Author

Anna Almendrala

Anna worked as a reporter at HuffPost for nine years. She holds extensive experience interviewing researchers and experts, building relationships with story subjects, doing research and presenting the data in simple, clear language. Her work has appeared in the Guardian, Univision, The Daily Beast, NBC News, Today.com, Medium.com and Health.com.

Health

Latinos Are the Most Eager to Get Vaccinated, Survey Shows – But Face Obstacles

Anna Almendrala May 15, 2021

One-third of unvaccinated Hispanics say they want the shots, compared with 17% of Blacks and 16% of whites, according to the survey released Thursday by KFF. Photo credit ShutterStock.com, licensed. WASHINGTON, D.C. - Hispanics who have…

Health

As Vaccine Demand Slows, Political Differences Go on Display in California Counties

Anna Almendrala May 3, 2021

In Santa Clara County, home to Silicon Valley, nearly 67% of residents 16 and older have had at least one dose as of Wednesday, compared with about 43% in San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles. Statewide, about 58% of eligible…

Health

Beating the Pavement to Vaccinate the Underrepresented – And Protect Everyone

Anna Almendrala Apr 2, 2021

Dr. Marx Genovez, a family medicine doctor, prepares Guadalupe Neri’s arm for a covid-19 vaccine at El Sol Neighborhood Educational Center’s pop-up vaccination clinic on March 19, 2021 in Adelanto, California. Neri knows several friends…

Health

Black Churches Fill a Unique Role in Combating Vaccine Fears

Anna Almendrala Mar 1, 2021

Helping people accept the covid vaccines is a public health goal, but it’s also a spiritual one, said Henry Washington, the 53-year-old pastor of The Garden of Peace Ministries, which Wafer attends. Photo credit ShutterStock.com, licensed.…

Business

Where COVID Is on the Menu: Failed Contact Tracing Leaves Diners in the Dark

Anna Almendrala Dec 1, 2020

Lori's retro nostalgic style Diner on Sutter Street in San Francisco California. File photo, editorial credit: Jon Rehg / Shutterstock.com, licensed. LOS ANGELES, CA - COVID-19 outbreaks have affected restaurants throughout Los Angeles…

Business

Orange County Struggles With Health Equity — And Battles State Restrictions

Anna Almendrala Nov 10, 2020

Deserted streets around the Walt Disney Concert Hall during COVID-19 quarantine. Los Angeles, CA, April 9, 2020. File photo credit ShutterStock.com, licensed. ANAHEIM, CA - California’s most popular amusement park has become the focal…

Health

Travel on Thanksgiving? Pass the COVID

Anna Almendrala Oct 23, 2020

The best way to avoid spreading disease would be to avoid traveling or widening one’s social circles. For local celebrations, self-quarantining for two weeks before a holiday event would minimize risk if all those invited committed to…

Health

For Kids With Special Needs, Online Schooling Divides Haves and Have-Nots

Anna Almendrala Aug 31, 2020

Tamya Daly greets Jacob and his mother, Cat, on their doorstep with supplies for Jacob’s first week of school. Each student receives a personalized folder with instructions for web access and logons to classroom apps. Photo credit: Anna…

Education

With Caveats, Hopeful News for Preschools Planning Young Kids’ Return

Anna Almendrala Aug 6, 2020

Uncertainty about transmission is one factor that has led parents to keep their kids at home. Some 18% of U.S. child care centers and 9% of family child care homes remain closed in the wake of the pandemic, according to the National…

Health

As Coronavirus Patients Skew Younger, Tracing Task Seems All But Impossible

Anna Almendrala Jul 20, 2020

People under 50 make up 73% of those testing positive for the disease in the state since the beginning of June, compared with 52% before April 30. That shift isn’t comforting to Dr. Alan Williamson, chief medical officer of Eisenhower…

Health

‘Please Tell Me My Life Is Worth A LITTLE Of Your Discomfort,’ Nurse Pleads

Anna Almendrala Jul 7, 2020

Nilu Patel, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, was at a takeout restaurant when she saw an angry confrontation between a worker and customers over the use of face coverings. Patel lives in Orange County, California, where the…

