April Dembosky, KQED

@adembosky

Small Coastal California Town Fights To Keep Hospital Afloat

KFF Health News Original

Tourists love the Mendocino coast for its redwoods, surf and charm. But the battle to keep one town’s only hospital afloat is pitting hospital administrators and doctors against each other.

California Gov. Brown Signs Aid-in-Dying Bill Into Law

KFF Health News Original

Brown said that he weighed the controversial issue carefully, and in the end decided that it would be a comfort to know the option was available if he were facing a painful, prolonged death.

Can Health Care Be Cured Of Racial Bias?

KFF Health News Original

Even as the health of Americans has improved, the disparities in treatment and outcomes between white patients and black and Latino patients are almost as big as they were 50 years ago. A growing body of research suggests that doctors’ unconscious behavior plays a role in these statistics.

Covered California Reports Modest Rate Increases, Regional Variation

KFF Health News Original

Premiums for the state’s 1.3 million people in the state’s Obamacare marketplace will rise an average 4 percent, with average increases as low as 1.8 percent in Los Angeles and as high as 13 percent in Santa Cruz.

California Caps What Patients Pay For Pricey Drugs. Will Other States Follow?

KFF Health News Original

Beginning in 2016, most Covered California customers will not have to pay more than $150 or $250 per prescription, per month. The price caps are a response to very expensive new drugs used to treat hepatitis and other serious illnesses.

California Law Will Allow Pharmacists To Prescribe Birth Control

KFF Health News Original

As soon as this fall, pharmacists in California will be able to prescribe birth control. While some doctors’ groups are skeptical, lawmakers say pharmacists can fill a need for primary care providers, especially in rural areas.

The Gray Areas Of Assisted Suicide

KFF Health News Original

In bizarre, veiled conversations, some doctors vaguely hint to dying patients and their families how to hasten death. But overwhelmed families are left with profound questions and the feeling that there is no one who can answer them.

Tax Preparers Brace To Be Bearers Of Bad Health Law News

KFF Health News Original

With Affordable Care Act open enrollment ending Feb. 15, taxpayers could find themselves shut out of health insurance – and saddled with big fines – if they don’t do their taxes early this year.

Rural Doctor Launches Startup To Ease Pain Of Dying Patients

KFF Health News Original

Getting basic health care to rural areas has always been difficult, and delivering specialized care is even harder. One doctor is raising money to get palliative care to patients in rural California.

State Health Insurance Exchanges Hope To Woo Urban Minorities

KFF Health News Original

Tomorrow it begins again – open enrollment for Obamacare. Two very successful state health insurance exchanges, Connecticut’s and California’s, are both intent on reaching people who avoided signing up last year – especially young Latinos and African-Americans. “The big takeaway for us last year was that the uninsured were really pocketed in a couple of […]

Rx For Clarity: Calif. Considers Bilingual Drug Labels

KFF Health News Original

Every Saturday morning, a steady stream of Chinese and Vietnamese patients line up at the Paul Hom Asian Clinic in Sacramento, Calif. Most of them speak little to no English. Patient assistance director Danny Tao says people come here to get free medical consultations and drug prescriptions. But, he says that when patients take those […]