Public Health Officials Face Wave Of Threats, Pressure Amid Coronavirus Response
By Lauren Weber and Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press
Public health officials are confronting growing pressure — and threats — across the country as the backlash to the coronavirus response continues. Senior health officials from seven California counties have resigned or retired since March 15.
As COVID Cases Spike, California Shifts Its Strategy
By Angela Hart and Anna Maria Barry-Jester
Public health officials have been alarmed by the increase in COVID-19 cases linked to family gatherings and socializing. While Gov. Gavin Newsom is defending the state’s reopening, local health officials worry the situation could get worse this summer.
Another Coronavirus Casualty: California’s Budget
By Angela Hart and Samantha Young and Rachel Bluth
Before the coronavirus hit, California was looking at a budget surplus of more than $5 billion and lawmakers were debating how to increase the size of government health programs. Now, the state faces a deficit, program cuts, high unemployment — and no significant investment in public health funding at a time when the state needs it the most.
The Inside Story Of How The Bay Area Got Ahead Of The COVID-19 Crisis
By Angela Hart and Anna Maria Barry-Jester
An early morning text. A lawyer-filled meeting on a Sunday afternoon. Emotional journal entries. And, ultimately, action. In the 24 hours before San Francisco Bay Area public health officials issued the country’s first stay-at-home order, they debated how to tackle the alarming rise in COVID-19 infections. Their decision set the course for the nation.
California Hospitals Face Surge With Proven Fixes And Some Hail Marys
By Angela Hart and Anna Maria Barry-Jester
California is entering the most critical period in its battle against COVID-19, and may need thousands of hospital beds and ventilators to accommodate a surge of critically ill patients. Hospitals are taking extreme measures, such as using 3D printers to make ventilator parts and turning cafeterias into wards.
California y COVID-19: hospitales se alistan para la crisis con acciones probadas y desesperadas
By Angela Hart and Anna Maria Barry-Jester
Los hospitales de California pensaron que estaban listos para el próximo gran desastre. Han modernizado sus edificios para resistir un gran terremoto y poner a los pacientes fuera de peligro durante los mortales incendios forestales. Han mantenido vivos a los pacientes con generadores de respaldo en medio de apagones y han entrenado a su personal […]
Testing In California Still A Frustrating Patchwork Of Haves And Have-Nots
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Angela Hart and Rachel Bluth
It’s hard to overstate how uneven access to critical coronavirus test kits remains in the nation’s largest state. Even as some Southern California counties are opening drive-thru sites to make testing available to any resident who wants it, a rural northern county is testing raw sewage to determine whether the coronavirus has infiltrated its communities.
California Healthline Staff
Judy Lin, California editor, helps direct KHN’s coverage of California and assists with ethnic media partnerships. Judy was assistant editor at CalMatters, where she directed the award-winning California Divide project, a collaboration among multiple newsrooms focused on poverty and income inequality. She reported on Sacramento policy and politics for more than a decade for The […]
Changes on Horizon for California Safety Net’s Care of Undocumented, Indigent
By Angela Hart
Community clinics and public hospitals in California remain the primary health care option for millions of undocumented immigrants who are ineligible for health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Safety-net facilities’ strategies for remaining solvent are changing under health care reform.
Should Obamacare Be Delayed — And More to the Point, Can It?
By Dan Diamond
Mounting problems with the federal health insurance exchange have sparked widespread concern, and even supporters of the ACA are turning critical. Experts weigh in on whether the individual mandate and other elements of Obamacare should, or even can, be delayed if the problems persist.
