Covid Fears Keep Many Latino Kids out of Classrooms

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.

El miedo a covid mantiene a muchos niños latinos fuera de las aulas

KFF Health News Original

En California, los latinos constituyen el 39% de la población del estado, pero representan el 47% de las muertes por covid, según el Departamento de Salud Pública estatal. A nivel nacional, su riesgo de morir por covid es 2,3 veces mayor que el de los blancos no hispanos.

Covid Testing Has Turned Into a Financial Windfall for Hospitals and Other Providers

KFF Health News Original

Because there are no caps on cost, consumers and insurers often get billed hundreds of dollars for the most reliable PCR covid test. Prices are rising and they can’t fight back.

Salesforce, Google, Facebook. How Big Tech Undermines California’s Public Health System.

KFF Health News Original

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has outsourced his way through the covid-19 pandemic, tasking his private-sector allies in Silicon Valley and the health care industry with fundamental public health duties such as testing, tracing and vaccination. Among the losers: the state’s weakened public health system.

Hit by Higher Prices for Gear, Doctors and Dentists Want Insurers to Pay

KFF Health News Original

The costs of personal protective equipment and disinfecting offices while seeing fewer patients have some doctors and dentists demanding that insurance companies step up.

The Vulnerable Homebound Are Left Behind on Vaccination

KFF Health News Original

Even as the nation has moved on to vaccinating everyone 16 and older, the vast majority of people homebound due to frailty or age — and among the most vulnerable to covid’s devastation — have not yet been vaccinated. California offers a sharp lens on the challenges.

Some County Jail Inmates See Vaccination as Ticket to a Better Life — In the State Pen

KFF Health News Original

In the Los Angeles County Jail system, many inmates hope being vaccinated will get them transferred more quickly to state prison. Some just want to protect themselves against covid, while others are distrustful and refuse vaccination.

You Don’t Have to Suffer to Benefit From Covid Vaccination — But Some Prefer It

KFF Health News Original

In the times of smallpox, vaccination was accompanied by blood, sweat, fire and brimstone. Nowadays, a slight fever may make you feel as if you’ve earned the reward of immunity from covid. But you’re protected even without a nasty reaction to the vaccine.

‘We’re Coming for You’: For Public Health Officials, a Year of Threats and Menace

KFF Health News Original

Local health officials have become the face of government authority as they work to stem the pandemic. That has made them targets for chilling threats from some of the same militia groups that stormed the U.S. Capitol. Santa Cruz leaders are among those whose daily routines now incorporate security patrols, surveillance cameras and, in some cases, firearms.

California and Texas Took Different Routes to Vaccination. Who’s Ahead?

KFF Health News Original

California stresses equity for minority groups. Texas is all about personal choice and liberty. Both are struggling to vaccinate Latinos and contending with vaccine hesitancy among conservative communities.

Otra victoria para la industria: fracasa proyecto de ley de impuestos a sodas

KFF Health News Original

En los últimos cuatro años, las empresas de refrescos gastaron alrededor de $5,9 millones presionando a legisladores de California y haciendo donaciones a sus campañas u organizaciones benéficas favoritas.

Another Soda Tax Bill Dies. Another Win for Big Soda.

KFF Health News Original

A bill that would have allowed California cities and counties to once again pursue taxes on sugary drinks was just shelved in the legislature without a hearing. Public health advocates blame the political — and financial — clout of the soft drink industry.

Tras un año mortal en las carreteras, los estados dicen sí a la seguridad y no a la velocidad

KFF Health News Original

Legisladores de California y otros estados se replantean cómo establecer y hacer cumplir los límites de velocidad, y proponen darle más poder a las jurisdicciones locales para frenar a los conductores en sus comunidades.

After a Deadly Year on the Roads, States Push for Safety Over Speed

KFF Health News Original

Lawmakers in California and other states are rethinking how they set and enforce speed limits, and they’re proposing to hand more power to local authorities to slow drivers in their communities.

Pandemia resalta la necesidad de clínicas de atención de urgencia para mujeres

KFF Health News Original

Las clínicas de atención de urgencia especializadas en ginecología y obstetricia han comenzado a surgir en todo el país en los últimos años, y la pandemia de covid ha aumentado la demanda.

Pandemic Highlights Need for Urgent Care Clinics for Women

KFF Health News Original

For years, women with painful gynecological issues have faced long waits in ERs or longer waits to see their doctors. During the pandemic, women have increasingly turned to women’s clinics that handle urgent issues like miscarriage or serious urinary tract infections.

Syphilis Cases in California Drive a Record-Setting Year for STDs Nationwide

KFF Health News Original

New data released Tuesday from the CDC shows sexually transmitted infections reached an all-time high in 2019. The biggest spike was in syphilis cases, which rose 74% between 2015 and 2019. Leading the country in syphilis is California, where men who have sex with men make up half the cases.