Santa Cruz Community Health

What Santa Cruz Community Health does

Santa Cruz Community Health (SCCH) is a private nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) operating under 42 U.S.C. 254b, founded in 1974 as the Santa Cruz Women's Health Center and headquartered in Santa Cruz, California. The organization runs three clinic locations — Santa Cruz Women's Health Center (downtown, founding site), Live Oak Health Center (opened 2014), and Santa Cruz Mountain Health Center (Ben Lomond, opened 2022) — plus an administrative office, and serves more than 13,000 low-income patients per year across Santa Cruz County regardless of language, identity, or ability to pay. SCCH delivers a comprehensive care model spanning primary care, pediatrics, women's health, prenatal care, behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment, optometry, acupuncture and chiropractic services, and health insurance enrollment assistance, with bilingual English/Spanish delivery and extended hours including Saturdays.

The technology backbone is a standard Electronic Health Record with the OCHIN-hosted MyChart patient portal for appointments, test results, messaging, and bill pay; the platform supports telehealth visits and PCMH-aligned workflows. Quality infrastructure is comparatively strong for the organization's size: NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home recognition (2019, valid through 2025), HRSA Advancing Health Information Technology for Quality award, Addressing Social Risk Factors badge, and COVID-19 Public Health Champion recognition. Beyond clinical services, SCCH wraps patients in a social-determinants ecosystem — a free weekly food distribution with Second Harvest Food Bank, housing partnerships with Housing Matters, school-based behavioral health with Live Oak School District, dental care co-location with Dientes, and affordable housing development with MidPen.

Revenue is generated through a multi-stream model: insurance reimbursement from Medi-Cal, Medicare, Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Health Net, United Healthcare, Cigna, and Kaiser; a sliding-scale fee program ($0–$30 per visit based on income and household size) for uninsured and underinsured patients; HRSA and other federal/local/state government grants (annual HRSA award of $1,930,819, 91% nonfederal match); donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate donors; and Care-Based Incentive payments through Central California Alliance for Health. Go-to-market is community-based: partnerships with WIC, Family Resource Centers, and Second Harvest; patient word-of-mouth; community events; and organic social media. Headcount is reported in the 51–100 range across three clinical sites, with new CEO Anita Aguirre, MPH (appointed January 2024) leading an executive team that includes a CFO with prior FQHC scale-up experience.

Name

Santa Cruz Community Health

Legal name

Santa Cruz Community Health Centers

Website

https://schealthcenters.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Santa Cruz Community Health is a nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center operating three clinics in Santa Cruz County, California, providing integrated primary care, pediatrics, behavioral health, prenatal care, and enabling services to more than 13,000 low-income patients annually regardless of ability to pay. Founded 1974.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Health Centers

NAICS

Offices of Physicians (6211), Individual and Family Services (6241), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Offices & Clinics Of Doctors Of Medicine (8011), Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Health Centers (FQHCs & Look-Alikes) (HLAFAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Community Mental Health Centers (CMHCs) & Public Behavioral Health Providers (HLAFACAI), School-Based Health Centers (HLAFAGAG)

Keywords

• Federally qualified health center
• Primary care services
• Community health clinic
• Behavioral health services
• Prenatal and pediatric care

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Cruz

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Service Reimbursement: Primary revenue from service reimbursement through insurance plans including Medi-Cal, Medicare, and private insurance
2. Federal Funding: Funded as a Federally Qualified Health Center with federal support. HRSA award totaling $1,930,819 with 91% financed with nonfederal government sources
3. Local, State and Federal Government Funding: Government funding at multiple levels for community health center operations
4. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate donors to support serving all patients regardless of ability to pay
5. Care-Based Incentives: Participation in Central California Alliance for Health's Care-Based Incentive program with measures encouraging preventive health services

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Santa Cruz Community Health operates as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) delivering comprehensive primary care, pediatrics, behavioral health, prenatal care, women's health, acupuncture, chiropractic, and optometry services across three clinic locations in Santa Cruz County. The organization serves more than 13,000 low-income patients annually regardless of insurance status, language, or ability to pay, with bilingual English/Spanish services and a sliding scale fee program. Revenue is generated through insurance reimbursements, federal HRSA grants, and donations.

