CalMatters: Tiny Homes Newsom Promised Have Yet To Appear
In March 2023, Gov. Gavin Newsom stood before a crowd in Sacramento’s Cal Expo event center and made a promise: He’d send 1,200 tiny homes to shelter homeless residents in the capital city and three other places throughout the state. The move was part of Newsom’s push to improve the homelessness crisis by quickly moving people out of encampments and into more stable environments. But more than a year later, none of those tiny homes have welcomed a single resident. Only about 150 have even been purchased. (Kendall, 5/23)

Sacramento Bee: CA Lawmaker Makes False Statements About Transgender Children
A California Republican lawmaker made a series of false statements Wednesday, in response to a Democratic bill that would stop school districts from forcing school staff to inform parents that their child is transgender. Assemblyman Bill Essayli, R-Corona, made the statements on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. (Sheeler, 5/23)

Los Angeles Times: Amid Allegations Against Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Lawmaker Takes Aim At Domestic Abuse
Billionaire music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs could be eligible to be prosecuted for allegedly abusing his girlfriend in Los Angeles in 2016 under a bill under consideration in the California Legislature. The bill, whose author is Sen. Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), would allow accusers up to 15 years after an incident occurred to press charges. (Sosa, 5/23)

The New York Times: A Test Of Cloud-Brightening Machines Poses No Health Risk, Officials Say 
A technology that could one day cool the planet cleared a key hurdle on Thursday. At the beginning of April, scientists from the University of Washington began testing a device that sprays tiny sea-salt particles into the air. The initial tests, held on the deck of a decommissioned aircraft carrier in Alameda, Calif., were simply to see if the machine propelled a mist of suitable size. But, in the future, versions of that device could eventually be used to spray particles into clouds, causing them to reflect more sunlight back into space and to temporarily ease global warming. (Flavelle, 5/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: California Supreme Court Restricts COVID Insurance Coverage
In a major victory for insurance companies, the California Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that businesses that were forced to shut down because of COVID-19, or had to cancel concerts or sporting events during the pandemic, did not suffer property damage that was covered by insurance. Standard insurance policies cover only financial losses caused by physical damage to the policyholder’s property. And “the actual or potential presence of COVID-19 on an insured’s premises generally does not constitute direct physical loss or damage to property within the meaning of a commercial property insurance policy under California law,” Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero said in the 7-0 ruling. (Egelko, 5/23)

PBS NewsHour: This COVID Vaccine Program Offered A ‘Bridge’ To Uninsured Adults, And Then The Funding Crumbled
Uninsured adults will lose an option this August to get vaccinated against COVID for free, weeks before an updated vaccine is expected to be released going into respiratory virus season. Launched in 2023 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bridge Access Program began as a way to connect U.S. adults with little to no health insurance to COVID vaccines. (Santhanam, 5/23)

CIDRAP: Report: Mpox Infections After Two Doses Of Jynneos Rare
Two doses of Bavarian Nordic’s Jynneos vaccine offer almost complete protection against mpox, according to a new report published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Also today, MMWR published an update on clade II mpox cases in the United States, showing cases have been consistent since October 2023, with most cases occurring in unvaccinated people. (Soucheray, 5/23)

NBC News: The HPV Vaccine Prevents Head And Neck Cancers In Men, Study Suggests
The HPV vaccine is linked to a drastic reduction in head and neck cancers in adolescent boys and men, new research finds. HPV, or human papillomavirus, is a sexually transmitted infection responsible for virtually all cases of cervical cancer. But the virus is also linked to a number of other cancers, including penile, anal and vaginal cancers. It also accounts for the majority — up to 70% — of head and neck cancers, which affect the throat and mouth. Men are about twice as likely to develop these cancers than women, according to the National Cancer Institute. (Sullivan, 5/23)

Stat: The HPV Vaccine Prevents Cancer In Men, Too. Why Do So Few People Get It?
You’d think if there were a vaccine that would prevent tens of thousands of cases of cancer a year, people would want it for themselves and for their kids. But new data being released Thursday ahead of the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology show that just isn’t the case. (Herper, 5/23)

Reuters: Many US Dairy Workers Yet To Receive Protective Gear For Bird Flu
Many U.S. dairy farms have not yet increased health protections against bird flu for employees during an outbreak in cows, according to workers, activists and farmers, worrying health experts about the risk for more human infections of a virus with pandemic potential. Epidemiologists are concerned the virus could potentially spread and cause serious illnesses as farmers downplay the risk to workers while employees are not widely aware of cases in U.S. cattle. (Polansek and Schlitz, 5/23)

CIDRAP: USDA Expands Support For H5N1 Response To More Dairy Producers
After hearing from state partners and the dairy industry, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced more support for dairy farms, which now includes those that haven't been affected by H5N1 avian flu outbreaks in cattle. Also today, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported two more outbreaks in Idaho dairy herds, as well as four that were initially reported by Michigan, raising the national total to 58 farms across nine states. (Schnirring, 5/23)

CIDRAP: H5N1 Avian Flu Viruses Can Persist On Milking Equipment Surfaces
The H5N1 avian influenza virus infecting dairy cows can persist and remain infectious in unpasteurized milk on milking equipment surfaces for a long period, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Emory University reported yesterday in a preprint study. (Schnirring, 5/23)

