California provides money to dentists to help patients with special needs


A doctor uses dental instruments to inspect the mouth of a patient in a wheelchair. Two people stand one nearby, as one of them uses the flash on their phone to help illuminate the patient's mouth while the other person looks.
Dr. Maxmilian Chambers checks the patient’s teeth while her parents watch during a dental meeting in El Centro on April 3, 2025. Photo from Zoya Meyars for Calmatters

For some people, high drilling, bright fluorescent lights and uncomfortable cracking and arrangement can make a visit to the dentist’s office. But for people with special needs who are often hypersensitive to sounds, lights and touch, this can be especially difficult.

Calm Christen Explains, dental offices that can accommodate patients with autistic spectrum disorder, Down syndrome or even Alzheimer’s are small and far between CaliforniaS

Patients with special needs often need to be soothed for routine examinations or require more time to desensitize. Those with physical disabilities may need specialized equipment such as wheelchair lifts. For complex procedures, Medi-Cal insurance from patients with disabilities usually does not pay very well, further limiting patients’ access to private dentists.

Many of these patients are Place waiting lists or you should drive hours To the closer clinic that will take them -which will make them one of the most unauthorized populations in the country for dental care, according to the California Dental Association.

To help improve dental assistance for people with disabilities in development and other special needs, the state has issued its last round of grants to a dental clinic in February in February a total amount $ 47.2 million to 13 dentists and clinicsS

One recipient is Maxmilian Chamberrs, an Imperial County dentist, who received a $ 5 million grant to open a dental surgical center for patients with special needs. The grant will cover the cost of construction for eight chairs and two surgical theaters. Chambers said that when the clinic opened, it would be able to serve about 2100 people a year and would probably treat patients traveling from Arizona and Mexical.

  • Cammers: “I want to make a change. I don’t want them to wait two to three years to see a dentist, everything has changed and worse at that time.”

Read more hereS


Calletatters events: Fresnoland and Calfatters’ Yousef baig unite on April 22 to study the future of the high -speed railway project with key decision -making persons and local leaders in the Fresh City College. Sign up hereS

And on April 24, join Calmatters’ Marisa Kendall And politics leaders while dealing with what works to deal with homelessness and homes at affordable prices – and what not. Sign up today To attend online or personally at the Safe Credit Union Congress Center in Sacramento.

How did you affect Trump’s executive orders and other recent action? Calmatters works with Public Radio Partners to gather perspectives throughout the country. Share your thoughts hereS



Trump is aimed at CA’s climate change policies

Shevron's refinery in Richmond is located behind a neighborhood on February 21, 2024. Photo by Loren Elliott for Calmatters
Shevron’s refinery in Richmond on February 21, 2024. Photo by Loren Elliott for Calmatters

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump issued an enforcement order aimed at state and local climate change policies – separation of the key to California a program to restrict and trade in the processCalmatters’ reports Alejandro LazoS

Trump’s order directs the US Prosecutor General to review and identify state and local acts, which may be unconstitutional or predisposed by federal law. The Prosecutor General has 60 days to report to Trump with findings and recommendations for action.

In addition to New York and Vermont, The order Calls California for “implementation of workload and ideologically motivated” climate change “or energy policies that threaten US energy domination and our economic and national security.” Namely, a state program aims to limit greenhouse gas emissions, allowing companies to buy and sell emission loans.

  • The order: “California… punishes the use of carbon by perceiving impossible restrictions on the amount of carbon businesses they can use, but everything, but forcing the business to pay large sums to” trade “carbon loans to meet the radical requirements of California.”

However, some legal experts have questioned Trump’s claims that states overcome their authority or that their policies are unconstitutional.

Californians’ power bills are lower than usual this month thanks to twice as soon as possible climate credit Funded by the CAP and TradeS The amount of the loan Depends on the utilityBut most people will receive a loan between $ 56 and $ 81.38.

Read more hereS

Opening the door to AI-Nuclear Nuclear Power Plants?

The Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in San Luis Obyspo in 2011. Photo by Lionel Khan, Abaca Press

As state legislators and technology companies view nuclear energy as a potential source of energy for artificial intelligenceThe last remaining nuclear power plant in California is looking for artificial intelligence to help manage your own workwrote Alex Schultz For Calletats.

Last year, Pacific Gas & Electric said they had a deal with the AI ​​startup atomic canyon to “make the first generative deployment of AI on the spot at the US nuclear power plant” for Diablo Canyon in San Louis Dobrobo. The AI ​​data retrieval instrument, known as Neutron Enterprise, helps workers pass through millions of pages of technical reports, provisions and documents by the Federal Nuclear Regulation Commission.

  • MaureanPG & E Vice President of Business and Technical Services: “We probably spend about 15,000 hours a year in search of our numerous databases and records and procedures. And this will shrink down this path.”

Although Savalik clarifies that the neutron enterprise is no “Guard of solutions,” he still paves the way for future uses of AI in Diablo Canyon and other facilities.

California legislators have tried, with different successyes Pass measures to regulate AIand assembly Dawn AdisDemocrat from San Luis Western said there were “many questions without answering safety, supervision and consequences for working to use AI in Diablo.”

At the federal level, the Nuclear Regulation Commission has been striving for the deployment of AI tools in nuclear power plants for several years, but it is unclear how these efforts will continue under the Trump administration, which opposes AI regulationS

Read more hereS

Lastly: Concert Compound Workers

The drivers of the drivers are present at a rally announcing new legislation that will allow drivers to join an alliance in the Capitol of the State in Sacramento on April 8, 2025. Photo by Louis Bryant III for Calmatters

Nearly five years after driving companies have blocked an attempt to classify workers in California as employees, Democratic MPs have discovered a bill Tuesday, which will allow Uber and Lyft drivers to unite. Learn more by Calmatters’ Yue Stella YuS



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Lyn La is a writer of a CalMatters newsletter, focusing on the best political, political and Capitol stories in California every weekday. It produces and treats Whatmatters, the flagship daily newsletter of Salmatters …

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