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With Californians facing the compounding impact of three respiratory illnesses this winter, Covered California is urging the uninsured to sign up for health care coverage before the upcoming Dec. 31 deadline.

Coverage provides access to quality care and protection from unforeseen medical costs, and Covered California is where people can get financial help to lower the cost of their health insurance.

Californians need to sign up before the end of the year in order to have their coverage be effective on Jan. 1.

“Everyone deserves the protection and peace of mind that come with having high-quality, affordable health insurance, and Covered California is urging everyone who needs coverage to check out their options and sign up before the end of the year,” said Jessica Altman, executive director of Covered California. “Once again — whether it is COVID, the flu, RSV or other illnesses — access to health care coverage is essential for every Californian to stay healthy and safe.”

What you need to know

Since the start of the pandemic, California’s health officials have been concerned that COVID-19 and influenza cases may peak at the same time. In addition to those two illnesses, California is also seeing a rise in the number of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) cases, which can hit younger children especially hard.

“We have seen dramatic increases in COVID-19, the flu and RSV, reminding us once again of the importance of our health and wellbeing,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health and Human Services secretary and Covered California board chair. “Californians have just a few days left to sign up for a comprehensive health care coverage plan through Covered California that will protect themselves and their family starting on Jan. 1.”

Californians who sign up by Dec. 31 and pay their first bill will have their health insurance take effect on Jan. 1. Covered California’s open-enrollment period runs through Jan. 31, but coverage will not begin until Feb. 1 if a consumer signs up in January.

Significant savings for more than one million uninsured Californians

An estimated one million Californians do not have health insurance and are eligible for financial help to bring the cost of coverage within reach. Of that group, at least 55 percent — or about 568,000 people — could get quality coverage through Covered California or Medi-Cal at no cost.

Right now, 90% of Covered California’s enrollees qualify for the increased financial help available through the Inflation Reduction Act. As a result, two-thirds of Covered California’s consumers are eligible for comprehensive health insurance at a cost of $10 or less per month.

“Regardless of your income, if you need health insurance or even if you’re covered directly through a health insurance company, come to Covered California to see if you can get financial help to make your coverage more affordable,” Altman said.

Under the expanded financial help now available, a 21-year-old in Los Angeles who earns $27,000 a year could get a quality Silver 87 plan — which features low copays and deductibles — for $36 a month. Or they could get a Bronze plan at no cost.

A couple in Oakland earning $45,775 a year could save nearly $700 a month off the cost of their Silver 73 plan, or get a comprehensive Bronze plan at no cost.

Finally, a Sacramento couple earning $83,250 a year could save more than $16,000 a year on quality coverage for themselves and their two children, or they could get a Bronze plan for $67 per month.

New opportunity for 400,000 Californians to enroll in more-affordable coverage

A new rule that went into effect just this month will help 391,000 Californians get access to more-affordable coverage if they have a family member with an offer of employer-sponsored insurance, or ESI.

Previously, these families were ineligible for federal subsidies, and they were forced to either spend a significant amount of their income on health insurance premiums or go uninsured. Now they are eligible for financial help through Covered California that will lower the cost of their coverage.

The example below depicts a family of four with an annual household income of $50,000 who pays $800 a month for their coverage, or nearly 20 percent of their income.

The new rule takes the affordability threshold (9.12 percent in 2023), which had previously been applied only to the employee, and now extends it to the entire family. In this case, while the cost of the employee’s coverage is below the threshold, the cost to cover the family is no longer considered affordable. As a result, the employee’s spouse and children are now eligible for financial help and would save $425 a month — or $5,100 a year — by enrolling in a Covered California plan.

“The new rule means that families that were either forced to spend a significant amount of their income to be a part of their loved one’s health plan, or go uninsured, can now get more-affordable coverage through Covered California,” Altman said.

In order to determine whether Californians can benefit from the new rule, Covered California unveiled a new affordability tool and worksheet earlier this month, which can help people see if they or their family members qualify for financial help. The affordability tool and worksheet are also available in Spanish.

In addition to the tool, consumers can also contact an agent or certified enroller, visit our support page or use Covered California’s Help on Demand service to have an enroller contact them within 15 minutes.
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SACRAMENTO — Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced that Essilor Laboratories of America Inc. has agreed to a $23.8 million settlement in a lawsuit which alleged the company violated the Insurance Frauds Prevention Act.

The suit alleged Essilor provided kickbacks and other unlawful incentives to eye care providers that ultimately hurt consumers by unfairly driving them toward more expensive services.

Essilor manufactures, markets, and distributes optical lenses and equipment used to produce optical lenses throughout California and the nation.