The Atlantic: Cows Have Almost Certainly Infected More Than Two People With Bird Flu
It was bound to happen again. For the second time in two months, the United States has confirmed a case of bird flu in a dairy worker employed by a farm with H5N1-infected cows. “The only thing I’m surprised about is that it’s taken this long to get another confirmed case,” said Steve Valeika, a veterinarian and an epidemiologist based in North Carolina. The true case count is almost certainly higher. (Wu, 5/23)

The Fuller Project: Artificial Intelligence: Veteran Suicide Prevention Algorithm Favors Men 
An artificial intelligence (AI) program designed to prevent suicide among U.S. military veterans prioritizes white men and ignores survivors of sexual violence, which affects a far greater percentage of women, an investigation by The Fuller Project has found. The algorithm, which the Department of Veterans Affairs uses to target assistance to patients “with the highest statistical risk for suicide,” considers 61 variables, documents show. It gives preference to veterans who are “divorced and male” and “widowed and male,” but not to any group of female veterans. (Glantz, 5/23)

Stat: MDMA Treatment For PTSD Questioned Before Key FDA Hearing 
The MDMA study was her last hope. She had read headlines celebrating a 83% response rate in one small, early study of the psychedelic for treating PTSD, and was counting on the new clinical trial to alleviate her own post-traumatic stress disorder. Instead, after her first MDMA session, she felt intense despair when her symptoms didn’t dissipate. (Goldhill, 5/24)

Orange County Register: Fontana Pays Nearly $900,000 For ‘Psychological Torture’ Inflicted By Police To Get False Confession
Detectives grilled Thomas Perez Jr. for 17 hours, deprived him of medications and threatened to have his dog killed if he didn't confess to killing his father, who was actually alive. (Saavedra, 5/23)

Arizona Republic: California Just Stuck It To Arizona Anti-Abortion Fanatics
The California governor’s office called the new law “a critical stopgap for Arizona patients and providers.” It’s a stopgap Arizona patients should not have needed. It’s a stopgap that Arizona lawmakers should have provided. (EJ Montini, 5/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: California Has Some Of The Best Parental Leave Laws. Why Don't They Apply To Teachers?
California has some of the most protective and supportive laws surrounding parental leave. Most birthing parents in California are entitled to six to eight weeks of disability pay after giving birth. Then parents are entitled to another six weeks of paid family leave, or baby bonding. For most people, the state pays 60% of employees’ wages for those six weeks. However, because of how our state disability code is structured, hundreds of thousands of teachers don’t have access to these benefits. (Jenna Hewitt King, 5/22)

East Bay Times: California Lawmaker Blocking Bill To Ban Child Marriage
California was close to ending child marriage, a human rights abuse that world leaders have vowed to eliminate by year 2030 to help empower women and girls. That was until Assemblymember Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, last month demanded amendments that would have gutted a bill to end the practice before he would give the legislation a hearing in the Judiciary Committee he chairs. (Alyssa Milano and Fraidy Reiss, 5/24)

San Diego Union-Tribune: State May Break Promise To Those With Disabilities 
Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a state budget in direct conflict with the promise California made decades ago to Californians with intellectual and developmental disabilities. (Barry Jardini, 5/22)

San Diego Union-Tribune: I Fear For My Disabled Daughter. Her Services May Be Stopped Due To Lost State Funding. 
I’m not just a concerned citizen; I’m a frightened parent. I’m scared of what happens when the world doesn’t see the value in supporting the community of souls with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Among them is my daughter Taylor. I’m Taylor’s mother, and I am writing to bring attention to an issue of critical importance — the fear that comes with a potential $1 billion budget cut from Gov. Gavin Newsom to this community. (Lori Wiesner, 5/22)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Budget Cuts To Programs That Help People With Disabilities Hurt Families, Too
In the dynamic landscape of California, there lies a group whose voices often fade into the background — the individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. As the chief executive officer and president of Home of Guiding Hands, an organization that supports the intellectual and developmental disabilities community, as well as a parent of a young woman with an intellectual and developmental disabilities, my heart is heavy with concern for the impact chronic underfunding has on this often-overlooked community. (Edward Hershey, 5/22)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Napa County Housing Report Frames Crisis 
A newly released report on Napa County’s housing crisis reached the not-at-all-shocking conclusion that there isn’t enough housing to meet demand. (5/23)

CalMatters: Calif. Has Funded Fund Diaper Banks For Years. Families Need That To Continue
The cost of diapers has reached upwards of $100 per month, per child, which significantly impacts families, especially those already struggling to make ends meet. Because of this, families have been seeking out help from diaper banks across California. (Hiram Rodriguez-Franco, 5/23)

Los Angeles Times: California Workers Should Have Indoor Heat Protections 
Seven summers have come and gone since California lawmakers voted to require indoor workplace standards to prevent workers from being injured or killed from extreme heat. (5/24)

Sacramento Bee: CalWORKs Helps Families Struggling With Poverty, Housing 
As a student-parent attending community college and working more than 20 hours a week, I have faced many challenges over the years. Still, I overcame them with the help of some valuable programs provided through CalWORKs, known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families nationally, and more commonly referred to as welfare. (Joy Perrin, 5/22)

San Francisco Chronicle: 'Literally Life Or Death': California Kids Are Disappearing From School And The Workforce. No One Knows Where They Are
It’s an emergency hidden in plain sight: hundreds of thousands of California kids and young adults aren’t in school or working. And no one seems to know for sure where they are or what they’re doing. (Emily Hoeven, 5/22)