L.A. Care Celebrates 22 Years of Elevating Health Care

LOS ANGELES — L.A. Care Health Plan, the largest publicly-operated health plan in the country, is marking its 22nd anniversary this week. Founded in 1997 as a Medi-Cal plan to serve Los Angeles County, L.A. Care remains committed to its mission of providing access to quality health care for the county's vulnerable and low-income individuals and to supporting the safety net facilities that care for many of our members. 

For 22 years, we have been able to maintain that mission, while adapting to the ever-changing health care landscape. Our mission drives us forward every day, and I look forward to continued growth which will allow us to be an agent of change — innovators in health care.

--John Baackes
CEO, L.A. Care

L.A. Care has grown from serving 200,000 Medi-Cal recipients to nearly 2.2 million members across four different health coverage programs, including a plan in the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

Despite this significant growth, the health plan has maintained substantial engagement in the community — community is in L.A. Care's DNA. It has opened six Family Resource Centers (FRCs) across the county which offer free health, nutrition and exercise classes to members and the general public. And, there are plans to open seven more FRCs before the end of next year.  

L.A. Care's community engagement includes granting more than $170 million over the years to organizations that are working to improve quality of life for residents in L.A. County. This includes a $20 million commitment to Brilliant Corners over five years to house 300 individuals experiencing homelessness. To address a growing physician shortage, L.A. Care launched Elevating the Safety Net, a $31 million initiative to recruit highly-qualified primary care physicians to the L.A. County safety net. 

More programs and initiatives are planned to ensure L.A. Care continues to elevate health care in the decades to come.