- Economics
California is Home to 5 Million Residents Living in Poverty: California’s poverty rate climbed in the first quarter of 2023, the latest quarter measured by the Public Policy Institute of California. Poverty increased from 11.7% in 2021 to 13.2%, the institute said, with 5 million people living in poverty. Read more from CalMatters.
Survey Reveals Health Care Costs Remain Unattainable for Insured Americans, Reports Axios
As health care costs continue to rise, more than half of working-age Americans said they've struggled to afford care this year, according to a new Commonwealth Fund survey. The survey is the latest evidence of how people with insurance are struggling to pay medical bills, forcing them to forgo or delay needed care. (Goldman, 10/26)
Report Unveils Escalating Hunger Within U.S. Households in 2022, According to The Washington Post
More than 44.2 million Americans lived in households that struggled with hunger in 2022, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report released Wednesday — an increase of 10.3 million over the previous year. The new figures, from the agency’s Economic Research Service, show an end to a nearly decade-long decrease in the number of families reporting food insecurity, at a time when food prices remain elevated because of inflation. (Reiley, 10/25)
Report Reveals Food Insecurity Affecting Millions of U.S. Families, NPR Reports
Just putting three meals a day on the table was a struggle for millions of people in the U.S. last year. That's the sobering conclusion of a new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which found hunger in the U.S. rose sharply in 2022. The report found that 44.2 million people lived in households that had difficulty getting enough food to feed everyone in 2022, up from 33.8 million people the year prior. Those families include more than 13 million children experiencing food insecurity, a jump of nearly 45 percent from 2021. (Godoy, 10/26)
Bloomberg Report: Working-Age Americans Burdened by Health-Care Costs and Medical Debt
Paying for health care is increasingly straining US adults as escalating medical costs converge with rising prices throughout the economy. More than half of working-age Americans said they had difficulty paying for health care in 2023, according to a Commonwealth Fund survey published Thursday. Among people without insurance, more than three-quarters reported trouble affording care. But 43% of people with employer health plans said they had difficulty paying, and the rate was even higher among people on public health plans like Medicare and Medicaid. (LaPara, 10/26)
- Health Care Workforce
Significance of California Minimum Wage Law for Non-Union Jobs Explored in Modern Healthcare
California's new law mandating a higher minimum wage for frontline healthcare workers takes effect in June and will have wide-ranging effects on employers and labor markets in and outside of the state. The bill, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Oct. 13, raises the state’s hourly minimum wage for healthcare workers from $15.50 to $25 over the next 10 years. Larger health systems, hospitals and dialysis clinics have until 2026 to implement the new rate. Rural independent hospitals and those with a high mix of Medi-Cal and Medicare patients have until 2033. (Devereaux, 10/26)
KFF Health News: California Broadens Paid Sick Leave and Increases Wages for Health Workers
California continues to burnish its reputation as a progressive state for health policy as Gov. Gavin Newsom signed bills expanding paid sick leave, adding bereavement leave for miscarriages, and boosting wages for health workers. Newsom blessed a rare agreement between labor and the health industry to gradually phase in a nation-leading $25-an-hour statewide minimum wage for health workers. Estimates based on earlier versions of the bill found it would increase health care costs by billions of dollars each year and put pressure on the state’s Medicaid program to raise reimbursement rates for long-term care to maintain patients’ access to services. Other new laws aim to strengthen reproductive rights, as well as patient protections against errant doctors and pharmacists and surprise ambulance bills. (Thompson, 10/25)
- Women’s Health
Axios: Democrats Advocate for Paid Leave Following Pregnancy Loss
Democratic lawmakers on Thursday introduced legislation that would require employers to provide at least seven days of paid time off following a pregnancy loss. Miscarriages are common, occurring in an estimated 10% to 20% of known pregnancies. While more employers are offering paid leave following a pregnancy loss, there's no national paid leave program. (Goldman, 10/26)
Axios: Factors Leading to Increased Women Abandoning Birth Control
At the same time the fall of Roe v. Wade has fueled an interest in expanding contraception access, OB-GYNs say they have seen a wave of patients quitting hormonal birth control for more "natural" options. The turn against effective forms of birth control raises concern about increased risks for unplanned pregnancies when abortion is being severely limited or banned across much of the U.S. (Reed, 10/25)
- Mental Health
CNBC: FTC Intends to Recruit Child Psychologist to Inform Internet Regulations
The Federal Trade Commission plans to hire at least one child psychologist who can guide its work on internet regulation, Democratic Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya told The Record in an interview published Monday. FTC Chair Lina Khan backs the plan, Bedoya told the outlet, adding that he hopes it can become a reality by next fall, though the commission does not yet have a firm timeline. (Feiner, 10/23)
Axios: Demand for Fentanyl Addiction Treatment in Kids and Teens Far Exceeds Available Services
An alarming rise in overdose deaths among children and teenagers is colliding with an inadequate pediatric mental health system — including a lack of addiction treatment. Limited treatment options and coverage gaps mean that many kids aren't getting needed care that could help prevent them from developing a deeper and potentially deadly addiction. (Owens, 10/24)
The Washington Post: Anxiety and Depression Twice as Prevalent in Young Adults Compared to Teens
Young adults in the United States experience anxiety and depression twice as frequently as teenagers, according to a new nationally representative survey by Making Caring Common, a project of Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. Thirty-six percent of young adults — ages 18 to 25 — reported anxiety, compared with 18 percent of younger teenagers — ages 14 to 17 — while 29 percent felt depression, compared with 15 percent in the younger age group in the survey. (Lewis, 10/24)
The Washington Post: Could a Deficiency in Autonomy Be Contributing to a Mental Health Crisis Among the Youth?
