At the urging of COPA leadership, the Board of Supervisors of Monterey County unanimously voted to quadruple the size of COPA's healthcare pilot project from $500 thousand to $2 Million on an annual basis.
The expanded program will provide at least 2,500 low-income undocumented residents, including farm workers and their families, with full-scope primary and preventative care, labs, radiology, medication and specialty services. A third-party administrator will be hired to issue enrollment cards, administer payments and track data.
Said Catholic Bishop Richard Garcia, "This has been a success because of the strong belief and labor of so many of our COPA members and our many great leaders representing our various communities!"
The real story is the persistent leadership demonstrated by leaders who are also future beneficiaries -- immigrants concerned about their families and neighbors. These leaders organized hundreds of meetings in parishes and neighborhoods, participated in strategy meetings and publicly shared their story at Board meetings. Said leader Tony Jara of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, "This program will allow me to , so I can work and care for my family without experiencing ...constant pain. It gives me great joy to work towards something that will help others in a similar situation."
Background stories detail how COPA:
2016 - Won Support for Undocumented Healthcare
2015 - Leveraged $500,000 for Pilot Health Project
2015 - Defended Healthcare for Unauthorized Kids