“This settlement is an important victory for consumers and patients who were the targets of corporate greed,” said Commissioner Lara. “Health insurance fraud causes billions of dollars of premium losses annually, resulting in increased cost to Californians. This settlement sends a strong signal that fraudulent practices that hurt California consumers will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. It also will restore key protections for eyecare patients so they receive care and recommendations that are in their best interest.”

This settlement brings to a close a 2016 whistleblower lawsuit brought against Essilor. After investigating the allegations, the Commissioner filed a complaint in intervention in 2021.

The lawsuit alleged that Essilor provided unlawful kickbacks to eye care providers, with an up-front payment of tens of thousands of dollars, or sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars, in exchange for these providers’ promises to send business to Essilor for a period of anywhere between three to five years.

The providers were free to use the up-front payment from Essilor in any manner that they chose so long as they hit the volume requirements pursuant to the agreement.

Additionally, the lawsuit alleged Essilor further provided kickbacks to California eye care providers through a program called “PracticeBuilder” where providers were given cash payments for using Essilor lenses and laboratory services.

The cash payments through the PracticeBuilder program were done to reward the eye care providers who prescribed and dispensed Essilor’s more expensive lenses and coatings and to use its laboratory services.

Unlawful incentives, like those alleged in the lawsuit, are prohibited under the Insurance Frauds Prevention Act as these illegal acts can, and do, influence medical decision making. California laws are in place to protect patients and encourage medical decision makers to act solely in the best interest of their patient.

The lawsuit further alleges Essilor knowingly submitted false claims to California private payors, including insurance companies, health care savings plans, and vision benefit organizations.

The resolution is the result of a collaborative prosecution between the Commissioner and the whistleblower’s counsel, Baron & Budd, P.C., The Weiser Law Firm, and Keller Grover, LLP.
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With Halloween approaching, the California Department of Public Health warns parents and consumers about the danger of children consuming hemp-derived products containing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.

These products look similar to common candies and baked goods, like gummies, lollipops, and brownies.

As a result, these products can be attractive to children, and when consumed, can cause adverse reactions such as becoming ill, or in extreme cases, result in death. These products should not be eaten by children.

Children exposed to hemp-derived manufactured food products, such as cannabidiol, or CBD, candies, has increased and parents should be aware of the dangers.

These products may be mislabeled as hemp-derived and contain varying amounts of intoxicating cannabinoids (for example, unknown levels of THC).

The number of children who are eating these products is increasing, with higher frequencies of incidents in states where the use of these products is legal.

Children who eat these products may exhibit the following symptoms:

• Sleepiness;
• Fatigue;
• Diarrhea;
• Seizures in toddlers;
• Uncoordinated movements and decreased psychomotor activity;
• Slurred speech;
• Vomiting;
• Low blood pressure;
• Difficulty breathing;
• Sedation; and
• Coma.

Measures people can take to keep these products out of the hands of children include:

• storing products out of reach and/or in locked locations, similar to medications;
• not using these products in front of children; and
• checking your children’s candies, especially as Halloween approaches, and if anything looks suspicious, throw them out.

Additional resources on the dangers to children caused by unintentional consumption of these products and recommendations for prevention are provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the National Capital Poison Center and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

If you suspect or know that a child has consumed one of these products, immediately dial 9-1-1, or call your physician or the Poison Control Hotline (1-800-222-1222).
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Dr. Matthew Swain. Courtesy photo.

NORTH COAST, Calif. — MCHC Health Centers is pleased to announce the arrival of Dr. Matthew Swain as the new chief medical officer.

Dr. Swain, who began his new role in November, oversees MCHC’s clinical practices, including mental, dental and behavioral health.

In addition to being a member of the executive team, Dr. Swain continues to see patients, as is the case for all clinical leaders at MCHC.

Dr. Swain comes to Mendocino County from Alaska, where he spent the last two and a half years practicing family medicine on the Kenai Peninsula in the small coastal town of Homer.

Prior to that, Dr. Swain spent three years as the chief of primary care for Alaska’s Veterans Administration Healthcare System, where his duties included clinical and administrative supervision of 30 providers spread across six clinics.

Before moving to Alaska, Dr. Swain, a veteran of both the Navy and Marines, practiced medicine and held a number of leadership roles at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

While he is accustomed to small-town living, he admits that Northern California and Southern Alaska are very different — and that by comparison, Ukiah feels pretty big.

“In Alaska, it sometimes seemed like we had just as many moose as people,” Dr. Swain said. “I think the most we ever had in our yard at one time was six.” Then he asked, “Do you know why the stores in Homer don’t have automatic sliding doors? Because they don’t want the moose walking in. I’m not kidding.”

Although he speaks highly of his time in Alaska, he explained that he and his wife, a nurse leader, were ready for a new adventure, and after a nationwide search, they chose MCHC.

