I've been thinking a lot about the future lately. I turned 58 this year and my sense of urgency about what kind of country we are leaving our children has gone into turbo speed. I have the great privilege of living in California, where many say we see the future...

These days, it seems like our leaders in Washington have trouble finding common ground. However, the State of the Union address on Tuesday and the Republican response offered a welcome moment of agreement. Both President Obama and Senator Marco Rubio called for urgent action to reduce violence in...

While the 'fiscal cliff' is absorbing our national focus, the cliff that is truly dire is the one we push kids off of every day. Two events that took place in Washington yesterday focused on the real cliff our country faces -- the childhood cliff. This is where we should...

After the win by President Obama last Tuesday, I saw the health reform law -- also known as Obamacare -- in the same way that I viewed justice warriors like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., and Cesar Chavez after they were jailed for their beliefs. Obamacare is now a...

The state of California has embarked on an innovative new workplace wellness pilot program with the goal to improve the overall health of state employees while at the same time reducing the cost of health care, ultimately saving California taxpayers money. This is not a new solution: Wellness programs implemented...

The nonpartisan and independent field poll released its annual survey on childhood obesity this week, and it shows once again that Californians understand the severity of the obesity epidemic facing our state.

Californians are speaking with a clear and unified voice: they want action now.

According to the...

In the state of California alone, more than 700,000 school suspensions took place in the 2009-10 school year. A recent study that followed 7th graders through high school graduation in the state of Texas showed that nearly 60% of all students have been suspended from school...

I was just thinking back to July 2000 when I first joined The Endowment as president and CEO. Uninsured rates had been climbing steadily for years, health disparities had been recognized as a side effect of inadequate access to health care services, among a number of other issues pertaining to...

Last week, the City of Los Angeles took a major step toward common-sense school discipline reform. The City Council moved to amend a truancy law that ticketed students for trying to get to class. Fortunately, the Council acknowledged that sky-high fines aren't the solution to attendance problems in...

The spectrum of success in the music industry can be roughly divided between one-hit wonders on one end and sound that defines a generation on the other.

We all know and love "Rock, Me Amadeus," "Who Let the Dogs Out," and "The Macarena," but very few of us remember the...

Alongside education and job growth, making disease prevention a priority in our health care system may be one of the most important investments we can make as a nation. Prevention saves millions of lives, billions of dollars and puts us on the path toward dramatically increased global competitiveness.

As a health advocate for children and youth, I am out of my zone of comfort and expertise when it comes to the issue of the various challenges facing our education system (although everyone seems to have an opinion about how to fix public education in our nation these days)....

This Thanksgiving it is worth taking a moment to be grateful for something nearly 50 million Americans live without: health care. That staggering figure obscures the human face of our national dilemma: what do we do about the young mother with a breast tumor bursting through her skin, a man...

On Friday, October 28, in an action unanimously supported by our Board of Directors, The California Endowment filed an amicus curiae brief with the United States Supreme Court in support of the federal government's request that the Court accept an appeal of a lower court decision invalidating a portion of...

As I open my morning newspaper these days, I am reminded of what it was like to open the door to my son's room when he was a teenager. You know full well it's going to be messy; it's just a matter of how messy it's going to be. But...

Dear Mr. President:

I write to strongly urge you to stand firm in the face of attempts to eliminate or reduce the Prevention and Public Health Fund created by the Affordable Care Act. I share your commitment to improving health care for all Americans and I concur with your...

The California Endowment today issued a press release applauding Governor Schwarzenegger for rejecting the role of a lame duck, and called on him to take a few 'Last Action' items to help solidify his legacy as a national health and wellness leader. The list of 15 specific executive...

So, why is The California Endowment doing a public education and outreach effort around the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)? The answer is simple: our mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote...

Our foundation just began a major statewide consumer education effort to let people know about what's in the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and how it might help them, especially those benefits rolling out this year that will enhance the peace of mind of Californians when it comes...

Community-based nonprofit organizations are struggling for their organizational lives these days. The oppressive economic downturn has made it hard to keep their doors open to provide services while fundraising from private individuals and foundations has become downright Darwinian. Maintaining one's donor base is supremely critical for any struggling nonprofit group.