Health

‘It Hurts Our Soul’: Nursing Home Workers Struggle With Thankless Position

Anna Almendrala Apr 21, 2020

Gary Glaser has worked as a certified nursing assistant for Magnolia Rehabilitation & Nursing Center for four years. He says five of his paychecks bounced so far this year. Photo credit: Anna Almendrala, Kaiser Health News. …

Business

Postcard From The Edge: L.A. Street Vendors Who Can’t Stop Working

Anna Almendrala Apr 8, 2020

Marlon Castro lost his job as a barber and is now selling fabric face masks on the sidewalk. When he was first let go, he tried to stay home like everyone else. But Castro quickly realized he couldn’t afford to shelter-in-place if he…

Economy

Young People Weigh Pain Of Job Loss Against Risks Of Virus

Anna Almendrala Apr 6, 2020

As measures to slow the pandemic decimate jobs and threaten to plunge the economy into a deep recession, young adults such are disproportionately affected. Photo: Shutterstock.com licensed. Emilio Romero, 23, has mixed feelings about…

Education

School Districts With Large Asian Populations, Scrambling to Respond to Outbreak of Coronavirus;…

Anna Almendrala Feb 19, 2020

15 cases have been confirmed in the U.S., mostly in California, home to about one-third of the nation’s Chinese immigrants. Schools are weighing whether to allow students to work from home, even if they haven’t traveled abroad…

Health

Despite New Doubt, ‘Hotspotting’ For Heavy Healthcare Users Marches On

Anna Almendrala Jan 24, 2020

The model focuses on people who face social barriers such as homelessness or drug addiction and use the hospital multiple times a year, typically for avoidable complications from chronic diseases. Participants work with doctors, social…

Business

Bruising Labor Battles Put Kaiser Permanente’s Reputation On The Line

Anna Almendrala Nov 8, 2019

Kaiser Permanente historically has been praised for efficiency and cost-savings. But high-profile labor disputes have exposed the health system to criticism from legislators, health policy analysts and others who say the corporate titan is…

Finance

The Air Ambulance Billed More Than His Surgeon Did For A Lung Transplant

Anna Almendrala Nov 6, 2019

Tom Saputo had a double-lung transplant in July 2018 after being flown in an air ambulance to UCLA Medical Center from Thousand Oaks, Calif. Photo credit: Anna Almendrala/KHN. THOUSAND OAKS, CA - Before his double lung transplant, Tom…

Health

“The More We Learn About e-Cigarettes, the More Dangerous They Look,” – University of…

Anna Almendrala Oct 12, 2019

Even though quit-lines were designed to help people kick cigarette habits, calls and texts from people who use e-cigarettes are climbing as more people fall ill with a mysterious and devastating respiratory illness linked to vaping. File…

Business

Skin-Lightening Cream Put A Woman Into A Coma; It Could Happen Again

Anna Almendrala Oct 1, 2019

Authorities aren’t releasing her name, but they say she is the first known victim of methylmercury poisoning from a cosmetic in the U.S. File photo: Pixabay. CALIFORNIA - She had been buying face cream through a friend of a friend for…

Health

Doctors Fight Legislation Prompted By Sex Abuse Scandals

Anna Almendrala Aug 26, 2019

California Assembly members have proposed a bill to require doctors to give first-time pelvic exam patients a pamphlet about how the exams are supposed to be conducted, and a phone number should they want to report misconduct to the state…

Health

WATCH: Going Down Fighting: Dying Activist Champions ‘Medicare For All’

Anna Almendrala Aug 15, 2019

CALIFORNIA - When Santa Barbara lawyer-turned-activist Ady Barkan settled in to watch the second round of the Democratic presidential primary debates late last month, he had no idea his story would be part of the…

Health

Dealing With The Lingering Effects Of A Mass Shooting

Anna Almendrala Aug 11, 2019

Veronica Kelley, who has helped her community weather the aftermath of a mass shooting, has advice for others who have recently experienced one: “Trauma is different for everybody, and it takes however long it takes.” Photo courtesy of the…

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