Quick Take
As health coverage becomes more uncertain, Santa Cruz County's community health providers are doubling down on what works: partnership, write six healthcare safety net leaders. When a pregnant patient at Santa Cruz Community Health needed dental care, Dientes Community Dental Care was ready next door — one example of how Salud Para La Gente, Santa Cruz County Health Centers, Janus of Santa Cruz, Encompass Community Services and Dientes work together to close gaps in care. All will participate at Friday's Community Health Resource Fair and Breastfeeding Walk in Watsonville. The authors encourage community members to attend and discover the services and support available to them and their families.
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Every August, communities across the country pause to celebrate community health centers and the vital role they play in keeping people healthy. This year’s National Health Center Week, running Aug. 2-8, carries the theme “Building Innovative Care Where It Matters Most,” and in Santa Cruz County, we know exactly what that innovation looks like.
It looks like partnership.
That might not be the answer people expect.
When we think of healthcare innovation, we tend to picture new technology or a breakthrough treatment. Our health centers are committed to innovation — from training the next generation of doctors and dentists, to building integrated care teams that connect patients with housing, food, legal assistance and other services that address the social factors that shape health before they become medical emergencies.
Santa Cruz County’s safety net is made up of a close network of partners: Santa Cruz Community Health, Salud Para La Gente, Santa Cruz County Health Centers, Dientes Community Dental Care, Janus of Santa Cruz and Encompass Community Services. Together, we provide the full range of quality care our community needs, from primary care and prenatal services to behavioral health, dental care, substance use recovery and family support.
But the secret sauce that makes our local safety net special is our collaborative culture.
When one organization can’t meet a need alone, another is already at the table ready to help close the gap. For instance, when Sonia told her doctor at Salud Para La Gente that she was struggling to put food on the table, staff connected her that same day with Second Harvest Food Bank, so she left with both a health plan and food to bring home. Likewise, when Meredith, pregnant with her third child, mentioned that she hadn’t seen a dentist in 10 years, her prenatal care team at Santa Cruz Community Health referred her to Dientes next door, where staff caught untreated decay before it could become an infection risking both her and her baby. And when Sam called Encompass Community Services intoxicated, panicked and depressed just days before Christmas, staff worked with the local hospital and Janus’ withdrawal management team to coordinate his care and secure emergency Medi-Cal for him, ensuring his substance use disorder treatment and medications were covered so he could start his recovery that same day.
That spirit of collaboration is not new to Santa Cruz County, but it has never mattered more than it does right now. Our partners are leaning toward each other, not apart.
Our safety net is navigating real strain. Statewide, the Department of Health Care Services estimates 1.1 million Californians will lose Medi-Cal coverage by 2029-30 due to new federal work requirements alone, a figure expected to grow as more federal guidance is finalized. Locally, county officials project more than 21,000 residents could lose coverage by 2028 as new work requirements and eligibility restrictions take effect.
Community health centers, which are required to serve everyone regardless of ability to pay, are bracing for the ripple effects. We expect more uninsured patients walking through our doors, and less revenue to support the care our patients need.
We want to reassure residents that basic care needs will continue to be met even as coverage rules shift.
This is what innovation looks like in our county – a network of organizations that have built the trust and infrastructure to serve people together.
Across the county, this collaboration takes concrete form every day. Salud and our County Health Centers coordinate case management for unhoused residents by the Watsonville levee. Dientes brings dental care to Janus’ recovery centers each month. And in Live Oak, Santa Cruz Community Health and Dientes are co-located, so a patient can see a doctor and a dentist in the same place on the same day.
This is what a woven safety net looks like: partners working as one system so patients get better care with fewer gaps.
We want our community to see this collaborative spirit in action. During National Health Center Week, our health centers and safety net partners will join Community Bridges’ Annual Breastfeeding Walk and Community Health Resource Fair, bringing together organizations committed to giving children and families the healthiest possible start in life. The event takes place Friday, Aug. 7, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Community Bridges headquarters, 18 West Lake Ave. in Watsonville.
Residents can connect directly with local providers, learn about available services, ask questions about changing coverage rules and find support for primary care, dental care, behavioral health and other community resources. It’s a simple example of what makes Santa Cruz County’s safety net unique: when our goal is healthier communities, partnership comes first.
Santa Cruz County’s health centers and their partners did not choose an easy year to prove their resilience, but they are proving it anyway, together.
As funding shifts and eligibility rules grow more complex, our community can count on one constant: a safety net built on a shared commitment to reach the people who need it most. That commitment, sustained through partnership, is the innovation worth celebrating this National Health Center Week.
Laura Marcus is CEO of Dientes Community Dental Care.
Kim Morrison is CEO of Encompass Community Services.
Amber Williams is CEO of Janus of Santa Cruz.
Donna Young is CEO of Salud Para La Gente.
Anita Aguirre is CEO of Santa Cruz Community Health.
Amy Peeler is chief of health center services for Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency.
