Medicaid — which provides health coverage for almost 15 million Californians and about half of the state’s children — could face billions of dollars in federal cuts under a budget proposal from House Republicans.
That’s alarmed families like the Pequeños, who rely on Medicaid, called Medi-Cal in California, to pay for medical care and other support for their children with chronic conditions.
My son is able to live at home with our family, attend school and interact with the world because we live in a nation where disabled people have civil rights.
When I hear President Trump talk about eliminating diversity, equality, inclusion and accessibility, he’s not just attacking civil rights for disabled people — he’s sending a message to kids like my son that they don’t belong.
A new Medi-Cal benefit called Enhanced Care Management is designed to improve coordination and access to care for children with complex health and social needs.
Enrollment in the benefit has grown since it launched in July, 2023. But some advocates and parents are concerned about the benefits’ reach and effectiveness.
I spent a recent afternoon querying three major chatbots on some medical questions that I already knew the answers to. I wanted to test the kind of information that AI can provide.
“How do you go surfing while using a ventilator?” I typed. It was an obviously silly question. But Meta’s AI suggested using “a waterproof ventilator designed for surfing” and “set the ventilator to the appropriate settings for surfing.”
California’s about to bail programs overboard as it works to keep the state afloat amidst a huge budget deficit. It’s a problem, and I’m concerned for some programs that help children with special health care needs.
But I wanted to take a moment to talk about something that I don’t often bring up. Overall, California has the best health care for children and youth with special health care needs.
California has a severe shortage of pediatric specialist doctors. The state has only one pediatric medical toxicologist for all 8.7 million children in California, for example, and one child abuse specialist for every 258,000 children.
The shortfall puts medically fragile children at risk for worsening health and missed opportunities for life-changing treatment and support. Many families wait months — and in some cases a year or more — to get appointments.
California has a variety of programs aimed at supporting the health care needs of children with complex disabilities. But accessing and utilizing these programs is complicated and time consuming.
The California Health Report spoke with several experts and disability advocates about what can be done to ease the burden on families and ensure children with disabilities get the care they need.
The California Health Report spoke with disability rights experts and parent advocates about what families who speak a language other than English need to know about their rights when accessing health care and special education services, and tips on how to advocate for themselves.
Almost half of California residents speak a language other than English at home, most often Spanish.
Participating in extracurricular activities is hugely beneficial for children’s wellbeing and has been found to lower their risk of having depression and anxiety.
CoachArt is a nonprofit organization that helps chronically ill children ages 5 to 18 explore hobbies and skills through free classes, including painting, cooking, guitar lessons and martial arts.
For me, the most important thing about the holidays is food. I love cooking almost as much as I love eating.
But that perception was challenged when my son, James, was born with medically intensive disabilities. I wanted my son to have a positive relationship with food, even though he is fed through a tube. To do that, I had to tackle my own emotional baggage about what it means to feed my family.