CPHS has led the community and coalition efforts in fighting for healthcare equity.  Spending many years in highlighting the inequities in access, funding, and staffing, CPHS has been somewhat successful in ensuring that the disparities and inequities are seen and understood so that there is need to address them.  CPHS’ mission is to fight for equal access to care regardless of a person’s race, ethnicity, language spoken, diagnosis or the ability to pay.  With this mission firmly stated and acted upon, CPHS’ activities in coalition efforts have always been to keep this picture clearly in front of us and others.  Some of the activities have included:  supporting children’s health services; actively organizing and fighting against the reducing of services and/or closing of hospitals in medically underserved communities; documenting and advocating around the inequities in funding and service delivery; and other related issues that impact the health of a community.

This was clearly evident during COVID, where CPHS organized coalitions to support immigrant, people of color, and essential health care workers during this epidemic.  CPHS, in coalition, worked closely with the city Department of health, to ensure resources go where they were most needed.

CPHS’ worked with community organizations and a statewide coalition, Medicaid Matters, as well as Communities Together for Health Equity, have influenced the Medicaid program and resulted in the newest federal Medicaid waiver being named the New York Health EQUITY Reform, with funding for community-based organizations to participate and screen Medicaid beneficiaries as well as assisting them and navigating to services.