Collecting FEMA Funeral Money Takes Some Tenacity — And Help
By Heidi de Marco
June 16, 2021
KFF Health News Original
A federal program to help with the funeral expenses for people who died of covid is a challenge for grieving family members who aren’t fluent in English or the ways of a bureaucracy.
‘It’s a Mission’: Volunteers Treat Refugees Massing at the Border
By Heidi de Marco
June 21, 2021
KFF Health News Original
A growing number of Mexican and Central American migrants are trying to cross into the U.S. at the southern border. Volunteers at one free clinic in Tijuana tend to the health needs of migrants waiting for their immigration cases to come up — and simply trying to survive in packed and dangerous encampments.
Para este enfermero de cuidados paliativos, la vacuna de covid llegó demasiado tarde
By Heidi de Marco
April 6, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Cuando comenzó la pandemia, Antonio Espinoza, de 36 años, se dedicó a ayudar a los pacientes terminales. Hasta que él mismo cayó enfermo a cinco días de haberse dado la primera dosis de la vacuna contra covid.
Journalists Stay on Top of Rocky Vaccine Rollout
January 29, 2021
KFF Health News Original
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Behind The Byline: ‘At Least I Got the Shot’
By Heidi de Marco
September 8, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Check out KHN’s video series — Behind the Byline: How the Story Got Made. Come along as journalists and producers offer an insider’s view of health care coverage that does not quit.
An $80,000 Tab for Newborns Lays Out a Loophole in the New Law to Curb Surprise Bills
By Jay Hancock
Photos by Heidi de Marco
February 23, 2022
KFF Health News Original
The insurance company said that the birth of the Bull family’s twins was not an emergency and that NICU care was “not medically necessary.” The family’s experience with a huge bill sent to collections happened in 2020, but it exposes a hole in the new No Surprises law that took effect Jan. 1.
Covid Fears Keep Many Latino Kids out of Classrooms
By Heidi de Marco
May 12, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Latinos got hit disproportionately hard by covid-19. When faced with the choice of sending their kids back to school or keeping them in online classes, many Latino parents say their kids are safer at home.
California Opens Medicaid to Older Unauthorized Immigrants
By Bernard J. Wolfson
Photos by Heidi de Marco
May 2, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Starting May 1, low-income unauthorized immigrants over age 49 became eligible for full Medicaid health coverage, a significant milestone in California’s effort to expand coverage.
Roles invertidos: más cuidadores juveniles por covid
By Heidi de Marco
March 17, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Millones de adolescentes y preadolescentes ayudan a cuidar de padres o abuelos enfermos. La pandemia ha aumentado el número y ha dificultado que obtengan apoyo social y emocional fuera del hogar.
No More ICU Beds at the Main Public Hospital in the Nation’s Largest County
By Bernard J. Wolfson
Photos by Heidi de Marco
December 18, 2020
KFF Health News Original
As some patients linger near death, staffers at Los Angeles County+USC Medical Center seek ways to expand capacity for a surge of cases that isn’t letting up.
As Temperatures Rise, So Do the Health Risks for California’s Farmworkers
By Miranda Green and Heidi de Marco
August 23, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Workers who harvest crops ranging from grapes to cauliflower in the Coachella Valley are accustomed to temperatures well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This summer the thermometer has already hit 122, and heatstroke is becoming more common.
For This Hospice Nurse, the Covid Shot Came Too Late
By Heidi de Marco
April 6, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Antonio Espinoza, a hospice nurse in Southern California, ministered to terminally ill patients, including those with covid. He tested positive for covid five days after getting his first dose of vaccine and died a few weeks later.
Disipando información errónea y mitos sobre las vacunas en la región agrícola de California
By Heidi de Marco
February 3, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Aunque los trabajadores agrícolas son vulnerables al covid, muchos dudan en recibir la vacuna, preocupados de que pueda tener efectos secundarios graves o que pueda revelar su paradero a los funcionarios de inmigración.
Role Reversal: Covid Increases Ranks of Child Caregivers
By Heidi de Marco
March 17, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Millions of teens and preteens help care for ill parents or grandparents. The pandemic has boosted their numbers while making it harder for them to get social and emotional support outside the home.
Voters in Tight Recall Race Sound Off on California Gov. Newsom’s Covid Leadership
By Rachel Bluth and Samantha Young and Heidi de Marco and Angela Hart
September 2, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pandemic policies are effectively on California’s Sept. 14 recall ballot — and the electorate views them with a mix of resentment, gratitude and disillusionment.
Isolation, Disruption and Confusion: Coping With Dementia During a Pandemic
By Heidi de Marco
August 18, 2020
KFF Health News Original
COVID-19 has upended the lives of people with dementia, limiting their interactions with others and complicating matters for their caregivers.
Dispelling Vaccine Misinformation and Myths in California’s Breadbasket
By Heidi de Marco
February 3, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Even though farmworkers are vulnerable to covid, many hesitate to get the vaccine, worried the shot could have severe side effects or signal their whereabouts to immigration officials. Immigrant advocates in the Coachella Valley and other farming regions are visiting workers to try to allay their fears.
Por un tecnicismo, niños necesitados podrían no tener acceso a vacunas contra el VRS
By Arthur Allen
February 6, 2023
KFF Health News Original
El virus respiratorio sincitial afecta a bebés de todas las clases sociales, pero tiende a perjudicar más a los hogares pobres y hacinados
‘More Than Physical Health’: Gym Helps 91-Year-Old Battle Isolation
By Heidi de Marco
June 30, 2020
KFF Health News Original
For Art Ballard, the local gym was like his second home. The 91-year-old former jeweler relied on his near-daily workouts to stay healthy and for social interaction. But when California instituted its stay-at-home order, Ballard’s physical health suffered. So did his mental health.
Direct Primary Care, With a Touch of Robin Hood
By Bernard J. Wolfson
Photos by Heidi de Marco
October 26, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Some doctors, sick of mainstream health care’s red tape, are finding refuge in practices that combine concierge medicine with charity care.