Medi-Cal Covers Gender-Transition Treatment, but Getting It Isn’t Easy
By Bernard J. Wolfson
August 10, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Pasha Wrangell has faced delays getting gender-affirming care because of red tape and limited providers. Over more than two years, Wrangell has received only about half the total electrolysis sessions recommended. Wrangell’s insurer through Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, acknowledges the shortage of practitioners.
As Water Reuse Expands, Proponents Battle the ‘Yuck’ Factor
By Jim Robbins
August 4, 2023
KFF Health News Original
As drought and climate change threaten water supplies, municipalities around the country are ramping up water reuse efforts. But they have to overcome the “yuk” factor.
A Lot of Thought, Little Action: Proposals About Mental Health Go Unheeded
By Sam Ogozalek, Tampa Bay Times
March 22, 2023
KFF Health News Original
A recent report detailing problems with Florida’s patchwork mental health system had reached conclusions nearly identical to those of a similar report from more than 20 years ago. The echoes between the findings are unmistakable. And Florida isn’t the only state struggling with the criminalization of mental illness, a lack of coordination between providers, and insufficient access to treatment.
Battle Lines Are Drawn Over California Deal With Kaiser Permanente
By Bernard J. Wolfson
April 18, 2022
KFF Health News Original
A controversial proposal to grant HMO giant Kaiser Permanente a no-bid statewide Medicaid contract is headed for its first legislative hearing amid vocal opposition from a coalition of counties, competing health plans, community clinics, and a national health care labor union.
California Pushes to Expand the Universe of Abortion Care Providers
By Laurie Udesky
March 4, 2024
KFF Health News Original
A new California law allows trained physician assistants, also called physician associates, to perform first-trimester abortions without the presence of a supervising doctor. The legislation is part of a broader effort by the state to expand access to abortion care, especially in rural areas. Some doctor groups are wary.
Santa Cruz Health Officials Honored for Persevering in Covid Battle Against Tide of ‘Denialism’
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester
October 1, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Mimi Hall and Dr. Gail Newel, health director and health officer for Santa Cruz County, California, will receive PEN America’s 2021 PEN/Benenson Courage Award for soldiering forward in their work amid death threats and personal attacks.
Needle Exchanges Are Targeted by Eco-Rooted Lawsuits. A New California Law Will Stop That.
By Rachel Bluth
October 6, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Opponents of free needle programs in California are using environmental regulations to shut them down. On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that will end that strategy.
California Confronts the Threat of ‘Tranq’ as Overdose Crisis Rages
By Brian Rinker
June 5, 2023
KFF Health News Original
California officials are stepping up efforts to combat the spread of xylazine, a powerful animal sedative that’s increasingly being used by people, often with devastating results. It’s mostly been an East Coast phenomenon, but ‘tranq,’ as it is known, is beginning to appear in the Golden State.
Médicos abogan por nuevos esfuerzos para combatir al Chagas, un asesino silencioso
By Paula Andalo
August 22, 2023
KFF Health News Original
La enfermedad de Chagas, causada por un parásito, afecta principalmente a personas en las zonas rurales de Latinoamérica. Pero se estima que 300,000 personas en Estados Unidos viven con la enfermedad, que puede causar problemas cardíacos graves. Defensores de pacientes piden esfuerzos mucho más agresivos para combatirla.
California Prison Drug Overdoses Surge Again After Early Treatment Success
By Don Thompson
February 14, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Drug overdose deaths in California state prisons rebounded to near record levels last year, a big setback for corrections officials who thought they were on the right track with medication-assisted treatment efforts. Prison officials and attorneys representing prisoners blame fentanyl.
No-Bid Medicaid Contract for Kaiser Permanente Is Now California Law, but Key Details Are Missing
By Bernard J. Wolfson
July 19, 2022
KFF Health News Original
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill last month that authorizes a statewide Medicaid contract for HMO giant Kaiser Permanente. But details still need to be worked out in a memorandum of understanding.
Dads Drive Growth in California’s Paid Family Leave Program
By Phillip Reese
October 30, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The number of men in the state taking paid family leave to bond with a new child has risen nearly 20% since the start of the pandemic.
California Dangles Bonuses for Nursing Homes That Add Staff
By Samantha Young
February 24, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Rather than simply reward top-performing facilities, the state’s Medicaid program will hand bonuses to nursing homes — even low-rated ones — for hiring more workers and reducing staff turnover.
California Debates Extending PTSD Coverage to More First Responders
By Annie Sciacca
May 9, 2023
KFF Health News Original
A state Senate bill would extend workers’ compensation coverage of post-traumatic stress injuries for firefighters and police officers. But a separate bill to cover paramedics and EMTs is unlikely to be heard.
Health Care Coalition Jockeys Over Medi-Cal Spending, Eyes Ballot Initiative
By Angela Hart and Samantha Young
May 31, 2023
KFF Health News Original
California Healthline has learned that a coalition of doctors, hospitals, insurers, and community clinics want to lock in a tax on health insurance companies to draw in extra Medicaid funding. It also wants to make the tax permanent.
As Biden Fights Overdoses, Harm Reduction Groups Face Local Opposition
By Renuka Rayasam
June 14, 2022
KFF Health News Original
The Biden administration’s latest plan to address opioid overdose deaths includes $30 million for harm reduction measures, but many conservative states don’t allow them.
Taco Bowls and Chicken Curry: Medi-Cal Delivers Ready Meals in Grand Health Care Experiment
By Heidi de Marco and Angela Hart
June 1, 2022
KFF Health News Original
California has embarked on an ambitious five-year initiative to improve the health of its sickest Medicaid patients by introducing nontraditional services. In the Inland Empire, where many residents have diabetes, one health plan is diving into the experiment by delivering healthy, prepared meals to those lucky enough to get them.
Medicare Pay Cuts Will Hurt Seniors’ Care, Doctors Argue
By Michael McAuliff
December 20, 2022
KFF Health News Original
New reductions in Medicare payments in 2023 will drive more doctors away from accepting Medicare patients, physicians say. They are again pushing back on efforts largely designed to control government spending.
‘We’re Coming for You’: For Public Health Officials, a Year of Threats and Menace
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester
April 25, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Local health officials have become the face of government authority as they work to stem the pandemic. That has made them targets for chilling threats from some of the same militia groups that stormed the U.S. Capitol. Santa Cruz leaders are among those whose daily routines now incorporate security patrols, surveillance cameras and, in some cases, firearms.
At Least 1.7M Americans Use Health Sharing Arrangements, Despite Lack of Protections
By Markian Hawryluk
June 14, 2023
KFF Health News Original
A new report boosts the estimated number of people enrolled in plans whose members — usually brought together by shared religious beliefs — pay one another’s health costs.