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Teresa Martinez, 62, from East Los Angeles makes $10,000 a year working as a hairdresser in a Koreatown salon. With her modest income she is likely to be eligible for health coverage under the Affordable Care Act's Medi-Cal expansion.
About 800,000 people in California are presumed to be eligible for the newly expanded program but lack final approval. For a Los Angeles hairdresser and others like her, that means medical appointments are on hold.
Mary Chiu complained in 2011 that her elderly mother suffered terribly from poor care in a nursing home. Hers is among hundreds of cases that remain unresolved due to a backlog of investigations in Los Angeles County.
An audit that followed a KHN report revealed an alarming backlog of more than 3,000 open inspections at nursing homes. The supervisor in charge of the inspections has been replaced and moved to a 'special assignment.'
A decades-old Medicaid restriction prevents treatment centers with more than 16 beds from billing the program for residential services for low-income adults.
Teledentistry experiment in California aims to bring care to needy patients in schools and nursing homes. Consulting with dentists over the Internet, hygienists and dental assistants offer preventive treatment and education.
Teledentistry is changing the dynamics of dental care delivery to children in low-income communities. Mireya Rodriguez, a dental hygienist in alternative practice, conducts dental screenings at Head Start preschool centers in Los Angeles,
But some residents remain unconvinced they need coverage, and others say they can't afford it even with financial help.
Largely low-income and minority California State University students want health insurance but many are afraid they can't afford it. Outreach workers are scrambling to sign them up.
Largely low-income and minority California State University students want health insurance but many are afraid they can't afford it. Outreach workers are scrambling to sign them up.
State is one of a few nationally to offer insurance to low-income youths whose parents crossed the border illegally or overstayed visas.
Games, stories, tai chi and dancing help patients -- and caregivers -- cope with memory loss
Proponents say new gadgetry could transform medical diagnosis and treatment, but critics worry about commercial uses and possible breaches of privacy.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously ordered an audit Tuesday of how the public health department oversees nursing homes.
The SEIU is gathering signatures to put two hospital questions to voters in November. The union wants hospital charges capped at 25 percent above costs and CEO salaries at nonprofit hospitals capped at $450,000 per year.
They say they were trying to help clear a California backlog of 9,000 cases. Elder care advocate calls the move "unconscionable."
Patients face serious challenges, however, including a shortage of dentists and restrictions on treatment options.
Once limited to filling and dispensing drugs, pharmacists in California are increasingly providing direct care to patients.
They work with doctors to assess patients, spot medication errors and even write prescriptions.
Former foster youth in California are eligible for Medi-Cal until age 26 under the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA). Marcy Valenzuela has been without health insurance for the last four years. By the time she was 18, she had lived in several foster placements, had become addicted to drugs and spent time in juvenile hall. The 25-year-old is getting her life back on track, starting with her health.
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