Racial Health Equity Legal and Policy Cohort

Created in 2021, the RHE Cohort fosters collaboration between the Network the Public Health Law with organizations investing in cross-sector relationships and collaborations to advance community health and racial health equity through law and policy.  

The RHE Cohort program launches with a call for applications through which interested organizations identify their racial health equity project and share their needs. Selected organizations are paired with a dedicated Network team of law and policy experts who provide them with up to 40 hours of tailored legal technical assistance over a seven-month period. (Organizations that are not selected may be eligible for a shorter technical assistance response and/or referral to other organizations.) 

Organizations that are accepted into the Cohort and their staff gain access to training and peer learning opportunities, deepening their understanding of how public health law can support racial health equity, and creating space to foster connection, community, and discussion.  

The Network’s structured legal technical assistance is the core of the RHE Cohort program. The support we provide to participating organizations and their projects can include policy scoping, research, analysis, knowledge-building resources, and presentations. We also create opportunities for cohort members to discuss problems and solutions with each other and with peers from across the country. These efforts are informed by our expansive legal and policy expertise on health equity and core public health issues, including public health authority, emergency preparedness, vaccine and immunizations, data privacy and collection, climate change, harm reduction, housing protections, food and nutrition policies, mental health and suicide prevention, and others related to the social determinants of health, and responding to attacks on health equity advancing efforts.    

Because organizations and racial health projects come in all shapes and sizes, we work closely with cohort members to identify and address their specific legal and policy needs. We can help them understand the legal landscape, design racial health equity tools and processes, and identify promising policy strategies and practices. We can explain what relevant legislative, regulatory, and judicial decisions mean; conduct jurisdictional scans to identify laws and policies impacting their work; and provide guidance on their legal authority to implement reforms. We can also provide education on race-conscious and race-neutral laws and policies, explain the difference between these two approaches, and help cohort members to develop and use race-based, as well as targeted race-neutral, strategies and approaches to advance their racial health equity goals.    

The Network’s RHE Cohort directly challenges the misconception that racial health equity work has stalled – it confronts it. These examples, and dozens of others, show that community organizations and public health agencies are continuing their critical work, even as they face daunting attacks and the perception that these efforts should be paused or abandoned. Even amid political and economic uncertainty, these efforts are ongoing, evolving, and changing, indicating an ongoing need for tailored legal and policy assistance that is responsive to community and public health workforce needs. The Network’s RHE Cohort program, and its structured technical assistance model, helps to fill this gap, and is an essential approach to advancing racial justice and health equity. 

Eligibility

The call for applications to the 2026 RHE Cohort will run from May 1, 2026 through June 26, 2026. Applicants will be notified of their application status in early August.   

Eligible Organizations  

Eligible applicants for the RHE cohort include  representatives from local, state, or tribal health departments, community-based organizations or groups, nonprofit organizations, professional associations, healthcare, and others working to eliminate deep, systemic, and racially driven inequities in health with desire to work on law and policy issues to advance community health and racial equity are welcome to apply. Prior cohort participants are eligible to apply, but priority will be given to new applicants.   

Stipends: The Network has limited funds to honor community and staff time. Stipend recipients must complete an I-9 form. If interested, please describe how a stipend up to $1,000 would support participation in this project. Requesting a stipend is optional.

Eligible Projects  

We are seeking applications who are developing or working on a specific issue that prioritizes racial equity that would benefit from legal and policy technical assistance (up to 40 hours). We can assist with work that is at any stage of development.    

In applications, interested organizations will need to describe their project in need of legal and policy assistance, identify project point of contacts, share information about their racial health equity project, and their legal and policy challenges, if known.  

We are interested in supporting projects that have most, if not all, of the following characteristics:   

• Have a commitment and clear goals to furthering racial health equity   

• Are committed to an intersectional approach to racial health equity   

• Are grounded in principles of health equity and the priorities of communities that have experienced inequitable health disparities   

• Are community-led or community informed

• Are led by entities that are engaged and working with communities either currently or that are seeking assistance with how to connect with communities   

• Could be implemented in other jurisdictions or communities   

• Have a well-defined legal/policy scope or would benefit from planning assistance to define the legal/policy scope 

• Have a clear connection to improving population health. 

