Santa Cruz County Health Articles

With traffic deaths now regularly topping 300 per year, Measure HLA on the March 5 ballot gives Los Angeles voters the opportunity to force their reluctant city to implement new traffic safety measures.

As the COVID pandemic eased, so did the epidemic of death on the road. Somewhat. But the ongoing crisis of traffic fatalities remains at high levels with early numbers form 2023 appearing to top 4,000 in California.

State lawmakers reconvene with a lot of problems to fix, but not a lot of money to spend on solutions with a projected $68 billion budget deficit.

Watsonville Community Hospital. Pajaronian file photo
Just two years ago, Watsonville Community Hospital was saddled with a $30 million debt and was facing bankruptcy and possible closure.

Undocumented Californians are leaving health care clinics with “smiles” after they learn they’re newly eligible for Medi-Cal insurance. The health insurance expansion was decades in the making for immigrant advocates.

Surprise ambulance bills can leave families deeply in debt after a medical emergency. A new state law that forces insurance companies to negotiate payments is expected to save Californians tens of millions of dollars a year.

California is modernizing how it pays health care providers through Medi-Cal. Some mental health providers say the changes endanger their services.

An investigative report shows how California companies and governments avoid the Golden State’s strict environmental regulations by shipping toxic waste across state borders. New reporting shows how California exports the risk to Mexico.

The federal government suspended an annual Medicaid renewal requirement during COVID-19. Now that it has resumed, many Californians are losing coverage for “procedural reasons.”

The California food banks association warns of rising food insecurity, but its pleas for more state aid face a tough slog next year due to the projected budget deficit, as a federal program to help people get enough food is …

Poverty in California was reduced by record levels during the COVID pandemic, but now those economic support programs have come to an end and poverty is on the rise again.

Earlier this year, the state created a loan program meant to help struggling hospitals stay afloat and to help reopen Madera County’s only hospital. Almost a year after its closure, Madera continues its search for a buyer or partner.

Janus has been the go-to recovery center in Santa Cruz County for the past 30 years. In this interview, board chair, Edison Jensen, and CEO Amber Williams talk about ways to support recovery during the holidays, how their various programs …

A March 2024 bond measure would raise more than $100 million to buy the land and buildings at Watsonville Community Hospital. (Stephen Baxter — Santa Cruz Local)
WATSONVILLE >> Leaders of the Pajaro Valley Health Care District on Wednesday night …

How do you have a meaningful day when you have a significant disability?
For the past decade, The Founders of Santa Cruz’s Common Roots Farm have been on an odyssey to answer this question.
Heidi Cartan and Phillipe Habib are …

Hunger and food insecurity have become persistent problems in California. With the world’s fifth-largest economy, what steps can we take to make sure that everyone has enough to eat?