Los Angeles Times: More Patients Sue Cedars-Sinai Over Alleged Misconduct By OB-GYN
Twenty-five more women have filed suit against a former Cedars-Sinai Medical Center obstetrician-gynecologist and the facilities where he worked, accusing Dr. Barry J. Brock of sexual abuse and medical misconduct. The lawsuit, filed late Monday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleges “a generations-long history of covering up Brock’s serial sexual exploitation and abuse of female patients” at Cedars-Sinai, where Brock practiced medicine from the early 1980s until the recent termination of his hospital privileges. (Purtill and Alpert Reyes, 10/22)

Becker's Hospital Review: Adventist Renegotiating Lease For Rural Hospital With Low Margins
Roseville-based Adventist Health and Mendocino Coast Health Care District are making "steady progress" on optimizing the existing agreement to provide care at the district's hospital in Fort Bragg, Calif., according to an Oct. 17 joint statement. The district initially sought a hospital operator when financial troubles threatened care delivery at the facility. Adventist, the only organization to submit a proposal, signed a 30-year lease agreement on July 1, 2020. (Condon, 10/22)

Modern Healthcare: Clear Aims To Speed Up Prior Authorizations Amid Privacy Concerns
Clear, the digital identity verification company best known for helping travelers speed through airports, has set its sights on healthcare as the next market for its facial recognition technology. The company is working with a handful of hospitals and plans to pitch insurers to use the technology to expedite claim approvals and prior authorizations. It will have to get past skeptics' concerns about the data privacy of its program, which requires users to take a live photo that is matched against government-issued identification stored by the user on Clear's platform. (DeSilva, 10/22)

Stat: Fines For HIPAA Violations Max Out At $2 Million. That Could Change
Linda Barbour thought she was more interested in the Change Healthcare cyberattack than most. Having worked as a medical director for several large health insurance companies and having suffered through the Change fiasco herself as a rehab doctor with a private practice in Kansas City, she figured that if her data had been exposed in that February breach, she would have been notified by now. (Trang, 10/23)

Modern Healthcare: How The No Surprises Act Arbitration Strains Physician Groups
Providers are often waiting months for insurers to pay out-of-network bills, leading to strapped finances and a pile up of complaints and lawsuits. Physician groups have filed hundreds of complaints with the federal government and sued insurers to collect overdue payments stemming from the dispute resolution process established by the No Surprises Act of 2022. In just one example, an orthopedic physician practice in New Jersey recently sued Cigna, alleging the insurer has not paid a $42,000 dispute settlement in the 30-day period required by the law. (Kacik, 10/22)

Becker's Hospital Review: Inflation Reduction Act Saves 1.5M Enrollees $1B: HHS
In the first six months of 2024, the Inflation Reduction Act has saved 1.5 million Medicare Part D enrollees nearly $1 billion in out-of-pocket prescription drug costs, HHS said Oct. 22. Passed in August 2022, the IRA began eliminating the 5% cost-sharing in the catastrophic phase of Medicare Part D in 2024. The catastrophic phase is the final coverage phase that starts after enrollees reach $7,050 in out-of-pocket drugs costs. (Twenter, 10/22)

Stat: Study On Physicians' Race Affecting Black Babies' Health Challenged
New research calls into question the high-profile conclusion of the first major study to show that the race of physicians influences health outcomes. In August of 2020, a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science made headlines with its finding that Black infants were half as likely to survive to their first birthday when they were cared for by white doctors instead of Black ones. (McFarling, 10/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: Users Get Payouts From $300 Million Juul Class-Action Lawsuit
Some people are getting a payday from two of America’s biggest tobacco companies. E-cigarette maker Juul and Altria Group — the company formerly known as Phillip Morris, which owns 35% of Juul — agreed to pay $300 million in a class-action settlement over claims they misled consumers about their products’ safety and addictiveness. The tobacco companies were also charged with unlawfully marketing to minors, according to the settlement website. (Roy, 10/22)

Los Angeles Times: Walmart Could Pay $7.5 Million For Alleged Landfill Violations
Walmart will be liable for millions of dollars in civil penalties and costs for allegedly dumping hazardous waste and sensitive customer records in California landfills, according to a stipulated judgment filed this week in Alameda County Superior Court. The judgment would settle a lawsuit brought against Walmart by California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta and the district attorneys of 12 counties in December 2021. Under its terms, the nation’s largest retailer will be required to pay penalties for allegedly dumping in state landfills nearly 80 tons of hazardous waste and confidential customer information from its stores throughout the state. (Mendez, 10/23)

CBS News: Walmart Plans To Deliver Prescriptions Nationwide In As Little As 30 Minutes
Walmart will begin delivering prescriptions across the U.S. early next year, as the retailing giant strives to keep pace with rival Amazon in competing for health care dollars. Walmart's new service includes new prescriptions and refills, which customers can receive along with groceries and other products, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based company announced on Tuesday. Prescriptions will be delivered in as little as 30 minutes and should be available for over 86% of American households, according to Walmart. (Gibson, 10/22)

