California nursing home residents told to find new homes
by Jocelyn Wiener SOME of California’s most vulnerable nursing home residents, many of whom have nowhere else to go, are receiving letters from their health care plans saying they are…
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California to provide financial boost to help buy health coverage
by Bernard Wolfson IF you are among the Californians who buy your own health insurance, a surprise may await you as the enrollment period for 2020 coverage opens this week….
As vaping illnesses rise, so do pleas to quit-smoking help lines
by Anna Almendrala “I stopped for a few days and then I ended up buying new pods. The withdrawals got to me.” “My friends are the ones who got me…
Trump’s new order for Medicare packs potential rise in patients’ costs
by Julie Appleby Vowing to protect Medicare with “every ounce of strength,” President Donald Trump last week spoke to a cheering crowd in Florida. But his executive order released shortly…
Dangers of skin-lightening cream highlighted after woman falls into coma
by Anna Almendrala SHE had been buying face cream through a friend of a friend for 12 years. This time, it was Pond’s “Rejuveness,” a version of the company’s anti-wrinkle…
As health care costs rise, workers at low-wage firms may pay a larger share
by Michelle Andrews HEALTH insurance premiums and deductibles for job-based coverage edged upward in 2019, surpassing increases in both wages and inflation, according to an annual employer survey of more…
States target vaping with bans
by Ana B. Ibarra In California, the action is local STATES are piling on. Michigan took the first statewide shot at vaping early this month when it announced a ban…
Number of Americans without insurance rises in 2018
by Phil Galewitz FOR the first time in a decade, the number of Americans without health insurance has risen — by about 2 million people in 2018 — according to…
Lawmakers send contested vaccine bill to CA governor
by Ana B. Ibarra CALIFORNIA lawmakers dropped this year’s most controversial public health bill into Gov. Gavin Newsom’s lap on Wednesday, but it’s not clear whether he will sign the…
Starving seniors: How California’s aging are falling through the cracks
by Laura Ungar and Trudy Lieberman SAN JOSE, Calif. — In the neighborhoods around San Jose, more than 1 in 9 seniors struggle to get enough to eat. They are…
California requires suicide prevention phone number on student IDs
by Mark Kreidler Denise Herrmann was only a few months into her new job as principal of a Palo Alto, Calif., high school in fall 2014 when a student took…
Trump administration hits brakes on law to curb unneeded Medicare CT scans, MRIs
by Phil Galewitz Five years after Congress passed a law to reduce unnecessary MRIs, CT scans and other expensive diagnostic imaging tests that could harm patients and waste money, federal…
Dealing with the lingering effects of a mass shooting
by: Anna Almendrala Veronica Kelley was working at an office building across the street from the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, Calif., in December 2015 when a county employee…
Surprise medical bill legislation takes a step forward, but will it lead to a step back?
by Rachel Bluth THE House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesda, July 17, approved its version of legislation to curb surprise medical bills. Though this step was an important advance,…
California broadens investigation of doctors for issuing questionable vaccination exemptions
by Barbara Feder Ostrov THE California agency that regulates doctors is investigating at least four physicians for issuing questionable medical exemptions to children whose parents did not want them immunized….
‘Medicare for All’ emerges as early divide in first Democratic debate
DURING Wednesday night’s Democratic presidential primary debate — the first in a two-night event viewed as the de facto launch of the primary season — health policies, ranging from “Medicare…
Democratic voters want to hear candidates’ views on health, but priorities vary
With the first Democratic debates a week away, health care is the top issue the party’s voters say they want candidates to address, according to a poll released on Tuesday,…
A proposal to make it harder for kids to skip vaccines gives powerful voices pause
by Anna Maria Barry-Jester AS California lawmakers attempt to tighten the rules on childhood vaccinations, they’re getting pushback from unexpected quarters: high-profile officials who support vaccines. In the past few…
How measles detectives work to contain an outbreak
by Jenny Gold ON any given day, more than 4,000 people pass through the library at California State University-Los Angeles. On April 11, one of them had measles. The building…
Churches wipe out millions in medical debt for others
by Roxie Hammill THE leaders of Pathway Church on the outskirts of Wichita, Kan., had no clue that the $22,000 they already had on hand for Easter would have such…
Why some CEOs figure ‘Medicare for All’ is good for business
by Phil Galewitz EASTON, Pa. — Walk into a big-box retailer such as Walmart or Michaels and you’re likely to see MCS Industries’ picture frames, decorative mirrors or kitschy wall…
California lawmakers push to stop surprise ER billing
by Ana B. Ibarra CALIFORNIA has some of the nation’s strongest protections against surprise medical bills. But many Californians still get slammed with huge out-of-network charges. State lawmakers are now…
How to find and use new federal ratings for rehab services at nursing homes
by Judith Graham FOR the first time, the federal government is shining a spotlight on the quality of rehabilitation care at nursing homes — services used by nearly 2 million…
California bans pesticide linked to develop mental problems
by Ana B. Ibarra / Kaiser Health News CALIFORNIA will ban the use of a widely used pesticide in the face of “mounting evidence” that it causes developmental problems in…
Surprise! Fixing out-of-network bills means someone must pay
By Julie Rovner / Kaiser Health News PRESIDENT Donald Trump called on Republicans and Democrats to pass legislation this year to end surprise medical bills, in remarks made in the…
A plan to cover immigrants would divert public health dollars
By Samantha Young/Kaiser Health News CALIFORNIA Gov. Gavin Newsom wants the state to provide health coverage to low-income young adults who are in the country illegally, but his plan would…
Is insulin’s high cost keeping diabetes patients from taking their medicine?
by Shefali Luthra HIGH prescription drug prices are fast becoming a leading political topic, with medications like insulin emerging as a poster child for the issue. Nearly doubling in price…
Newsom: California leads on prescription drugs
by Samantha Young California regularly portrays itself as a national trendsetter on political issues, and Gov. Gavin Newsom is claiming that title on prescription drugs. Newsom has a plan…
The homeless are dying in record numbers on the streets of LA
by Anna Gorman and Harriet Rowan A RECORD number of homeless people — 918 last year alone — are dying across Los Angeles County, on bus benches, hillsides, railroad tracks…
Planned Parenthood’s ‘risky strategy’ to update its image
by Shefali Luthra and Anna Maria Barry-Jester PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Trump administration is pushing ahead with its reproductive health agenda. It has rolled out changes to the Title X…