Andre Hayes came to sign up for health-care coverage.
Baldev Klair had her grandson’s vision tested.
Jesus Holguin was in Sacramento partly to watch the Moreno Valley Canyon Springs girls basketball team play for the state championship Friday night – they won – but he stayed Saturday to join scores of others at the local event, Natomas Unified’s “Health and Wellness Expo.”
The free health expo at South Natomas Community Center provided a one-stop shop for gathering health-related information, obtaining screenings, or learning about community resources available to local families.
Hayes said he wanted to beat Monday’s deadline for signing up for health-care coverage or risking a penalty fee under federal law.
“This is a wonderful thing that you’re doing for the community, reaching out and helping others,” Hayes said.
Elena Quintero, an aide to Sacramento Vice Mayor Angelique Ashby, brought her 3 ½-year-old daughter to the health expo.
“Oh my gosh, this is amazing,” Quintero said. “My daughter’s had fun and I got her assessed in different ways – vision, speech, everything. She had a great time while I got to learn that she was normal.”
Participants could talk with a consultant about health-care coverage options, receive blood pressure and cholesterol screenings, obtain information about car seat safety and proper fitting of bicycle helmets, or have their child’s hearing, vision, speech or dental needs assessed. Fitness classes also were available – with a suggested donation of $5 – and library officials offered an informational session about their services.
Incoming seventh-graders, with proof of insurance, could receive a free Tdap vaccination to immunize them against Whooping cough, Tetanus and Diphtheria. Such booster shots are required by state law unless families obtain an exemption.
Participating organizations included the California Health Department, Sacramento Fire Department, UC Davis Trauma Prevention and Outreach, National Alliance on Mental Illness, North Natomas Transportation Management Agency, Kaiser Permanente, ALTA Regional Center and more than a dozen other groups.
Carol Williams, NUSD Executive Director of Special Education and Student Services, said the health expo has a direct tie to classroom learning. “Healthy kids, healthy families,” she said. “When families are healthy, when kids are healthy, the kids are in school … So it’s really about having healthy kids in our schools learning.”
Holguin, the Sacramento visitor who is a trustee of the Moreno Valley Unified School District and president-elect of the California School Boards Association, said the health expo makes families aware of resources and services that many may not know existed.
“While it’s raining outside, we’re here, we’re getting information about all the different areas covered, and it’s very comfortable – one day, one stop, a couple of hours well spent and we go home with all the information we need,” he said.
