Elizabeth Aguilera

Screening for adverse childhood experiences is increasing, but are patients getting treatment?

December 1, 2022 at 12:22 p.m.

Medi-Cal doctors are screening more patients for adverse childhood experiences, but they aren’t required to report whether those patients receive therapy or other services they may need. Yet getting that...

Patricia Moran at the at-home day care she runs, Patricia’s Creative Learning Center, in San Jose on Nov. 2, 2022. (Photo: Laure Andrillon/for CalMatters)

More people will be eligible for health insurance through Covered California

November 7, 2022 at 11:19 a.m.

Under previous rules, family members of those who had insurance through an employer were not eligible for Covered California. In some cases, those employer plans cover the employee but are...

Kindergarten teacher Sydney Cooper leads her class at Encinal Elementary School in Atherton, Calif., Dec. 17, 2020. (Photo: Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

Schools scramble to find teachers as California expands transitional kindergarten

November 2, 2022 at 10:39 a.m.

This school year the California transitional kindergarten program began expanding to eventually include all 4-year-olds. But amid a teacher shortage, some school districts had to move teachers already on staff...

Nine-year-old Nicolas receives a vaccine from Rich Brotherton, research nurse manager, at Stanford University’s Clinical and Translational Research Unit, on June 8, 2021 in Palo Alto, Calif. (Stanford Medicine)

CDC’s move paves way for California to require school COVID vaccines — but lawmakers have given up for now

October 27, 2022 at 12:52 p.m.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control decided to list COVID-19 among the vaccines it recommends for children, but each state decides whether to adopt those guidelines. It’s unclear what California...

Brayden Stymans, 15, receives a COVID-19 vaccine injection in Oakland on May 19, 2021. (Photo: Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group

Vaccines for teens without parental consent? Not this year, as bill is pulled

September 2, 2022 at 1:20 p.m.

Although a California bill would have allowed vaccines for teens without parental consent made it to the final days of the legislative session, it failed to pass.

Sofie Nguyen, 10, left and Chloe Nguyen, 7, right, at their home in Sacramento on July 7, 2022. The sisters both require the use of hearing aids. (Photo: Rahul Lal/CalMatters)

A state program to provide children’s hearing aids for uninsured families falls short

August 8, 2022 at 11:29 a.m.

A program intended to provide hearing aids and services to thousands of children without health insurance has delivered devices to only a tiny fraction of those who need them. Parents...

Martin and Miranda Basulto hold a portrait of their parents in front of their home in Coalinga on June 28, 2022. (Photo: Larry Valenzuela/CalMatters/CatchLight Local)

Some COVID orphans in California will get financial help

July 22, 2022 at 8:41 a.m.

In California, 32,000 children under 18 have experienced the death of a parent or primary caregiver from COVID-19. The state has set aside $100 million for trust funds for children...

Starlyn Darby doesn’t produce enough breastmilk to feed her 8 month-old son Zelimir, who is underweight and relies on Enfamil Ensure formula. (Photo: Martin do Nascimento/ CalMatters)

State and federal restrictions make it harder for low-income families to get infant formula

July 1, 2022 at 8:15 a.m.

For families receiving government assistance, the types of infant formula they are allowed to purchase is limited. When the shortage began, California couldn't quickly expand its list of approved formula...

Doug Forbes poses for a portrait in front of the state Capitol while holding a picture of his daughter Roxie, who drowned at a day camp in Pasadena a few years ago and his wife Elena Matyas, who passed away recently. (Photo: Fred Greaves/for CalMatters)

Children’s day camps: Attend at your own risk

June 16, 2022 at 8:21 a.m.

California day camps operate without background checks, CPR training, child/adult ratios or required reporting of injury and death. A family whose daughter drowned at a camp is working to change...

Elizabeth Lomeli reads to her daughter, Gisselle, at their home in Pacoima on April 23, 2022. (Photo: Da’Shaunae Marisa/for CalMatters)

California’s youngest children need more mental health support, advocates say in request for funding

April 29, 2022 at 8:26 a.m.

The mental health of children under 5 has typically been overlooked when it comes to state funding. Advocates aim to change that by asking for $250 million to support the...

All Stories