CPCA Launches Statewide Civic Engagement Program

CPCA’s newly formed Civic Engagement and Community Affairs (CECA) department is off and running with the launch of the expanded My Vote. My Health.™ (MVMH), or Mi Voto. Mi Salud., initiative during CPCA’s Annual Conference. The initiative is geared to increase voter engagement for the 2024 election in low propensity Latino communities in six regions across the state: Orange County, Santa Clara County, Sonoma County, San Diego County, Fresno County, and Los Angeles County. 

The MVMH campaign was developed by AltaMed Health Services to mobilize patients, families, and residents in their Southern California service areas to address social and political determinants of health. MVMH partners with other community health care providers and local civic engagement organizations to help increase Latino civic participation to improve the quality of life of underserved and underrepresented communities locally.

CPCA and AltaMed have partnered on this statewide effort 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. 

The participating health centers are United Health Centers and Family Healthcare Network in Fresno County; Neighborhood Healthcare and San Ysidro Health in San Diego County; Petaluma Health center and Santa Rosa Community Health Center in Sonoma County; Indian Health Center and Gardner Health Services in Santa Clara County and JWHC, Northeast Valley, and AltaMed Health Services in Los Angeles and Orange County.

CPCA’s Annual Conference was the launch point for the new civic engagement program. The launch began with a press conference at AltaMed’s East Los Angeles site. Speakers included representatives from participating health centers, AltaMed, and CPCA President and CEO Francisco J. Silva. The following day, the launch continued with a convening of project participants on the project purpose, timeline, campaign strategies, and goals. The conference concluded with a closing keynote session highlighting how the My Vote. My Health.™ program seeks to provide a blueprint for community health centers across California and the US to ensure communities are heard and policies are put in place to address systemic health issues.

Over the next year, this project will launch voter outreach efforts in the six regions, encouraging voters to show up. This effort seeks to engage 270,000 low propensity Latino Voters, 560,000 community health center patients, and 4,000 community health center staff in non-partisan, non-issue-related efforts to encourage the civic health of our communities.