Latest California Healthline Stories
Public Health Information Portal Opens
The state Department of Public Health launched a new online data portal last week so that other public agencies and private innovators can create and design new applications for public use.
California Lawmakers Considering Separate Marketplace for Vision Insurance
We asked stakeholders and consumer advocates what they thought about a bill proposing a statewide marketplace for vision insurance that would be separate from — but linked to — Covered California.
Tribal Health Leaders Ask for Consistency, Assistance From Covered California
California tribal leaders and Covered California officials met to work on unique health coverage problems faced by American Indians ranging from inconsistent interpretations of eligibility to outreach among rural areas without Internet.
California Disease Outbreaks Come Amid New Evidence of Vaccine Safety
Californians opting out of immunizations contributed to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases this year, according to state health officials who point to new research indicating vaccines generally are safe and do not pose long-term health threats.
Older LGBT Patients Have Unique Set of Medicare, Medi-Cal Benefit Issues
The federal approach to benefits for same-sex couples can be confusing, in part because of conflicting recognition and regulation between states — and that can have an effect on California policy.
From Promise to Reality: Substance Use Disorders and the ACA
Before the Affordable Care Act fully took effect, HHS boasted that the law would foster “one of the largest expansions of … substance use disorder coverage in a generation.” Will that coverage expansion translate into access to care or will barriers prevail?
Can Raising the State’s Minimum Wage Improve Public Health?
Rajiv Bhatia of the UC-Berkeley School of Public Health, Gerald Kominski of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, Sen. Mark Leno, Mike Schommer of the Minnesota Department of Health and medical student Lea Selitsky spoke with California Healthline about the legislative efforts to raise the minimum wage and research into the possible public health effects from that.
No Warning Labels on Sugary Drinks; Assembly Committee Rejects Proposal
One of the high-profile health bills in Sacramento this year — a plan to put health risk warnings on the sides of soda cans and other sweetened drinks sold in California — passed the Senate but failed to get out of committee in the Assembly.
Study Could Bolster Soda Warning Bill
High levels of sugar are not the only problem in soda and other sweetened drinks — but also the type of sugar in those drinks, according to a study from University of Southern California researchers.
Safety-Net Hospitals Face $1.5 Billion Shortfall by 2019, UCLA Study Says
Public hospitals taking care of the poorest Californians could be looking at a $1.5 billion shortfall, according to a new study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.