California Health Care Foundation

Last updated
California Health Care Foundation
Founded1996
TypeSocial Welfare Organizations
95-4523231
FocusImproving access to coverage and care for low-income Californians, ensuring high-value care, and informing decisionmakers
Location
Area served
Improving health care in California
MethodGrants to conduct research and analysis and program-related investments
Key people
Dr. Sandra R. Hernández, President and CEO
Employees
50
Website www.chcf.org

Based in Oakland, California, the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) is an independent, nonprofit philanthropy that focuses on improving the health care system for the people of California, especially low-income Californians. The organization has three main goals: improving access to coverage and care, promoting high-value care, and investing in people, knowledge, and networks that help to make meaningful change possible in California’s health care system. [1]

Contents

Established in 1996, CHCF operates with an endowment of more than $750 million in assets and has paid out more than $500 million to support its programmatic work. [2]

Inception

The California Health Care Foundation was one of two philanthropies created in 1996 as a result of Blue Cross of California’s conversion from a nonprofit health plan to a for-profit corporation, WellPoint (now Anthem). CHCF’s first responsibility was managing the sale of WellPoint Health Networks stock. Of the $3 billion yielded from this process, four-fifths of the proceeds went to create The California Endowment and the remainder, some $600 million at the time, stayed with CHCF. [3] From its inception, CHCF has looked for opportunities to improve health care in California by supporting higher quality, greater efficiency, and broader access to care.

Leadership

Dr. Sandra R. Hernández became president and CEO of the California Health Care Foundation in January 2014. Prior to joining CHCF, Hernández was CEO of The San Francisco Foundation, which she led for 16 years. She previously served as director of public health for the City and County of San Francisco. [4]

Hernández is an assistant clinical professor at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine. She practiced at San Francisco General Hospital in the AIDS clinic from 1984 to 2016. She was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown to the Covered California board of directors in February 2018. She is a graduate of Yale University and the Tufts University School of Medicine.

Previously, the foundation had been led for 18 years by founding president and CEO Mark D. Smith.

Resources

CHCF provides information and resources on a wide range of issues that contribute to achieving a more efficient, effective, accessible, and high-quality health care system. Resources include:

Additionally, CHCF supports health journalism, helping to strengthen the capacity of nonprofits to cover health policy in California and nationally. [11]

Publications

CHCF commissions and publishes research on a wide variety of topics related to the financing and delivery of health care in California. The CHCF Blog draws on experts from inside and outside CHCF to share their health policy insights. [12] A selection includes:

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. "About". California Health Care Foundation.
  2. "Financial Reports". California Health Care Foundation.
  3. Sterngold, James (May 21, 1996). "A Deal by WellPoint Creates a Health Provider and Two Charities". The New York Times.
  4. "Sandra R. Hernández, MD". California Health Care Foundation.
  5. "CHCF Health Care Leadership Program". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  6. "California Improvement Network". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  7. "CHCF Innovation Fund". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  8. "California Health Care Almanac". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  9. "State Health Policy". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  10. "California Opioid Safety Network". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  11. "Supporting Health Journalism". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  12. "The CHCF Blog". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  13. "2018 Edition — Health Care Costs 101". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  14. "Infographic — US Health Care Spending: Who Pays?". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  15. "ACA Repeal Resource Page". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  16. "Moving Medi-Cal Forward on the Path to Delivery System Transformation". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  17. "Opportunities for Emerging Technologies in the Medicaid Market". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  18. "Poll Reveals Californians' Views on ACA, Medi-Cal, and Insurance for Behavioral Health Treatment". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  19. "2018 Edition — Mental Health in California". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  20. "Why Health Plans Should Go to the 'MAT' in the Fight Against Opioid Addiction". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  21. Goldstein, Avram (2018-05-22). "In Their Own Voices: California's Community Paramedics Tell Their Stories". California Health Care Foundation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.