|
Based on the success of its Street Medicine Program in individual cities, the CalOptima Health Board of Directors announced the largest expansion of the program to date, authorizing a regional approach to serving the unhoused through a new partnership that brings together four Orange County cities.
The Coastal Cities Continuum, a collaboration among Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, and Westminster, will join the CalOptima Health Street Medicine Program, with services launching in mid-2027.
As Chair of the CalOptima Board, I supported the expansion as I strongly believe that Street Medicine plays a key role in CalOptima Health’s comprehensive strategy to address the unhoused in Orange County by bringing urgent and primary care to the streets. The program, which now operates in Garden Grove, Costa Mesa, Anaheim and Santa Ana, uses interdisciplinary teams who canvas communities to reach members living in parks, under freeways, and other unsheltered spaces.
Services include health care, behavioral health, substance use treatment and case management, along with expanded whole-person care resources, seeking to reduce unnecessary emergency department visits and increase access to permanent housing.
Homelessness does not stop at city boundaries, and neither should our response. Our growing Street Medicine network is a powerful example of what we can accomplish when we work together across jurisdictions and systems. By bringing health care, behavioral health, social services and housing resources directly to people where they are, we are breaking down barriers to care and creating a more coordinated path toward stability for our most vulnerable residents.
 The Street Medicine Program’s evolution reflects a broader understanding that health care and housing stability are closely connected. CalOptima Health has complemented its Street Medicine efforts with investments in housing development, leading to efforts to increase the capacity of housing-services providers and the creation of its first-ever Care Traffic Control Center. This innovative coordinated care hub is designed to improve health care access and outcomes for Orange County residents experiencing homelessness by seamlessly guiding them through every stage of their health care journey.
We wrapped up the summer by celebrating nine years of Summer Night Lights at El Salvador Park in Santa Ana with Neutral Ground. I truly enjoyed spending time with families, youth, neighbors, and volunteers as everyone came together as a community. I’m grateful to Nati Alvarado and his wife Gloria for all they do to make our community stronger and resilient.
 Violence reduction does not happen in a meeting room. It happens right here, in moments like these. Neutral Ground’s mission is to create a safer OC centered on its communities most impacted by gang violence.
 I want to thank everyone who came out, the leadership and staff at Neutral Ground, the sponsors, the volunteers, and every family that brought their kids to spend Friday nights at the park with us. Our families are the reason this works!
At our last Board Meeting, I supported a contract for the Cell Dogs Program to continue its important work with justice-affected youth. The new 3-year contract is an important milestone as it will fund services from this long-running program.
Cell Dogs and the OC Probation Department have been successfully partnering for nearly 18 years to bring together incarcerated youth and animals on a structured curriculum to foster responsibility and commitment.
 Dogs are rescued from local shelters and placed in basic obedience training programs. These classes take place at the correctional facilities, and inmates earn certification for continued education courses. Dogs are then adopted or continue to additional training in service dog programs.
 Carlos Valenzuela, my policy advisor, recently joined a graduation ceremony to recognize the work of youth, volunteers, and the latest group of trainees.
At our Board of Supervisors meeting, we held a special presentation in recognition of National Health Center Week. I invited representatives from community health clinics to recognize the tireless work these institutions do in service to our residents. With over 340,000 patients served annually in Orange County, these centers are a vital hub of comprehensive care for our communities.
For more than 60 years, Community Health Centers have provided high-quality, affordable, and comprehensive care to residents who may otherwise face significant barriers to accessing health care. Health centers provide medical, dental, vision, behavioral health, preventive and select specialty care, as well as services such as food assistance, transportation, and rental assistance. They also have an important impact on our local economy and workforce.
Joining us for the presentation were the Coalition of Orange County Community Health Centers and the dedicated healthcare leaders, providers, and staff who continue showing up for our communities every day, including Isabel Becerra, CEO of the Coalition of Orange County Community Health Centers, who addressed the crowd regarding the challenges facing these centers and clinics.
 These professionals work as multidisciplinary teams to treat the whole person and meet the diverse needs of our communities. For many residents, particularly those who are uninsured, underinsured, or rely on Medi-Cal or Medicare, these health centers are their primary source of essential care.
While the presentation was a celebration, we also need to recognize the challenges facing our health centers, including funding and reimbursement pressures, while demand for services continues to grow.
Changes to Medi-Cal under H.R. 1 could add further challenges, including new eligibility and reporting requirements that may require staff to spend more time helping patients maintain coverage and navigate exemptions.
I’m proud to stand with our Community Health Centers as they face these challenges and continue their mission to serve.
With the many economic challenges that our families face today, I was proud to be able to host a Back-to-School event to assist families and students as they returned to classes this year.
I joined Santa Ana Commissioner Isuri Ramos, Santa Ana Unified School District staff, United Across Borders, OC Social Services Agency and a host of partners and volunteers to serve hundreds of families at Kennedy Elementary School.
 Beyond backpacks and school supplies, the event provided families with food and other items to help them start the school year. It was inspiring to see the many volunteers and community partners working with our families and meeting them where they are with dignity and respect.
 Wishing all our students a great start to the new school year. Here’s a year filled with learning and growth.
This month, the Board acknowledged August as Eligibility Professionals Month with a special presentation to recognize the commitment and dedication of the eligibility professionals working in our county departments to ensure our residents receive all of the benefits that they are entitled to.
These professionals are often the first point of contact for residents needing services, including Medi-Cal, CalFresh, housing, and veterans’ assistance. They are committed to helping residents even in the face of funding and resource challenges and increasing complexity in federal regulations. We thanked them for serving residents with respect and meeting people where they are when they require assistance most.
 I was proud to have the opportunity to thank these hard-working professionals on behalf of District 2 residents who rely on them to serve as navigators of what can be a complex and difficult-to-access system. As Chair of the CalOptima Health Board, I also had the opportunity to acknowledge the work and partnership between CalOptima and the eligibility professionals working within our partner Community Based Organizations.
I was honored to be invited to address the community at this year’s Delhi Center Zocalo Awards celebration.
It was a night of celebration and recognizing the work of the staff and leadership at Delhi, and thanking the incredible volunteers, students, and performers who helped make this event such a success. Their time, talent, and dedication make a real difference in our community.
 The Delhi Center continues to do more with less—meeting families where they are, supporting those in need, and strengthening our community through a variety of programs and services. They provide hope and encouragement in the lives they touch each day.
 It was an honor to recognize Second Harvest Food Bank and Kroger with the well-deserved Héroe de la Comunidad award. Thank you, Delhi Center, and all the people and organizations that support their work, for all you do for our community!
My District Representative, Joese Hernandez, joined Alianza Translatinx at their open house celebrating the launch of their new multipurpose center. We were honored to be invited by Alianza’s CEO, Khloe Rios-Wyatt, along with board members and supporters, to share in this important milestone.
 This move represents so much more than growth for the organization; it's a chance to bring all their programs together under one consistent, affirming space dedicated to serving Transgender, Gender-Expansive, and Intersex individuals in Orange County. Congratulations Alianza!
|
