Latest California Healthline Stories
Meth Trip Or Mental Illness? Police Who Need To Know Often Can’t Tell
The calming techniques that officers learn during training to intervene in a mental health crisis don’t seem to work as well when a suspect is high on meth. Meth calls can be much more dangerous, police say.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Spooky Stuff
If it’s Halloween, that means open enrollment for plans on the Affordable Care Act exchanges is right around the corner. Prices are down this year, but the future of the health law remains in doubt due to a lawsuit seeking to have the entire measure thrown out. This week, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, the panelists read the top entries in KHN’s Halloween Health Haiku Contest.
For Young People With Psychosis, Early Intervention Is Crucial
California budget provides $20 million to expand early psychosis treatment around the state.
Grief Grew Into A Mental Health Crisis And A $21,634 Hospital Bill
She spent five days in the hospital undergoing psychiatric care. The bill she got is about the same price as a new Honda Civic.
‘Invincible’ Teen Vapers Face Fears, Ask For Help
Starting to vape is easy, but quitting a nicotine habit can be tough, teens are finding. Some vaping cessation programs have begun to reach out to teens where they live — on their phones.
California Fires Illuminate Trauma And Resilience
The chaos and evacuations prompted by wind-fueled wildfire in Sonoma County pose special challenges for people in need of ongoing medical treatment. Volunteer medical personnel have stepped up to provide care and a sense of stability.
Hospitals Take Shot At Opioid Makers Over Cost Of Treating Uninsured For Addiction
A few hundred hospitals have banded together to sue drugmakers in state courts, but far more are staying on the sidelines to avoid ‘unflattering attention’ about their role in the opioid crisis.
Employers Are Scaling Back Their Dependence On High-Deductible Health Plans
Firms are offering more traditional plans alongside or instead of the plans with sky-high deductibles that may have been the only option in the past. The change comes as employers are finding that workers like the predictability of a traditional plan and that providing more generous plans can help with recruiting in a tight labor market.
Moved Overseas For School, Stayed For Insulin
Katie West, an American health researcher who has lived in Germany the past three years, hasn’t mastered the language and misses her family. But not having to worry about the cost of her lifesaving medication makes it OK.
California Nursing Home Residents Told To Find New Homes
Dozens of frail nursing home residents have been informed by their Medi-Cal managed-care plans that they are no longer eligible for long-term care. Some health care advocates and legal aid attorneys fear that such terminations will increase as the state implements mandatory managed care for nursing home residents.