Category: California

Paradise Lost: Wildfire Chases Seniors From Retirement Havens To Field Hospitals

Having fled quickly — often without medications, wheelchairs or pets to comfort them — refugees from the Camp Fire manage as best they can in makeshift shelters miles from home. A virus is spreading, and medical attention is spotty.

Gun Control Vs. Mental Health Care: Debate After Mass Shootings Obscures Murky Reality

More than half of mass shooters have serious mental health disorders, experts say, but the vast majority of mentally ill people are not violent. Some clinicians suggest strategic interventions, including closing loopholes in background checks to buy firearms and allowing family members to confiscate guns under temporary court orders for relatives at risk of doing harm.

For Wildfire Safety, Only Particular Masks Guard Against Toxic Particulate Matter

As wildfires blaze in Northern and Southern California, millions of people outside of the burn zones are getting exposed to dangerous wildfire smoke. For those donning face masks for protection, only a specific mask will work.

An Underused Strategy For Surge In STDs: Treat Patients’ Partners Without A Doctor Visit

For over a decade, federal health officials have recommended the practice, known as expedited partner therapy. It is allowed in most states, but many doctors don’t do it — either because of legal or ethical concerns, or because they are unaware of it.

California Dreamin’? With Newsom’s Win, Single-Payer Unlikely To Follow Anytime Soon

Even though Democrat Gavin Newsom campaigned for single-payer, it’s unlikely that he and other lawmakers will completely overhaul the state’s health care system right away. Instead, they will likely propose incremental steps to provide more Californians with health insurance.

Quick: What’s The Difference Between Medicare-For-All and Single-Payer?

As politicians across the country toss about such health care catchphrases, sometimes interchangeably, many voters say they’re “just confused.”

Billions In ‘Questionable Payments’ Went To California’s Medicaid Insurers And Providers

The money was paid on behalf of more than 400,000 people who may have been ineligible for the public program, a state audit found. One had been dead for four years before payments stopped.

Dialysis Giant DaVita Defends Itself In Court And At The Polls

Although dialysis provider DaVita Inc. has taken major financial hits this year, including a $383.5 million jury award in response to wrongful death lawsuits, it still rakes in profits. The company faces its biggest threat next month, when California voters weigh in on a ballot initiative that could force it to leave the state.