Organizers of Honoring LGBTQ+ Bay Area Latine Leaders Thank Sandra R. Hernández, MD, for Her Support and Inspiration

The San Francisco Bay Times joins with Olga Talamante and The Ven. Miguel Bustos in thanking Sandra R. Hernández, MD, for her inspiration and support in creating the inaugural Honoring LGBTQ+ Bay Area Latine Leaders, which will take place on October 24, 2025. Beyond this event, all Californians have benefited from her work.

Dr. Hernández is the President and CEO of the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which for decades has worked to benefit the lives of many in the state and particularly in the Bay Area. Prior to joining CHCF, she was CEO of The San Francisco Foundation and also served as Director of Public Health for the City and County of San Francisco.

In February 2023, Dr. Hernández was appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom to serve on the state’s Health Care Affordability Board. From 2018 to 2023, she served on the Covered California board of directors, after having been appointed by Governor Jerry Brown. In 2019, she was also appointed by Governor Newsom to the Healthy California for All Commission. During her time at the San Francisco Foundation, she co-chaired San Francisco’s Universal Healthcare Council, which designed Healthy San Francisco. It was the first time a local government in the U.S. attempted to provide health care for all of its constituents.

Dr. Hernández practiced at San Francisco General Hospital in the HIV/AIDS Clinic from 1984 to 2016, during some of the most challenging years of the global pandemic, and was an Assistant Clinical Professor at the UCSF School of Medicine. In 2024, UCSF awarded her its highest honor, the UCSF Medal.

Published on October 9, 2025