August 2020

Health

California poised to become national leader on mental health and addiction coverage

A bill that is expected to clear the Legislature this week would significantly expand what treatments are considered medically necessary for health insurance coverage.

By

Jocelyn Wiener

• August 27, 2020

La ley estatal actual requiere que los seguros médicos cubran el tratamiento médicamente necesario de sólo nueve enfermedades mentales graves; la nueva ley ampliaría esa cobertura para incluir el trastorno por uso de sustancias y la adicción, entre otros. Imagen vía iStock

CalMatters en Español

California está lista para convertirse en líder nacional en materia de servicios de cuidado de salud mental y tratamiento por adicciones

Un proyecto de ley que se espera que sea aprobado por la Legislatura esta semana ampliaría significativamente los tratamientos que se consideran médicamente necesarios para la cobertura del seguro de salud.

By

Jocelyn Wiener

• August 27, 2020

Affordable housing advocates Chris Santana, left, Heidi De La Cruz Velazquez, second from left, Carlos Castaneda, and Maria Ruiz, right, take part in a rally to support a Commercial Linkage Fee on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, in San Jose. The fee would levy a per-square-foot charge on new commercial buildings and would be used to fund affordable housing. Photo by Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group

California Divide

‘We’re charging you:’ San Jose tenants ask big developers to pay for housing

Heidi De La Cruz Velazquez is a working 23-year-old who’s never had her own bedroom. On Wednesday, she and other struggling San Jose tenants rallied on the site of a proposed 1.1 million-square-foot tech campus to ask large developers to pay for affordable housing. “We’re charging you. You owe us,” said De La Cruz Velazquez, […]

By

Laurence Du Sault

• August 27, 2020

Farmworkers go through fields along Pine Canyon Road as the hillsides behind them burn steadily through the afternoon on Aug. 19, 2020. Photo by Ayrton Ostly/The Californian

California Divide

Smoke, ash from River Fire raises questions about produce, farmworker safety

Industry experts say they hope the impact to consumers will be minimal, with little disruption to the supply chain.

By

Kate Cimini

• August 27, 2020

Oil Tanker at the Port of Long Beach. Image via iStock

Environment

Shape up or ship out: California requires ships, trucks to eliminate thousands of tons of pollution

Diesel trucks, oil tankers and other ships must comply with two new rules that are the state’s most ambitious strike against smog in a decade. The cost could reach nearly $7 billion.

By

Rachel Becker

• August 27, 2020

Commentary

Mayors’ reasons for supporting Prop. 15 don’t hold up

The justifications that only the biggest corporations will pay the tax and the implication that small businesses are protected are easily refuted.

By

Guest Commentary

• August 27, 2020

California Divide

Tears, fears and fed up: Readers say extra $600 shouldn’t be partisan

CalMatters invited readers to share how they're getting by since the federal $600 weekly boost to unemployment benefits expired. These are their stories, in their words.

By

Judy Lin

• August 27, 2020

WhatMatters

Lawmakers running out of time

Good morning, California. It’s Thursday, August 27. Deadlines fast approaching The clock is ticking for lawmakers to chart a recovery path for the world’s fifth-largest economy, keep millions of Californians from being evicted and respond to fires of historic proportions. They have until Friday to introduce new bills. The legislative session ends Monday, and lawmakers […]

By

Emily Hoeven

• August 27, 2020

Capitol

Legislation would expand protections for survivors of domestic violence

SB 1141 allows survivors to describe abuser’s coercive control as supporting evidence in family court hearings and criminal trials.

By

Guest Commentary

• August 27, 2020

Kayla Monnette, 20, of Corona, Calif. majors in cognitive science at the University of California San Diego. Photo by Mohammad Djauhari for CalMatters

College Beat

Pandemic tests an already-fragile college mental health system

This spring, as the coronavirus pandemic disrupted campus life for college students across California, UC San Diego sophomore Kayla Monnette had trouble sleeping at night. The stress of moving to online classes, figuring out how to safely buy food during quarantine, and worrying about the well-being of her immunocompromised family manifested in what Monnette described […]

By

Ethan Edward Coston

• August 27, 2020