Winner: The California Endowment
The California Endowment’s Communications Team is committed to diversity in every aspect of their work. Not only are they committed to hiring a diverse team, but that team in turn drives communications campaigns that support California’s underserved communities, with a special emphasis on communities of color.
TCE’s communications team is comprised of seven Latinos, two African Americans, three Asians, and three Caucasians – including LGBT and DACA status members. This team works on a broad range of issue areas, uplifting authentic voices of communities of color, to make California a healthier place for all residents.
The California Endowment recognizes the important role undocumented immigrants play in California’s communities and economy and believe all California residents deserve equal access to healthcare and services. This led to the launch of the #Health4All campaign. #Health4All aims to change the narrative around undocumented Californians by highlighting the contributions they make to the state and their communities.
The campaign aims to highlight the need to expand healthcare to all Californians locked out of the Affordable Care Act through firsthand stories from undocumented Californians who have suffered due to the lack of access to care, and to educate California’s thought leaders and policy makers on the importance of providing them coverage. Through targeted research, message development and a strong multimedia campaign, TCE has made big strides in changing the narrative around the state’s undocumented population.
A 2014 field poll found the majority of Californians support expanding healthcare to undocumented immigrants. Since the campaign started, 40 counties have either expanded or reinstated healthcare to cover undocumented immigrants, and the state of California expanded Medi-Cal to all youth under the age of 19, including undocumented youth.