They Harvest the Nation’s Food, but a New Rule May Strip Them of Health Insurance
New Medicaid work requirements could make a complex system even harder for farmworkers to navigate.
California Bureau
Visit californiahealthline.org for an archive of reporting prior to October 2025.
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PERSPECTIVE
My Search for a Psychiatric Bed in an Overburdened Health System
Over the past 70 years, the number of inpatient psychiatric beds has dropped dramatically, leaving many without critical care when they experience mental health crises. I was one of the lucky ones to get a bed — after 21 hours of waiting.
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Newsom Vowed To Transform Kids’ Mental Health. Many California Schools Are Still Waiting.
Gov. Gavin Newsom launched an ambitious initiative to make public schools the epicenter of mental health services for young people. Five years after he promised transformation, many schools have struggled to get the program up and running, and hundreds more have yet to try.
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He Dreamed of Becoming a Physician Assistant. New Loan Rules May Thwart Him.
Starting in July, the government will cap what graduate students may borrow in federal loans, forcing many toward private lenders with higher interest rates. The borrowing limits will affect students pursuing healthcare degrees, and some clinicians and student loan experts worry they may impede efforts to diversify the healthcare workforce.
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Growing Up Scared
Arrests of Immigrant Parents Create Mental Health Crisis for Children
An estimated hundreds of thousands of children, many of them U.S. citizens, have been separated from a parent in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Their distress manifests in physical and mental health symptoms including developmental regression, stomachaches, sleep problems, and falling grades. Research points to long-term health consequences.
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California Health Worker Union, Hospital Association Tout Dueling Ballot Initiatives
Get our weekly newsletter, The Week in Brief, featuring a roundup of our original coverage, Fridays at 2 p.m. ET.
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Final Rules for Medicaid Work Requirements Are Out. Here’s What You Need To Know.
The Trump administration has laid out what millions of Americans on Medicaid must do to prove they’re working or completing other activities. Health policy researchers and consumer advocates say there are some important takeaways.
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1 in 4 Covered California Enrollees Could Get State Aid Under Newsom Proposal
California is considering expanding financial help for low-income residents struggling to pay high health insurance premiums after losing federal subsidies. But relief for state marketplace customers will be limited. Here’s who may get help and what it could mean for premiums.
By Christine Mai-Duc and Jackie Fortiér -
Looming Medicaid Cuts Supercharge California’s Latest Labor-Industry Fight
One of California’s largest healthcare unions is sponsoring two initiatives that would regulate community clinics and cap executive and managerial pay at hospitals and physician groups. In the most recent eruption of a long-standing feud, the measures have drawn fierce opposition from a wide swath of the medical industry.
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By September, Nearly a Third of Americans Will Live in States With Legal Aid in Dying
Despite widespread support in polls for legalizing aid in dying, the number of people who go through with the practice remains very small.
By Paula Span -
RFK Jr. Seeks To Peek at Americans’ Medical Records for Clues on Autism and Vaccines
To collect and scrutinize millions of Americans’ health data, U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. aims to work with state organizations that help health systems share medical records. In Nebraska, millions in federal dollars has flowed into one nonprofit cooperating with Kennedy’s project.
By Amanda Seitz and Darius Tahir -
Michigan Found a Way To Reduce School Vaccine Waivers. Until It Backfired.
The state had high rates of parents not vaccinating their children, so it started making them attend vaccine education sessions to opt out their kids. It seemed to work. Then things got ugly.
By Kate Wells -
Festering Infections to Untreated Cancer: ICE Detainees Describe Medical Neglect Across US
Immigrant detainees have told courts across the nation that detention officials have failed to treat or stabilize their conditions, from pregnancy to prostate cancer, suggesting that systemic lapses in care extend well beyond record deaths in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
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In a Vaccine-Skeptical California County, a Potential Playbook To Contain Measles
Conservative Shasta County stopped a measles outbreak from spreading, enlisting teachers, church leaders, and other trusted community members to get the public on board with health guidelines. Infectious disease specialists say the successful effort could be a guide for other communities struggling to contain the highly contagious virus.
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Readers Address Drugged Driving, Suicide Prevention, Worker Shortages
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
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Cheaper, Alternative Health Plans Are Having a Moment, but Critics Urge Caution
Congress' decision not to extend enhanced marketplace tax credits has boosted the appeal of alternative health coverage with lower monthly premiums. Consumer advocates dismiss the plans as "junk insurance,” while proponents say patients need alternatives to pricey marketplace options.
By Sarah Kwon -
Journalists Distill News on Ebola, Licensing Midwives, and California’s Budget
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national or local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
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Efforts To Understand the Nation’s Drugged Driving Problem Stall Under Trump
The data behind alcohol-related traffic deaths is well studied. Less understood is the toll of vehicle deaths involving drugs or a combination of drugs and alcohol. Attempts to fix that have been stymied by federal budget and staffing cuts.
By Jace DiCola -
Eroding ACA Enrollment Portends Higher Insurance Rates
An uptick in people skipping Obamacare premium payments in many states suggests the Affordable Care Act’s rising costs — driven partly by lower subsidies to help people buy plans — are hitting home for 2026 enrollees. The trend adds to voter concerns about affordability ahead of the midterm elections.
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Trump and Kennedy Seek To Relax Safeguards for AI Healthcare Tools
For years, the Department of Health and Human Services built standards to make sure electronic health records were user-friendly and offered transparent advice to doctors. Now they’re relaxing those standards, and doctors and critics in the hospital industry are worried.
By Darius Tahir