Access To Coronavirus Testing Is Uneven As Communities Compete For Scarce Resources : Shots - Health News Access to testing is still uneven in the nation's largest state. Even as some urban counties offer tests to anyone who wants one, a rural county is testing raw sewage to track the virus.Anna Maria Barry-JesterAngela HartRachel BluthFromMonths into the spread of the novel coronavirus in the United States, widespread diagnostic testing still isn't available. California offers a sobering view of the dysfunction blocking the way nationally. It's hard to overstate how uneven the access to...…Access To Coronavirus Testing Is Uneven As Communities Compete For Scarce Resources : Shots - Health News Access to testing is still uneven in the nation's largest state. Even as some urban counties offer tests to anyone who wants one, a rural county is testing raw sewage to track the virus.Anna Maria Barry-JesterAngela HartRachel BluthFromMonths into the spread of the novel coronavirus in the United States, widespread diagnostic testing still isn't available. California offers a sobering view of the dysfunction blocking the way nationally. It's hard to overstate how uneven the access to...WW…

This story also ran on .Months into the spread of the coronavirus in the United States, widespread diagnostic testing still isn’t available, and California offers a sobering view of the dysfunction blocking the way.It’s hard to overstate how uneven the access to critical test kits remains in the nation’s largest state. Even as some Southern California counties are opening drive-thru sites to make testing available to any resident who wants it, a rural northern county is testing raw sewage to determine whether the coronavirus has infiltrated its communities.County to county, city to city —...…This story also ran on .Months into the spread of the coronavirus in the United States, widespread diagnostic testing still isn’t available, and California offers a sobering view of the dysfunction blocking the way.It’s hard to overstate how uneven the access to critical test kits remains in the nation’s largest state. Even as some Southern California counties are opening drive-thru sites to make testing available to any resident who wants it, a rural northern county is testing raw sewage to determine whether the coronavirus has infiltrated its communities.County to county, city to city —...WW…

July 1, 2020In April, Gov. Gavin Newsom launched a multimillion-dollar state initiative to bring COVID-19 testing to the people and places with the least access: rural towns and disadvantaged inner-city neighborhoods.California is now halting its expansion, citing costs, even as the state is getting walloped by record-setting spikes in new infections and double-digit increases in hospitalizations.The state will no longer fund new testing sites despite pleas from counties for additional assistance — and it has closed some locations and moved them elsewhere. It also has threatened to pull...…July 1, 2020In April, Gov. Gavin Newsom launched a multimillion-dollar state initiative to bring COVID-19 testing to the people and places with the least access: rural towns and disadvantaged inner-city neighborhoods.California is now halting its expansion, citing costs, even as the state is getting walloped by record-setting spikes in new infections and double-digit increases in hospitalizations.The state will no longer fund new testing sites despite pleas from counties for additional assistance — and it has closed some locations and moved them elsewhere. It also has threatened to pull...WW…

This story also ran on .As the coronavirus roils the economy and throws millions of Americans out of work, Medicaid is emerging as a default insurance plan for many of the newly unemployed. That could produce unprecedented strains on the vital health insurance program, according to state officials and policy researchers.Americans are being urged to stay home and practice “social distancing” to prevent the spread of the virus, causing businesses to shutter their doors and lay off workers. The Labor Department reported Thursday that more than people signed up for unemployment insurance during...…This story also ran on .As the coronavirus roils the economy and throws millions of Americans out of work, Medicaid is emerging as a default insurance plan for many of the newly unemployed. That could produce unprecedented strains on the vital health insurance program, according to state officials and policy researchers.Americans are being urged to stay home and practice “social distancing” to prevent the spread of the virus, causing businesses to shutter their doors and lay off workers. The Labor Department reported Thursday that more than people signed up for unemployment insurance during...WW…

April 20, 2021As more Americans start commuting to work and hitting the roads after a year indoors, they’ll be returning to streets that have gotten deadlier.Last year, an estimated in motor vehicle crashes and 4.8 million were injured. That represents an 8% increase over 2019, the largest year-over-year increase in nearly a century — even though the number of miles driven fell by 13%, according to the National Safety Council.The emptier roads led to more speeding, which led to more fatalities, said Leah Shahum, executive director of , a nonprofit organization that works on reducing traffic...…April 20, 2021As more Americans start commuting to work and hitting the roads after a year indoors, they’ll be returning to streets that have gotten deadlier.Last year, an estimated in motor vehicle crashes and 4.8 million were injured. That represents an 8% increase over 2019, the largest year-over-year increase in nearly a century — even though the number of miles driven fell by 13%, according to the National Safety Council.The emptier roads led to more speeding, which led to more fatalities, said Leah Shahum, executive director of , a nonprofit organization that works on reducing traffic...WW…

