San Diego Union-Tribune: DermTech, The San Diego Biotech Making A Skin-Cancer Detecting Patch, Cuts 15% Of Workforce
DermTech, a San Diego biotechnology company that developed a noninvasive melanoma test, is reducing its workforce by 15 percent to shave off operating expenses. (Rocha, 2/6)

Sacramento Business Journal: Rite Aid Closing Woodland Distribution Center, Cutting 241 Jobs 
Rite Aid's large distribution center in Woodland is permanently closing, resulting in the elimination of more than 200 jobs. (Abbott, 2/6)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Petaluma Health Center Names Pedro Toledo As Interim CEO, Eyes Significant Growth This Year
The board of Petaluma Health Center has named Pedro Toledo as interim chief executive officer of the southern Sonoma County provider, replacing outgoing CEO Kathie Powell. (Espinoza, 2/6)

Sacramento Business Journal: University Of The Pacific Doubles Size Of Physician Assistant Program With New Building In Oak Park
The University of the Pacific’s new health school continues growing. (Hamann, 2/6)

Los Angeles Times: Bill Aims To Legalize Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy In California
After a failed attempt to decriminalize a short list of psychedelics last year, state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) is reintroducing legislation to make California the third state to legalize psychedelic-assisted therapy for adults. (Sosa, 2/6)

Los Angeles Times: Has California's COVID-19 Winter Surge Peaked? Here's What Data Show
The winter respiratory virus season may have hit its peak in California, with coronavirus levels in sewage and COVID-19 hospitalizations starting to decline following weeks of steady increases. Should the trend continue, 2023–24 would be the mildest winter of the COVID era in terms of severe illness — free of anything even approximating the devastating and disruptive surges seen in prior years. (Lin II, 2/7)

AP: Not Wearing Mask During COVID-19 Isn’t A Free Speech Right, Appeals Court Says
A federal appeals court shot down claims Monday that New Jersey residents’ refusal to wear face masks at school board meetings during the COVID-19 outbreak constituted protected speech under the First Amendment. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling in two related cases stemming from lawsuits against officials in Freehold and Cranford, New Jersey. (Catalini, 2/6)

Axios: Biden Admin Pushes Pharmacy Execs On COVID Treatment Paxlovid Costs
Biden administration officials this week pushed executives from leading pharmacy chains to make sure frontline staff are providing patients with accurate information about costs of the COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid, officials told Axios first. Why it matters: Uptake of the Pfizer antiviral has remained stubbornly low since it transitioned to the commercial market in the fall, in part because of patients sometimes being charged up to the full list price of $1,400. (Reed, 2/7)

Scientific American: Rampant COVID Poses New Challenges In The Fifth Year Of The Pandemic
For four years now, either as a physical virus or as a looming threat, the COVID-causing pathogen SARS-CoV-2 has been the elephant in every room—sometimes confronted and sometimes ignored but always present. While once we dreamed of eradicating COVID, now much of society has resigned itself to SARS-CoV-2’s constant presence—a surrender that would once have been unthinkable. Worldwide, there were more than 11,000 reported deaths from COVID between mid-December 2023 and mid-January 2024, and more than half of those deaths occurred in the U.S. In that same time frame, nearly one million cases were reported to the World Health Organization globally (although reduced testing and reporting means this is likely a vast undercount). In particular, epidemiologists are monitoring the newest variant of SARS-CoV-2, JN.1, and looking for any signs that it may be more severe than previous strains. (Bartels, 2/6)

New Atlas: “Zombie” COVID Particles May Be Responsible For Lethal Disease
Following the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in 2020 there are now seven different coronaviruses known to infect humans. Four of those are associated with generally harmless common respiratory infections, but the other three (SARS, SARS-CoV-2 and MERS) are much more dangerous. Why some coronaviruses are relatively harmless while others are incredibly lethal is still a bit of a mystery. Some answers lie in the proteins each individual virus uses to enter human cells, but what exactly makes SARS-CoV-2 so severe in some people and innocuous in others is unclear. (Haridy, 2/5)

CIDRAP: FDA Mulls Extending RSV Vaccine To People Ages 50 To 59 
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted GSK's application for priority review for extended use of its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine Arexvy in adults ages 50 to 59 at higher risk for complications. (Schnirring, 2/6)

Voice Of San Diego: The Jan. 22 Floods Displaced More Than 1,000 San Diegans From Their Homes
Floating cars. Rescue boats. Water flowing through houses like sieves. The Jan. 22 floods seared images of devastation into the minds of San Diegans. But the full extent of the devastation is only now, more than two weeks later, coming into view. The floods displaced at least 1,000 people from their homes, according to new numbers compiled by Voice of San Diego. And a new preliminary damage report shows that at least 595 buildings sustained major damage, according to county officials.  (Huntsberry, 2/6)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Huge Batch Of Proposed San Diego Policy Changes Would Make It Easier To Open Behavioral-Health Clinics, Turn Malls Into Homes And More
A large package of proposed policy changes in San Diego would loosen rules for converting shopping malls into housing and make it easier to open substance use and mental health clinics for homeless people. (Garrick, 2/7)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Some Lawmakers Want To Take San Diego's Homeless Camping Ban Statewide 
A bipartisan group of lawmakers want California to adopt San Diego’s stricter limits on homeless encampments as the nation’s top court considers re-writing the rule book entirely. (Nelson, 2/6)

