OUR HISTORY
The Coalition of Orange County Community Health Centers was founded during a pivotal era of transformation—emerging from the early waves of healthcare reform and fueled by a bold spirit of innovation. What began in the early 1970s as an informal alliance among ten visionary community-based organizations has grown into a leading force for primary care and advocacy in Orange County.
These pioneering executive directors and clinic managers came together with a shared purpose: to exchange best practices, pool resources, and strengthen their collective voice through trust and collaboration. Even in those early days, their mission was clear—to build access points for health and social services for Orange County’s medically under-resourced and historically excluded communities.
Their efforts culminated in April 1974, with the formal incorporation of the Coalition as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
For more than 50 years, the Coalition has stood as a vital backbone of Orange County’s safety-net healthcare system. It continues to serve as both a support hub and unifying platform for licensed community clinics—whether freestanding or mobile—offering clinic leaders a space to share knowledge, solve challenges together, and advocate powerfully on behalf of their organizations and the patients they serve.
MISSION
The Coalition of Orange County Community Health Centers is a consortium of safety net providers and key partners creating quality healthcare for vulnerable, underserved communities.
VISION
The Coalition of Orange County Community Health Centers will be the “voice” of the uninsured and vulnerable.
