2016-2017 Annual Report

L.A. Care believes it is our responsibility to address our members' whole health. This means not just being concerned about physical health, but access to healthy food and drinking water. It means having safe parks, good schools and a stable income. These “social determinants of health” influence your risk for disease and how long you live – and L.A. Care is committed to doing something about them.

We have prioritized several major initiatives targeting social determinants of health. The first was a $20 million commitment over five years – the largest ever in L.A. Care's 20-year history – for Brilliant Corners and Los Angeles County's Housing for Health program. This initiative aims to secure permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals like Ma'Lissa Simon, whose story we share in the video.

Our Community Health Investment Fund (CHIF) improves community health, expands health insurance coverage and strengthens the safety net, providing $66 million since 2001. Last year, CHIF increased the reach of L.A. County's Whole Person Care, a five-year pilot program that obtains federal matching dollars for support services to high-risk Medi-Cal beneficiaries.

L.A. Care's Community Wellness Initiative provides $1 million in funding to organizations to help enroll individuals and families in CalFresh or Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) programs. In the past year, grantees enrolled 2,774 families, consisting of over 7,700 individuals, into the CalFresh program. They also helped low-income residents prepare income tax returns and secure refunds totaling over $2.6 million, including over $850,000 in EITC credits.

Lastly, L.A. Care created a partnership with several immigration rights organizations. Key components of this coalition are support of local “Know Your Rights” workshops and an extensive social media campaign, which reaches those who are too afraid to ask for help in person.