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Journalists Analyze Issues of the Day: RFK Jr., Bird Flu, L.A. Fires

February 1, 2025 KFF Health News Original

KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.

Journalists Broach Topics From Treating Shooting Victims to Sunscreen Safety

May 18, 2024 KFF Health News Original

KFF Health News and California Healthline staffers made the rounds on national and local media in the last couple of weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.

California Official Comes out of Retirement To Lead Troubled Mental Health Commission

By Molly Castle Work December 9, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Former California social services head Will Lightbourne has come out of retirement to lead the state’s mental health accountability commission following its executive director’s resignation in the wake of conflict of interest allegations.

Prepared for Trump’s Comeback, California’s Attorney General Is Ready To Fight

By Molly Castle Work November 6, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Attorney General Rob Bonta, a longtime champion of reproductive rights, is ready to lead California in the fight to protect abortion under Trump’s second presidency. In a Q&A, he shares how his upbringing prepared him for the role.

California Housing Officials Recommend State Protect Renters From Extreme Heat

By Molly Castle Work February 5, 2025 KFF Health News Original

State officials say homes should be able to be cooled to a safe indoor air temperature of 82 degrees. The legislature will now take up the report.

Funcionarios de California recomiendan que el estado proteja a los inquilinos del calor extremo

By Molly Castle Work February 5, 2025 KFF Health News Original

Aunque la mayoría de las muertes y enfermedades causadas por el calor se pueden prevenir, alrededor de 1.220 personas mueren cada año en el país por esta causa.

Amid Wildfire Trauma, L.A. County Dispatches Mental Health Workers to Evacuees

By Molly Castle Work January 21, 2025 KFF Health News Original

Catastrophic wildfires are common in California, and mental health specialists have become a key part of local governments’ response to extreme weather events, which scientists say are becoming more intense and frequent due to climate change. Los Angeles County has been modifying its approach with each disaster.

California Mental Health Agency Director To Resign Following Conflict of Interest Allegations

By Molly Castle Work October 25, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Toby Ewing, executive director of California’s Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission, is resigning amid an investigation into his conduct and revelations that he traveled to the U.K. courtesy of a vendor as he sought to protect state funding for its contract.

A California Official Helped Save a Mental Health Company’s Contract. It Flew Him to London.

By Molly Castle Work October 23, 2024 KFF Health News Original

The director of a California state mental health agency traveled to the U.K. courtesy of Kooth, a digital mental health company with a $271 million contract to build a therapy app for the state’s youth. Weeks earlier, he pressed key legislative staffers to restore a proposed cut to Kooth’s funding.

Catholic Hospital Offered Bucket, Towels to Woman It Denied an Abortion, California AG Said

By Molly Castle Work October 7, 2024 KFF Health News Original

In California, where abortion rights are guaranteed, there’s a loophole. The growth of Catholic hospital systems, which restrict reproductive health care, has left patients with no other option for care. That will be the case for pregnant women in Northern California, with a hospital set to close its birth center.

On the Campaign Trail, Democrats Call Out Opponents on Abortion

By Molly Castle Work October 4, 2024 KFF Health News Original

As Nov. 5 approaches and the struggle for control of the U.S. House reaches a fever pitch, Democrats are doing everything they can to tie their Republican opponents to their antiabortion voting records. Some Republican candidates, meanwhile, seem to be softening their positions. And political analysts say it’s part of a larger trend playing out […]

Democratic Hopefuls Fault GOP Incumbents for Anti-Abortion Records in Congress

By Molly Castle Work September 27, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Democratic congressional hopefuls in California are highlighting the anti-abortion records of vulnerable Republican incumbents, many of whom have moderated their stances ahead of the election. With control of the U.S. House at stake, Democrats hope to convince voters that their candidates will do more to protect women’s health.

Aspirantes demócratas culpan a los republicanos en las bancas por sus antecedentes antiaborto en el Congreso

By Molly Castle Work September 27, 2024 KFF Health News Original

A medida que se acerca el día de las elecciones, los aspirantes demócratas están haciendo todo lo posible para vincular a sus oponentes republicanos en distritos congresionales disputados con sus antecedentes antiaborto.

California Governor Signs Law Banning Medical Debt From Credit Reports

By Molly Castle Work September 24, 2024 KFF Health News Original

New California legislation will bar unpaid medical bills from showing up on consumer credit reports starting in January. However, the banking industry muscled in eleventh-hour amendments that weakened the protections for patients, the bill’s lead sponsor says.

Por ley, la deuda médica ya no puede estar en los reportes de crédito en California

By Molly Castle Work September 24, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Al menos ocho estados han prohibido que las facturas médicas aparezcan en los informes de crédito de los consumidores en los últimos dos años.

Fighting Staff Shortages With Scholarships, California Bill Aims To Boost Mental Health Courts

By Molly Castle Work September 20, 2024 KFF Health News Original

A new bill would create a scholarship program for students who agree to work with specialized courts in California to get patients into treatment, but some people argue the state shouldn’t restrict scholarship aid to a new, untested program given broader behavioral health workforce shortages.

Medi-Cal’s Dental Care Gap: Getting a Tooth Pulled Is Easy — Much Harder To Get an Implant

By Molly Castle Work August 9, 2024 KFF Health News Original

California is among a growing number of states that offer dental benefits to low-income residents, but some lawmakers want the state to go further by covering more cleanings and costlier implants. Dentists and health experts worry the approach doesn’t address the root of the problem: Many providers don’t accept Medicaid.

Planned Parenthood’s Push to Get Voters to the Polls

By Molly Castle Work July 24, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Planned Parenthood’s political and advocacy organizations will use a more than $40 million war chest to blitz GOP officeholders and candidates in an effort to flip the House and maintain Democratic control of the Senate and presidency. The plan is to focus on the records of Republicans who have repeatedly voted against access to abortion, contraceptives, in vitro fertilization or gender-affirming […]

Relieving the Growing Burden of Medical Debt

By Molly Castle Work July 11, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Medical debt is a growing burden for millions of people around the country, from parents in Illinois to immigrants in Colorado to residents of the “Diabetes Belt” across the South, and it’s now being recognized as a health-care problem. People often forgo care or prescriptions if they have debt, according to a KFF Health News […]

Planned Parenthood to Blitz GOP Seats, Betting Abortion Fears Can Sway Voters

By Molly Castle Work July 8, 2024 KFF Health News Original

The reproductive rights organization hopes to oust GOP incumbents from key California congressional seats by highlighting the possibility of a national abortion ban. A state Republican official calls it a swing and a miss, noting that, under Democrats, hospitals have closed maternity wards and filed for bankruptcy.

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