Latest From California Healthline:
KFF Health News Original Stories
A Mom’s $97,000 Question: How Was Her Baby’s Air-Ambulance Ride Not Medically Necessary?
There are legal safeguards to protect patients from big bills like out-of-network air-ambulance rides. But insurers may not pay if they decide the ride wasn’t medically necessary. (Molly Castle Work, 3/25)
Bay Area Mental Health Workers Overwhelmed: Across the Bay Area, overwhelmed mental health workers are reaching a breaking point. In addition to serving on the front lines of a national crisis, many are also struggling to manage the costs of living in one of the country’s most unforgiving housing markets. After propping up an already strained system of care during the pandemic, some are leaving the field altogether. Read more from the East Bay Times.
Why Are Death Rates So High Amongst California's Incarcerated? People are dying in custody at record rates across California. They’re dying in big jails and small jails, in red counties and blue counties, in rural holding cells and downtown mega-complexes. They’re dying from suicide, drug overdoses and the catch-all term natural causes. The number of jail deaths is up even though the number of people in jail is down. Read more from CalMatters.
Below, check out the roundup of California Healthline’s coverage. For today's national health news, read KFF Health News’ Morning Briefing.
More News From Across The State
KQED:
Why California Doesn't Know How Many People Are Dying While Homeless
Nearly a decade ago, David Modersbach had what he thought was a straightforward question: How many unhoused people had died that year? The grants manager and his team at Alameda County Health Care for the Homeless knew people were dying on the streets, but they wanted more than anecdotal evidence; they wanted data that could show them the big picture and help them hone their strategies. They queried the coroner’s bureau and were stunned by the response: only a single death had been reported. (Rancaño, 3/25)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Bay Area-Built Houses Could Be Solution For Tahoe’s Housing Crisis
South Lake Tahoe is a resort town with a big need for affordable housing — and a very short window in which to build it. From October to May, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency prohibits grading and digging, which helps protect the lake’s famous clear waters by preventing sediment from washing into storm water systems. When the ski slopes open at Heavenly, the hammering stops and the crews descend into the valley to work in warmer climates. (Dineen, 3/25)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
San Diego's VA Hopes To House 851 Homeless Veterans This Year. Data Show They're Moving The Right Direction.
San Diego’s VA aims to house hundreds of homeless veterans this year amid increased scrutiny from members of Congress about how many vouchers that help cover rent are being used. (Nelson, 3/23)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Flood Victims Anxious, Confused Over County Hotel Program
The Lopez family is one of the 1,225 San Diego County households that were displaced when their homes flooded on Jan. 22 — the fourth-wettest day in San Diego since record-keeping began in 1850, and the wettest January day on record. Two months later, many are still homeless as they work to repair and rebuild their homes — a process that for many could take at least a few more months. (Fox and Alvarenga, 3/24)
The New York Times:
New California Court For The Mentally Ill Tests A State’s Liberal Values
To confront the crises of homelessness and mental illness, California has passed new laws that critics say could violate the civil liberties of those suffering on the streets. Some families welcome the new measures. (Arango, 3/24)
PBS NewsHour:
California’s Prop 1 Homelessness Measure Passed By A Hair. Here’s What Both Sides Are Saying
California’s transformative Proposition 1, narrowly passed by voters, aims to radically reduce soaring homelessness by changing the way money is spent on housing and mental health services. But critics argue the measure will hamper local health care efforts, ultimately affecting some vulnerable Californians and failing to fully address three intertwined but distinct problems. (Grabenstein, 3/23)
The Wall Street Journal:
A Lawyer Abandoned Family And Career To Follow The Voices In His Head
Disruptions in mental-health care during the pandemic left many Americans vulnerable. Among people ages 18 to 44, insurance claims related to psychotic episodes rose 30% to 2 million in 2023 from 2019, according to LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a data-analytics company. Around the U.S., hospitals are overwhelmed. Emergency rooms are adding security guards. Jails serve as a last resort for those unable to care for themselves. (Wernau, 3/23)
Hospitals and Health Care Industry
San Diego Union-Tribune:
