Roughly three million poor and disabled Californians had their coverage for dental services cut three years ago, and community dental clinics have struggled to cover preventative services ever since.
Month: April 2012
By Mary Flynn
Since healthcare reform has started rolling out in California, community clinic have moved towards becoming ‘medical homes,’ or centers of care. That means qualifying low-income patients have access to primary care, pharmacy services, or specialty care. And especially exciting to health specialists is the new availability of mental health and substance abuse services, which are being included at clinics for the first time. But those benefits are dependent on the continuation of federal healthcare reform.
Sacramento freeways are notorious for traffic during rush hour. Not only is the capitol region flanked by two major rivers, cutting off potential access routes in and out of the area, but its suburbs are expanding at a rapid rate. But help may soon be on the way.
By Robert Fulton
This month marks the 20th anniversary of the 1992 Los Angeles Riots. And according to residents and community leaders in South Los Angeles, too little has changed over the past two decades.
Despite a potentially disruptive U.S. Supreme Court decision expected this summer, California officials are moving forward with the creation of a new, online health insurance market that is expected to be the centerpiece of the federal health reform approved wto years ago by Congress and President Obama.
Researchers and public health officials have known that the basis for adult health lies largely in childhood. The environment in which one is raised affects how healthy that person will be as they age. New research suggests that children who are repeatedly exposed to violence appear to be aging at a faster rate.
If you’re poor, you are also more likely to be sick with chronic diseases. Studies have demonstrated this truth time and again. For years, people have been trying to determine what exactly it is about poverty that causes poor health. Stress had always been a likely culprit, but scientists didn’t know how stress makes the body vulnerable – but new research is providing some clues.
An east Oakland urban youth farm is an unexpected patch of green oasis, set among concrete mazes that make up the city’s busy freeways.
While many senior living communities may hide the reality of death from residents by shuttling a body quietly out a side door, AgeSong shatters current cultural attitudes about older adults by embracing every aspect of the aging process, including bodily decay, mental decline and even death. Essential behavior for all AgeSong staff: treat residents as society’s wise elders – with respect and compassion. One of the country’s leaders in redefining aging, Nader Shabahangi’s rebel philosophy is filtered into six AgeSong Assisted Living and Elder Communities in San Francisco, Oakland, and neighboring Emeryville, which house nearly 400 residents. His approach actively counters today’s constricted views on aging.
Mold in substandard housing makes breathing hard for kids with asthma. Poorly planned streets and sidewalks make exercising outside, or swapping a drive for a walk, more difficult. Housing and transportation aren’t policy areas obviously related to health, but such decisions directly affect our well-being. A recent study suggests that starting to take a holistic approach to policy, one that considers health in all decisions, may not be as hard as it sounds.