What Full Circle Is Learning in Real Time
California’s transformation through CalAIM is built on a powerful premise: Communities know what their residents need, and community-based organizations (CBOs) are essential partners in delivering whole-person care.
But while CalAIM recognizes the importance of community providers, many organizations closest to the communities they serve still face structural barriers to participating fully in Medi-Cal managed care. That’s where Community Care Hubs come in.
Full Circle Health Network explores how Community Care Hubs are helping bridge the gap between community providers and managed care systems while preserving the cultural responsiveness and local expertise that make community-based care effective.
We asked providers how the Community Care Hub model has helped them and summarized those learnings. The paper shares what hubs make possible, what Full Circle is learning from implementation, and why infrastructure is essential to advancing health equity goals.
The Missing Infrastructure in CalAIM
CalAIM depends on deep participation from community-based organizations. These providers deliver many of the services that make whole-person care possible, from housing navigation and food access to culturally responsive care coordination.
Many community providers face structural barriers related to:
- Contracting and certification requirements
- Billing and reimbursement systems
- Data reporting and compliance expectations
- Technology infrastructure
- Administrative capacity to navigate managed care relationships
For smaller organizations, these barriers can be overwhelming. Without the right infrastructure, even the most effective community providers may struggle to participate in Medi-Cal programs.
Community Care Hubs address this challenge by serving as operational backbone infrastructure for networks of community-based providers.
Rather than functioning as vendors, hubs act as connective infrastructure between managed care plans, counties, and community providers. They streamline administrative processes, reduce operational complexity, and allow providers to focus on delivering care.
Community Care Hubs Are Building Long-Term Infrastructure
Community Care Hubs are not a temporary workaround. They are becoming essential infrastructure for delivering equitable care at scale.
By aligning operational systems with community expertise, hubs allow CalAIM to move beyond pilot phases toward sustainable statewide implementation. For managed care plans, hubs offer a pathway to engage trusted community providers while reducing administrative burden.
For community-based organizations, hubs create opportunities to participate in Medi-Cal programs without sacrificing mission, identity, or connection to the communities they serve.
Most importantly, hubs create a system where community knowledge and healthcare systems can work together toward shared goals.
As CalAIM continues to evolve, Full Circle remains focused on building partnerships that strengthen both sides of the ecosystem—helping ensure that community-based care can thrive as a central part of California’s health system transformation.
Learn More
Download and read our recently released White Paper on Community Care Hubs to see how Full Circle's experience can inform CBO practice across California.
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