Two California Headlines

While visiting California recently, I came across these californiahealthlines.org headlines.  As you read this, keep in mind that the above website is a service of California HealthCare Foundation (CHCF) produced by Kaiser Health news…as in Kaiser Hospitals.

1.  Older Americans Are Hooked On Vitamins Despite Scarce Evidence They Work. 

2.  Mental Health-Care’s Not There:  Two in three Californian’s who need mental health care don’t get it.  A new CHCF report explores mental health in our state. 

Regarding…
#1, it should surprise no one that this hospital and the newsletter they print would attack their competition, the supplement industry.  With so many of we “older Americans” taking supplements, my guess is that we are costing Kaiser billions of dollars annually by not needing their services.  I like that!

#2 is fascinating to me for so many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Kaiser Hospitals employ so many mental health care workers.  Why aren’t they doing their jobs?  This article may have supplied Californians with an answer as to why this void in mental health care exists in their state.  According to the article, blame may lie squarely on the very organization that is doing the reporting!  Says the article, “In September, after more than a year of stonewalling its patients and employees, Kaiser Permanente finally paid a $4-million fine levied against it by state regulators because of the HMO’s chronic, illegal, and too often tragic failures in mental health care.”  You can’t make this up!

This is called an educational newsletter.  In essence, Kaiser becomes the “good guy” reporter, simply educating their many subscribers of a huge problem with mental health care in California.  By offering their commentary in this form, I have to wonder if it was their goal to have their many members not only continue supporting them but also becoming the educational conduit to their family members and friends.  They become shocked and angry to learn that some California hospitals turn a deaf ear to those needing mental health care.  Shame on them!  Surely their beloved Kaiser would never do that!