Morning Breakouts

Latest California Healthline Stories

Planned Parenthood’s State Medicaid Funding Protected After Supreme Court Decides Not To Hear Case

The decision drew rebukes from the court’s more conservative judges, with Justice Clarence Thomas saying his colleagues’ refusal to hear the case over Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood was politically motivated. “What explains the court’s refusal to do its job here? I suspect it has something to do with the fact that some respondents in these cases are named ‘Planned Parenthood,’” Thomas wrote.

Camp Fire Highlights Shortcoming Of Electronic Records: Sometimes Humans Need To Protect Them During Natural Disasters

Access to the records of patients evacuated from the disaster areas can enable vital triage and save lives, but access to those records can be spotty in such cases. California has done more than any other state to enable health IT in disasters.

Why Hasn’t California Taken Steps To Enact Its Own Individual Mandate?

Studies have found that if the state does not step in, up to a million Californians could go without health care because the federal individual mandate has been zeroed out. But lawmakers are hesitant to enact a state-level mandate without also making health insurance cheaper for residents.

About 4,000 Kaiser Permanente Mental Health Care Workers Kick Off Weeklong Strike Over Staffing Levels

Some non-urgent mental health and other appointments may need to be rescheduled, but anyone in need of urgent mental health or other health care will receive the services they need, said Elita Fielder, a spokeswoman for Kaiser Permanente.

Deep-Pocketed Health Industry Lobbies Ready To Throw Weight Behind Dems Who Want To Block ‘Medicare For All’

There’s a brewing rift in the Democratic party between progressives who campaigned on “Medicare for all” and those who want to stabilize and improve upon the health law. The hospital, insurance and pharmaceutical industry are getting ready for the upcoming battle. Meanwhile, state attorneys general, emboldened by election wins, look to shore up their defense of the health law in courts.

‘Our Lives Will Never Be The Same Again’: California Burn Survivors On A Long Road To Recovery

Those who were burned but survived the Camp Fire are only beginning to deal with the consequences of the wildfire. To deal with the possibility of a large increase in fire burn patients, U.C. Davis has formed a consortium with 25 hospitals across eight Western states, and has added another specialist to its team.