CalMatters: Homeless Encampments: CA Legislators Want A Ban
Describing California’s homelessness crisis as “inhumane” and “unhealthy,” Senate GOP leader Brian Jones of San Diego and Democratic Sen. Catherine Blakespear of Encinitas today announced a bipartisan bill to ban homeless encampments near “sensitive community areas” statewide. Modeled after San Diego’s “Unsafe Camping Ordinance,” Senate Bill 1011 prohibits encampments within 500 feet of schools, open spaces and major transit stops. It also bans camping on sidewalks if shelter space is available; requires cities or counties to give an unhoused person 72-hour notice before clearing an encampment; and mandates “enforcement personnel” to provide information about homeless shelters in the area. (La, 2/6)

Times Of San Diego: County Supervisors Approve Effort To Seek Out Potential Homeless Shelter Sites 
The county Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved an evaluation of county-owned sites for use as possible future emergency shelters for homeless people. According to a statement from Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer‘s office, the focus will be on sleeping cabins, safe parking spots, “sprung” or fabric shelters or repurposing existing buildings to help those now living on the streets. County staff members will also seek partners who could provide services at the sites. (Ireland, 2/6)

Los Angeles Daily News: LA County Supervisors Order Audit Of Recent Homeless Count, Citing Problems 
How did the recent Greater Los Angeles County Homeless Count go? The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors wants to find out. (Scauzillo, 2/6)

Berkeleyside: Berkeley Gun Violence Prevention Program May Soon Go To Bid
Berkeley is still months away from entertaining pitches for its gun violence prevention and intervention program but has decided on a basic framework for what the city wants. In November 2022, the Berkeley Police Department and Goldman School of Public Policy teamed up to design a program, which took the form of an analysis by Michelle A. Verger, then a public policy scholar. (Gecan, 2/6)

Los Angeles Times: Racism In Old Gun Laws Poses Problem For Modern Gun Control 
As attorneys for the state of California prepared recently to defend in federal court a state law requiring background checks for ammunition purchases, they found themselves in an awkward position. Under a U.S. Supreme Court ruling from 2022, gun control measures are legitimate only if they are deeply rooted in American “history and tradition” or are sufficiently similar to some other centuries-old law. The state lawyers had conducted a deep dive through hundreds of years of American jurisprudence and identified dozens of historical laws that they felt bolstered the modern law’s legitimacy by showing that the government has long limited access to firearms and ammunition. (Rector, 2/7)

Medical Xpress: Exposure To Gun Violence Is Associated With Suicidal Behavior In Black Adults
Black adults who have been exposed to gun violence are more likely to have lifetime suicidal ideation, according to a study by Rutgers Health researchers. The study, published in JAMA Network Open, found that Black adults who were shot, threatened with a gun, knew someone who was shot or witnessed or heard about a shooting are at increased risk for suicidal thoughts and behavior. (Zielinski, 2/6)

USA Today: Biden White House Readies Week Of Events On Gun Violence Prevention
The White House is set to hold a series of events this week focused on combatting gun violence in Black communities as President Joe Biden continues to push Congress to do more on gun control. The events, organized by the newly created White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, kick off Monday with a nationwide virtual meeting with Black leaders on tackling gun violence in their communities. Biden will deliver a message recognizing this week as "Community Violence Awareness Week." (Garrison, 2/5)

The New York Times: Jennifer Crumbley’s Conviction Offers New Legal Tactic In Mass Shooting Cases 
The guilty verdict on Tuesday against the mother of a Michigan teenager who murdered four students in 2021 in the state’s deadliest school shooting is likely to ripple across the country’s legal landscape as prosecutors find themselves weighing a new way to seek justice in mass shootings. But, legal experts say, don’t expect a rush of similar cases. That’s because prosecutors in Michigan had notably compelling evidence against the mother, Jennifer Crumbley, that jurors felt proved she should have known the mental state of her son, Ethan Crumbley, who was 15 at the time. (Arango, 2/6)

USA Today: Crumbley Decision: What It Means For Parents And The Future Of Gun Violence
Tony Montalito still feels sadness surrounding the mass school shooting that took his young daughter's life in Parkland, Florida in 2018. But on Tuesday, he also felt some sense of justice. The jury decision in Michigan that found Jennifer Crumbley, the mother of a school shooter, responsible at least in part for the 2021 killings at Oxford High School sends an important signal, Montalito told USA TODAY. It offers parents of shooting victims some hope that people will take steps to keep guns away from their children. "Holding people accountable for their roles in not actively trying to get troubled individuals help before they commit acts of violence will send a strong message," Montalito said. (Jimenez, Santucci and Arshad, 2/6)

