When your child has a high fever, you need a doctor, not the runaround. But when Sacramento mom Chanelle Fields’ son Ted was running a 104-degree temperature, a runaround is what she got.

Chanelle called the medical center that had cared for Ted since he was born, but they told her they could no longer accept Medi-Cal patients. Her son’s case worker said Ted had been assigned to a different clinic but the first available appointment was two months away.

Chanelle was angry and scared. She couldn’t get her son any medical help to treat him, so she had to treat him at home, using cold towels and showers to bring his fever down.

Kids like Ted are at serious risk when their conditions go untreated. Low reimbursement rates to doctors make it harder for patients like Ted to get timely care because there are too few doctors who can afford to accept new Medi-Cal patients.