & Development	40	$245,351
Daniel Schaefer	CTO	40	$254,062
Philip Setel	VP & Director, Crvs	40	$260,911
Mili Chowfla	SVP, Finance & Administration	40	$241,566
Daliah Heller	VP, Drug Use Initiatives	40	$246,888
Stephen Hamill VP Global	Lead, Pac & Strategic Initiatives	40	$241,488

Recent News & Activity

Recent developments and announcements

2026

**March 2026:** Vital Strategies announced it will lead a consortium dedicated to improving cause of death data using artificial intelligence

Vital Strategies' Overdose Prevention Program Looks Back on ...

2026

**March 2026:** New research released on how social media marketing is driving demand for harmful products

2026

**February 2026:** Nigeria expanded the Presidential Eye Health Initiative to reach another 1 million people

To Address Overdose-related Health Inequities Among Native People in New

2026

**March 2026:** Webinar scheduled on social media marketing and protection of the next generation from unregulated marketing

2024

**2024 Overdose Prevention:** The organization's overdose prevention program reported on impactful projects reducing overdose deaths among vulnerable communities

Vital Strategies' Overdose Prevention Program Looks Back on ...

**Tobacco Control:** Ongoing work strengthening tobacco control systems in India, moving from policy development to implementation

Contact Information

Website: www.vitalstrategies.org
Phone: 212-500-5720
Address: 100 Broadway, Floor 4, New York City, NY 10005-4517

Subject Areas

Focus areas based on grantmaking activity

International, Foreign Affairs & National Security

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Vital Strategies Inc fund?

**Mission:** Vital Strategies works in partnership to reimagine evidence-based, locally driven policies and practices to advance public health. The organization aims to help governments strengthen their public health systems to contend with the most important and difficult health challenges, working toward a world where everyone, everywhere is protected by equitable and effective public health systems. **Primary Focus Areas:** • Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems strengtheni…

How do I apply for a grant from Vital Strategies Inc?

Vital Strategies distributes grants to advance public health initiatives. Based on their 2024 financial data, the organization made total grants of $41,859,735. Grant amounts vary significantly, with typical awards ranging from $5,190 to $35,658,575. Recent grant announcements include: • $2.3 million in grants to promote heart health in low and middle-income countries • $500,000 in projects to reduce overdose among Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and underserved communities in Ke…

Where does Vital Strategies Inc make grants?

Vital Strategies operates across three primary regions: Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Specific countries mentioned in recent work include: • Ethiopia • China • India • Bolivia • Kenya • Nigeria The organization also maintains programming in the United States, with recent initiatives in Kentucky and New Mexico focused on overdose prevention.