California Catholic Health Care
Not-for-profit ministries serving patients and communities—especially the poor and vulnerable—throughout California.


The Catholic health care ministry seeks just and equitable health care for all Californians. Through its project, Called to Care, the Alliance of Catholic Health Care, together with members Dignity Health and Providence,  work to foster strong ties between safety net hospitals and providers and community organizations to improve social factors that impact everyone’s health. Access to housing, food, safety, and peace of mind go hand in hand with access to high-quality health care.

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160 Years of Service

For 160 years, the Catholic health ministry in California has provided compassionate care to our patients, families and communities. We are committed to improving the health and well-being of every person and community we serve. Together, our health systems operate 50 Catholic and Catholic-affiliated acute care hospitals, which represent almost 15% of all hospitals and over 15% of the hospital beds in California.

A snapshot of Catholic Health Care in California

Statistic/Category Catholic Health Systems and Hospitals % of Total of All Acute Care Hospitals*
Acute Care Hospitals 50 14.7%
Licensed Acute Beds 10,896 15.7%
Charity Care and Community Benefit Costs** $2.97 billion n/a
Number of Employees (FTEs) 57,584 12.7%
Patient Days 2,438,993 14.6%
Outpatient Visits 5,867,068 13.2%
ER Visits 2,257,860 17.4%
Births 74,263 17.7%
Medi-Cal Days (traditional and managed care) 893,650 14.3%
Medicare Days (traditional and managed care) 1,090,254 16.5%
Outpatient Surgeries 174,494 14.3%
Home Health Visits 508,395 32.1%

* 2019 (most recent data available) Comparative OSHPD Data for General Acute Hospitals Only. Excludes specialty and psychiatric hospitals.

** Includes patient financial assistance (charity care), unreimbursed costs of Medicaid and other means-tested programs, unpaid costs of caring for patients covered by Medicare, community health improvement services and community building activities, and other community benefit services. 

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Our Mission

The Alliance of Catholic Health Care strengthens the Catholic health care ministry in California by providing a statewide forum in which ministry leaders collaborate on advocacy, ministry leadership formation, Church relationships and other issues that enhance the common good.

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Dignity

Respect for each person as an inherently valuable member of the human community and as a unique expression of life.

Scales of Justice
Justice

Advocate for systems and structures that are attuned to the needs of the vulnerable and disadvantaged and that strengthen a sense of community among all persons.

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Collaboration

Achieve public policy goals by working together and with other organizations at the state and national levels that share a similar vision and values.

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Stewardship

Recognize that the human, financial, and ecological resources available for health care are limited and must be managed wisely and efficiently.

Public Policy Priorities

California's Catholic health care systems and hospitals together advocate on behalf of the following public policy priorities through the Alliance of Catholic Health Care:

Serving Those In Need
  • Advocate for expanded health insurance coverage and access for all residents of California. Health care is a basic human right.
  • Provide leadership on behalf of public policies that promote the health and well-being of communities, with a particular emphasis on the needs of the poor and underserved.
Promoting Not-For-Profit Heath Care
  • Promote and preserve the not-for-profit mission in health care delivery and support efforts to enhance this sector's capacity to serve patients and communities.
Strengthening Medicare and Medi-Cal
  • Advocate for adequate funding of the Medi-Cal (Medicaid) and Medicare programs.
Protecting Religious Freedom
  • Preserve the ability of Catholic and other religious organizations to deliver health care consistent with their religious beliefs and values.