State Says It Will Not Investigate Scripps Chula Vista Maternity Ward Closure
Calls for the state to investigate the impending closure of maternity services at Scripps Mercy Hospital Chula Vista will go unfulfilled. (Sisson, 3/23)
Modesto Bee:
Stanislaus May Lose Health Services If Modesto Clinic Closes
Medical services such as orthopedics, neurosurgery, general surgery and diabetic management would be eliminated as the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency continues to take a smaller role in clinical services for low-income residents. The county Board of Supervisors is being asked Tuesday to set an April 16 public hearing on proposals that would close the county’s specialty clinic in the black-glass building on McHenry Avenue, turn over the Paradise Medical Office in west Modesto to Golden Valley Health Centers and eliminate obstetrical care at the county’s McHenry Medical Office on Woodrow Avenue. (Carlson, 3/25)
San Francisco Chronicle:
California Latinos Lose Health Coverage On Medi-Cal Eligibility Checks
Medi-Cal health coverage kicked in for Antonio Abundis just when the custodian needed it most. Shortly after Abundis transitioned from limited to full-scope coverage in 2022 under California’s expansion of Medi-Cal to older residents without legal immigration status, he was diagnosed with leukemia, a cancer affecting the blood cells. The soft-spoken father of three took the news in stride as his doctor said his blood test suggested his cancer wasn’t advanced. His next steps were to get more tests and formulate a treatment plan with a cancer team at Epic Care in Emeryville. But all of that was derailed when he showed up last July for blood work at La Clínica de La Raza in Oakland and was told he was no longer on Medi-Cal. (Aguilera, 3/25)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Proposed Ordinance Change Would Restrict Abortion Protestors In San Diego
In the coming weeks, the San Diego City Council will consider an ordinance that would require demonstrators to ask permission before they interact with people visiting places of worship, schools and health care facilities, including those that provide abortions. (Sisson, 3/22)
Los Angeles Times:
Anti-Abortion Justices Could Restrict Abortion Pills Sent By Mail
The Supreme Court’s anti-abortion majority is set to consider whether to order a reversal in U.S. drug laws and restrict women from obtaining abortion medication at pharmacies or through the mail. A ruling to restrict the most common method of abortion would limit the rights of women in California and other states where abortion remains legal. (Savage, 3/25)
Los Angeles Times:
California Doubles State Water Project Allocation Thanks To February Storms
The California Department of Water Resources said it expects to provide 30% of requested supplies from the State Water Project, a massive network of reservoirs, canals and dams that supplies 29 water agencies serving about 27 million people. (Smith, 3/23)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
'A Step In The Right Direction': Congress OKs Budget Increase For Agency To Address Cross-Border Pollution
The International Boundary and Water Commission is getting a significant boost to its annual construction budget, which it may use to fix its dilapidated treatment plant at the U.S.-Mexico border that allows Tijuana sewage to pollute South County shorelines. (Murga, 3/24)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
It Took 30 Years, But World's Largest Artificial Reef Built Near San Diego Nuclear Power Plant Is Finally Thriving
An artificial reef built to offset marine life killed by the seawater cooling system at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station is finally doing its job, now that the power plant has been shut down for more than a decade. (Diehl, 3/23)
Bay Area News Group:
Staff Shortages Plague Bay Area School Kitchens As Demand For Meals Increase
During the 2022–23 school year, a statewide survey of 190 school nutrition departments found 12% of food staff positions in California schools were vacant, a rate three times greater than open teaching positions across the country. (Poukish, 3/25)
Bay Area News Group:
Ambulance Service Delays In Alameda County Lead To Problems For Firefighters
In a recent — and strongly worded — letter, the managers of two Bay Area cities demanded improvement from Falck, the private ambulance company tasked with responding to emergencies in Alameda County. (McCarthy, 3/25)
CalMatters:
California Spends More On Schools With The Neediest Kids. Here’s How It’s Succeeded, And Failed.
A decade after California revolutionized the way it funds schools, nearly everyone agrees the initiative has done what it was meant to do: improved math and reading scores and brought more resources to students who struggle the most. And nearly everyone also agrees that the Local Control Funding Formula, as it’s known, could use a tune-up. (Jones, 3/24)