Posts Tagged: pandemic
News
Amid a pandemic that has pushed millions of mothers out of the workplace, caused fertility rates to plunge and heightened the risk of death for pregnant women, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic lawmakers are seeking a slate of health proposals for low-income families and children. Newsom, a self-described feminist and the father of four young children, has long advocated family-friendly health and economic policies.
Opinion
OPINION: At his May press conference for the state budget revision, which detailed unprecedented action to address homelessness in California, Gov. Newsom referred to California freeways and underpasses as “too damn dirty.” The comment felt much too tongue-in-cheek for the issue at hand, and also much too similar to “The Rent is Too Damn High” slogan popularized by New York politician Jimmy McMillan.
News
In California, we have seen steady increases in Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid program) enrollment since April 2020, with caseloads about 9% larger in January 2021 compared to January 2020. Expanded Medi-Cal coverage is responsible for much of the decline in the uninsured rate.
Opinion
OPINION: The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored just how many Californians are living only a paycheck away from eviction or foreclosure. Thousands of Californians have fallen behind on their rents and mortgages as joblessness skyrocketed – with the Legislative Analyst’s Office estimating that even with unprecedented government assistance, Californians owed $400 million in unpaid rent in 2020.
News
Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled an unprecedented $100 billion economic recovery package for California that taps state and federal money, while providing a new round of $600 stimulus checks to most Californians and covering missed payments for millions of renters.
News
Gov. Gavin Newsom has embraced Silicon Valley tech companies and health care industry titans in response to the covid-19 pandemic like no other governor in America — routinely outsourcing life-or-death public health duties to his allies in the private sector. At least 30 tech and health care companies have received lucrative, no-bid government contracts, or helped fund and carry out critical public health activities during the state’s battle against the coronavirus, a KHN analysis has found.
Opinion
OPINION: A record 3,200 Californians lost their lives to opioids in 2019 — well before the stress and disruption caused by COVID-19 caused overdose deaths to spike to new highs nationwide. By May 2020, powerful synthetic opioids such as fentanyl caused California’s 12-month all-drug overdose death rate to spike nearly 27%, significantly faster than the national average.
Opinion
OPINION: The mother on the other end of the phone call was worried about her newborn’s increased fussiness and stomach issues. After taking a thorough history, the problem became clear: The mother had switched from breastmilk to a formula that triggered symptoms related to the baby’s known history of milk protein allergy. I advised a switch to a hydrolyzed formula.
Analysis
ANALYSIS: Among the numerous advocates for a wider range of lower-carbon options in the U.S. is one group who’ve not received much attention: the propane industry. Given the trends on propane usage and production, that may very well change in 2021. Propane advocates think that their fuel is not getting the kind of attention that it deserves from policy-makers, regulators, and environmental lobbyists.
News
California’s decennial battle to redraw the state’s political boundaries has moved into uncharted territory, a casualty of the pandemic and unprecedented delays in the release of census data. The U.S. Census Bureau recently announced its data – the foundation of political map-making — will be released to all states this year by Sept. 30, a full six months later than the original release date.
Illustration of a pregnant woman. (Image: Tanya Antusenok,via Shutterstock)