In California’s Mendocino County, public health officials and community clinics say they have hit their vaccination stride.This story also ran on . It can beDespite the county’s remoteness and its largely rural population spread among wooded mountains, rugged coastline and idyllic vineyards, about 40% of eligible adults have received at least one dose of a covid-19 vaccine.But now they face renewed turbulence as health insurer Blue Shield of California takes over the state’s vaccine program with the mission of speeding up vaccinations.Instead of tracking down the most vulnerable of the...…In California’s Mendocino County, public health officials and community clinics say they have hit their vaccination stride.This story also ran on . It can beDespite the county’s remoteness and its largely rural population spread among wooded mountains, rugged coastline and idyllic vineyards, about 40% of eligible adults have received at least one dose of a covid-19 vaccine.But now they face renewed turbulence as health insurer Blue Shield of California takes over the state’s vaccine program with the mission of speeding up vaccinations.Instead of tracking down the most vulnerable of the...WW…

This story also ran on . It can beAs President Joe Biden works to overhaul U.S. health care policy, few challenges loom larger for his health secretary than restoring access to family planning while parrying legal challenges to abortion proliferating across the country.Physicians, clinics and women’s health advocates are looking to Xavier Becerra, Biden’s nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services, to help swiftly unwind Trump-era funding cuts and rules that decimated the nation’s network of reproductive health providers over the past four years.But Becerra, who as...…This story also ran on . It can beAs President Joe Biden works to overhaul U.S. health care policy, few challenges loom larger for his health secretary than restoring access to family planning while parrying legal challenges to abortion proliferating across the country.Physicians, clinics and women’s health advocates are looking to Xavier Becerra, Biden’s nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services, to help swiftly unwind Trump-era funding cuts and rules that decimated the nation’s network of reproductive health providers over the past four years.But Becerra, who as...WW…

This story also ran on . It can beSACRAMENTO — A group of Democratic state lawmakers introduced legislation Friday to create a single-payer health care system to cover all Californians, immediately defining the biggest health policy debate of the year and putting enormous political pressure on Gov. Gavin Newsom.The Democratic governor faces the increasingly likely prospect of a Republican-driven recall election later this year. The single-payer bill adds to his political peril from the left if he doesn’t express support, and from the right if he does.State Assembly member Ash Kalra, author...…This story also ran on . It can beSACRAMENTO — A group of Democratic state lawmakers introduced legislation Friday to create a single-payer health care system to cover all Californians, immediately defining the biggest health policy debate of the year and putting enormous political pressure on Gov. Gavin Newsom.The Democratic governor faces the increasingly likely prospect of a Republican-driven recall election later this year. The single-payer bill adds to his political peril from the left if he doesn’t express support, and from the right if he does.State Assembly member Ash Kalra, author...WW…

This story also ran on . It can beANTIOCH, Calif. — A mobile “strike team” is bringing vaccines to some of Northern California’s most vulnerable residents along with a message: This is how you avoid dying from covid-19.So far, that message has been met with both nervous acceptance and outbursts of joy from a population that has been ravaged by the disease. One 68-year-old pastor, who lives in a racially diverse, low-income senior housing complex, rolled down his sleeve after his shot and said he wants to live to see 70 — just to spite the government.The team of county nurses and nonprofit...…This story also ran on . It can beANTIOCH, Calif. — A mobile “strike team” is bringing vaccines to some of Northern California’s most vulnerable residents along with a message: This is how you avoid dying from covid-19.So far, that message has been met with both nervous acceptance and outbursts of joy from a population that has been ravaged by the disease. One 68-year-old pastor, who lives in a racially diverse, low-income senior housing complex, rolled down his sleeve after his shot and said he wants to live to see 70 — just to spite the government.The team of county nurses and nonprofit...WW…

Copyright © 2022, Los Angeles Times | | | | Advertisement Across California, independent physician practices, outpatient clinics and hospitals are merging or getting gobbled up by private equity firms or large healthcare systems.Such consolidation can inflate prices, and consumers end up facing higher insurance premiums, more expensive outpatient services and bigger out-of-pocket costs to see specialists.Now that COVID-19 has slammed the healthcare industry, especially the small practices that are barely seeing patients, the healthcare consolidation trend is likely to accelerate.“I don’t...…Copyright © 2022, Los Angeles Times | | | | Advertisement Across California, independent physician practices, outpatient clinics and hospitals are merging or getting gobbled up by private equity firms or large healthcare systems.Such consolidation can inflate prices, and consumers end up facing higher insurance premiums, more expensive outpatient services and bigger out-of-pocket costs to see specialists.Now that COVID-19 has slammed the healthcare industry, especially the small practices that are barely seeing patients, the healthcare consolidation trend is likely to accelerate.“I don’t...WW…