Foundation Gives $4.4 Million in Additional Funding to Support California’s Healthcare Safety Net & Domestic Violence Providers

New grants include funding to advance ‘Accountable Communities for Health’

San Francisco, CA  (Sept 15, 2015) – Blue Shield of California Foundation today announced more than $4.4 million in third-quarter grants aimed at advancing healthcare and domestic violence services for the most vulnerable Californians.  The funding—which brings the Foundation’s 2015 giving to more than $22 million--includes a new initiative that will facilitate collaboration between government and private charitable funders with the goal of improving the health of targeted, high-need populations across the state. 

“This emerging concept, known as ‘Accountable Communities for Health,’ has the potential to transform health in California,” said Peter Long, PhD, the Foundation’s president and CEO. “This initiative will harness the resources, talents, and priorities  of public and private stakeholders to improve health outcomes at the population level.”

Accountable Communities for Health (ACHs) are designed as an alliance of healthcare providers, public health agencies, community-based organizations and social service providers whose goal is to collectively improve patient outcomes, while also reducing health disparities and costs. California’s ACH initiative, which is part of the California State Health Care Innovation Plan, aims to create ACHs in six communities throughout the state. Blue Shield of California Foundation supports this effort in partnership with the California Health and Human Services Agency, the California Department of Public Health, and three other philanthropic funders.

In total, the Foundation announced 26 grants this quarter to help address and prevent domestic violence, advance coverage solutions for the remaining uninsured, and integrate behavioral health into primary care settings across the safety net.

A full list of Q3 awards can be found here.

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About Blue Shield of California Foundation

Blue Shield of California Foundation is one of the state's largest and most trusted grantmaking organizations. Our mission is to improve the lives of all Californians, particularly the underserved, by making health care accessible, effective, and affordable, and by ending domestic violence. For more information visit: www.blueshieldcafoundation.org