The New York Times: FDA Names A New Chief Of Medical Devices 
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday announced that Dr. Michelle Tarver, an agency veteran, will be the new director of the medical device division. Dr. Tarver will face a slate of pressing tasks, that include addressing calls to strengthen standards to protect the public from issues like racial bias in artificial intelligence software and hastily authorized and faulty cardiac devices, like external defibrillators. (Jewett, 10/22)

MedTech Dive: Legacy Medical Devices Keep Regulators Up At Night 
New regulations are designed to ensure future devices are secure, but one thing still keeps regulators up at night: legacy medical devices, or machines that have outdated or unsupported software. Many legacy devices or systems are currently in operation in hospitals. They perform as intended but may have outdated operating systems, which can present cybersecurity vulnerabilities, said Suzanne Schwartz, director of the Office of Strategic Partnerships and Technology Innovation at the Food and Drug Administration’s device center. (Reuter, 10/17)

Medical Device Network: Oxford Medical Products Touts Positive Safety Data For ‘Mechanical’ Weight Loss Pill 
The surge of popularity of weight loss drugs has created a rivalry with traditional device orientated approaches, but a new technology aims to tread a fine line in between. Oxford Medical Products has developed a pill that works not by pharmacological activity, but by mechanical intervention. The UK-based company calls its product Sirona – and the device has just produced positive data in a first-in-human clinical study.  The pill, made of inert dual-polymer hydrogel, works by expanding once in the stomach to occupy space and mechanically suppress appetite via distension on the stomach wall. The device remains in the stomach for several days and provides a continuous reduction in appetite. (Barrie, 10/22)

Sacramento Bee: Sacramento County To Let Deputies Move More Homeless Off Public Land 
Sacramento County Sheriff’s deputies and park rangers will likely soon have additional authority to move homeless people off public property without offering a shelter bed. The Sacramento County Supervisor Rich Desmond said during a board meeting Tuesday that the change, made possible due to the U.S. Supreme Court Grants Pass decision, would “allow prioritization be done by law enforcement on encampments that are particularly problematic.” (Clift, 10/22)

Times of San Diego: Intake For Expanded Safe Sleeping Program Expected To Begin Next Month
The city of San Diego is expanding its Safe Sleeping Program to bring the total available tents at two sites to about 760. An additional 180 tent spaces have been created at the O Lot site, with 50 more being built at 20th and B streets. New intakes at the expanded Safe Sleeping sites are set to begin next month. (Vigil, 10/23)

Los Angeles Times: For Years, She Raised Alarms About Her Apartment. When The City Finally Acted, She Ended Up Homeless. 
As she stuffed her clothes and papers into a suitcase and prepared to walk out the door of 5700 S. Hoover St. for the last time, Daviell McKinley had no idea where she would live. She’d been complaining about living conditions at the residential complex for years, writing increasingly desperate messages to city officials to try to get them to do something about the lack of hot water, the broken fire alarms, the electrical wires that hung from the ceiling, the pervasive mold and the overall neglect that made it feel as if the building was falling apart in front of her eyes. (Esquivel, 10/23)

Los Angeles Times: Abortions Continue At Similar Rates As Under Roe, Report Says
Women living in states with abortion bans obtained the procedure in the second half of 2023 at about the same rate as before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, according to a report released Tuesday. Women did so by traveling out of state or by having prescription abortion pills mailed to them, according to the #WeCount report from the Society of Family Planning, which advocates for abortion access. They increasingly used telehealth, the report found, as medical providers in states with laws intended to protect them from prosecution in other states used online appointments to prescribe abortion pills. (Mulvihill, 10/22)

CBS News: Napa Anti-Abortion Group Follows Planned Parenthood Clinic To New Location
In Napa, Planned Parenthood has not been able to shake its old neighbor. Anti-abortion activists moved out of the building they had renovated only a few years before and have taken up residence in an office directly below the new Planned Parenthood clinic. (Ramos, 10/22)

The Wrap: Kamala Harris Says No To 'Concessions' On Abortion: 'Freedom Has Been Taken From The Women Of America' 
Kamala Harris isn’t planning to compromise when it comes to women’s reproductive freedom — even if she were to become president with a GOP-controlled congress. “I don’t think we should be making concessions when we are talking about a fundamental freedom to make decisions about your own body,” she told NBC News’ Hallie Jackson. Jackson’s initial question was asked in reference to the distinct possibility that Harris will be faced with a Republican-controlled Congress should she win the presidential election. (Kaloi, 10/22)

The Hill: Republicans Ramp Up Defensive Strategy On Abortion After Midterm Struggles
Republicans are kicking their defensive messaging on abortion into high gear, aiming to blunt Democrats’ attempts to paint them as extreme in the run-up to the election. In debates, GOP congressional candidates are taking a more aggressive approach when talking about the issue, accusing Democrats of misrepresenting their position. Republican campaigns are successfully pitching fact-checks to local media that pick apart the claims of Democratic campaigns, and candidates are going on air with ads to directly articulate their stances on abortion. (Brooks, 10/22)

