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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14-SEPTEMBER 20, 2026
San Bernardino County highlights emergency preparedness ahead of winter storms
California sanctions insurer after it cut assisted living coverage to thousands By Kristen Hwang, CalMatters
By Staff
This story was originally published by CalMatters.
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eptember is National Preparedness Month, when governments urge the public to take proactive steps to prepare for emergencies. Amid warnings of an intense winter storm season ahead, the San Bernardino County Office of Emergency Services is encouraging residents to “prepare where you live” by understanding the risks that may impact different communities. For those who call San Bernardino County’s mountain communities home, officials said preparedness means being ready for conditions that can change quickly. Emergencies such as wildfires, winter storms, landslides, power outages and road closures disrupt daily life, limit travel and at times require residents to evacuate with minimal notice. According to the county, a few ways to prepare for mountain emergencies are: • “Know multiple evacuation routes. Your usual route may be unavailable because of fire, snow, flooding or road closures. Talk with your household about where you’ll meet up. • “Keep your vehicle ready. Maintain at least a half tank of gas and keep water, food, blankets, a flashlight and other emergency supplies in your car. • “Prepare to be self-sufficient. Keep enough food, water, medications and other essentials on hand for several days. • “Have a go-bag ready. Keep medications, important documents and other essentials organized in case you need to leave quickly. • “Plan for your whole household. Consider the needs of children, older
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The San Bernardino County Fire Department’s Rapid Extraction Module Support Team does a training exercise. | Photo courtesy of San Bernardino County
adults, pets and anyone who may need additional assistance. • “Stay informed. Check weather and road conditions and have multiple ways to receive emergency information.” Residents also can download the Ready SB County app and sign up for TENS, the county’s emergency notification system, to receive important information prior to and during an emergency. “Preparing now can make a big difference when conditions change,” officials said. “Ready Together. Prepare Where You Live.” Go to bit.ly/readytogethersb for more information about National Preparedness Month. CERT volunteers
strengthen disaster prep countywide In a municipality as large and diverse as San Bernardino County — square miles total more than 20,000 — residents play a key role when emergencies affect their neighborhoods. Through the Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, the county Office of Emergency Services trains residents to care for themselves, their families and their neighbors while providing additional community support when professional responders must focus on dealing with the most critical needs and dangerous situations, officials said. CERT volunteers also See Emergency prep Page 04
help the Office of Emergency Services understand conditions on the ground by identifying concerns and sharing information from the communities they know best. Such preparation starts with a 21-hour CERT course that teaches “practical, hands-on disaster response skills,” according to the county. Participants gain knowledge in fire safety, light search and rescue work, medical operations during disasters and team organization. Course participants also learn what to do before, during and after an emergency. Officials said to join the team, no previous emergency response experience
alifornia regulators ordered Health Net to fix how it’s handling the termination of assisted living services for low-income residents after the insurer’s abrupt decision left patients and providers scrambling. The state’s corrective action plan requires Health Net to extend services for all members until the end of the year, rather than stopping some as soon as October. Health Net, one of the largest Medicaid insurers in the country, notified providers several months ago that it was ending its assisted living and home care services contracts. The services are optional under Medi-Cal — California’s version of Medicaid — meaning an insurer can decide annually whether it will continue coverage. Providers and family members said they got little or no warning, leaving them confused and panicked about finding other arrangements. In an August letter to Health Net, the Department of Health Care Services cited eight deficiencies in the insurer’s handling of the change, including failure to submit transition plans for members, failure to move members to other medically appropriate care, and denying services to members. Regulators wrote that violations “jeopardize member safety, disrupt continuity of care, and endanger medically vulnerable members.” If Health Net does not extend benefits and create individualized transition plans for each affected See Assisted living Page 04
member, the state may fine them $25,000 per member per day of violation, the letter states. Advocates and providers estimate about 3,500 Medi-Cal patients rely on Health Net to pay for assisted living costs. Most are elderly, and many have cognitive issues like dementia. Health Net operates Medi-Cal plans in 10 counties: Amador, Calaveras, Fresno, Inyo, Los Angeles, Mono, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tulare. In a statement to CalMatters, Health Net spokesperson Beatriz Lopez said the company still plans to end the services next year, but will now cover all members through the end of the year. “Health Net and DHCS share a commitment to advancing the health and well-being of Medi-Cal members,” Lopez said. Health Net has previously told CalMatters the assisted living benefit “has not led to better care” in terms of fewer emergency room visits or days hospitalized. The benefit is part of CalAIM, a broad state initiative to improve Medi-Cal services and save money by stabilizing high-cost users who frequently end up in emergency rooms. Lopez said Health Net would continue analyzing data and supporting services that result in better health outcomes. Providers confirmed to CalMatters that their contracts would run through the end of the year.