Latest California Healthline Stories
Under Financial Strain, Community Health Centers Ramp Up Coronavirus Response
Many of the nation’s safety-net clinics for low-income patients are having to turn their model of care upside down overnight to deal with the realities of the pandemic — a challenge both financially and logistically. Federal funding is on the way.
Masks Reveal Cultural Disconnect As L.A.’s Chinese Community Braces For Coronavirus
Since two cases of the mysterious new coronavirus were reported in Southern California, Chinese immigrants have begun donning face masks. The practice is common in China but goes against official guidance in the U.S., and that’s causing conflict in local schools.
From Clinic To Courtroom, Fighting For Immigrant Health Care
Jane Garcia is CEO of La Clínica de La Raza, which operates more than 30 clinics in the San Francisco Bay Area serving a high percentage of immigrant patients. She has challenged state and federal immigration policies in court, including the Trump administration’s recent attempt to expand the “public charge” rule.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ ‘Medicare-For-All’ Debate: Who’s Going To Pay
Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post and Jennifer Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss the new “Medicare-for-all” bill introduced by House Democrats, the grilling of pharmaceutical company CEOs by a Senate committee and new Trump administration rules that take aim at Planned Parenthood. Plus, Rovner interviews KHN’s Julie Appleby about the latest “Bill of the Month” installment.
Community Hospitals Link Arms With Prestigious Facilities To Raise Their Profiles
A growing number of community hospitals are forming alliances with some of the nation’s biggest and most prestigious institutions. But for prospective patients, it can be hard to assess what these relationships actually mean.
Providers Walk ‘Fine Line’ Between Informing And Scaring Immigrant Patients
Some doctors and clinics are proactively informing patients about a proposed policy that could jeopardize the legal status of immigrants who use public benefit programs such as Medicaid. Others argue that because this “public charge” proposal isn’t final — and may never be adopted — disseminating too much information could create unnecessary alarm and cause some patients to drop benefits.
Psychiatrist Stays Close To Home And True To Her Childhood Promise
Yamanda Edwards is the only psychiatrist at Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, caring for residents in South Los Angeles, a community with a shortage of mental health care.
Upsurge Of Suburban Poor Discover Health Care’s Nowhere Land
More low-income people now live in suburbs than in cities or rural areas, putting a strain on local health services. Suburbs, which traditionally have had fewer resources or infrastructure, are scrambling to catch up.
Community Health Centers Caught In ‘Washington’s Political Dysfunction’
Without action by Congress, federal funding for the centers will end March 31. California, with more than 1,300 centers providing care for 6.5 million people, will be hit hard if the money dries up. Nationwide, nearly 10,000 centers serve 27 million people and get about 20 percent of their funding from the federal government.
Stalled Health Programs Await A Green Light On The Hill
With another piece of must-pass legislation set to move through Congress, there’s a push to attach provisions to keep afloat a number of health-related programs for which funding or specific federal direction has expired.