KQED: Bay Area Psychiatry Resident Pushes For Hospital Safety After Violent Attack
When Dani Golomb started her shift on Sept. 5, 2020, she had no idea that she’d be beaten, dragged and knocked unconscious. Like usual, the psychiatry resident reported to an inpatient unit at California Pacific Medical Center at 8 a.m. The hospital was extending one patient’s legal hold, and it fell on Golomb to deliver the news. “Most of the patients we’re seeing are San Francisco’s sickest,” Golomb said, referring to what health care workers call “5150s,” a California legal code that allows people experiencing a mental health crisis to be involuntarily committed for 72 hours if they are a danger to others or themselves. (Stark, 3/7)

Becker's Hospital Review: Dignity Health Hospital Grants $270K To 3 Local Nonprofits
Los Angeles-based Dignity Health-California Hospital Medical Center provided three regional nonprofits with $270,000 in community grants via Dignity's Community Health Improvement Grants program. Each year, these grants allow local nonprofits to support the health and human functions of their communities with programs that address mental health, homelessness, human trafficking and more. (Falvey, 3/6)

Becker's Hospital Review: Hospitals Are 'Failing Children With Sickle Cell Anemia,' Study Finds
Research has emerged from experts at Children's Hospital Los Angeles revealing gaps in preventative care for children with sickle cell anemia, according to a March 6 news release. Children with the inherited disorder are more prone to stroke and catching severe infections. Despite that, only 50% of children between ages 2 and 15 with the disorder are given annual transcranial Doppler ultrasounds, which are used to identify conditions that affect blood flow to the brain. Additionally, only 20% of children up to age 5 are prescribed preventative antibiotics to prevent infection, according to the study, which was published March 6 in Pediatrics.  (Hollowell, 3/6)

Los Angeles Times: A Report Critical Of L.A.'s Anti-Camping Law Sets Off A Furor In City Hall
In the final days before Tuesday’s municipal election, a leaked report purportedly exposing systemic failures of Los Angeles city’s anti-camping law reignited a heated debate among the law’s supporters and opponents on the City Council. The report, prepared in November by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, said only a small fraction of homeless people who were relocated from encampments had obtained permanent housing — and that hundreds simply moved back, in some cases more than were initially there. (Smith, Vives and Zahniser, 3/7)

CalMatters: Using AI To Prevent Homelessness In California
You’ve likely heard about AI powering driverless cars, writing term papers and creating unsettling deep fakes. Can that same technology also prevent people from becoming homeless? That’s what Los Angeles County is trying to find out. Officials there are using AI technology to predict who in the county is most likely to lose their housing — and then stepping in to help those people with their rent, utility bills, car payments and more. (Kendall, 3/6)

CNBC: Biden Says Medicare Should Negotiate Prices For At Least 50 Drugs Each Year, Up From A Target Of 20
President Joe Biden on Wednesday said the federal Medicare program should negotiate prices for at least 50 prescription drugs each year, up from the current target of 20 medicines. That’s one of several new health-care policy proposals that Biden will outline during his State of the Union address Thursday, according to a fact sheet released by the White House on Wednesday. (Constantino, 3/6)

Axios: Biden Speech Again Seeks Credit On Drug Prices
President Biden will use Thursday night's State of the Union address to again claim credit for lowering Americans' drug costs — something the public just isn't willing to concede. (Reed and Goldman, 3/7)

NPR: What To Expect In Biden's State Of The Union Speech, According To His Chief Of Staff
White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients told Morning Edition's Steve Inskeep on Wednesday that Biden's speech will also highlight his agenda for a potential second term. "Lowering costs, continuing to make people's lives better by investing in childcare, eldercare, paid family and medical leave, continued progress on student debt," Zients said, listing a few. "But I think importantly, the president is also going to call for restoring Roe v. Wade and giving women freedom over their healthcare. And he'll talk about protecting, not taking away, freedoms in other areas, as well as voting rights." But Zients also acknowledged that restoring Roe is one of many objectives that the president can't accomplish without Congress. (Treisman, 3/7)

CNN: The State Of The Union, In 9 Charts
Ahead of Biden’s election-year State of the Union address to Congress, here’s a look at the data behind some of the topics and policies he could bring up. (Matthews and Choi, 3/7)

