PRACTICE

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California’s ACEs Aware Initiative Awards $19.5 Million in Grant Funds to Increase Capacity to Screen and Respond to ACEs and Toxic Stress

On September 16, 2022, the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) announced $19.5 million in ACEs Aware funding to 25 teams across California. The awarding of funds was done in partnership with the Office of the California Surgeon General (CA-OSG), UCLA-UCSF ACEs Aware Family Resilience Network (UCAAN), and Population Health Innovation Lab (PHIL), a program of the Public Health Institute (PHI).

The goal of this third round of ACEs Aware grant funding, called Preventing and Responding to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE)-Associated Health Conditions and Toxic Stress in Clinics through Community Engagement (PRACTICE), is to increase the workforce and services needed for primary care clinics to expand and sustain screening and response to ACEs and toxic stress in local communities.

The funding is awarded to teams that will be led by clinics and will include community-based organizations and Medi-Cal managed care plans. Teams will identify gaps in their communities in care and services and, through a statewide learning collaborative, leverage existing and new sources of state funding to build sustainable capacity to fill these gaps.

The 25 grantee teams, from 15 California counties, serve a wide range of diverse patient populations. The learning collaborative will offer technical assistance, training, tailored web discussions, access to subject-matter experts, resources, and peer-to-peer learning to support the teams in achieving their goals.

For a full list of grantees, visit the ACEs Aware website for the PRACTICE Grantee Summary.

PRACTICE Initiative Goals

1. Strengthen partnerships between clinics, community-based organizations, and Medi-Cal managed care plans to identify and fill gaps in services needed to respond effectively to ACEs and toxic stress in their communities.
2. Develop new and sustainable evidence-based services to fill these gaps and address toxic stress and ACE-Associated Health Conditions among Medi-Cal beneficiaries.
3. Expand the workforce to fill these gaps and address toxic stress and ACE-Associated Health Conditions among Medi-Cal beneficiaries in a sustainable way.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Primary Care Clinic or Clinic Consortia Serving Primarily Medi-Cal Beneficiaries
• Community-Based Organization
• Medi-Cal Managed Care Plan

Grantee Categories

Under this funding opportunity, two cohorts of grantees are being awarded: Pathfinders and Catalysts. Pathfinders are in the early stages of ACE screening, incorporating trauma-informed practices into care, and forming community partnerships. Catalysts already have ACE screening, toxic stress response, and trauma-informed care practices integrated into their operations and have existing partnerships with CBOs.