In addition to the small-town atmosphere and beautiful natural setting, Dr. Swain chose the area because the MCHC team was so dedicated to its mission of providing the highest quality healthcare for everyone in the community.

“When I first visited, everyone was smiling, engaged, and clearly invested in their jobs; people weren’t just punching timecards,” he said.

He was also drawn in by MCHC’s team-based approach to care. “Team-based care means having a small group of dedicated providers and support staff who know you and your health history,” Dr. Swain explained.

As a family physician, he has always held a holistic view of wellness, one that integrates a person’s physical and emotional health, so the way MCHC’s structure encourages collaboration was another good fit for Dr. Swain.

“Being able to walk down the hall and consult with providers across different disciplines is so much better than reading notes and going back and forth over the phone. Multiple perspectives improve care. No one person has all the answers all the time,” he said.

To be a good physician and leader, Dr. Swain’s philosophy is that you have to be genuinely interested in patients and what is going on with them — even outside of medicine. A lot of factors affect health, and lab tests rarely tell the whole story. Mood, family, and work all play a role, too.

Dr. Swain explained, “You have to be willing to get into all the little details, because the little details are often what make the difference between living a healthy, comfortable life or not. When a patient knows you care about what they care about, they’re a lot more likely to work with you to maximize their quality of life.”

As a leader, Dr. Swain says he is responsible for clearing obstacles and providing support to employees. “It’s my responsibility to take care of everyone who takes care of patients, whether they’re providers or the staff who support, whether they are answering phones or cleaning treatment rooms,” he explained.

MCHC CEO Rod Grainger said, “It is not often you find a leader that fits so well into your existing team. With his leadership philosophies, his skills and experience, as well as his personality, Matt is winning over the team and already having a positive influence on the culture of our organization. His personal mission aligns with our mission for both our employees and our patients. I am thrilled to have him on board.”

Regardless of what he is doing at any given moment, Dr. Swain says his ultimate focus is providing excellent, value-based healthcare to the local community. Sometimes that means treating patients directly; other times that means caring for the providers who care for the patients so they are free to do their jobs.

“MCHC employees are mission-driven and committed to meeting the emerging needs of patients in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s an honor to be the chief medical officer here and I look forward to helping providers and staff grow and succeed every single day,” he said.

MCHC Health Centers includes Hillside Health Center and Dora Street Health Center in Ukiah, Little Lake Health Center in Willits, and Lakeview Health Center in Lakeport. It is a community-based and patient-directed organization that provides comprehensive primary healthcare services as well as supportive services such as education and translation that promote access to healthcare.
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College officials and Senate Majority Leader Mike McGuire, center, gather on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022, to celebrate the investment in a new healthcare education hub. Courtesy photo.

NORTH COAST, Calif. — Senate Majority Leader Mike McGuire, along with Cal Poly Humboldt President Tom Jackson Jr., College of the Redwoods President Keith Flamer and local health care and elected leaders gathered Wednesday to announce a $10 million investment in the creation of a healthcare education hub that will become the epicenter of healthcare career training on the North Coast.

McGuire secured the $10 million in this year’s state budget. The funding will transform a 30,000 square foot dusty warehouse in Arcata into a state-of-the-art learning lab focused on the development of a healthcare workforce in Northern California.

This is a historic investment that will help grow healthcare career programs at both Cal Poly Humboldt and College of the Redwoods.

“We’ve made so much progress over the last four years thanks to this innovative partnership with the College of the Redwoods and Cal Poly Humboldt. We restarted Cal Poly Humboldt’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, we expanded the College of the Redwoods nursing program and now we’re launching the Healthcare Education Hub, which will become the epicenter of healthcare career training for our region,” McGuire said. “This $10 million will help buildout the most modern healthcare learning lab between the Golden Gate Bridge and the Oregon border and will train thousands of healthcare professionals, from multiple career tracks, in the years to come.”

The Healthcare Education Hub will be used to train health professionals such as nurses, psychiatric technicians, EMTs, scrub technicians, respiratory therapists, radiology technicians, and more.

College of the Redwoods President Keith Flamer said, “We are very aware that our future depends on a strong partnership between College of the Redwoods, Cal Poly Humboldt, Senator McGuire and our community partners. We clearly understand that we can better help all students on the North Coast by working together rather than separately. This Healthcare Education Hub is another example of what we can do if we dream and work together.”

“We’re grateful to Sen. McGuire for his commitment to deliver on the health care needs of the North Coast. We’re looking forward to collaborating with College of the Redwoods to transform this building into a center where the next generation of health care professionals will be educated,” Cal Poly Humboldt President Tom Jackson, Jr. said. “This investment in CR is also an investment in our region – one that will help our entire healthcare system become more resilient while providing new opportunities for students and professionals.”
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SACRAMENTO — California Department of Public Health Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Aragón urged Californians in areas affected by wildfire smoke to take steps to protect their health, including staying indoors and reducing outdoor activity if necessary to avoid the inhalation of smoke and ash. Californians can check their local air quality index, or AQI, at EPA AirNow.

