Medical debt is crushing hospital patients in LA. Health officials may have a fix
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By Noam Levey

Thursday, October 8, 2026 • 5:00 AM EDT

LOS ANGELES — Every Tuesday, Naman Shah sees tuberculosis patients at a small public clinic in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley. Shah, a physician and epidemiologist at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, pores over images of battered lungs, listens to labored breathing and checks medications.

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It's part of an initiative dating to the early 20th century to control infections so tuberculosis doesn't spread. "We like doing things upstream," Shah said, "meaning before they happen, not after the damage is done."

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