California

Latest KFF Health News Stories

‘Religious’ Exemptions Add Legal Thorns to Looming Vaccine Mandates

KFF Health News Original

No major religion’s teachings denounce vaccination, but that hasn’t kept individual churches and others from providing religious “cover” for people to avoid submitting to vaccination as a workplace requirement.

California Set to Spend Billions on Curing Homelessness and Caring for ‘Whole Body’ Politic

KFF Health News Original

California is embarking on a five-year experiment to infuse its health insurance program for low-income people with billions of dollars in nonmedical services spanning housing, food delivery and addiction care. Gov. Gavin Newsom said the goal is to improve care for the program’s sickest and costliest members and save money, but will it work?

Delta Cutting ‘Like a Buzzsaw’ Through Oregon-California Border Counties

KFF Health News Original

Zoom in on states with overall good vaccination rates and you see a checkerboard effect, with rural areas far lagging urban zones. That’s allowed the pandemic to rage in places like Jackson County, Oregon, overwhelming hospitals.

Democrats Say Abortion Is on the Line in Recall Election. But Rolling Back Rights Wouldn’t Be Easy.

KFF Health News Original

Reproductive rights groups and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom argue that Californians’ access to abortion would be threatened if he is recalled. But a replacement governor’s power to restrict access to the procedure would be limited.

Temperaturas extremas aumentan los riesgos de salud de los trabajadores agrícolas

KFF Health News Original

El calor es la principal causa de muerte relacionada con el clima en los Estados Unidos. Entre 1992 y 2017, el estrés por calor mató a 815 trabajadores estadounidenses y lesionó gravemente a más de 70,000, según la Oficina de Estadísticas Laborales.

As Temperatures Rise, So Do the Health Risks for California’s Farmworkers

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.

Federal Vaccine Program Hasn’t Helped Those Whose Lives Were Altered by Covid Shot

KFF Health News Original

A national vaccine court has paid out billions to families who could prove their kids were injured by vaccines. But there’s only a skeletal program for the rare victims of covid vaccination, raising concerns as the pressure for mandated shots grows.

Apple Aims to Push More Patient Data to Doctors. But Who Can Gauge Its Impact on Health?

KFF Health News Original

The Silicon Valley giant has been cryptic about its plan for the growing mound of health data available through its iPhones and watches. Health systems have experimented with the company’s health app, but it hasn’t yet become central to treatment.

Déjà Vu? Consumers Scramble for Covid Tests in Hard-Hit Areas

KFF Health News Original

As the nation confronts the delta variant, many consumers are again facing delays getting tested. The problem appears most acute in the South and Midwest, where new infections are growing the fastest.

Facing Recall, Newsom Draws Support From Health Care Allies

KFF Health News Original

California Gov. Gavin Newsom faces a recall election in September, fueled in part by anger over his pandemic policies. The health care industry has ponied up more than $4.8 million so far to defend the first-term Democrat.

Olympic Dream Dashed After Bike Crash and Nightmare Medical Bill Over $200K

KFF Health News Original

A bicyclist from California competed in a Pennsylvania race that could have landed him in this month’s Tokyo Olympics. Instead, a crash on the velodrome track landed him in two hospitals where his out-of-state, out-of-network surgeries garnered huge bills.