Latest KFF Health News Stories
Did Your Health Plan Deny You Care? Fight Back.
Most patients don’t argue when their health insurance won’t cover treatment or medication, but they should: Consumers win about half of their appeals. The process can sometimes be overwhelming, but there are ways to prepare and get help.
Hospitals Block ‘Surprise Billing’ Measure In California
California lawmakers on Wednesday pulled legislation that would have protected some patients from surprise medical bills for emergency care, citing opposition from hospitals. They vowed to resurrect the bill next year.
With ACA’s Future In Peril, California Reins In Rising Health Insurance Premiums
Premiums will grow by an average of 0.8% next year on the state health insurance exchange. Officials cite two new policies for the relatively low rate hike: a new state tax penalty on Californians who don’t have health insurance coupled with state-based tax credits to help enrollees afford their premiums, including middle-income people who make too much money to qualify for federal financial aid.
Medi-Cal Enrollment Among Immigrant Kids Stalls, Then Falls. Is Fear To Blame?
Enrollment among undocumented immigrant children in California’s Medicaid program started strong before stagnating and then falling. Although this decline is similar to an enrollment decline among all children in Medicaid nationwide, experts believe there are different reasons behind it.
State Broadens Investigation Of Doctors For Issuing Questionable Vaccination Exemptions
The Medical Board of California is investigating at least four doctors for issuing questionable vaccine exemptions for numerous children. The investigations come amid the nation’s worst measles outbreak in more than a quarter-century.
Want Ammo? Be Prepared For A Background Check
A new law took effect Monday that requires anyone buying ammunition in California to undergo a background check at the time of each purchase. Public health leaders hope this, and other provisions of Proposition 63, will help reduce the rate of gun violence.
A Million Californians Don’t Have Clean Drinking Water. Where Do They Live?
More than 10% of residents in 12 California counties don’t have safe drinking water, according to a California Healthline analysis of state water data. State lawmakers have pledged $130 million a year to help bring clean drinking water to Californians who need it.
As The Economy Surges, A Dramatic Drop In Workers On Disability
Experts credit the lowest U.S. unemployment rate in 50 years, along with a more flexible work culture and tighter oversight of who qualifies for federal disability benefits.
New Budget Boosts Health Coverage For Low-Income Californians
California lawmakers spent big on Medi-Cal in the 2019-20 state budget, voting to cover more older residents and people with disabilities, restore benefits cut during the recession and open the program to eligible young adults who are in the country illegally.
Vaccine Drama On Display In California’s Capitol
Hundreds of protesters descended on the state Capitol on Thursday, warning against government tyranny and corporate greed. Their target: not taxes, not high-tech surveillance, but a bill that would determine which kids must get their routine shots.
California Vaccine Bill Amended To Appease Governor
In the wake of concerns from Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Medical Board of California, a state senator on Tuesday unveiled significant amendments to his bill to tighten vaccine requirements. A hearing on the measure is likely to draw hundreds of people to the state Capitol on Thursday.
A Proposal To Make It Harder For Kids To Skip Vaccines Gives Powerful Voices Pause
California lawmakers are debating whether to tighten the rules on childhood vaccinations and give the ultimate say to state public health officials. But questions are emerging from unexpected quarters: the state medical board and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Drug Users Armed With Naloxone Double As Medics On Streets Of San Francisco
The widespread availability of naloxone, which reverses overdoses, has radically changed the culture of opioid use on the streets, giving drug users a sense of security and inducing them to seek out the more powerful high of the synthetic opioid fentanyl.
Keeping Kids Healthy And Sane In A Digital World
Children are spending more time on their devices than ever before, despite evidence that excessive screen time puts their minds and bodies at risk. Parents should set limits and stick to them — and also change their own online behavior, experts say.
Use Of Buprenorphine To Treat Opioid Addiction Proliferates In California
Buprenorphine is becoming an increasingly popular choice among doctors in California for treating opioid addiction. Use of methadone, while still more common, has not gained ground in recent years.
A Medical Sanctuary For Migrant Farmworkers
A former farmworker, now a doctor, runs two clinics in California’s Central Valley providing care — often free of charge — for migrants who don’t have money and are deeply worried about the federal government’s hard-line stance on immigration.
As ER Wait Times Grow, More Patients Leave Against Medical Advice
Crowded emergency rooms are likely to blame. In 2017, the median ER wait time for patients before admission as inpatients to California hospitals was 336 minutes — or more than 5½ hours.
Newsom Changes Course On Plan To Pay For Immigrant Health Coverage
California’s governor Friday scuttled his plan to siphon public health money from four counties to help provide health coverage for unauthorized immigrants ages 19 through 25.
‘John Doe’ Patients Sometimes Force Hospital Staff To Play Detective
A large public hospital in Los Angeles gets over 1,000 unidentified patients a year. Most are quickly identified, but some require considerable gumshoe work — a task that can be complicated by medical privacy laws.
State Bans Pesticide Linked To Developmental Problems
California officials announced a ban on chlorpyrifos, a widely used pesticide that has been linked to lower IQs, lower birth weights and other developmental issues in children, even as the federal government fights to protect it.