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Requirements

Participation in the 2026-2027 RHE Cohort will run from September 2026 to April 2027. Each participating team will identify 1-2 individuals to lead their work with us. Those team members will: 

• Meet with Network staff at the start of the program to get oriented and meet other cohort members 

• Work with your dedicated Network team to define the legal and policy focus of your project 

• Join regular check-in meetings to discuss your project’s progress 

• Attend webinars and peer discussions with other cohort participants 

• Review and give feedback on drafts of materials we create together 

• Complete a short survey about your experience at the end of the program 

The Network will provide dedicated staff for each project, respond to your questions, and meet with you monthly and as needed throughout the program. 

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Support and Benefits

All participants in the RHE cohort will receive dedicated technical assistance on one specific racial health equity project to strengthen and advance their goals through law and policy. Each team will meet monthly with their dedicated Network partners.

Support

Up to 40 hours technical assistance is available per project and may include: 

• Policy identification and issue scoping 

• Legal and policy research and analysis 

• Jurisdictional scans 

• Education on legal concepts, tools, and frameworks 

• Explanation of legal authorities and decisions 

• Guidance on the use of legal and policy tools 

• Development of resources and written materials 

• Presentations or briefings, as appropriate

The Network does not provide legal advice or legal representation. Successful applicants are encouraged to share the products of their collaboration with the Network with their legal counsel for review if appropriate/necessary. 

Benefits

Participants will benefit from peer learning and through the RHE Cohort, which will gather twice for webinars and facilitated discussions. By the end of the Cohort, participants are better equipped to:  

• Use law and policy strategically to advance racial health equity goals  

• Navigate legal challenges and policy barriers with greater confidence  

• Build relationships with peers and partners working toward anti-racist systems change  

• Access ongoing legal and policy technical assistance through the Network 

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Expected Outcomes

At the field level, the Cohort strengthens connections between public health, community organizations, and legal solutions, while deepening understanding of the real-world challenges and opportunities facing those on the front lines of equity work. 

By participating in this opportunity, cohort members and their organizations: 

• Better understand how laws, regulations, policies, and other actions affect health and racial equity. 

• Can identify legal and policy levers that support/hinder their racial health equity goals. 

• Feel more confident applying the knowledge they learned through working with the Network to real situations. 

• Are better positioned to serve their communities because they can use law and policy strategically rather than seeing them as barriers or something only lawyers’ handle.  

• Cohort members learn about and build connections with people and organizations nationwide working to advance anti‑racism and racial health equity. 

Catalyzing Change: Expanding Equity in Lactation  
Care to Improve Maternal and Child Health 

In 2024, Rhode Island enacted landmark legislation expanding licensure eligibility for lactation support professionals to include Certified and Advanced Lactation Counselors (CLCs and ALCs). This reform removed barriers that excluded qualified, often community-based providers from the workforce and reimbursement systems. 

This policy advancement was the result of a collaborative effort that included the Network for Public Health Law; a Black-led perinatal wellness organization; and the Rhode Island Department of Health. As part of the project, we provided technical assistance and legal analysis, reviewed proposed changes to regulations, and produced an issue brief, Creating an Equitable Landscape for Lactation Consultant Licensure in Rhode Island. This brief became a key advocacy tool for the legislation and has since informed similar policy discussions in other states, including Utah.  

The passage of legislation in Rhode Island to include CLCs and ALCs, significantly broadening the pool of qualified providers. As a result of this legislative change, more professionals are now able to deliver lactation support across a variety of community settings; there is enhanced access to culturally responsive care for families who have historically faced barriers to receiving adequate breastfeeding support; and Rhode Island’s action established a policy precedent that other states can look to as they consider revising their own licensure laws to better meet the needs of diverse populations. 

Apply Now

Application opens: Friday, May 1, 2026, 8am CT

Application Deadline: Friday, June 26, 2026, 5pm CT

Ready to apply for the 2026 RHE Cohort? Please select the button below. 

For additional questions, reach out to Sara Rogers srogers@networkforphl.org.