Amid the federal debt ceiling talks, some lawmakers have their eyes set on cutting Medicaid funding.
That would be an ill-advised and costly mistake for everyone, not just for the vulnerable populations who are beneficiaries of the government-funded program.
As of October, the most recent month for which data is available, more than 300,000 older immigrant adults who lack legal residency had enrolled in full Medi-Cal benefits, 30 percent more than the state’s original projection.
State health officials, who had based their estimate on the number of people enrolled in a limited form of Medi-Cal that covers only emergency medical services, don’t know how many additional older Californians are eligible.
The unequal impacts of COVID-19 and the ongoing crisis of police violence in communities of color have exacerbated mistrust and disconnection between these communities and the health care system. This makes achieving patient-centered care a challenge.
Studies show that brief messages and two-way communication via text builds people’s trust and engagement in health care and educational settings.
As a pediatrician, I not only worry about the health of the children I care for, but also the health of their parents and caregivers. Unfortunately, disparities in the wellbeing of children in the United States are climbing.
Improving health equity for children should be among our highest priorities as a nation, because it will impact our future.
Soon after news broke last week of the Trump administration’s finalized “public charge” rule, benefit enrollers at the Eisner Health community clinic in downtown Los Angeles started getting phone calls.
In 2009, as the Great Recession bore down on California, lawmakers cut coverage of eyeglasses, podiatry, speech therapy and other benefits from the state’s low-income health program. A decade later, California will restore many of the cuts.
More than 150,000 California children dropped out of federally funded health insurance programs in 2018, a trend some experts blame on the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies and efforts to upend the Affordable Care Act.
A federal judge prelimarily approved a lawsuit settlement earlier this month that would require the state to better provide in-home health care to California children and young adults with complex medical needs.