From the Greenlining Institute:

SACRAMENTO – The California Senate took a major step toward involving the 6.9 million Californians who don’t speak English very well in the ballot initiative system today, passing SB 1233 by a vote of 24 to 14, with two abstentions. The bill would require the state to translate ballot initiative materials being circulated for signature-gathering into widely-spoken languages.

“This bill is an important step to protect the rights of all of California’s voters by providing election materials in different languages,” said bill author Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima). “By failing to provide language appropriate petitions, thousands of voters have been and continue to be left out of the process of determining which initiatives qualify for the ballot. It is imperative that we provide initiative material in all the languages covered by the 1965 Federal Voting Rights Act,” said Senator Padilla.

Mary’s Center, a Federally Qualified Health Center with over 24 years of experience serving the DC metropolitan area, and Green Door, the second-largest community mental health service provider in the District of Columbia, are pleased to announce a unique partnership to improve access to long-term care for psychiatric patients in the District of Columbia.

Effective May 31, 2012, Mary’s Center will assume responsibility for the operation of Green Door’s psychiatric clinic in the Georgia Ave-Petworth neighborhood of Northwest DC. With this partnership, Mary’s Center aims to increase access to a full range of psychiatric services while continuing to provide the quality of care for which Green Door has been known since 1976. Together, Mary’s Center and Green Door will continue to proactively address the growing comprehensive healthcare needs of our community.

A new study reveals that interpretation for patients can lessen the time they spend in hospitals, ultimately lessening provider and patient costs. Read the Reuters article here.