The Washington Post: America’s First IVF Baby To Attend State Of The Union As Tim Kaine Guest 
Elizabeth Carr entered the world as a 5-pound, 12-ounce earthquake, making medical history and unleashing furious controversy in 1981 as the first American conceived in a lab. Born in Norfolk with a “Nova” documentary crew in the delivery room and armed guards in the hall, America’s first IVF baby is 42 today and no longer a novelty. But Carr still stands as potent symbol of that now-commonplace — but newly threatened — way to make a baby. And that’s why Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) has invited Carr to be his guest at Thursday’s State of the Union address. (Vozzella, 3/6)

Politico: How Biden’s SOTU Guest Upended The Abortion Debate 
President Joe Biden wants abortion rights to be a centerpiece of his rematch with Donald Trump this fall. Biden’s State of the Union speech on Thursday could reveal how he hopes to frame the debate. The Bidens have invited Kate Cox, the Texas woman at the center of a high-profile abortion case, as a guest — and the president is expected to highlight her story as he touts his executive actions to protect and expand access to abortion after the fall of Roe and slams Republicans for pushing restrictions at the state and federal levels. (Ollstein and Messerly, 3/7)

Modern Healthcare: Spending Bill With DSH Cut Delay, Doctor Pay Fix Passes House
Legislation crucial to hospitals, physicians and community health centers took a major step forward Wednesday when the House passed a measure to prevent parts of the federal government from shutting down. The bill would delay an $8 billion reduction in Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments for a year, mitigate a Medicare physician pay cut that took effect Jan. 1 and extend funding for federally qualified health centers for four years. (McAuliff, 3/6)

The Washington Post: GOP Leaders Demand Answers From Medicare On Alleged $2B Catheter Fraud 
House Republicans on Wednesday demanded that federal health officials address an alleged Medicare fraud ring estimated at more than $2 billion. Health-care groups warn that the scheme has ensnared hundreds of thousands of patients and continues to expand. At least 10 companies are linked to an unexplained surge in bills for intermittent urinary catheters, low-cost devices used to relieve urinary incontinence, according to interviews with health-care officials, physicians and patients and documents obtained by The Washington Post. In recent years, clinicians and other medical providers had billed Medicare, the federal health insurance program for older Americans, for about $150 million worth of those catheters annually, on behalf of 45,000 patients. That abruptly spiked starting in late 2022. (Dan Diamond, 3/6)

Bloomberg: Weight Loss Drugs Threatened By US Effort To Contain China
Popular weight loss and diabetes drugs are getting caught up in a bid by US lawmakers to reduce the country’s reliance on Chinese biotech companies. Much of the active base ingredient used in Eli Lilly & Co.’s Zepbound and Mounjaro medicines is produced by WuXi AppTec Co., one of the main companies in the crosshairs of the Biosecure Act currently under discussion in the US Congress, according to people familiar with the company’s operations. (Cha, Muller, and Fay Cortez, 3/6)

Modern Healthcare: CMS Nursing Home Staffing Mandate Could Be Blocked By House Bill
A controversial effort to mandate minimum staffing levels for nursing homes would be halted under legislation a congressional committee approved Wednesday. President Joe Biden announced the initiative during the State of the Union address in 2022 and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a proposed rule to carry it out last September. The nursing home industry strongly opposes the policy, which has generated less than vigorous public support. (McAuliff and Eastabrook, 3/6)

Stat: Study: Nursing Homes Use Related Party Transactions To Hide Profits
Anew study shows that some nursing homes are shunting the majority of their profits off of their own books and into less-visible corners of their owners’ pockets. (Trang, 3/7)

Modern Healthcare: Nursing Homes Limiting Admissions Amid Staffing Shortage: AHCA 
As the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' staffing mandate looms, nearly half of nursing homes polled by the American Health Care Association are already limiting admissions due to severe staffing shortages, according to a report the industry trade group released Tuesday. In a survey conducted last month of 441 nursing homes across the country, seven out of 10 operators reported lower staffing levels than before the COVID-19 pandemic. (Eastabrook, 3/6)

The Hill: These Two Democrats Voted Against Spending Bill, Citing Firearms, Veterans
Two House Democrats cast votes against the six-bill spending package the chamber passed Wednesday to avert a partial government shutdown, with both citing a GOP-backed gun-related provision. Reps. Maxwell Frost (Fla.) and Mark Takano (Calif.) voted against the “minibus” legislation Wednesday that funds a slew of agencies and departments through the end of fiscal 2024. Frost, a first-term lawmaker who rose to prominence as a gun control advocate, said the measure has “a lot of good in it” but also features “the greatest rollback of the background check system since it was created.” A provision in the bill would allow veterans determined unable to manage their benefits to be able to purchase guns. ... Takano, the ranking member on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, praised the legislation during his Wednesday speech on the House floor, saying it has “many good things,” but also said it comes at the expense of the most “vulnerable” U.S. veterans.” (Timotija, 3/6)