Product overview

Santa Cruz Community Health is a Federally Qualified Health Center operating three clinic locations: Santa Cruz Women's Health Center (flagship, founded 1974), Live Oak Health Center (opened 2014), and Santa Cruz Mountain Health Center (opened 2022). The organization provides comprehensive primary care services through an integrated model offering primary care, pediatrics, behavioral health services, women's health, prenatal care, acupuncture and chiropractic services, optometry, and health insurance enrollment. Community programs include a food distribution partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank, Live Oak Cradle to Career education initiative, and Community Care Teams for cross-sector care coordination. Services are available regardless of ability to pay through a sliding fee scale program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Primary Care Services

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Central Coast Overdose PreventionminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 October 2024Partnership to install 24/7 Naloxone (Narcan) pickup boxes at Mountain Health Center for overdose prevention in San Lorenzo Valley.
• Dignity Health / Dominican HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2014Dominican Hospital (Dignity Health) partnered with SCCH providing $1.5 million investment for East Cliff Family Health Center operations (2014-2019) plus a $2.5 million loan for tenant improvements. Dominican's pediatric clinic transitioned to the new East Cliff facility.
• Sutter Santa Cruz / Palo Alto Medical FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2014Sutter Santa Cruz/PAMF invested $1.5 million in SCWHC's Live Oak operations (2014-2019) as part of the healthcare reform partnership. Provides access to specialty care services through formal agreements.
• Kaiser PermanentecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2014Formal agreement with Kaiser Permanente providing access to specialty care services for SCCH patients.
• Second Harvest Food BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSince 2015, partnership to operate Food Distribution Program offering free food to patients and community every Friday from 3-4pm at Live Oak Health Center. SCCH also participates in 'Special' Distribution days with community partners.
• Dientes Community Dental CarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership at Live Oak Health Center campus combining medical, behavioral health, and dental services. Dientes provides affordable dental care as part of the integrated campus approach.
• Community Bridges WIC ProgramminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity service partnership for outreach and cross-referrals serving low-income families.
• Walnut Avenue Women's CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for domestic violence services and cross-referrals with SCCH.
• First 5 Triple P ProgramminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership providing parenting workshops, nutrition education, and family support programs.
• Housing MattersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHomeless service partnership providing emergency and transitional housing, recuperative care center, and intensive services to connect homeless individuals to permanent housing.
• EncompassminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHomeless service partnership providing housing and behavioral health services.
• Central Coast Overdose PreventionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to provide 24/7 access to Naloxone (Narcan) in the San Lorenzo Valley, announced October 2024.
• Central California Alliance for HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSCCH participates in Alliance's Care-Based Incentive (CBI) program with measures encouraging preventive health services and connecting Medi-Cal members with primary care providers.
• Live Oak School DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool-based services partnership providing accessible mental health support to students. SCCH Behavioral Health providers work in schools through School-Based Services Team.
• MidPen HousingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership at Live Oak campus advancing affordable housing and economic opportunities alongside healthcare services.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• LifeLong Medical Care: Large Bay Area FQHC operating multiple sites with primary care, behavioral health, dental, and social services for low-income patients. Comparable multi-site FQHC structure, HRSA funding profile, and integrated care delivery approach.
• Petaluma Health Center: Northern California FQHC providing comprehensive primary care, behavioral health, and enabling services to underserved populations in Sonoma County. Similar scale, integrated care model, and Medi-Cal patient mix.
• Asian Health Services: Oakland-based FQHC delivering multilingual primary care, behavioral health, and enabling services to low-income Asian and other underserved communities — a strong analog for SCCH's bilingual, culturally humble service model.
• Ravenswood Family Health Network: FQHC serving East Palo Alto and surrounding communities with integrated primary care, behavioral health, and social services targeting low-income and uninsured patients — directly comparable to SCCH's integrated safety-net model.
• Salud Para La Gente: Federally Qualified Health Center serving low-income populations in Santa Cruz County (Watsonville). Comparable FQHC business model, similar Medi-Cal patient mix, and overlapping service area — and notably where new SCCH CEO Anita Aguirre previously served as Deputy Director and Chief Compliance Officer.
• Dientes Community Dental Care: Community-based dental care provider co-located with SCCH at the Live Oak Health Center campus. Operates with similar mission, sliding-fee scale, and target population within Santa Cruz County.
• La Clinica de la Raza: Large Bay Area FQHC providing primary care, dental, behavioral health, and social services to underserved populations. SCCH COO Philippa Barron previously served as Regional Manager for Medical Operations at La Clinica, reflecting shared FQHC operating model and patient base.

Regional players

• Westside Community Health Center: Historical Santa Cruz-area FQHC where SCCH Board Treasurer Kimberly Hallinan previously served. Comparable community health center model serving low-income populations on California's central coast.
• Community Health Centers of the Central Coast (CHC:CC): FQHC operating across California's central coast region with similar primary care, pediatrics, behavioral health, and dental services targeting Medi-Cal and uninsured populations — overlapping geography and patient demographic with SCCH.

Others

• Central California Alliance for Health: Medi-Cal managed care plan serving Santa Cruz, Monterey, and Merced counties — SCCH participates in its Care-Based Incentive program. Functions as a key payer/customer rather than direct competitor, but materially shapes SCCH's reimbursement economics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UChlAE7nn3MIMxVst-ne1TdA
• Facebookfacebook.com/schealthcenters
• Instagraminstagram.com/schealthcenters

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Santa Cruz Community Health