The Washington Post: Fact Checker: Is Gun Violence The Leading Cause Of Death For Children? 
Deaths from gun violence, after remaining relatively stable from 1999 to 2014, have spiked in recent years, to a peak of 48,830 in 2021, according to data maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But has gun violence become so horrific that it is now the leading cause of death for children? The Biden White House, in various venues, has made that claim. But the source cited in the White House news release — a 2022 study by the Center for Gun Violence Solutions at Johns Hopkins University — reports data with a broader focus. It cites gun deaths of “children and teens,” meaning it includes deaths of 18- and 19-year-olds, who are legally considered adults in most states. (Kessler, 2/7)

The Washington Post: New Air Pollution Rule Could Prevent Thousands Of Premature Deaths
The Environmental Protection Agency is strengthening limits on fine particulate matter, one of the nation’s most widespread deadly air pollutants, prompting praise from public health experts and backlash from business groups. The stricter standards could prevent thousands of premature deaths, particularly in communities of color where people have breathed unhealthy air for decades. While business groups don’t dispute these enormous health benefits, they argue that the standards could cause major economic upheaval by erasing manufacturing jobs across the country. (Joselow, 2/7)

USA Today: Plastics Linked To Thousands Of Preterm Births In U.S., Study Finds
Chemicals commonly used for plastic in food containers, lotion and other products are linked to tens of thousands of preterm births in the U.S. each year, according to a new study. Those babies’ medical bills over their lifetimes cost billions, the study says. The researchers behind the Lancet Planetary Health study published Tuesday looked at daily exposure to phthalates, synthetic chemicals used in everyday items, by examining national data on 5,000 mothers. The study showed an increased risk of preterm birth, which has risen in the U.S. (Cuevas, 2/6)

CIDRAP: Probe Confirms Imported Eye Drops As Source Of Extensively Drug-Resistant Pseudomonas Outbreak 
The investigation by researchers with the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and several state and local health departments identified a total of 81 case-patients from 18 states in the outbreak, which stretched from May to November 2022 and was originally linked to an ophthalmology clinic in Los Angeles. Nearly a third of the patients (26) were treated at one of three healthcare facilities in three states. Four of 54 case-patients with clinical cultures died within 30 days of culture collection, 4 of 18 patients with eye infections had to have their eyes removed, and an additional 14 suffered vision loss. (Dall, 2/6)

AP: Ecuador Officials Name Likely Source Of Tainted Cinnamon That Poisoned U.S. Children 
Officials in Ecuador have named the likely source of contaminated ground cinnamon used in fruit pouches tied to more than 400 potential cases of lead poisoning in U.S. children, the Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday. Carlos Aguilera, a cinnamon-processing company in Ecuador, supplied the spice added to WanaBana and other applesauce pouches sent to the U.S., according to the Ecuadorian regulatory agency ARCSA. The cinnamon, which was sent to another supplier, Negasmart, was found to be contaminated with high levels of lead and chromium, an FDA analysis showed. Carlos Aguilera is not operating at this time, ARCSA said. (Aleccia, 2/6)

The Hill: Half Of Trans People In US Have Considered Moving Out Of State Because Of Anti-LGBTQ Laws: Survey
Nearly half of transgender people in the U.S. have considered moving to another state because of legislation in their home state that threatens to curtail access to things like gender-affirming health care, public restrooms and school sports, according to a survey published Wednesday by the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE). Roughly half, or 47 percent, of the more than 92,000 transgender and nonbinary people surveyed by NCTE, a nonprofit group that focuses on transgender policy reform, said they had thought about moving to another state at some point during the past year because their state government had either pursued or passed laws that target the transgender community. (Migdon, 2/7)

NPR: The Census Bureau Is Dropping A Controversial Proposal To Change Disability Statistics
The U.S. Census Bureau is no longer moving forward with a controversial proposal that could have shrunk a key estimated rate of disability in the United States by about 40%, the bureau's director said Tuesday in a blog post. The announcement comes just over two weeks after the bureau said the majority of the more than 12,000 public comments it received about proposed changes to its annual American Community Survey cited concerns over changing the survey's disability questions. (Lo Wang, 2/6)

The New York Times: Federal Records Show Increasing Use Of Solitary Confinement For Immigrants
The United States government has placed detained immigrants in solitary confinement more than 14,000 times in the last five years, and the average duration is almost twice the 15-day threshold that the United Nations has said may constitute torture, according to a new analysis of federal records by researchers at Harvard and the nonprofit group Physicians for Human Rights. The report, based on government records from 2018 through 2023 and interviews with several dozen former detainees, noted cases of extreme physical, verbal and sexual abuse for immigrants held in solitary cells. The New York Times reviewed the original records cited in the report, spoke with the data analysts and interviewed former detainees to corroborate their stories. (Baumgaertner, 2/6)

Axios: Latina Voices Are Largely Left Out Of Abortion Ban Discourse Despite Disproportionate Impact
Abortion advocates say Latinas and other women of color are disproportionately affected by bans and restrictions, but when it comes to lawsuits and news coverage, their stories are less likely to get attention. The reality underscores the limited resources that Hispanic women have in accessing abortion care, especially since the fall of Roe v. Wade, which has prompted nearly half of all U.S. states to enact more restrictions or bans. (Galvan, 2/6)