Dozens of community health centers from across California joined to launch a statewide civic engagement initiative ahead of the 2024 election aimed to increase voter turnout among Latino communities, empowering them to take an active role in the democratic process. The California Primary Care Association (CPCA) and AltaMed Health Services have partnered on a statewide effort, My Vote. My Health. (MVMH)TM, or Mi Voto. Mi Salud., which seeks to mobilize health professionals and health care institutions to serve as civic engagement advocates. The non-partisan statewide initiative seeks to help patients and community members understand how negative social determinants of health are connected to low civic participation and voting.
Existing voter outreach campaigns and candidates often overlook outreach to Latino voters because of their historically infrequent voting patterns. As a trusted messenger, AltaMed uses its health centers as civic engagement hubs that offer voter registration, bilingual electoral education materials, flex voting opportunities, and trained staff and physicians equipped with civic engagement calls to action. Through this initiative effort, from now through February of 2025, CPCA and AltaMed are partnering to train dozens of community health centers on their Integrated Civic Engagement Model (ICEM), in hopes that one day all community health centers in the state can serve as civic engagement hubs for more than seven million patients, who have consistently paid the price of lagging power-building efforts in their communities.
“CPCA understands the importance of building the political power of our patients across the state in order to address social determinants of health,” said Francisco J. Silva Esq., President and CEO for CPCA. “In an era of unprecedented challenges and opportunities, this initiative is an opportunity to empower communities that are often left behind. Voting plays a critical role in the allocation of social resources that are associated with population health and health equity. Our civic engagement initiative aims to inspire, educate, and mobilize citizens to become active participants in the democratic process and advocate for positive change.”
The MVMH campaign was launched by AltaMed Health Services to mobilize patients, families, and residents in their Southern California service areas to address the social and political determinants of health. My Vote. My Health. partners with other community healthcare providers and local civic engagement organizations to help increase Latino civic participation to improve the quality of life of underserved and underrepresented communities locally.
“As an organization that is rooted in social justice and addressing health disparities in some of the most vulnerable communities in Los Angeles and Orange counties, AltaMed’s My Vote. My Health / Mi Voto. Mi Salud is proud to work with the California Primary Care Association (CPCA) to expand our civic engagement outreach and education program across California,” says Lizette Escobedo, Associate Vice President of Civic Engagement and Advocacy at AltaMed. “Understanding that community clinics and healthcare professionals are among the most trusted messengers in Latino communities, we can collectively empower the patients we serve to get-out-the-vote to protect access to healthcare and improve the communities they reside in.”
During the My Vote. My Health. press conference community health center participants Rakesh Patel, Chief Executive Officer, Neighborhood Healthcare and Pedro Toledo, Chief Administrative Officer, Petaluma Health Center shared that they hope to improve the communities that they serve inspiring their patients to become civically engaged.
To learn more about My Vote. My Health. Click Here.