Latest California Healthline Stories
‘An Arm and a Leg’: Need an Expensive Drug? Here’s What You Need to Know
Even a personal finance expert can get stuck with a huge unexpected bill for a drug. Listen up for what you need to know about “copay accumulators.”
Want Vulnerable Californians to Have Healthier Pregnancies? Doulas Say the State Must Pay Up.
California was supposed to start paying doulas this year to help Medicaid enrollees have healthy pregnancies. But the benefit has been delayed because doulas feel lowballed by the state’s proposed reimbursement rate, which is below what most other states pay.
Listen: An Unsettling Investigation Into the Closure of a Chain of Pain Clinics
KHN senior correspondents Jenny Gold and Anna Maria Barry-Jester joined KVPR’s Kathleen Schock on “Valley Edition” to discuss their investigation into the abrupt closure of one of California’s largest chain of pain clinics — and the patients left behind.
More Black Americans Are Buying Guns. Is It Driving Up Black Suicide Rates?
Gun buying among African Americans has soared in recent years. So have suicide rates among young Black men. Suicide prevention and gun safety efforts need to address race and cultural differences, Black gun owners say.
Pandemic Medical Innovations Leave Behind People With Disabilities
As the country enters Year 3 of the pandemic emergency, people with disabilities across the U.S. are still finding it difficult to use innovations in telemedicine, teleworking, and testing.
Despite Seniors’ Strong Desire to Age in Place, the Village Model Remains a Boutique Option
Membership-based villages help arrange services for seniors — such as handyman help or transportation to appointments — and provide social connections through classes, leisure opportunities, or community events. Despite great promise, they have been slow to expand because of difficulties raising funding and keeping people interested.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Congress Shelves Covid Funding for Now
The Biden administration’s request for billions more in funding to fight covid-19 hit a snag on Capitol Hill this week, as Democrats objected to Republican demands that money allocated to states but not yet spent be reclaimed. Meanwhile, the big annual spending bill about to cross the finish line addresses other health policy changes, such as giving the FDA authority to regulate “synthetic” nicotine. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Jessie Hellmann of Modern Healthcare join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
Which Companies Aren’t Exiting Russia? Big Pharma
U.S. and global drug manufacturers invested in Russia’s sizable pharmaceutical industry contend international humanitarian law requires they continue manufacturing and selling their products there, even while condemning the Ukraine invasion. Not everyone agrees.
The CDC’s New Guidelines on Covid Risk and Masking Send Confounding Signals
The agency’s updated recommendations lower the level of covid risk for most of the country and therefore the need to mask. But some experts question the strategy.
One California University Has Unified Town and Gown to Fight Covid. Why Haven’t Others?
The University of California-Davis has spent close to $50 million preventing the spread of covid on campus — and among residents and workers in the adjacent city of Davis. By most accounts, this town-gown experiment has paid off nicely.