For years, Peter Gray, a research professor of psychology and neuroscience at Boston College, has been closely following two disturbing trends: the dwindling of independent activity and play afforded to children over the past half-century, and the accelerating rise in mental health disorders and suicides among youth during that same period. There are familiar factors that surface in discussions of the youth mental health crisis in America, with screen use and social media often topping the list of concerns. But Gray suspects a deeper underlying issue: The landscape of childhood has transformed in ways that are profoundly affecting the way children develop — by limiting their ability to play independently, to roam beyond the supervision of adults, to learn from peers, and to build resilience and confidence. (Gibson, 10/24)
CNN: States File Lawsuits Against Meta, Instagram's Parent Company, Over 'Addictive' Features and Their Impact on Youth Mental Health
Dozens of states sued Instagram-parent Meta on Tuesday, accusing the social media giant of harming young users’ mental health through allegedly addictive features such as infinite news feeds and frequent notifications that demand users’ constant attention. In a federal lawsuit filed in California by 33 attorneys general, the states allege that Meta’s products have harmed minors and contributed to a mental health crisis in the United States. (Fung, 10/24)
CIDRAP: 50% Rise in COVID-Related Deaths Associated with Severe Mental Illness
People with severe mental illness (SMI) are at a 50% increased risk of death from all causes following COVID-19 infections, according to a study today in The British Journal of Psychiatry. (Soucheray, 10/25)
The Washington Post: Increased Dementia Risk Linked to Adult ADHD
Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is often misunderstood, and people who struggle with it are often viewed as quirky, disorganized, creative or forgetful. Many people go a lifetime without receiving a diagnosis or treatment. ... Now, new research is showing that adult ADHD may take a toll on the brain and is linked to a higher likelihood of developing dementia. A study published in JAMA Network Open reported that being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult is associated with a 2.77-fold increased risk of dementia. (Sima, 10/26)
- Children’s Health
Bay Area News Group: Pioneering Gene Therapy at Children's Hospital Oakland Targets Blood Disease - Could a Cure Be Within Reach?
Born with a deadly blood disease, the Finlayson’s daughters — Ada, 9, and Lily, 12 — are the first patients on the West Coast to receive a new gene therapy offered by UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland. (Krieger, 10/25)
CIDRAP: Research Indicates Childcare Centers Show Insignificant COVID Spread
A study today led by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine published in JAMA Network Open shows that US childcare centers have not been significant sites of COVID-19 transmission, and the authors suggest that children with COVID-19 in these centers be treated like others with similar non-COVID respiratory illnesses. (Soucheray, 10/24)
CIDRAP: Research Reveals Children with COVID Shed Virus for an Average of 3 Days, Supporting School Isolation Policies
Children who tested positive for COVID-19 in 2022 were contagious for a median of 3 days, regardless of vaccination status, suggesting that 5-day school isolation policies are sufficient amid Omicron variant predominance, University of Southern California (USC) and Stanford University researchers report today in JAMA Pediatrics. The study included 76 children aged 7 to 18 years infected with SARS-CoV-2 in Los Angeles County from April to September 2022. (Van Beusekom, 10/23)
Stat: COVID Vaccine Administered During Pregnancy Provides Infants With Immunity for Up to 6 Months
The risks of severe neonatal morbidity, neonatal death, and admission to the neonatal intensive care unit were all significantly lower during the first month of birth in infants whose mothers were vaccinated against Covid-19, and protection against the virus continued for up to six months after birth, according to a new study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics. (Balthazar, 10/23)
CNN: Shortage of New Infant RSV Vaccine Exceeds Available Supply
In the latest headache for parents hunting for a new shot to protect babies against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, this winter, the manufacturer says it has stopped taking orders for some doses because they are unable to keep up with “unprecedented demand.” (Goodman, 10/23)