Babies from East and South Asian American communities and African immigrants are most vulnerable to hepatitis B infections. Minnie Zhou photo via Unsplash (copyright free) Health News Exchange For decades, U.S. public health policy has treated hepatitis B vaccination at birth as non-negotiable: every newborn, regardless of maternal risk factors, receives a first dose within 24 hours of life. The approach mirrors global guidance from the World Health Organization and has been

Make your donation now The East Palo Alto Center for Community Media would like to thank you for all of the support you have given us as we’ve striven to provide relevant, critical community news. As a nonprofit news organization, we need your help—now more than ever. As we count down the final hours of this year, we ask that you make a tax-deductible contribution to enable us to serve you better in the coming year. Your donation today provides the revenue we need to pay our

East Palo Alto seniors celebrate the holiday season at the the breakfast given in their honor by the East Palo Alto Police Department. Photo credits-David Rages The East Palo Alto Senior Center was full of laughter, music, and the smell of hot food at the annual holiday breakfast presented by the East Palo Alto Police Department, where more than 100 seniors and their families gathered to celebrate the season. City Manager Melvin Gaines opened the program by acknowledging the

Graphic- AI generated If you’re looking to get insurance from the Health Insurance Marketplace, you have until January 15 th  to sign up. But dishonest companies sometimes advertise comprehensive health insurance when it’s really a  medical discount plan  or a health plan with limited insurance benefits. And, sometimes, an insurance “offer” is just a scam. As you compare your options, here are some things to consider: Know some warning signs.  If ads for the so-called insuran

Courtesy California Black Media On Nov. 20, the Office of Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications (OCPSC) hosted an online forum with ethnic media outlets across the state to highlight two statewide programs that benefit all Californians: the CalAssist Mortgage Fund, which provides disaster-related mortgage relief, and Check to Protect, a vehicle-safety campaign led by the National Safety Council and supported by the California New Motor Vehicle Board.    While th

East Palo Alto city officials and regional leaders pose for photos before cutting the ribbon to the city's new pedestrian bridge East Palo Alto residents, civic leaders and regional partners celebrated the long-awaited opening of the University Avenue Pedestrian Bridge, a project many described as both practical and symbolic for the community. “This is a joyous celebration… celebrating safety and community and connectability,” City Manager Melvin Gaines said as he welcomed th

With the federal government shutdown now in its second month, Covered California officials are warning that nearly two million residents who rely on federal tax credits to keep their coverage affordable could face steep premium increases—or lose insurance—if Congress fails to act during open enrollment.  Speaking during a virtual media briefing hosted Oct. 23 by California Black Media (CBM)Executive Director Regina Wilson, Dr. Monica Soni, Chief Medical Officer for Covered Ca

To see the files of the November 2025 EPA Today issue, click  here   or on the image below See other issues of EPA Today by clicking on the issue names below: June 2025 EPA Today May 2025 EPA Today Summer- Fall 2024 EPA Today Spring Summer 2023 EPA Today Special Election Edition 2022 Spring - Summer 2022

Community college student seeking assistance Image created by HJB using Gemini It might come as a surprise to some that California provides many resources for undocumented individuals and their family members. Many of these resources are funded by the California Department of Social Services(CDSS) Immigration Services Bureau (ISB) through a program called Higher Education Legal Services Project. Information about these programs can be found within a website call

On September 10th, the U.S Education Department announced the end of $350 million in discretionary funding for MSI grant programs. Feature image via Flickr . Published under CC License 2.0 David Lee spent the summer working on a grant application for the Asian Pacific American Student Success program (APASS) at Oakland’s Laney College, which he has directed for eight years. The program is sustained by federal funding that for decades has been committed to Minority Servin

UCLA Mapping Project At a recent national briefing titled, “A History of Bias: Who Gets Deported in the United States?,” three UCLA researchers presented data, stretching back more than a century, which showed that the U.S.’ immigration policies in the 1890’s still determine which immigrants get to stay in the U.S. today. The project, called Mapping Deportations, is the result of five years of combing through immigration records going back to 1895. The UCLA researchers turned

Silenced by fear - AI generated At a time, when many in the U.S. are observing October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the...

Medi-Cal continued coverage - Courtesy health/consumer.org California's Medi-Cal program, the state's version of Medicaid, is set to undergo sweeping eligibility and benefit changes beginning in January 2026. State officials confirmed in a fact-filled briefing that the changes affecting the program will extend through 2028 and consist of a combination of federal requirements and state budget adjustments. Medi-Cal currently covers over 14 million Californians and the upcoming

The federal government formally entered a shutdown Oct. 1, with a vicious debate over the extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits fueling the bi-partisan stand-off.

Photo courtesy California Black Media   The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Sept. 20 that it is ending the longstanding annual food insecurity survey, which informs funding levels for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the federal food stamp program.   The Trump administration said it canceled the survey because it is “redundant, politicized, and costly,” the USDA stated.    The final report will be published in October 2025 using data co

The surveillance equipment in this photo includes facial recognition and vehicle make, model, color and license plate reader. Photo credits: Maraparacc at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. The U.S. government is increasingly using digital tools to track and surveil immigrants, according to privacy advocates who spoke at a recent briefing hosted by American Community Media. The event, titled "Expanding Surveillance of Immigrants at What Cost," highlighte

The hard stop and the other images shown in the above graphic illustrate the concerns that some East Palo Alto residents have about the...

East Palo Alto City Councilmembers are shown at their September 2, 2025 council meeting The U.S. is polarized and it appears that the...

Participants in the City of East Palo Alto's Sept. 4, 2025 workshop, which was focused on the city's local economy, laid out their vision...

Ravneel Chaudhary - As a resident and community organizer, I have experienced firsthand how public trust in East Palo Alto is being...