Kristen Hwang
CalMatters ReporterKristen Hwang reports on health care and policy for CalMatters. She is passionate about humanizing data-driven stories and examining the intersection of public health and social justice. Prior to joining CalMatters, Kristen earned a master’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in public health from UC Berkeley, where she researched water quality in the Central Valley. She has previously worked as a beat reporter for The Desert Sun and a stringer for the New York Times California COVID-19 team.
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Supreme Court the FDA's approval of the abortion pill mifepristone until a lower federal court hears the case. -
A ruling that suspends federal approval for medication abortion will not be easy for California abortion access advocates to overcome. Unless it’s reversed on appeal, the drug will likely be pulled from pharmacy shelves.
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Some California COVID testing sites are set to close as the state prepares to end the state of emergency in February.
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Once considered an infection nearly eradicated, congenital syphilis rates have risen dramatically in California. Community health workers fan out across communities to find and treat patients who are often homeless or battling addiction.
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Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned the Roe decision, here are key takeaways of what to expect for abortion in California. They include the politics, more legislation, a possible influx of out-of-state patients and changes for health care providers.
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A year after ramping up to vaccinate 6 million low-income residents, community clinics are in dire final straits waiting for state money. Some are cutting services.
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The CDC said half of Californians live in high-risk counties. But the agency apparently relied on outdated numbers of COVID infections and patients. Newer data indicates only 19 counties are in the CDC’s riskiest category.
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California’s African Americans are dying from COVID at a higher rate now. And they make up a disproportionate and growing share of the death toll for middle-aged Californians.
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About 11,500 long-term care center workers are now sick with COVID. “It’s been like one coworker after another, after another, everyone getting sick,” one nursing assistant said.
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As the state’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate kicks in Thursday, several large hospital systems say 90% or more of their employees are vaccinated. But they don’t have to provide data to the state unless asked.
