Chronic Disease

Some seniors there now say they are looking for ways to take as few prescription drugs as possible. And many are turning to cannabis as an alternative.

This article was produced as a project for the 2017 California Data Fellowship, a program of the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism. 

In a community known as Deep East Oakland, health care providers and nonprofits are seeking new ways to inform and treat those living with asthma.

Pharmacy deserts are a growing problem in Chicago. Tribune reporter Eseosa Olumhense discusses how she reported on the worrying trend.

Gentrification threatens the health of black residents in Washington D.C. “This dynamic can have a profound effect on mental health and the civic engagement [of city residents]," one Georgetown professor said.

Ruben Castaneda of U.S. News and Cristina Londoño of Telemundo reported very different series on immigrant health. But both reporters had to win the trust of undocumented families for their projects.

Susana Castro’s arms are deformed, bruised and mangled. At 67-year-old native of Mexico City has suffered from diabetes since she was 40. She now requires three hours of dialysis treatment every third day, or else she will die.

“We started looking at the data and found the most vulnerable people in the county, and we put this team together to go find and work with them,” said Anna Roth, director of Contra Costa Health Services.

At LAC+USC Medical Center, primary care doctors now routinely ask patients about things such as food, housing and mental health, with teams of providers ready to connect them to services.

Tremendous uncertainty exists over how a state-based single-payer system would work, but no matter how it's crafted, the costs would be steep.