Latest California Healthline Stories
The Delta Variant Thrives in a State of Political and Public Health Discord
At the center of the nation’s delta variant outbreak, public health efforts are mired in a political turf war.
Sen. Wyden: $3.5T Budget May Have to Trim but It Can Set a Path to ‘Ambitious Goals’
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who is helping to negotiate the health care spending framework for the Democrats’ budget plan, said lawmakers may have to settle for very basic versions of programs deployed in the package. But the key, he added, is to get the “architecture of these changes, bold changes,” started and show people what is possible.
With a Diagnosis at Last, Black Women with ADHD Start Healing
Black women and girls with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder often remain undiagnosed because their symptoms are mischaracterized by the blinders of sexism and racism. Getting treatment and finding the right medication can be even more difficult because they aren’t taken seriously or, worse, they’re racially profiled while getting their medicines.
Biden’s July Executive Order Includes Drug Pricing Provisions. But Will They Do Enough?
The July 9 directive addresses the importation of prescription drugs and broader efforts to reduce the high cost of medicines.
California Makes It Easier for Low-Income Residents to Get and Keep Free Health Coverage
State lawmakers aim to expand Medicaid enrollment by dedicating billions of dollars in coming years to simplifying paperwork, extending pregnancy coverage and opening the program to thousands of new enrollees, including older unauthorized immigrants and people who need nursing home care.
Novavax’s Effort to Vaccinate the World, From Zero to Not Quite Warp Speed
Novavax is a vaccine company that has never licensed a vaccine. It hopes it can still help to fight the global covid scourge, but can it get doses made worldwide?
Hospital ‘Trauma Centers’ Charge Enormous Fees to Treat Minor Injuries and Send People Home
Only severely injured patients are supposed to be billed for “trauma team alert” fees that can exceed $50,000.
Grab Your Mask and Notepad, We’re Headed Back to the Capitol
After being mostly closed to the public and the press for more than a year, California’s state Capitol is open again — masks, temperature checks, covid outbreaks and all.
Fútbol, Flags and Fun: Getting Creative to Reach Unvaccinated Latinos in Colorado
A vaccine clinic came to an international soccer tournament in Denver recently. It was an attempt to reach Latino Coloradans, whose vaccination rates trail those of non-Hispanic whites.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Here Comes Reconciliation
Democrats in Congress reached a tentative agreement to press ahead on a partisan bill that would dramatically expand health benefits for people on Medicare, those who buy their own insurance and individuals who have been shut out of coverage in states that didn’t expand Medicaid. Meanwhile, controversy continues to rage over whether vaccinated Americans will need a booster to protect against covid-19 variants, and who will pay for a new drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN’s Rae Ellen Bichell, who reported and wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode about a mother and daughter who fought an enormous emergency room bill.