CenCal Health to invest $6M to expand healthcare workforce
CenCal Health is investing $6 million to support greater access to healthcare on the Central Coast through a new grant program.
CenCal Health is the regional Medi-Cal health plan serving about 240,000 residents of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
The $6 million investment is intended to expand capacity through strategic funding aimed at healthcare provider recruitment, workforce training and education, and overall provider practice support, CenCal announced this month.
It will be made through the Medi-Cal Capacity, Access and Workforce Development Grant Program.
“The workforce grant program will address our most urgent health care priorities and will expand access to care on the Central Coast,” Marina Owen, CenCal Health CEO, said in an Oct. 22 statement to the Business Times.
Aligned with the needs identified in the latest community assessment reports for Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, the three-year grant program will focus on behavioral health, pediatrics, primary care, and specialty care services.
Approved by the CenCal Health Board of Directors in September 2024, the program will begin in January 2025.
CenCal Health will make available the following opportunities:
• Recruitment of new providers through individual grants to providers and community organizations.
• Training and educational opportunities for healthcare careers and in support of building healthcare workforce pathways.
• Practice support through investment in activities to strengthen, bolster and improve access to care, such as infrastructure, equipment, and capital expansion.
Potential grant applicants include:
• Healthcare organizations such as primary care clinics and behavioral health practices who are contracted Medi-Cal providers or those who are interested in joining the CenCal Health provider network.
• Community agencies serving the Medi-Cal population.
• Organizations developing education pathways or supporting technical and healthcare training.
• Entities focused on bolstering the healthcare workforce.
“Having a strong local healthcare workforce is vital for serving our diverse communities,” Nicholas Drews, San Luis Obispo County Health Agency director, and a member of the CenCal Health Board of Directors, said in a press release.
To focus on key needs, CenCal Health referenced internal data, including two annually conducted reports and a biannual member survey managed by the California Department of Health Care Services, as well as the recent community assessment reports.
“It was clear that the most pressing areas to improve are behavioral health, pediatric services and primary care, and specialty care,” said San Luis Obispo pediatrician René Bravo, a Medi-Cal provider.
“Specifically, we want to focus on pediatrician recruitment and retention and other support for pediatric practices to increase child and adolescent well-care visits,” he said.
Another focus is to open opportunities for adolescent and adult depression screenings and increase the number of behavioral health providers to enhance treatment options, Bravo said.
The workforce investment of $6 million will be through an application-based grant process.
The program will make available competitive 12-month grants through three rounds of funding. Program applications and additional information on the program will be available in early 2025.
“This grant program presents a key opportunity for CenCal Health to support our local medical community in addressing our region’s healthcare needs,” Owen said in the press release.
“Our board of directors – made up of health professionals and community leaders – is united in carrying out this strategy to broaden access to care for all residents on the Central Coast, including CenCal Health members,” she said.
CenCal Health partners with more than 5,000 physicians, hospitals, and other providers in delivering healthcare services to its members.
It provides them to one in three residents of Santa Barbara County and one in four residents of San Luis Obispo County, ranging from children to seniors.
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