Politico: Trump Threatened California’s Emergency Aid. Newsom Has A Backup Plan. 
Gov. Gavin Newsom and his administration are making further contingency plans to shield the Golden State in case former President Donald Trump returns to the White House. Newsom and top budget officials are looking to establish an account the state can immediately draw on for disasters if Trump refuses to provide federal dollars for fires, floods and other emergencies. (Cadelago and Kahn, 10/22)

The New York Times: Biden Warns That Trump’s Election Could Jeopardize Health Care For Millions 
President Biden warned on Tuesday that if former President Donald J. Trump returned to office by winning next month’s election, he would enact policies that could deprive tens of millions of Americans of health insurance coverage and explode the price of prescription drugs. During a speech in Concord, N.H., Mr. Biden assailed Mr. Trump for repeatedly trying to repeal the 2010 Affordable Care Act, and he mocked the former president for offering only ephemeral and unspecified “concepts of a plan” to replace it. (Baker, 10/22)

The Hill: Harris Says Gender-Affirming Care Decisions Should Be Left To Doctors And Patients
Vice President Harris on Tuesday said decisions on gender-affirming care should be left to doctors and their patients in an interview with NBC News. The vice president said “we should follow the law” when NBC’s Hallie Jackson pressed her on whether she believes in access to gender-affirming care. ... “I believe that people, as the law states, even on this issue about federal law, that that is a decision that doctors will make in terms of what is medically necessary. I’m not going to put myself in a position of a doctor,” Harris said. (Gangitano, 10/22)

Los Angeles Blade: 73 Percent Of LGBTQ Community Centers Face Harassment: Report
The biennial 2024 LGBTQ Community Center Survey Report, which was released Oct. 16, shows that 73 percent of 199 U.S.-based LGBTQ community centers that participated in the survey reported they had experienced anti-LGBTQ threats or harassment during the past two years. (Chibbaro Jr., 10/23)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Former State Official Tapped As Interim Sonoma County Health Officer For Second Time 
For the second time in a little more than a year, Sonoma County is naming Dr. Karen Smith as interim health officer, a key post the county has struggled to fill on a more permanent basis since the departure of Dr. Sundari Mase in April 2023. (Espinoza, 10/22)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Mental Health Wing For Sonoma County Jail In Limbo 
In 2015, Sonoma County secured a $40 million state grant to add a behavioral health wing to house and treat the growing number of people with mental health issues in the county jail. Almost a decade later, the project has yet to get off the ground, and on Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors weighed how to move forward, if at all. (Endicott, 10/22)

Times of San Diego: $2.5M Grant Provides Funding To Reduce Teen Impaired Driving In CA
In an ongoing effort to reduce the number of crashes caused by impaired drivers in California, the California Highway Patrol is partnering with the California Office of Traffic Safety on a yearlong campaign of education efforts.  The $2.5 million grant-funded “Teen Impaired Driving Education campaign runs through Sept. 30, 2025. (Sklar, 10/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: McDonald’s Hamburgers Pulled As E. Coli Sickens Dozens, Kills One
McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers have been linked to a wave of deadly illnesses across nearly a dozen states, according to a food safety alert issued Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outbreak, believed to be triggered by E. coli, has resulted in 49 illnesses, with 10 hospitalizations and one death. Although a recall hasn’t been issued, McDonald’s suspended the sale of these hamburgers in some states while investigations continue. (Vaziri, 10/22)

NBC News: Loss Of Sense Of Smell Linked To Changes In Breathing Patterns, Research Suggests
Not having — or losing — your sense of smell may be linked to changes in breathing that could lead to depression, social isolation or other mental and physical health problems, a new study suggests. It's more evidence of how important this often neglected olfactory sense is. A new analysis of breathing data from 52 volunteers over a 24-hour period revealed that people with a normal sense of smell had little spikes, or “sniffs,” during each breath that were not seen in those with no sense of smell, according to the report published in Nature Communications on Tuesday. (Carroll, 10/22)

CIDRAP: Young Children More Likely To Be Hospitalized For COVID-19 Than Older Kids, Study Shows 
Today a Kaiser Permanente Northern California study of children during the COVID-19 pandemic finds children too young to be vaccinated had the highest hospitalization rate, while adolescents had the highest rate of intensive care unit (ICU) admission. The findings are published in Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses. (Soucheray, 10/22)

Reuters: US FDA Approves Pfizer's RSV Vaccine For Adults At Increased Risk Of The Disease 
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved Pfizer's RSV vaccine for the prevention of lower respiratory tract disease caused by RSV in adults aged 18 to 59 at increased risk of the disease. In June, the U.S. CDC narrowed its recommendation for the use of respiratory syncytial virus vaccines in older adults this year and held off on recommending their use for adults under age 60. (10/22)