This article by Beth Kutscher for Modern Healthcare details California Gov. Jerry Brown's decisions to prioritize health care expenses in FY 2017

A new Medi-Cal policy will offer full coverage to undocumented children. Most undocumented families can only access medical care now on an emergency basis.

"Health advocates generally support using technology to make medical care more convenient."

UCLA students have the option to enroll in a class to learn about growing old

By Barbara Feder Ostrov for California Healthline A health care startup made a wild pitch to Cara Waller, CEO of the Newport Orthopedic Institute in Newport Beach. The company said it could get patients more engaged by “automating” physician empathy. It “almost made me nauseous,” she said. How can you automate something as deeply personal as empathy?… Continue reading Hospitals Employ Email ‘Empathy’ To Help Doctors And Patients Keep In Touch

California Hospitals Will be Required to Rope in Family Caregivers By Michael Sandler for Modern Healthcare A California state law that takes effect in the new year aims to help hospital patients better transition home with the aid of informed family members and friends, a move that could improve quality of care, prevent readmissions and cut costs.… Continue reading California Hospitals Will be Required to Rope in Family Caregivers

By Tracy Seipel for the San Jose Mercury News In a new strategy to force the state to spend more on health care for the poor, civil rights activists on Tuesday alleged that millions of California’s Latinos — who make up the bulk of the state’s 12.6 million Medi-Cal enrollees — are being denied timely access… Continue reading Latinos, Other Medi-Cal Recipients Denied Access to Health Care Activists Allege

By Chad Terhune for The Los Angeles Times California’s biggest health insurers are among a select few to show a profit selling Obamacare policies. In the first year of the massive coverage expansion, California’s three largest health insurers bucked the national trend of heavy losses and accounted for half of the gains reported under the… Continue reading California’s 3 Largest Health Insurers among Few to Show Obamacare Profit in 2014

Published on California Healthline Facilities across California that offer services to individuals with developmental disabilities temporarily closed Wednesday in the wake of a mass shooting at Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, the Sacramento Bee‘s “Capitol Alert” reports. Background on Centers Inland Regional Center is the largest of 21 such facilities that operate under a… Continue reading Calif. Developmental Disabilities Centers React to Shooting

by George Lauer, California Healthline Features Editor The moral of the story about a disagreement over what Blue Shield of California is expected to do in return for approval to enter the Medi-Cal managed care market appears to be “pay close attention to how things are worded.” Consumer advocates and state officials thought the agreement this… Continue reading Disagreement Over Charity Contributions Simmers in Blue Shield’s Care1st Deal