The Central California Asthma Collaborative (CCAC) is a research group that operates programs for San Joaquin Valley residents affected by asthma and other respiratory conditions. The group also supports left-of-center environmental and energy policies. The group operates different projects including the Comprehensive Asthma Remediation and Education Services (CARES) for residents of the San Joaquin Valley, an air monitoring program, and an electric vehicle subsidy program. The group previously signed a petition opposing the use of nuclear power as a source of energy. ^{1 2 3 4}

Over half of the organization’s revenue comes from government grants. Other funds of the group include the Energy Foundation, the Climate Works Foundation, and the Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment. ^{1 5}

Background

The Central California Asthma Collaborative (CCAC) was initially formed in 2011 as the Fresno/Madera Asthma Coalition (FMAC), which received a grant from the Wesley Foundation to “develop and implement an asthma education program for children in low-income communities.” Following this, the coalition later changed its name to the Central California Asthma Collaborative. In 2013, the California Endowment funded CCAC to “explore the potential of utilizing social impact bonds to support community-based asthma management programs.”  ²

CCAC then formed the Asthma Impact Model or AIM Program, which was expanded through funding by private foundations and government grants including those from the California Air Resources Board Supplemental Environmental Projects grant program. In 2022, the program was renamed the Comprehensive Asthma Remediation and Education Services (CARES) program. As of 2025, CCAC has contracts with Health Net, Anthem, Kern Health Systems and Kaiser Permanente to provide the CARES program to Medi-Cal patients in seven counties of the San Joaquin Valley. ²

In addition to its CARES program, the CCAC also operates an air monitoring program for low-income communities, an electric vehicles program that helps individuals apply for over $13,000 in state and local “clean vehicle” grants and rebates, and a “Climate Mitigation and Resilience” program. ³

The group supports of left-of-center environmental policies, arguing it has “engaged in multiple arenas of Environmental, Social, and Climate Justice policy and advocacy” and further stating that “CCAC’s policy and advocacy efforts include working on California’s AB32 mandated Greenhouse Gas Scoping Plan revisions since 2011, serving on various committees at DHCS, CEC, CARB and the SJVAPCD, along with a number of other efforts that ensure equity is included in policies and regulations that impact all Californians but specifically protect resident in low-income and frontline communities.” ³

Funding

Funders of the Central California Asthma Coalition (CCAC) include the California Air Resources Board (CARB), CalEPA, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Kern Family Health Care, Watt EV, The ClimateWorks Foundation, the Rose Foundation, the Center for Sustainable Energy, and the University of California, Berkeley. ¹

Opposition to Nuclear Energy

The Central California Asthma Collaborative (CCAC) was a cosigner on an April 2021 letter to then-President Joe Biden that asked the administration to promote weather-dependent wind and solar power systems and “end the fossil fuel era.” The letter also advised the president to “Phase out nuclear energy as an inherently dirty, dangerous and costly energy source.” ⁴

1. “Home.” Central California Asthma Coalition. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://cencalasthma.org/
2. “About.” Central California Asthma Coalition. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://cencalasthma.org/aboutccac/
3. “Programs.” Central California Asthma Coalition. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://cencalasthma.org/programs/
4. Center for Biological Diversity, et. al. Letter to “The Honorable President Joseph R. Biden.” RE: NOW IS THE MOMENT TO ACCELERATE THE JUST, RENEWABLE ENERGY FUTURE AND END THE FOSSIL FUEL ERA. April 27, 2021. Accessed July 25, 2025. https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/energy-justice/pdfs/2022-4-27_Letter-to-Pres-Biden-re-End-Fossil-Fuel-Era-Accelerate-Transtion-to-Renewable-Energy.pdf
5. Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. Central California Asthma Collaborative https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/453599201/202433209349327978/full