Erik Cardenas: "Resilience and grit"

Erik Cardenas is the Co-Founder and CEO of Zócalo Health , a community-based primary care provider dedicated to helping Latino families navigate the complex U.S. healthcare system.?Before founding Zócalo Health, Erik played a pivotal role as a founding team member at Amazon Care, Amazon’s first major venture into healthcare. His nearly two decades of experience in healthcare technology, along with his expertise in digital solutions, positioned him as a key leader in Amazon’s broader COVID-19 response, where he helped create innovative solutions to make healthcare more accessible for Amazon employees.

Erik’s journey began in Houston, Texas, where his parents, immigrants from Nuevo León, Mexico, worked tirelessly in industries such as construction and hospitality to provide a better life for their family. Growing up, Erik experienced firsthand the long waits and difficulties of accessing healthcare, which left a lasting impression on him and sparked his commitment to making healthcare more equitable. His family did not have health insurance until he was 10, when his mother got a job at a local manufacturing plant. Erik’s parents instilled in him the values of hard work, perseverance, and the importance of community. These principles guided him through life’s challenges and fueled his passion for blending technical expertise with his drive to improve access to care for underserved populations.

In high school, where expectations for higher education were low, Erik stood out as one of the few students, and the first in his family, to attend a four-year university—Texas A&M. However, after a year, he was asked not to return. Growing up in an inner-city environment hadn’t prepared him for the academic rigor of a major university, but Erik didn’t let that setback define his future. His talent for technology and problem-solving allowed him to quickly secure roles in healthcare technology, where he thrived, driving innovation and efficiency in the sector. But throughout this period, he always had the concern of being discovered as fraud because he had not completed college. Years later, while already excelling at Amazon, Erik completed his undergraduate degree at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas.

In 2018, Erik joined Amazon to help build and scale Amazon Care , a program aimed at making healthcare more convenient for employees. It was during this time that he began to shed the imposter syndrome he had carried throughout much of his career. Surrounded by brilliant minds, Erik realized that his unique combination of healthcare knowledge and technical expertise was exactly what Amazon needed. His leadership during the pandemic, particularly in spearheading Amazon’s COVID-19 response, ensured that the company continued operating smoothly while safeguarding employee health.

Despite his success at Amazon, Erik remained acutely aware of the healthcare disparities that persisted in communities like his own. The pandemic only magnified these gaps, and Erik felt compelled to create a solution that would serve his community in a more holistic way. This drive led him to co-found Zócalo Health , a company with a mission to provide culturally aligned care that meets the unique needs of Latino families. Zócalo Health integrates virtual care with community-based outreach, ensuring that patients receive holistic, personalized healthcare that addresses both medical, behavioral health and social needs. By providing accessible, affordable, and community-driven care, Zócalo Health aims to close health equity gaps and improve outcomes for underserved Medicaid populations.

Since its launch, Zócalo Health has raised over $10 million in capital and formed partnerships with major health plans to bring equitable care to underserved communities. While Erik acknowledges that life’s challenges have shaped him, he views these experiences as the foundation of his resilience and grit—skills that have been essential in his mission to transform healthcare.