Morning Breakouts

Latest California Healthline Stories

Trump Nominates Brett Kavanaugh For Kennedy’s Open Seat, Despite Ties To The Bush White House

At the nomination ceremony, Judge Brett Kavanaugh said that his “judicial philosophy is straightforward. A judge must be independent and must interpret the law, not make the law. A judge must interpret statutes as written. And a judge must interpret the Constitution as written, informed by history and tradition and precedent.”

Nurse-Patient Ratios, Expanded Paramedic Duties, Dialysis Rules All On Agenda For Upcoming Legislature Session

Also on the docket: a bill that would require doctors on probation for egregious reasons to inform their patients, and a measure that would let medical laboratory technicians perform procedures currently handled by clinical laboratory scientists.

Judge Deals Administration Legal Setback, Ruling It Can’t Indefinitely Detain Immigrant Children

The Justice Department had made a request to modify a 1997 legal settlement that set rules for how the government can deal with immigrant children in its custody. But Judge Dolly M. Gee says there’s no basis to amend the consent decree.

First In A Flood Of Cases Over Roundup Weed Killer’s Possible Link To Cancer Goes To Trial

Dewayne Johnson, who used the product in his job as a pest control manager at a San Francisco Bay Area school district, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2014 at the age of 42. He read the label carefully and even contacted the company over a rash he developed, but he says that he was never warned about the possibility it could cause cancer.

Alzheimer’s Drug Results Send Stocks Soaring, But Experts Temper Expectations After String Of Failures Against Disease

Biogen and Eisai announced that the drug slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and reduced the amount of clumps of a protein called beta amyloid that build up in the brains of patients. The data cheered even skeptics that have been burned by decades of failed Alzheimer’s drugs. But they did warn about getting too excited, as the study is preliminary.

Trump Holds Cards Close To Chest, Stokes The Dramatics Surrounding Supreme Court Nomination

President Donald Trump says that he will make a decision today before a televised event announcing the pick. The four judges on the short-list are Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Thomas Hardiman and Raymond Kethledge. Kavanaugh was at one point rumored to be the front-runner, but it’s unclear if that’s still the case.

Administration Freezes Program That Pays Billions To Insurers To Help Stabilize Health Law Marketplaces

Trump administration officials said they decided to suspend payments under the program because of a ruling in February from a Federal District Court in New Mexico. The judge tossed out the formula used to calculate payments, finding that it was flawed. Insurers warned that the move will have a detrimental effect on the marketplaces just as the companies are setting premiums for next year.

Workers To Picket At Dignity Health Facilities As Negotiators Struggle To Find Common Ground

The picket is informational, and must be conducted during employees’ free time. The union is currently negotiating contracts at Woodland Memorial Hospital, St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton and Mercy San Juan in Carmichael.