Latest California Healthline Stories

Remote Rural Hospital Puts Its Fate In Hands of Denver Entrepreneur
Residents of Surprise Valley, in the state’s northeastern corner, voted to sell its hospital to a businessman with a controversial plan to bring in revenue. Its dismal financial plight exemplifies the woes of rural hospitals around the country.

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.”

California Aims To Tackle Health Care Prices In Novel Rate-Setting Proposal
Proponents of the bill say high costs of care are gobbling paychecks and worsening income inequality. Doctors and hospitals say it will drive providers out of state.

A Little-Known Activist Thinks Big About Single-Payer
Democratic legislators seem to favor an incremental approach to providing universal health care in California. Tech worker Dale Fountain has a more ambitious goal, even if it’s a long shot for now.

Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Tax Bill Or Health Bill?
Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Sarah Kliff of Vox.com, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo discuss the inclusion of health policies into the current tax cut debate, including a possible repeal of the fines for people who fail to maintain health insurance.

Calif. Locks In Plans For Open Enrollment As Congressional Bipartisanship Fades
Almost as fast as a bipartisan deal on restoring key health care subsidies was announced, enthusiasm for it seemed to dim in the nation’s capital. Regardless, California has a plan in place to protect most exchange consumers and is preparing a marketing blitz to encourage sign-ups.

Questions Loom About Obamacare As Covered California’s Open Enrollment Nears
President Donald Trump took two swings at the Affordable Care Act last week. Californians are somewhat protected from immediate harm but doubts persist about the law’s future as sign-ups begin Nov. 1.

Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Let’s Blow It Up
In this episode of “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Sarah Kliff of Vox and Julie Appleby of Kaiser Health News discuss the Trump administration’s latest efforts to undermine the individual insurance market.

Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Congress CHIPs Away At Health Insurance For Kids
In this episode of “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, and Joanne Kenen of Politico discuss Congress’ tardiness in renewing the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP), and play the parlor game of who might become the new secretary of Health and Human Services. Also, the pod panel interviews Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) about his new Medicare buy-in bill.

Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Repeal And Replace Is Dead. What Now?
In this episode of “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post discuss what happens now that Republicans have officially failed in their latest effort to overhaul Obamacare. Plus an interview with Bruce Lesley of First Focus about the fate of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.