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Pacific States

Research Brief

Los Angeles County Jails Could Divert More Individuals to Community-Based Mental Health Services

Summarizes findings of a report in which researchers estimated the percentage of individuals with mental health disorders in Los Angeles County jails who could be diverted from traditional criminal justice processing to community-based care.

Feb 3, 2020
Report

The Frequency and Economic Impact of Musculoskeletal Disorders for California Firefighters: Trends and Outcomes over the Past Decade

The authors update analyses from a 2010 study on firefighters in California and consider the impacts of the 2013 workers' compensation reforms and the economic shocks of the late 2000s on outcomes for firefighters with musculoskeletal disorders.

Jan 31, 2020
Report

Industrial Cancers in California's Workers' Compensation System: Evidence on Earnings Losses and Disability Benefits

In this report, the authors conduct an empirical analysis of earnings losses, disability ratings, and benefit payments for occupational cancer claims in the California workers' compensation system.

Jan 31, 2020
Commentary

More Than Stormwater: How Green Infrastructure Offers Multiple Benefits for Los Angeles Communities

California faces water supply shortages, which are worsened by climate change. Applying a systems framework is essential to addressing complex problems for the sustainability of water resources.

Jan 29, 2020
Testimony

California's Hospital Seismic Safety Requirements: Cost and Affordability

By 2030, California hospitals will be required by law to remain operational after a major earthquake. How much might it cost to reach compliance by the deadline? And can hospitals afford this estimated spending?

Jan 28, 2020
Report

Evaluation of the SB 1041 Reforms to California's CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work Program: Updated Findings Regarding Policy Implementation and Outcomes

This report offers further findings from the evaluation of the Senate Bill (SB) 1041 reforms to the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids program, with a focus on ongoing implementation of SB 1041 and updates on participant outcomes.

Jan 24, 2020
Report

The Big Lift Descriptive Analyses: Progress Across Three Kindergarten Classes

In this report, the authors present results describing early learning outcomes of children from three kindergarten classes who were eligible to participate in The Big Lift, a preschool-third-grade initiative that aims to boost reading proficiency.

Jan 13, 2020
Blog

Iran, Mental Health and Jail, Russia: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on Iran and Iraq following the killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, supporting those experiencing mental illness in jails, Russia's hostile measures, and more.

Jan 10, 2020
News Release

More Than Half of Those in Mental Health Unit at L.A. Jail Could Be Diverted to Community Programs

More than 3,300 people in the mental health population of the Los Angeles County Jail are appropriate candidates for diversion into programs where they would receive community-based clinical services rather than incarceration.

Jan 7, 2020
Report

Many Detainees with Mental Illness Could Be Safely Diverted to Community Care

In June 2019, more than 5,500 people in Los Angeles County jails were in mental health housing units and/or were taking psychotropic medications. Based on legal and clinical factors, 61 percent of these individuals were likely eligible for release into community-based treatment.

Jan 7, 2020
Report

Implementing a New Mobility Vision for Rancho Higuera in a Deeply Uncertain, Fast-Changing World: Results from RAND Corporation Participatory Local Planning Workshops

Culver City seeks to reimagine mobility, shifting from cars to other transit modes. A RAND team helped the city develop an implementation plan using decision making under deep uncertainty (DMDU) methods embedded in a participatory "shadow" process.

Jan 3, 2020
Journal Article

Co-use of Tobacco and Marijuana Among Young People Experiencing Homelessness in Los Angeles County

The present study is a first step in understanding the prevalence, types, and correlates of co-use in a probability sample of young tobacco users experiencing homelessness.

Dec 20, 2019
Journal Article

Advancing Policy to Build a Behavioral Health Workforce That Addresses the Needs of Older Adults

This study draws from an evaluation of how older adults are served by California's public mental health delivery system, and a review of state planning documents and academic literature, to describe gaps and deficiencies in the workforce that serves older adults.

Dec 20, 2019
Commentary

A Climate Scientist's Brush with Wildfire

RAND researcher Robert Lempert was evacuated from the path of a wildfire. This experience emphasized for him the challenges of adapting to climate change, not merely because it is hard, but because it makes the familiar become unfamiliar in unexpected ways.

Dec 18, 2019
Testimony

Proposition 63 and the Future of Mental Health Funding in California

Proposition 63 greatly increased funding for mental health in California, including an extensive expansion of prevention and early intervention (PEI) programming. Could the state benefit from an even larger investment in PEI? Lessons from RAND's eight years of evaluating Prop. 63 offer insights into its successes and challenges.

Dec 12, 2019
Journal Article

Health, Homelessness Severity, and Substance Use Among Sexual Minority Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A Comparison of Bisexual Versus Gay and Lesbian Youth

We examined subgroup differences in homelessness severity, depression, physical health, and substance use, focusing on differences between bisexual and gay/lesbian youth, among homeless youth in Los Angeles.

Dec 11, 2019
Essay

A Novel Approach to Helping People Returning from Prison

Many services try to address the needs of individuals returning from prison, but they're often designed without much input from the very people who need the services. A group of county agencies, service providers, and former prisoners collaborated to identify ways to improve reentry services in Los Angeles.

Oct 30, 2019
Commentary

Turning Off Power to Combat Wildfires Could Harm the Very People Who Need Protection

Intentionally shutting off power may be a practical way to prevent power lines from sparking wildfires. But is it worth the risks? Until more thoughtful and comprehensive decisions are made, planned power outages need to be planned better.

Oct 28, 2019
News Release

RAND Corporation Will Lead Effort to Measure Success of California Census Participation Effort

The RAND Corporation will lead a project to measure the success of California's unprecedented efforts to get the state's residents to participate in the 2020 U.S. Census.

Oct 21, 2019
Commentary

Do Workers' Protections Need to Depend on Employee Status? Looking Beyond AB 5

As the nature of work evolves and the relationships between workers and firms become increasingly complex, it's possible that disentangling worker protections from worker classification rules will become a policy option worth further exploration.

Oct 17, 2019

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