by Peter Schurmann, EMS
posted April 11
Leer en español aqui
HAMILTON CITY – It’s late February and the road to Hamilton City about 10 miles west of Chico is lined with blooming almond trees, their pink blossoms blanketing the fields for miles around. A single clinic stands in the center of town.
Inside the clinic we meet Maria Soto, whose work as a promotora is an essential piece in California’s ambitious plan to deliver healthcare to all residents regardless of immigration status.
“I identify very much with the community,” says Soto, 57. “I worked in the fields, harvesting and sorting nuts here. So, I love it. It gives me a lot of satisfaction when someone says, ‘Thank you for helping me.’ This for me is invaluable.”
Soto is one of four promotoras (individuals who provide basic health education to the community) with the nonprofit healthcare provider Ampla Health, which operates more than a dozen clinics across six counties – Glenn, Butte, Colusa, Sutter, Tehama and Yuba – in California’s rural north. As a Federally Qualified Health Center, Ampla Health is tasked with expanding access to Medi-Cal (California’s version of Medicaid) across the entirety of its jurisdiction.