The New York Times: Profound Damage Found In Maine Gunman’s Brain, Possibly From Blasts
A specialized laboratory examining the brain of the gunman who committed Maine’s deadliest mass shooting found profound brain damage of the kind that has been seen in veterans exposed to repeated blasts from weapons use. The lab’s findings were included in an autopsy report that was compiled by the Maine chief medical examiner’s office and released by the gunman’s family. The gunman, Robert Card, was a grenade instructor in the Army Reserve. (Philipps, 3/6)

CBS News: Veterans Breathe Sigh Of Relief After VA Expands Access To Health Care
The early expansion of VA health care benefits is a major win for Pennsylvania veterans who often have to deal with life-altering conditions following deployment. "I didn't really think about it at the time, but everything kind of hit me when I came back that I kind of had to take it seriously," Jack Stonesifer. ... All veterans who were exposed to toxins and other hazards while serving in the military are now eligible to enroll in VA health care. This went into effect under the PACT Act on Tuesday, nearly eight years earlier than originally planned. (Guay, 3/6)

Military.Com: They Stood Sentry Over America's Nuclear Missile Arsenal. Many Worry It Gave Them Cancer. 
Danny Sebeck was shaving on an August day in 2022, when he spotted a lump on his neck he hadn't noticed before. It was probably nothing, he thought. Later that month, he was talking with a close friend who said he had noticed a similar bump, too. The two had served together at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, as missileers -- a high-stress job in which young officers are stationed below ground in launch control centers to keep careful watch over and, if called upon, fire America's nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles. (Novelly, 3/7)

Los Angeles Times: Friday Is Your Last Day To Order Free Mail-Order COVID Tests
Free COVID-19 tests are still available by mail, but the U.S. Postal Service says orders will be suspended after Friday. Since Nov. 20, residents have been eligible to receive up to two orders of four at-home COVID-19 tests via the USPS, meaning each home could receive up to eight tests. The offer is ending just as COVID-19 restrictions and recommendations from health officials have been significantly relaxed, but testing continues to be a central part of the recommendations made by state and federal officials. (Hernandez, 3/6)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Pandemic Changed All-Cause Mortality Among US Latinos 
A new analysis of all-cause mortality of Hispanic and Latino adults published in Annals of Internal Medicine shows Mexicans and Central Americans were most affected by the pandemic. Participants were recruited from the Bronx, New York City; Chicago; Miami; and San Diego and were of Central American, Cuban, Dominican, Mexican, Puerto Rican, and South American backgrounds. (Soucheray, 3/6)

CIDRAP: Even Healthcare Workers Face Difficulty Accessing Long-COVID Care, Review Suggests 
Healthcare workers with long-COVID symptoms reported that their physicians shrugged off their concerns and that they struggled to get the care they needed, a new systematic review suggests. (Van Beusekom, 3/6)

USA Today: Long COVID May Increase Alcohol Sensitivity, Stanford Research Finds
Long COVID may be to blame for the worsening headaches, nausea, fatigue and sweats that accompany hangovers, a recent study shows. The peer-reviewed study done by researchers at Stanford University concluded that SARS-CoV-2 infection could be related to increased alcohol sensitivity. The group at Stanford’s Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome Clinic studied four patients to determine if their long-term COVID had any effect on them after alcohol consumption. (Limehouse, 3/6)

Stat: The Public Health Thinking Behind The CDC’s New Covid Guidance 
What makes for good public health guidance? That’s the conversation I was having with a colleague in her 40s railing against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s erstwhile guidance about alcohol consumption for women of “childbearing” years. The guidance, if followed closely, would mean that all women ages 15 to 49 should fully abstain from alcohol consumption unless they’re using birth control. That’s more than 77 million women in the U.S. alone. The CDC guidance was finally archived last year, along with a similar proposal from the World Health Organization. For good reason: It’s absurd. (Ashish K. Jha, 3/6)

Fresno Bee: Psychedelic Mushroom Summit In Fresno? Here's What Organizers Say About Coming Event
Using magic mushrooms to help patients with mental health or substance abuse problems may not be far away, and a Fresno symposium looks to soon bring that conversation to the forefront. (Miller, 3/7)

