California’s Prison Inmates Not Getting The Psychiatric Care They Need, Report Finds
The review by the state's chief prison psychiatrist criticizes the flawed system in a 161-page report to a federal judge. In other public health news: the search for a better flu vaccine; the campaign for mind-altering drugs as a PTSD treatment; fish oil pills; and the family of Soundgarden's Chris Cornell sues his doctor over drug prescriptions.
San Francisco Chronicle:
Report Rips California Prison Psychiatric Care, Cites Horrifying Case Of Inmate Who Ate Her Eyeball
California’s chief prison psychiatrist has issued a scathing report on management of mental health care in the prisons, saying officials are misrepresenting the care given to thousands of prisoners and are jeopardizing the health of inmates — including a woman who, in a horrifying 2017 incident, pulled out her own eye and swallowed it. (Egelko, 11/1)
Los Angeles Times:
Scientists May Have Found The Key Ingredient For A Universal Flu Vaccine, And It Comes From Llamas
Along with soulful eyes, endearingly long necks and and warm fuzzy coats, llamas have a far less appreciated feature: They make an array of immune system antibodies so tiny they can fit into crevices on the surface of an invading virus. That feat could one day protect humans from entire families of flu viruses that bedevil scientists with their unpredictable and shape-shifting ways. All, potentially, with a once-a-year puff up the nose. (Healy, 11/2)
The Associated Press:
Long Trip: Psychedelic Advocate Nears Goal Of Legal Ecstasy
The Food and Drug Administration has labeled the drug a potential “breakthrough” for post-traumatic stress disorder and cleared late-stage studies of up to 300 patients. The studies are to be conducted by [Rick] Doblin’s nonprofit group dedicated to promoting mind-altering drugs, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS. Researchers will begin screening patients this month. The goal is to win FDA approval by 2021. MDMA would become the first psychedelic drug — currently in the same ultra-restrictive category as heroin and cocaine — to make the leap to prescription medicine. (Perrone, 11/1)
California Healthline:
New Heart Drug Spotlights Troubling Trends In Drug Marketing
At the end of September, Amarin Corp. teased some early findings for Vascepa, its preventive medicine for people at risk of heart disease. The claim was astounding: a 25 percent relative risk reduction for deaths related to heart attacks, strokes and other conditions. Headlines proclaimed a potential game changer in treating cardiovascular disease. And company shares quickly soared, from $3 a share to about $20. Vascepa is Amarin’s only product. The company wants to turn its pill made of purified fish oil into a cash cow, allowing it to staff up both in the United States and abroad so it can sell doctors and millions of consumers on its medical benefits. ... Except there is one problem. The particulars of the scientific study on which this claim was based remain a mystery. (Luthra, 11/2)
The Associated Press:
Family Of Singer Chris Cornell Sues Doctor Over His Death
Family members of Chris Cornell on Thursday sued a doctor they say overprescribed drugs to the rock singer, leading to his death. Cornell’s widow, Vicky Cornell, and their children, Toni and Christopher, are plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging that prescription drugs, especially the anti-anxiety drug lorazepam, led to erratic behavior from the Soundgarden frontman before his death in Detroit in 2017 at age 52. (Dalton, 11/1)