Health orgs grateful, but work still to be done after Prebys Foundation grants
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
Small community clinics and health care organizations are lifelines for San Diegans every single day, serving as the first line of care for tens of thousands of people locally.
However, funding has become uncertain at best, and with it access to crucial health care. S
In response to that uncertainty, the Prebys Foundation announced last week that it was awarding $4 million in grants to more than 20 community clinics and health organizations across the county.
“Community health organizations are the beating heart of San Diego’s care network,” said Prebys Foundation chief executive Grant Oliphant in a release.
“As policy shifts and funding cuts strain the safety net, these organizations are responding with courage, ingenuity, and a deep connection to the people they serve.”
As unprecedented federal funding cuts hit healthcare and food security programs serving low-income and other vulnerable residents, San Diego faces growing risks of deepening health and wellness disparities.
The county is projected to lose nearly $16 million in Medi-Cal funding, and more than $700 million in federal support for public health. Without community clinics, more patients would be forced to seek care in emergency rooms, creating ripple effects throughout communities — or, increasingly, not receive health care at all.
While they are relieved and grateful, much more work remains to be done to adapt to the new funding landscape, said Kevin Mattson, president and chief executive officer at San Ysidro Health, a nonprofit health care network that serves people throughout the county.
“It’s a pretty long list of needs,” Mattson said. “There are so many new challenges we’ve had in the last ten months that corresponds with the change in leadership back in DC and what’s happening with the population we serve.”
San Ysidro Health focuses on uninsured and underinsured populations. This year has seen funding cuts and legal constraints like never before, Mattson said. The Prebys grant will help leaven the costs faced by patients and providers and enable them to adapt as they continue serving the public.
They also accept donations, which can be made here.
“There’s so many significant financial challenges in healthcare today that every dollar matters,” Mattson said. “There’s so many needs in San Diego County for the population we serve.”
Grant beneficiaries include:
- Alliance Health Clinic
- CBO Medi-Cal Coalition (via Ceres Community Project)
- Champions for Health
- Community Health Systems
- Family Health Centers of San Diego
- Father Joe’s Village-Village Health Center
- Health Center Partners of Southern California
- Indian Health Council, Inc
- La Maestra Family Clinic
- Neighborhood Healthcare
- Operation Samahan Health
- Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest
- San Diego American Indian Health Center
- San Diego Family Care
- San Diego Hunger Coalition
- San Diego Wellness Collaborative
- San Ysidro Health
- Southern Indian Health Council
- Survivors of Torture International
- TrueCare
- UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic Project
- Vista Community Clinic
- Volunteers in Medicine
