Resolve to Save Lives

What Resolve to Save Lives does

Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL) is a New York-headquartered nonprofit global health organization founded in 2017 by Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The organization partners with national and subnational governments — primarily health ministries — across more than 60 countries to scale proven, evidence-based interventions in cardiovascular disease prevention (especially hypertension control), epidemic preparedness and response, healthier food policy (trans fat elimination and sodium reduction), and increasingly primary healthcare system strengthening and lead poisoning prevention. RTSL's technical core is co-created frameworks (HEARTS with WHO, REPLACE trans fat, 7-1-7 outbreak detection, ERPHC, and the forthcoming WHO PREVENT lead poisoning package) combined with the open-source Simple app, a digital platform for clinicians managing hypertension and diabetes that is interoperable with national health information systems such as Ethiopia's DHIS2. The organization does not sell products or charge for its technical assistance; all programming is grant-funded and delivered at no cost to partner governments.

The organization is funded by philanthropic grants, with Bloomberg Philanthropies as the dominant funder (initial 2017 founding grant plus a $115 million top-up in July 2022 earmarked through 2047), alongside the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Gates Philanthropy Partners (supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Foundation), and other donors. RTSL operates through a New York headquarters plus wholly-owned regional offices in Abuja (Nigeria, 2022), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia, 2023), and New Delhi (India, 2024), and an additional entity in Kigali (Rwanda), with a distributed team of roughly 101–250 staff across nine countries. Programmatic impact reported by RTSL includes 34 million+ patients enrolled in data-driven hypertension programs (11.1 million with blood pressure controlled), 581,995 healthcare workers trained, 221,570 facilities equipped, and policies protecting nearly 4 billion people from artificial trans fat.

Go-to-market is government-led technical assistance: RTSL embeds with health ministries and agencies (e.g., NCDC in Nigeria, ICMR in India, NAFDAC in Nigeria, FSSAI in India), co-develops policy and clinical protocols, deploys the Simple app and surveillance tooling, and publishes peer-reviewed evidence (in JACC, BMJ Global Health, PLOS Medicine) and annual reports such as "Epidemics That Didn't Happen" to drive further adoption. Distribution relies on direct in-country offices, WHO co-branding, and an implementation partner network (CHAI, Project HOPE, GHAI, PHFI, JHPIEGO, IPE Global). The model has no commercial pricing — there is no pricing tier, license, or contract; value capture is mission-driven rather than revenue-driven.

Name

Resolve to Save Lives

Legal name

Resolve to Save Lives

Website

https://resolvetosavelives.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Resolve to Save Lives is a New York-based nonprofit global health organization founded in 2017 by Dr. Tom Frieden, providing grant-funded technical assistance, open-source digital tools (Simple app), and co-developed frameworks (HEARTS, 7-1-7, ERPHC) to governments in 60+ countries for hypertension control, epidemic preparedness, and healthier food policy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Global Public Health Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nutrition & Food Security (Global Health) NGOs (HLAJAKAH), Public Health Financing, Budgeting & Grants Management (HLAJAMAC), Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus & Resilience Programming (BPADAEAK)

Keywords

• Global health programs
• Cardiovascular disease prevention
• Epidemic preparedness services
• Hypertension control programs
• Public health technical assistance

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Grants and Donations: Resolve to Save Lives is funded primarily through philanthropic grants and donations from major foundations. Initial funders include Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Gates Philanthropy Partners (funded with support from the Chan Zuckerberg Foundation). In 2022, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced an additional $115 million investment. The organization does not charge for its technical assistance or programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Resolve to Save Lives is a nonprofit global health organization that delivers free technical assistance, capacity building, and programmatic support to national governments in 60+ countries to prevent deaths from cardiovascular disease (especially hypertension), epidemics, and unhealthy food. Its core digital product is the Simple App, an open-source clinician tool for managing hypertension and diabetes patients at scale, supported by co-created public health frameworks (7-1-7, ERPHC, HEARTS) and technical resources (Sodium Reduction Framework, Global Nutrition Database, PHCQS). All offerings are provided at no cost to partner governments and funded through philanthropic grants.

Product overview

Resolve to Save Lives is a results-driven global health organization that develops and deploys digital health technologies and frameworks to prevent epidemics and reduce cardiovascular disease. The core offering is the Simple App—a free, open-source digital platform for clinicians to manage hypertension and diabetes care—supported by complementary frameworks including the 7-1-7 Alliance for outbreak detection standards, the Emergency-Ready Primary Health Care (ERPHC) Framework for embedding preparedness into primary care, and the HEARTS-based hypertension control programs deployed across multiple countries. RTSL also provides technical tools such as the Sodium Reduction Framework, Global Nutrition Database, and PHCQS assessment tool. The organization prioritizes simplicity, speed, and scale, with technology that is open-source and interoperable, enabling integration with national health information systems like DHIS2.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Simple App: Free, open-source digital app for clinicians to manage patients with hypertension and diabetes
• 7-1-7 Alliance
• Emergency-Ready Primary Health Care (ERPHC)

