Program will deliver transformative health care, social services and housing navigation to individuals experiencing homelessness.
SANTA ANA, Calif. – The CalOptima Health Board of Directors voted Thursday, March 6, to expand its Street Medicine Program to Santa Ana to provide urgent medical and social services to individuals experiencing homelessness, following months of advocacy by City of Santa Ana officials.
“Santa Ana is proud to be working collaboratively with CalOptima Health to reach the unhoused in our community,” said Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua. “We have robust existing resources to serve this population, and we are fortunate to be adding CalOptima Health’s proven approach to community-based health care and social services, helping residents get healthier and move toward a future off the street.”
The City of Santa Ana was one of four Orange County cities to apply for the program and received the highest score under CalOptima’s criteria, including a commitment to treat individuals with dignity and respect; comprehensive, existing efforts and strategies to address homelessness; and existing partnerships and community involvement.
The Santa Ana Street Medicine Program will build on CalOptima’s successful operation of programs in Garden Grove, Costa Mesa and Anaheim when it launches later this year. Thus far, the CalOptima Health Street Medicine Program has engaged nearly 600 individuals, and the addition of Santa Ana will enable even more vulnerable people to experience the benefits of the impactful program.
“The fundamental idea of Street Medicine is to meet individuals experiencing homelessness where they are,” said Michael Hunn, CalOptima Health Chief Executive Officer. “Our program seeks to build trust with our members and then deliver life-changing care with the goal of navigating individuals to permanent housing.”
Santa Ana is at the forefront of addressing homelessness in Orange County, operating a 200-bed homeless navigation center with supportive services, the largest facility of its kind run by a local jurisdiction in the county. Santa Ana also hosts the County of Orange’s largest shelter, which offers 425 beds. Furthermore, the City of Santa Ana is leading efforts to build permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals, having funded the construction of 441 permanent supportive housing units since June 2018, with 58 more currently under development.
In the 2023-2024 fiscal year, under the City’s contract with City Net, the organization engaged with 4,873 individuals, successfully assisting 874 people in exiting homelessness. Additionally, City Net’s dispatch services redirected 10,609 non-emergency, non-medical calls away from the Santa Ana Police Department to homeless resources, preserving critical police capacity.
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