Public Health

Latest California Healthline Stories

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Vaccine Approval Moves the Needle on Covid

The FDA’s formal approval of the first vaccine to prevent covid-19 may or may not prompt doubters to go out and get shots, but it has clearly prompted employers to make vaccination a work requirement. Meanwhile, moderates and liberals in the U.S. House put aside their differences long enough to keep a giant social-spending bill on track, at least for now. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

These Governors Push Antibody Therapy — But Shun Vaccine and Mask Mandates

Governors in Southern states, amid a surge of delta-variant infections, are rushing to provide an experimental antibody cocktail therapy, even as they oppose measures like mask mandates and vaccine passports that health officials say can prevent infection in the first place.

From Uber Rides to Patient Advocates: What It Takes to Increase ER Addiction Treatment

Despite widespread consensus on the importance of addiction treatment in the ER, many hospitals fail to screen for substance use, offer medications to treat opioid use disorder or connect patients to follow-up care. But hospitals from California to New York are working to change that.

Pandemia revela una creciente crisis de suicidios en comunidades de color

Entrevistas con una docena de investigadores del suicidio, datos recopilados de todos los estados, y una revisión de décadas de investigación revelaron que el suicidio es una crisis creciente para las comunidades de color, que ya estaba impactando antes de la pandemia, y que se ha agravado desde entonces.

After Pandemic Ravaged Nursing Homes, New State Laws Protect Residents

This year, 23 states passed more than 70 pandemic-related provisions affecting nursing homes, including measures setting minimum staffing levels, expanding visitation protections and limiting owners’ profit margins.

As Temperatures Rise, So Do the Health Risks for California’s Farmworkers

Workers who harvest crops ranging from grapes to cauliflower in the Coachella Valley are accustomed to temperatures well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This summer the thermometer has already hit 122, and heatstroke is becoming more common.