To Patients, Parents, and Caregivers, Proposed Medicaid Cuts Are a Personal Affront
At a town hall in Orange County, California, angry residents said Congress should keep its hands off Medicaid. The cuts contemplated in a House budget blueprint would bore a giant hole in California鈥檚 version of the safety net health insurance program, Medi-Cal, which covers nearly 15 million residents.
Para pacientes, padres y cuidadores, los recortes a Medicaid son una afrenta personal
La primera semana de marzo, la C谩mara de Representantes aprob贸 un plan presupuestario republicano que podr铆a reducir el gasto de Medicaid en $880.000 millones a lo largo de 10 a帽os.
Kaiser Permanente Back in the Hot Seat Over Mental Health Care, but It鈥檚 Not Only a KP Issue
Mental health workers on strike in Southern California say Kaiser Permanente is woefully understaffed, its therapists are burned out, and patients are often denied timely access to care. The insurer says it has largely fixed the problem. But across California and the nation, mental health parity is still not a reality.
Doctors, Nurses Press Ahead as Wildfires Strain Los Angeles’ Health Care
A primary care clinic burned, medical offices closed, and hospitals struggled with possible evacuations. The wildfires that have incinerated large swaths of Los Angeles County are stressing the region鈥檚 health care infrastructure. Still, providers continue to find ways to deliver vital care.
Los incendios que se propagan r谩pidamente y han transformado gran parte del condado de Los 脕ngeles en un infierno est谩n poniendo a prueba a hospitales, cl铆nicas de salud, socorristas y hogares de adultos mayores.
Climate Change Threatens the Mental Well-Being of Youths. Here鈥檚 How To Help Them Cope.
The growing toll of climate-related disasters is a risk to the emotional well-being of young people. An Orange County, California, pediatric emergency doctor wants to add questions about climate change to standard mental health screenings conducted in pediatricians鈥 offices and other settings where kids seek care.
How Potential Medicaid Cuts Could Play Out in California
As Donald Trump prepares to reenter the White House with a Republican-controlled Congress, health officials and community advocates in California worry that large-scale Medicaid cuts could be enacted as soon as next year. More than 60% of California鈥檚 $161 billion Medi-Cal budget comes from Washington.
California Medicaid Ballot Measure Is Popular, Well Funded 鈥 And Perilous, Opponents Warn
Proposition 35, which would use revenue from a tax on managed-care plans to raise the pay of health care providers who serve Medi-Cal patients, has united a broad swath of California鈥檚 health care, business, and political establishments. But a newly formed, smaller group of opponents says it will do more harm than good.
Longtime Head of L.A. Care To Retire After Navigating Major Medi-Cal Changes
John Baackes, who steered Medi-Cal鈥檚 largest health plan following the Affordable Care Act expansion, and later prepared it for a state overhaul of Medi-Cal, will retire after this year. Baackes believes low payments to doctors and other providers, along with an acute labor shortage, hamper Medi-Cal鈥檚 success.
California Bill Would Require State Review of Private Equity Deals in Health Care
Proposed legislation would require the state attorney general鈥檚 consent for a wide range of private equity acquisitions in health care. The hospital lobby negotiated an exemption for for-profit hospitals.
Harris鈥 California Health Care Battles Signal Fights Ahead for Hospitals if She Wins
Kamala Harris fought health care consolidation during her tenure as California鈥檚 attorney general, and she could escalate the fight nationally if she wins in November. Still, the pace of mergers has accelerated.
California Leaders Tussle With Health Industry Over Billions of New Dollars for Medi-Cal
Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to pull funds earmarked for new investment in Medi-Cal to help plug California鈥檚 $45 billion deficit. A state budget passed June 13 by the legislature largely endorsed Newsom鈥檚 plan. Voters could settle the matter in an industry-backed initiative that has qualified for the November ballot.
California Dabbles With Reining in Health Spending
California is now among the states trying to keep health-care costs down by setting spending caps 鈥 a task that pits public officials against a deeply entrenched and heavily lawyered set of players. It鈥檚 uncertain whether the state can get insurers, hospitals and medical groups to collaborate on containing costs even as they jockey for […]
California Becomes Latest State To Try Capping Health Care Spending
California is the ninth state to set annual health spending targets for the industry. Already hospitals and doctors are voicing resistance to the fledgling Office of Health Care Affordability, even as they avoid overtly opposing its goals.
The Psychedelics-As-Medicine Movement Spreads to California
Ecstasy, 鈥渕agic mushrooms鈥 and other psychedelic drugs could soon be recognized as therapeutic in California 鈥 one of the latest states, and the biggest, to consider allowing their use as medicine. Legislation by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D) and Assembly member Marie Waldron (R) would allow the therapeutic use of psilocybin, mescaline, ecstasy and dimethyltryptamine […]
First Responders, Veterans Hail Benefits of Psychedelic Drugs as California Debates Legalization
California lawmakers have modified a psychedelic drug bill that was vetoed last year, narrowing it to allow only supervised use of psilocybin mushrooms, ecstasy, and other hallucinogens rather than decriminalize more broadly. The current bill would establish new state agencies to regulate the program.
In San Francisco鈥檚 Chinatown, a CEO Works With the Community To Bolster Hospital
Jian Zhang, an immigrant from China with a doctorate in nursing, leads the 88-bed Chinese Hospital in San Francisco. The facility faces financial constraints like other independent hospitals, but its strong community support and partnerships have helped it weather tough times.
After Uphill Battle, Company Is Poised for Takeover of Bankrupt California Hospital
American Advanced Management, a steadily growing operator of small hospitals, is expected to get the green light from a bankruptcy court next week to take over the shuttered Madera Community Hospital. Some community groups worry about the company鈥檚 track record.
Biden Team, UnitedHealth Struggle to Restore Paralyzed Billing Systems After Cyberattack
The cyberattack on a unit of UnitedHealth Group鈥檚 Optum division is the worst on the health care industry in U.S. history, hospitals say. Providers struggling to get paid for care say the response by the insurer and the Biden administration has been inadequate.
Nuevas normas de elegibilidad son un alivio financiero para casi 2 millones de personas en Medi-Cal
Este grupo se equiparar谩 a los aproximadamente 12 millones de otros beneficiarios que no tienen l铆mites de activos.
