California is home to more than 2 million undocumented immigrants, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. Now, in the unprecedented economic and health emergency of COVID-19, undocumented Californians are among the most vulnerable.
Some immigrant advocacy groups are calling on the state to extend unemployment insurance and the earned income tax credit to undocumented workers to cushion the economic blow from job losses.
Even though children in general are less likely than adults to develop serious illness from the coronavirus, that may not be the case for kids with compromised immune systems and complex health care needs, medical experts said.
Still, families of children with complex health care needs are, in some ways, more prepared than others to handle the threat of coronavirus infection. Hand washing, disinfecting and caution about venturing outside are already a reality.
As public health officials call on Californians to help stop the spread of the virus, many low-wage workers are being forced to make potentially life-threatening choices: whether to heed the precautions and lose income they rely on, or to show up for work anyway in order to put food on their tables and pay their rent.
These choices could be critical because low-wage earners often have jobs involving interactions with the public, such as serving food, caring for the elderly or cleaning hotel rooms.
California’s top health priority should be making sure that people who need mental health treatment can get it, over 90 percent of respondents said in a recent poll.
People of color often feel the lack of access more acutely, researchers found, with 75 percent of black and 57 percent of Latino respondents noting that their communities don’t have enough mental health providers, compared to 49 percent of white participants.
The California State Auditor condemned three government agencies in a recent report for failing to fix problems with health care programs that serve some of the state’s most vulnerable residents.
The Department of Health Care Services has been slow to improve oversight of how counties manage and spend money for mental health care, the auditor said.
The complicated system creates a disparity where children from families without the means to pay for medical equipment out of pocket often must go without it for months or years, limiting their interactions with their community or setting them up for poorer health outcomes compared to their wealthier peers.
The equipment families seek includes lifts, wheelchairs, walkers, ventilators and hospital beds.
Under a state law that took effect in January 2018, counties are no longer supposed to charge fees to youth involved in the juvenile legal system, or their families.
However, a recent study found that some counties continue to illegally collect some prohibited fees. Others are chasing young people and their families for debts they incurred before the law took effect.
Undocumented people are among the most vulnerable populations when it comes to the impact of wildfires.
Should the state create its own disaster relief fund for undocumented residents, rather than relying on non-profits?
California health officials are gearing up for the launch of a statewide screening effort that aims to help doctors measure children’s exposure to trauma and their risk of related health problems.
Starting Jan. 1, California will become the first state in the nation to reimburse health care providers who screen patients enrolled in the Medi-Cal program for “adverse childhood experiences” or ACEs.
A halt on permit approvals for hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” in California has drawn widespread praise from environmental activists, but experts say much broader actions are needed to protect the health of communities located near oil fields.
Research increasingly shows negative health impacts associated with oil and gas extraction of all types, not just fracking