Latest California Healthline Stories
Demand Up in Calif. for Dental Care Services, Yet Hurdles To Access Remain
More than 2,000 people sought dental care at a no-cost event in Sacramento recently — a sign of the increasing demand for dental care services. Some patients waited hours for care, including those who have had trouble making appointments through Denti-Cal, the state’s dental care program for low-income patients.
California Seeks Federal Waiver Fund To House Homeless Medi-Cal Patients
Meredith Berkson of the Ocean Park Community Center in Santa Monica, Hannah Katch of the California Department of Health Care Services and Sharon Rapport of the Corporation for Supportive Housing spoke with California Healthline about the housing component in the recently submitted $17 billion 1115 federal waiver request.
New Bill Plays Hardball With Soft Drinks
Harold Goldstein of the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, Cheryl Moder of the San Diego County Childhood Obesity Initiative, Roger Salazar of CalBev and Laura Schmidt of UC-San Francisco spoke with California Healthline about the reintroduction of legislation to put a health-risk warning label on sodas, energy drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages in California.
Health Care for the Undocumented Complicated by Cost Questions
Elizabeth Landsberg of the Western Center on Law and Poverty, H.D. Palmer of the state Department of Finance, Nadereh Pourat of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and undocumented college student Darwin Velasquez spoke with California Healthline about the intentions and possible effects of a new bill introduced in the Senate to provide health care to the undocumented population in California.
Worst Pertussis Outbreak in 70 Years, but What Can State Health Officials Do?
James Cherry of the UCLA School of Medicine, Kathleen Harriman of the California Department of Public Health, Paul Katz of the San Rafael Medical Center and Sen. Richard Pan spoke with California Healthline about the outbreak in California of pertussis, also known as whooping cough.
Head of Health Care Services Looks Back on Tumultuous, Fruitful Years
Toby Douglas, director of California’s Department of Health Care Services, plans to retire as head of the agency in January. California Healthline sat down with Douglas recently to ask about the changes he has seen, and overseen, in his time in office.
Children’s Lunch Program Aims To Bring Better Food, Health to Schools
Karen Brown of the Center for Ecoliteracy, Michelle Drake of the Elk Grove Unified School District and UC-Davis student volunteer Katie O’Malley spoke with California Healthline about a new program called California Thursdays, which brings locally grown food into school lunchrooms across the state. In all, the program serves lunch for nearly one million schoolchildren in the state — about 1,700 schools in 15 districts.
UCSF Report Says Program To Diminish Tobacco Use in California Is Fading
UC-San Francisco researcher Stanton Glantz, Jim Knox of the American Cancer Society and Kimberly Amazeen of the American Lung Association spoke with California Healthline about a report outlining a decline in funding and effectiveness of the state’s tobacco control program. That is due, in part, to the resurgence of political power of the tobacco industry, they said.
Mixed Bag So Far for Duals Program: Some Glad, Some Livid, Most Confused
UCLA researcher Kathryn Kietzman, Kevin Prindiville of the National Senior Citizens Law Center, dual-eligible beneficiary Maria Salim and her daughter Teresa Strauss of Los Angeles and Norman Williams of the Department of Health Care Services spoke with California Healthline about the progress and concerns over the Cal MediConnect duals demonstration program, which now is about halfway through its enrollment process.