“Wildfires, and the resulting smoke and ash, can be particularly unhealthy for vulnerable people, including children, older adults, those with respiratory illness or asthma, and pregnant people,” said Dr. Aragón. “Californians should be aware of the risks of wildfire smoke and ash inhalation. Vulnerable people, especially children, older adults, and those who are pregnant should reduce outdoor activity and stay indoors, if possible.”

Wildfire smoke contains fine particles which are respiratory irritants, and when inhaled deeply, can affect the lungs and the heart. Exposure to high concentrations of fine particles can cause persistent cough, runny nose, phlegm, wheezing, and difficulty breathing.

Smoke from wildfires can also cause eye irritation, reduced lung function, and bronchitis. Breathing smoke can also make asthma symptoms worse. People with underlying lung or heart problems should limit their exposure by staying indoors.

People who must work outdoors for long periods, in areas with heavy smoke, or where ash is present, should wear a well-fitting N95 or P100 respirator mask. Since wearing a respirator can make it harder to breathe, those with lung or heart problems should ask their doctor before using one.

Wildfires can also lead to emergency evacuations and it's important to follow the direction of local officials when evacuations are ordered. Current evacuation information can often be found through monitoring local news outlets as well as official social media channels of emergency responders such as a sheriff’s office, police department, and fire department.

“During a wildfire event, you should prioritize your safety and the safety of your loved ones. If you are ordered to evacuate your home or the area, please do so immediately,” said Dr. Aragón.

Tips to reduce smoke and ash inhalation

To avoid possible health problems, CDPH recommends taking the following steps:

Stay indoors. The most common advisory during a smoke episode is to stay indoors, where people can better control their environment. Whether at home or in a public space, indoor environments that have filtered air and climate control can provide relief from smoke and heat.

Adjust AC to avoid drawing in smoky air. If you have a central air conditioning system in your home, set it to re-circulate or close outdoor air intakes to avoid drawing in smoky outdoor air. Be sure to change your air filter on a regular basis.

Reduce other sources of indoor air pollution. Smoking cigarettes, using gas, propane and wood-burning stoves and furnaces, spraying aerosol products, frying or broiling meat, burning candles and incense, and vacuuming can all increase particle levels in a home and should be avoided when wildfire smoke is present.

Reduce physical activity to reduce inhalation of smoky air. During exercise, people can increase their air intake as much as 20 times from their resting level.

Be ready to evacuate. Monitor wildfire activity in your area and be prepared to evacuate if advised.

Avoid getting ash into the air as much as possible. Avoiding sweeping it up dry, use water and wet cloth or a mop to clean items and surfaces. Do not use leaf blowers or take other actions that will put ash into the air.

Use PPE. Wear a well-fitting respirator mask, gloves, long-sleeved shirts, and long pants when cleaning up ash. Avoid skin contact. If you do get ash on your skin, wash it off immediately. Some wet ash can cause chemical burns.

Vacuums don’t filter small particles. Shop vacuums and other common vacuum cleaners do not filter out small particles. They blow such particles out the exhaust into the air where they can be inhaled. The use of shop vacuums and other non-HEPA filter vacuums is not recommended. HEPA filter vacuums could be used, if available.

Monitor children and young adults. Do not allow children to play with ash or be in an area where ash-covered materials are being disturbed. Wash ash off toys before children play with them. Clean ash off pets. Monitor children and young adults as they may be more susceptible to the health and emotional effects of fire recovery.

Prepare emergency supplies. Make sure you have an emergency kit, complete with medications, copies of prescriptions and medical supplies.

Locate nearby shelters, including ones that take pets.

Medical care. If you experience chest pain, chest tightness or shortness of breath, seek medical care immediately.

For more information on how you can protect yourself during extreme heat, visit the CDPH Extreme Heat site, or the California Office of Emergency Services for resources and information about wildfire recovery. Local public health officials can review guidance for local governments in the CDPH publication, “Wildfire Smoke Considerations for California’s Public Health Officials (August 2022).”

Upcoming Calendar

20Apr
04.20.2024 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Earth Day Celebration
Calpine Geothermal Visitor Center
20Apr
04.20.2024 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Boatique Wines Stand-up Comedy Night
25Apr
04.25.2024 1:30 pm - 7:30 pm
FireScape Mendocino workshop
27Apr
04.27.2024 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
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27Apr
04.27.2024 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Prescription Drug Take Back Day
27Apr
04.27.2024 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Inaugural Team Trivia Challenge
4May
05.04.2024 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Park Study Club afternoon tea
5May
05.05.2024
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6May
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