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Spectrum News One

Police Encounters, housing insecurity impact mental health in California

"The impact of the pandemic has been especially pronounced for young adults,” Hughes said. “A set of potentially traumatic experiences that occur when we are young may be the root cause of some of the most common, serious and costly health and social challenges facing our state.

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Mental Health Program
Todd Hughes, Ninez A. Ponce
AXIOS

HHS Reports Significant increase in Black, Latino ACA healthcare enrollment since 2020

When the Affordable Care Act was first implemented, data indicated that Black and Hispanic populations were not enrolling at high rates, in part due to historical distrust of the federal government, according to Nadereh Pourat, the associate director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

Nadereh Pourat
The Trace

Data Point

24 percent — the share of immigrants living in California who told UCLA researchers they’re “very worried” about falling victim to gun violence. That’s nearly double the rate of the state’s overall population. [California Health Interview Survey]

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Gun Violence and Gun Safety
Daily Beast

How big data could solve food inequity or make things worse

According to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, 1 in 10 adults in Los Angeles County has type 2 diabetes, while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states 11.3 percent of American adults are diabetic. There is a higher percentage of people who are overweight—with a body-mass index between 25 and 29.9—in Los Angeles (35.9 percent than nationally 35.2 percent). Nevertheless, obesity—when the BMI is 30 and higher—is less prevalent in LA County than America as a whole: 23.5 percent to 28.9 percent.

Chronic Disease Program, California Health Interview Survey (CHIS)
Ninez A. Ponce
LAist

What You Need To Know Today: Brown Girls Climb, Expansion of Prison Release Program, Best LA Sunsets

Californians — both teens and adults — have had a hard time throughout the pandemic, according to a recent UCLA California Health Interview Survey. In 2021, almost a third of adults experienced “serious suicide ideation” compared to about 24% in 2019. And about 26% of teens said that they had not received the counseling they needed in the past year.

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Mental Health Program
LAist

It's Not Only COVID-19: Californians Have Been Facing A 'Mental Health Pandemic'

UCLA’s California Health Interview Survey highlights an “urgent need for mental health services,” according to a press release from UCLA’s Center for Health Policy Research. The survey was conducted in 2021.

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Mental Health Program
KNX-AM/FM

COVID-19: Poor public health data slows an effective response

"Early in the epidemic, a lot of the data did not have a person’s race or ethnicity,” Mays said. “When data is not collected in a systematic way, when people don’t prioritize making sure a record has race included in it, it really slows down the response, particularly in a public health emergency."

Mental Health Program
Vickie Mays
KCBS-FM

COVID-19: Flaws in U.S. public health data systems demonstrated during pandemic

"One thing we need to do right away is to target who was experiencing this the worst,” Mays said. “We need to decisions made at the state, the federal level, about what is acceptable quality data, meaning you cannot send a form in if it is missing certain variables.”

Mental Health Program
Vickie Mays
MyNewsLA

New UCLA survey finds increase in suicidal thoughts among young adults

“Our findings show that more people are experiencing serious psychological distress, more people are in need of professional help and more people are reporting moderate or severe impairment in their work, social lives, relationships and daily activities,” Ponce said. Also quoted was Todd Hughes, director of the California Health Interview Survey, which conducted the research: “As the largest and most diverse state, California is often looked at as a model that strives toward health equity,” Hughes said. “However, the data show there is still a need to address some of the inequities in

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Mental Health Program
Ninez A. Ponce, Todd Hughes
Times of San Diego

New UCLA Survey Finds Increase in Suicidal Thoughts Among Young Adults

“Our findings show that more people are experiencing serious psychological distress, more people are in need of professional help and more people are reporting moderate or severe impairment in their work, social lives, relationships and daily activities,” Ponce said.

California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), Mental Health Program
Ninez A. Ponce, Todd Hughes