A View From The Front Lines Of California鈥檚 COVID-19 Battle
California physicians dealing with COVID-19 offer a sobering portrait of a health care system bracing for the worst of a pandemic that could be months from peaking.
California Bureau
Visit for an archive of reporting prior to October 2025.
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Is The Bay Area鈥檚 鈥楿nprecedented鈥 Lockdown The First Of Many?
About 7 million people across the San Francisco Bay Area began to 鈥渟helter in place鈥 Tuesday to limit the spread of the new coronavirus. Although public health officials acknowledged the orders were drastic, they also agreed they were necessary.
By Jenny Gold and Rachel Bluth -
In Face Of Coronavirus, Many Hospitals Cancel On-Site Training For Nursing And Med Students
Hospitals and nursing homes say they are acting to protect students and patients, but nursing educators worry the pipeline of new nurses could be slowed at a time when they may be needed most. Some doctors in training have also seen their clinical rotations canceled.
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Many Schools Have Closed 鈥 But Not All. What Parents Need To Know About That Tough Call.
Closing K-12 schools is part of a broad strategy to limit public interactions and slow the spread of COVID-19 cases. But the decision is far from easy, with conflicting science about how effective such closures are weighed against the massive disruption to families鈥 lives.
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The High Cost Of Being Trump鈥檚 Enemy
The ongoing feud between President Donald Trump and California鈥檚 Democratic leaders is costing the Golden State hundreds of millions of health care dollars 鈥 with billions more at stake.
By Rachel Bluth -
Testing Shortages Force Extreme Shift In Strategy By Local Health Officials
California鈥檚 capital region is among the areas that have had to shift response to the coronavirus outbreak because of a shortage of test kits in the U.S.
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Coronavirus Puts Prisons In Tight Spot Amid Staff Shortages, Threats Of Lockdown
As the coronavirus threat rises, prisons are grappling with the possibility of nationwide lockdowns and calls for prisoner releases.
By Lauren Weber -
Crushed By A Hospital Bill? Stand Up For Yourself
Most hospitals must offer free or reduced-cost care to certain patients, based on income, even if they have insurance. But some hospitals erect barriers to charity care, so it鈥檚 up to patients to advocate for themselves.
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Surging Health Care Worker Quarantines Raise Concerns As Coronavirus Spreads
The number of U.S. health care workers who have been ordered to self-quarantine because of potential exposure to the new coronavirus is rising at an exponential pace. Many experts say something has to change.
By Jenny Gold -
Postcard From Los Angeles
Corralling Hard-To-Reach Voters With Traveling Voting Machines
In advance of the Super Tuesday primary, California's Los Angeles County is rotating new touch-screen voting machines among 41 locations, including adult day care centers and jails, to increase voting among populations with historically low turnout.
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Letters to the Editor
Readers And Tweeters Dive Into Debate Over ‘Medicare For All’
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
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Growing Concerns Of Coronavirus Should Spur Plans 鈥 Not Panic 鈥 In The Workplace
Even in the event of an outbreak, employers have to follow certain rules in their efforts to protect employees from this virus.
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New California Coronavirus Case Reveals Problems with U.S. Testing Protocols
Disease experts say a new coronavirus case in California underscores the need for more widespread community testing for the illness, as well as problems caused by the delays in getting functional coronavirus test kits to state and local public health agencies.聽
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Photo Essay
Your School Assignment For The Day: Spelling And Specs
In California鈥檚 rural Central Valley, low-income children have limited access to vision care. School districts are teaming up with nonprofits to fill the gaps.
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Picture Of Health
The Golden State鈥檚 Mixed Record On Lung Cancer
California has one of the lowest rates of new lung cancer cases in the country, attributed largely to its aggressive anti-tobacco policies. But gaps in the state鈥檚 health care system mean that people who are diagnosed with the disease, or at a high risk of getting it, often fall through the cracks.
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Congressional Candidates Go Head-To-Head On Health Care 鈥 Again
The California Democratic members of Congress who flipped seven Republican seats two years ago made health care a major campaign issue, criticizing their opponents for voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act. As the Democrats defend their seats in this year鈥檚 elections, they are coming back to health care 鈥 but the issues are different.
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Newsom: To Fix Homelessness, California Must Fix Mental Health
California Gov. Gavin Newsom dedicated nearly all of his State of the State address Wednesday to homelessness. To fix that problem, he said, the state must address another one: mental health care.
By Rachel Bluth -
School Districts Grapple With Quarantines, Face Masks And Fear
In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, school districts, especially those with large Chinese student populations, are in uncharted territory as they apply new federal travel rules to their students. Some also are weighing requests from parents that are more about fear than science, such as whether to allow students with no travel history to stay home from school.
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Abortion-Rights Supporters Fear Loss Of Access If Adventist Saves Hospital
As community hospitals struggle, they often turn to large religious-based hospital groups to bail them out. But that can limit the types of services they offer, especially reproductive health treatment such as abortion.
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Changing Clocks Is Bad For Your Health, But Which Time To Choose?
State legislatures are considering new bills proposing a permanent time standard instead of the spring-forward and fall-back clock changes. Most people want to stop adjusting clocks, but scientists and politicians are at odds over which time is better for society and our health.