Products and services

• Simple App Free, open-source digital platform for clinicians to manage patients with hypertension and diabetes at scale, providing actionable data for population-level outcomes. Interoperable with national health information systems (e.g., DHIS2).
• 7-1-7 Alliance A global initiative hosted by RTSL that establishes a universal performance standard for outbreak detection (7 days), notification (7 hours), and response (7 days), with implementation support for national health authorities.
• Emergency-Ready Primary Health Care (ERPHC) Framework and Operational Guide Practical framework co-developed with WHO for embedding preparedness, response, and resilience into routine primary healthcare systems, integrating disease surveillance, infection prevention and control, clinical care, and community protection.
• Hypertension Control Programs (IHCI, EHCI, NHCI) Country-led hypertension control programs co-implemented with national health ministries in India, Ethiopia, and Nigeria using the WHO HEARTS technical package, with embedded RTSL technical advisors, healthcare worker training, and Simple App deployment.
• Sodium Reduction Framework Technical framework providing governments and partners with recommendations for building and scaling comprehensive salt/sodium reduction programs, supporting evidence-based sodium reduction policy.
• Global Nutrition Database Centralized platform aggregating nutrition data on packaged foods to support researchers, policy advocates, and decision-makers in food policy work.
• Primary Healthcare Questions for Surveys (PHCQS) Standardized survey assessment tool to rigorously track primary healthcare performance across countries, over time, and among different demographic and geographic groups.
• Epidemics That Didn't Happen Report Annual case-study publication showcasing outbreaks that were successfully contained, demonstrating how targeted investment and timing can prevent disease spread; serves as both an advocacy and a technical learning resource for global health practitioners.

Quantifiable outcome

• 34 million+ patients enrolled in hypertension programs; 11.1 million with blood pressure controlled
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• Pure EarthminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2026Co-organized international meeting 'Evidence to Action: Preventing Lead Poisoning to Save Lives' with WHO and Bloomberg Philanthropies on lead poisoning prevention.
• World Health Organization (WHO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResolve to Save Lives partners with WHO on multiple initiatives including the REPLACE trans fat elimination initiative, HEARTS technical package for hypertension, Emergency-Ready Primary Health Care (ERPHC) Framework co-developed and launched at the 79th World Health Assembly, and the WHO PREVENT lead poisoning prevention technical package.
• Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in India Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI) alongside Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and state governments.
• Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRTSL has supported NCDC since the country's first Joint External Evaluation in 2017, providing flexible funding, strategic implementation, and capacity-building support for epidemic prevention, detection, and response.
• The George Institute for Global Health IndiamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on low-sodium salt substitutes (LSSS) research and consensus statement for India, white paper development on LSSS for hypertension and cardiovascular disease control.
• Sapiens Health FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on physician education regarding salt and sodium, conducting workshops to assess and improve physicians' knowledge on sodium intake guidelines.
• Vision for Social Development (VSD)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner in Karnataka government collaboration to develop training manual on dietary salt reduction for health practitioners.
• National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Nigeria for trans fat elimination policy development and implementation, supporting the development and passage of best-practice trans fat elimination policy in 2023.
• Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for food safety and healthier food environment in India, supporting sodium reduction and trans fat elimination efforts.
• Project HopeminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNGO partner in Nigeria working on health security and healthcare delivery programs.
• Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner in Nigeria providing technical assistance and support for health programs.
• Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner for advocacy and policy work on cardiovascular health and food policy in Nigeria.
• Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for public health research and advocacy in India.
• IPE GlobalminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner for implementation support in India health programs.
• JHPIEGOminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner for maternal health and healthcare worker training programs in India.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• PATH: PATH is a large global health nonprofit that designs and scales health solutions, including digital tools and health system strengthening, across LMICs. Comparable to RTSL as a peer nonprofit operating across multiple disease and health-system verticals with similar technical-assistance and country-partnership model.
• Partners In Health: Partners In Health is a large nonprofit health system operator providing care and capacity building in low-resource settings. Comparable as a mission-aligned global health nonprofit delivering programs through government partnerships in similar geographies.
• Task Force for Global Health: Task Force for Global Health is a large nonprofit working on disease elimination, immunization, and public health capacity building. Comparable as a peer organization of similar scale and operating model focused on global public health delivery.
• Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance: Gavi is a large global health financing and delivery organization that funds immunization in LMICs. Comparable to RTSL as a high-scale, donor-funded, WHO-adjacent global health organization executing country-level health programs.

Direct peers

• Vital Strategies: Vital Strategies is a global health nonprofit that works with governments on cardiovascular health, epidemic prevention, and food policy, including trans fat elimination. It is the closest direct peer to RTSL, operating with a near-identical mission and technical-assistance model.
• Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI): CHAI works with governments in LMICs to strengthen health systems, including hypertension, HIV, and epidemic response. Already a listed RTSL partner in Nigeria, CHAI competes for similar government technical-assistance mandates.
• Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI): GHAI builds advocacy capacity to drive policy change on cardiovascular health, food policy, and epidemic prevention. Already a listed RTSL partner in Nigeria, it is a closely aligned peer working on overlapping advocacy mandates.
• World Heart Federation: World Heart Federation is a global nonprofit umbrella organization focused on cardiovascular disease prevention and control. Comparable as a peer focused on the cardiovascular-health vertical that anchors RTSL's work.
• George Institute for Global Health: The George Institute is a global medical research and policy nonprofit that works on cardiovascular disease, sodium reduction, and health systems. Already a listed RTSL partner in India, it is a closely comparable peer working on cardiovascular and sodium-reduction research and policy.

Regional players

• Africa CDC: Africa CDC is a continental public health agency coordinating epidemic preparedness and response across African Union member states. Comparable as a peer institution driving epidemic-prevention capacity building in geographies where RTSL is most active.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ResolveTSL
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC2jBw4JnKVqKh8qRyj_VfIQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/ResolveToSaveLives
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/resolve-to-save-lives
• Instagraminstagram.com/resolvetosavelives

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Resolve to Save Lives