In light of investigations that found that foster children are sometimes drugged with too many psychiatric medications, Gov. Jerry Brown signed three bills Tuesday that provide better oversight of medical care for youths in the state’s charge. The new laws require those who care for foster children to be trained on the risks of medications and give them additional tools to curb over-prescription. The bills,
Author: Daniel Weintraub
By Daniel Weintraub Residents of poor, inner-city neighborhoods have a notoriously difficult time getting access to health care. Gloria McNeal has a simple solution to that problem: bring health care to them. McNeal, dean of National University’s school of Public Health and Human Services, is director of a new, nurse-managed health clinic the university is setting up in the Watts community of South-Central Los
Training the next geriatric workforce to provide wraparound care. Doctors are trying to end the cycle of toxic stress, which hurts children. The disturbing link between pet abuse and domestic violence. There’s a dire need for medical interpreters for indigenous immigrants. A new law aims to help limited English speakers get better care at hospitals. Medical expenses tend to be higher in Northern California.
Only about a third of community health clinics in California have dental services onsite, causing some patients to forgo treatment, according to a report released Wednesday. The study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research found that the state could significantly improve access to dental care, particularly for low-income and uninsured people, if dentists were available at more health clinics. While a third of
The Kaiser Family Foundation’s latest tracking poll finds strong support for having Medicare reimburse doctors for the time they spend discussing end-of-life options with their patients. The survey also finds lukewarm support for the so-called “Cadillac tax” on expensive health plans, with respondents more likely to support the tax after they are told it might reduce overall health care costs. See the full poll here.
How California’s drought affects residents’ health. The state’s strict emissions limits have reduced cancer risk by 76 percent in the last 20 years. Despite the need, third-generation Mexican adults in California are less likely to receive diabetes care. Undocumented adults in Contra Costa County now have health coverage. One in six school districts have dropped a Medi-Cal reimbursement plan for outreach, because it’s cumbersome. Are
California’s effort to improve the cancer registry signals a shift toward preventative care. Should caregivers earn a $15-an-hour minimum wage? Many seniors in Orange County are opting out of the state’s duals demonstration project. Would managed care really be better for kids with special needs? California was among the states with the largest drop in uninsured residents last year. More have health care, but
Gov. Jerry Brown is trying to force California’s sickest, most vulnerable children into managed care health plans. But those children – or at least their families and the doctors who care for them – are fighting back.
By Daniel Weintraub At first glance the conclusions from a recent study on obesity by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research seem obvious: people who are overweight or obese tend to have a less healthy diet and exercise less often than people whose weight is normal. But behind those findings is another, more compelling story: Minorities are more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic
California Health Report, Editor-in-Chief, Daniel Weintraub interviews UC Davis Assistant Professor, Dr. Amy Barnhorst about her work with patients in acute psychiatric crisis.