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About
The Delta Center for a Thriving Safety Net (The Delta Center) was a national initiative funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation from 2018 to 2025. The Delta Center brought together primary care associations (PCAs) and behavioral health state associations (BHSAs) to advance policy change at the state and national levels and practice change among community health centers and community-based behavioral health organizations and the people they serve.
The ultimate aim of the Delta Center was to cultivate health policy and a care system that is more equitable and better meets the needs of individuals and families.
Goals
Foster collaboration and collective action between primary care and behavioral health at the national, state, and local levels.
Build the knowledge & ability of state associations to ensure that changes in incentives and care systems meet the goals and needs of individuals and families.
Elevate insights for the field and for state and national decision makers to influence systems change.
What's in a name?
Why “The Delta Center”? The word delta is both a symbol for change and connotes confluence (as in a river delta) and thus aligns with our goals of inspiring innovation and facilitating collaborative learning. Our name also honors the history of the health center movement—one of the first two federally-qualified health centers (FQHCs) in the country was the Delta Health Center established in Mississippi in 1965.
The Delta Center hosted a State Learning & Action Collaborative that funded and united PCAs and BHSAs with the goal of advancing policy and practice in their states through a state-specific project. Grantee teams received funding, 1:1 coaching, peer-learning opportunities, and technical assistance from Delta Center faculty to achieve their project goals. Two cohorts of teams from a total of 19 states participated in the Collaborative.
Nationally, NACHC and National Council collaborated on joint priorities.
Delta Center projects addressed multiple levels of the healthcare ecosystem—leading to state policy successes, practice transformation, and strengthened collaboration between primary care and behavioral health state and national associations. Watch the videos below to learn more about each cohort’s achievements.
Partners
The Delta Center was led by JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI), in collaboration with strategic partners from The Center for Accelerating Care Transformation at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, the National Association for Community Health Centers (NACHC), and the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. We are grateful for the contributions from other partners, including Alternate Frame, the Center for Care Innovations (CCI), and Families USA.