Capitol Weekly: Will California Follow Oregon’s ‘Strategic’ Approach To Psychedelics? 
Jim Carraccio was desperate. After decades of cognitive therapy, his struggles with PTSD and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder were as acute and debilitating as ever. So it was time to take a trip. Literally and figuratively. The literal trip came when Carraccio and his wife drove from their Arizona home to Bend, Oregon so Jim could undergo psilocybin therapy. It is hard to gauge such things, but it is believed that he is the first person to legally undergo this treatment since Oregon voters approved Measure 109 in November of 2020, making it the first state to legalize the use of psychedelics in the treatment of certain mental health disorders in those 21 and older. (Ehisen, 3/6)

Fresno Bee: Former Judge Files Claim Against Fresno County Seeking Answers To What Caused His Cancer
James Ardaiz, former Fresno County prosecutor, Superior Court judge and appellate justice, is battling a rare form of cancer that he believes was caused by years of exposure to toxic fumes from a gas pumping station in the courthouse’s underground garage. (Rodriguez, 3/7)

CBS News: Sacramento Youth Development Program Allows Kids To Play Independently. Some Say Its A Game Changer
How often do you let your child play independently? This could entail telling them to go outside or that they have to entertain themselves, even if it risks them saying "I'm bored." Well, a recent paper published in the Journal of Pediatrics argues a lack of independent play may be affecting their mental health. "Most people my age grew up in a rural area where there was a vacant lot where they could go do whatever they wanted to do," Steve Caudle said. "No days in an urban setting. That just doesn't happen." (Garcia, 3/6)

ABC News: 4 Children Surpass A Year Of HIV Remission After Treatment Pause: Study 
Four children born with HIV were able to live virus-free for more than a year after their HIV medication was paused, according to results of a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The results of the P1115 study were announced on Wednesday at the 2024 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), in Denver, Colorado. The study explored the effects of early intensive antiretroviral therapy on achieving HIV remission in babies who acquired the virus before birth. (Salzman, 3/6)

NBC News: After Decades Of Failures, Researchers Have Renewed Hopes For An Effective HIV Vaccine
The world needs an HIV vaccine if it ever hopes to beat a virus that still infects over 1 million people a year and contributes to hundreds of thousands of deaths. Despite 20 years of failures in major HIV vaccine trials — four this decade alone — researchers say recent scientific advances have likely, hopefully, put them on the right track to develop a highly effective vaccine against the insidious virus. But probably not until the 2030s. (Ryan, 3/6)

Los Angeles Times: Microplastics May Be Risk Factor For Cardiovascular Disease
Add one more likely culprit to the long list of known cardiovascular risk factors including red meat, butter, smoking and stress: microplastics. In a study released Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, an international team of physicians and researchers showed that surgical patients who had a build-up of micro and nanoplastics in their arterial plaque had a 2.1 times greater risk of nonfatal heart attack, nonfatal stroke or death from any cause in the three years post surgery than those who did not. (Rust, 3/7)

AP: Ground Cinnamon Sold At Discount Stores Is Tainted With Lead, FDA Warns
Ground cinnamon sold by U.S. discount retailers is contaminated with high levels of lead and should be discarded, federal health officials said Wednesday. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said cinnamon sold by stores including the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar contains lead at levels that could be unsafe for people, particularly children, with prolonged exposure to the spice. The agency urged suppliers to recall the products voluntarily. Cinnamon products included in the agency’s safety alert include the La Fiesta brand sold by La Superior and SuperMercados; Marcum brand sold by Save A Lot stores; MK brands sold by SF Supermarket; Swad brand sold by Patel Brothers; El Chilar brand sold by La Joya Morelense; and Supreme Tradition brand sold by Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores. (Aleccia, 3/6)

Reuters: Cancer-Causing Chemical Found In Clinique, Clearasil Acne Treatments, U.S. Lab Reports
High levels of cancer-causing chemical benzene were detected in some acne treatments from brands including Estee Lauder's Clinique, Target's Up & Up and Reckitt Benckiser-owned Clearasil, said independent U.S. laboratory Valisure. Benzene was also detected in Proactiv, PanOxyl, Walgreens' (WBA.O), opens new tab acne soap bar and Walmart's (WMT.N), opens new tab Equate Beauty acne cream among others, according to Valisure. (3/6)