Equity in Access Fund

Overview

_NOTE: Please note we currently are not accepting unsolicited letters of interest for the priority populations goal of this portfolio._

Our Vision & Mission

Our vision is for every resident of California to enjoy good health and experience wellness. Our mission is to protect and improve the health and wellness of the people of California by increasing access to health care, quality education, good jobs, healthy environments and safe neighborhoods.

Our Work

* We use our resources to advance our mission through grantmaking, investments, sharing our learning and lifting our voice.
* We fund direct services that address the urgent needs people are facing in their communities, particularly the needs of low-income individuals, people of color, youth and residents of rural areas.
* We recognize, encourage and strengthen leaders to be powerful agents of change.
* We support advocacy and civic engagement so that communities can build power and create public policies that reflect their vision, will and needs.
* We trust and invest in nonprofit organizations so that they can operate at full capacity.
* We partner with community-led organizations, philanthropic organizations, businesses, government and individuals who want to improve health and wellness for Californians.

What We Fund

Our vision is that every person in California enjoys health and wellness. That means living in a safe and healthy community. Having access to quality education and good jobs. Drinking clean water. And having access to healthy foods.

But we know that a lot gets in the way of people enjoying health and wellness. The barriers are many and they are systemic. Wellness is directly affected by our race, class, gender and disability. By our zip code. By our family history. By our immigration status and past involvement with the criminal justice system.

That’s why we partner with community organizations to remove barriers to individual and community wellness. And to put in place more equitable processes and systems that improve individual and community wellness.

Through our grantmaking program—Advancing Wellness—we support organizations that are increasing access to health care. Innovative organizations that are advocating for quality education. Organizations big and small that are fighting for good jobs with fair wages and benefits. Local organizations that are working to make our streets and neighborhoods safe.

Equity in Access Fund

All people deserve to be healthy and experience wellness. And all Californians should be able to receive the health benefits and services they need to live healthy lives. We believe that health care is a human right. While California has made significant progress in expanding quality, affordable health care coverage and access, we recognize that due to systemic racism, persistent health disparities remain for people of color. Therefore, we center racial justice in our work as we work toward high-quality universal health care that expands the ability of all Californians, especially people of color, to obtain necessary health care and related services.

Our Equity in Access portfolio champions health care coverage and access for all and defends the rights of immigrants to enjoy access to health services, coverage and other benefits. All people, regardless of immigration status, deserve access to public benefits. Our portfolio also supports the rights of women to access comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services.

We will support:

Universal coverage and access to care

All Californians should have the ability to see a medical provider when and how they need to. But there are currently many barriers in place that make it difficult for people of color and immigrants to access needed high-quality health care. And universal coverage means more than seeing a doctor once a year. It means having the access to comprehensive services for staying healthy, such as oral and behavioral health services, as well as having medical providers close by — whether in person or via telemedicine — and the means to get to them. We are one of the -few funders in the country investing in oral health care for low-income adults and seniors, despite the critical importance of oral health to overall physical well-being. Finally, people without health insurance need to know their options for getting coverage, and how to use their benefits once they’re enrolled. That’s why we invest in organizations that reach out to communities to both educate and help eligible people sign up for health insurance, help patients retain coverage from year to year, and facilitate full use of benefits.

System transformation

To realize our vision, we will have to help transform the health care system. But what does transforming the health care system require? It requires designing and implementing new models of health care that take a whole-person view while integrating the patients’ clinical and social needs. This also includes intentionally allocating resources and interventions to improve health and wellness for Black, Brown, and indigenous communities that are due justice for past systemic harm. Transforming the health care system also means improving the programs currently in place, such as making Medi-Cal and Covered California easier to access for those who need it. Transformation also requires reimagining how direct service providers collaborate and partner to better meet the needs of community residents . Government health coverage programs, community-based organizations and safety-net health care providers all need to work better together to improve health and equity for vulnerable populations.

Priority Populations

We want to overturn decades of injustice so that communities too long ignored receive both the health care and social services they need. And we want to see communities of color, immigrants, and low-income communities treated with respect and dignity by all governmental and private institutions, including health care institutions.

Because California is a border state and home to the highest number of immigrants, it is important that we pay attention to immigrants’ needs. We’re determined to champion the rights of immigrants. That means supporting organizations that are working to advance and defend immigrant rights, beating back deportation efforts, helping to counter the surge in negative narratives about immigrants, and challenging the rise in racially charged attacks and threats against immigrants.

In this portfolio, we also support the rights of women to access comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services, which have been under intense attack during the past few years. In particular, we strive to ensure that women of color have access to the care they need.

Please note we currently are not accepting unsolicited letters of interest for the priority populations goal of this portfolio.

Eligibility

_You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website._

* Your organization must be a nonprofit public agency, religious organization or tribal government.
* You must have Section 501(c)(3) status and be classified as a public charity.
* Your organization can’t discriminate by race, color, creed, gender, sexual orientation or national origin.
* Your proposal would benefit those living in California.
* What We Fund:
* Public policy, research, and communications efforts to supporting expansion of health coverage (including oral health care services) to low-income adults and seniors, and the uninsured without regard to immigration status.
* Culturally and linguistically appropriate health coverage outreach, education, retention and utilization activities for Medi-Cal and Covered California.
* Research and communications activities to help build the case for universal coverage, such as:
* Expanding Medi-Cal coverage and oral health services for low-income adults and seniors.
* Core support for clinics providing oral health care services and serving as a dental home for low-income adults and seniors.
* Project support for larger community health centers and clinics to address health-related social needs of patients.
* Core support for small community health clinics that provide a broad range of primary health care services to low-income individuals, or clinics providing oral health care services and serving as a dental home for low-income adults and seniors.
* Project support for larger community health centers and clinics to address health-related social needs of patients.
* Core or project support for other organizations providing support for community health centers and clinics such as statewide and regional clinic consortia.
* Innovative new models of health delivery system transformation including:
* Improving the provision of services through Medi-Cal;
* Helping health care safety-net organizations transition to value-based care and alternative payment methodologies;
* Supporting approaches for providing holistic and healing centered care and addressing the social determinants of health.
* Efforts to better connect individuals to needed health and social services as well as other public benefit programs.
* Public policy or communication efforts to increase investments in public health infrastructure and prevention activities.

Ineligibility

* Cal Wellness does not provide international funding or fund organizations located outside the United States.
* Cal Wellness does not fund individuals seeking funding.
* Your application is not for an annual fund drive, building campaign, major equipment or biomedical research.
* What We Don't Fund:
* General health education or disease-specific efforts, such as diabetes, heart disease, or cancer treatment and prevention efforts.
* Specialized clinics or other organizations focused primarily on behavioral health, substance abuse, vision care, or specialty care, rather than comprehensive primary care services.
* Dental programs that focus solely or predominantly on children/pediatric dentistry, unless they seek to expand their capacity to serve low-income adults and seniors.