Pauline Bartolone

Pauline Bartolone was a Sacramento correspondent for KFF Health News until September 2018.

@pbartolone

Day Care Centers For The Most Fragile Kids Struggle To Stay Open

Eighteen Medi-Cal-funded day care centers across California provide care for over 500 severely ill and disabled children, allowing their parents to work outside the home and avoid poverty. But those centers are struggling to keep their doors open, because they say the payments they get from the state don’t allow them to offer competitive wages, and nurses are leaving for other jobs. Listen to Pauline Bartolone’s story on KQED radio’s “California Report.”

In Health Care Arena, The Prize For Calif. Insurance Commissioner Is A Bullhorn

The California Department of Insurance, headed by the commissioner, regulates only a small fraction of the market. But the job comes with a bully pulpit that amplifies its impact. Three of the four candidates would use it to push for a statewide single-payer system.

Safety Violations Compound Pain Of Painkiller Shortages

California and federal officials have cracked down on a major compounding pharmacy they say posed a threat to public safety, but their actions are worsening shortages of medications that doctors rely on to keep their patients out of pain.

Private Man At Center Of Very Public Single-Payer Debate

This camera-shy “average guy” is reluctantly spearheading a ballot initiative that would remove funding obstacles. Though the campaign faces long odds, it has a large Facebook following, and some policy makers call it a good idea.