KPBS Public Media: Kaiser Mental Health Workers' Strike Leaves Some Patients Struggling For Care
Alana Molino has been a Kaiser patient since 2018. She said it’s frustrating to have to restart therapy with temporary providers. "It’s hard enough trying to admit that you need therapy," Molino said. "You have to start pretty much from scratch with the new therapist and uncover all the trauma again that you’ve just worked out with someone else." (de Marco, 12/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: UCSF To Pay $15M To Woman Whose Anesthesia Was Mixed With Formaldehyde
A 42-year-old woman from Sonoma entered the emergency room at the UCSF hospital in 2021 with a swollen and bleeding fibroid in her uterus that required surgery. What followed was agony. According to a lawyer for the woman and her husband, medics mistakenly mixed her anesthetic with a mislabeled cup on the same tray that contained formalin, a liquid form of the chemical formaldehyde, and injected it. She suffered burns to her pelvic muscle and tissue, nerve damage, loss of strength and mobility, and pain that still torments her three years later. (Egelko, 12/5)

CBS News: Anthem Blue Cross Says It's Reversing A Policy To Limit Anesthesia Coverage
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield said Thursday that the health insurance provider is reversing a policy that was set to go into effect in February of that would have limited anesthesia coverage during surgeries and other procedures, a change that had prompted an outcry from some physicians and lawmakers. The policy, which would have covered Anthem's plans in Connecticut, New York and Missouri, was disclosed in recent weeks. ... The policy would have excluded people under 22 years old and maternity care. (Picchi, 12/5)

Medical Economics: Business Group Sounds The Alarm On Historic Surge In Health Care Costs For 2025
For the first time in over a decade, employers are bracing for health care cost increases that are growing at rates not seen in years. Many businesses reported higher-than-expected expenses in 2023, with projections for 2024 and 2025 signaling even sharper growth. This cost trajectory has forced many organizations to reconsider long-standing partnerships and explore new strategies for cost management. Employers are expected to respond with increased request-for-proposal activity, seeking greater transparency and accountability from vendor partners. These efforts will likely disrupt current arrangements but are designed to improve long-term outcomes, including patient experience, affordability, and quality of care. Businesses will also explore alternative approaches, such as direct contracting with centers of excellence and steering employees toward high-value providers. (Shryock, 12/3)

Fox Business: Elon Musk Weighs In On Health Care Costs Amid Insurance Scrutiny
Billionaire Elon Musk on Thursday weighed in on the cost of health care in the U.S., questioning the value Americans get for the coverage they receive. "Shouldn’t the American people be getting their money’s worth?" Musk, who was tapped to co-lead the incoming-Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) alongside Vivek Ramaswamy, replied to a post on X. His comment was in response to a post highlighting data from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation that says that the U.S. has the highest health care admin costs (per capita) compared to OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries. (Genovese, 12/5)

State of California: Governor Newsom Announces Medical and Dental Appointments 
Gabrielle Santoro, of Sacramento, has been appointed Chief Deputy Director at Emergency Medical Services Authority; James Yu, of Fremont, has been reappointed to the Dental Board of California, where he has served since 2018; Michael Long, of San Francisco, has been reappointed to the Dental Hygiene Board of California, where he has served since 2023; and Diego Inzunza, of Castro Valley, has been reappointed to the Physician Assistant Board, where he has served since 2020. (12/5)

Capitol Weekly: Kudos, Criticism Mark California Stem Cell Agency As It Turns 20
California’s $12 billion stem cell experiment turned 20 years old this fall, winning kudos from some patients and scientists but failing to fulfill the expectations of voters who thought they had created an enterprise that would lead quickly to revolutionary cures for cancer, heart disease, stroke and much more. (Jensen, 12/5)

CalMatters: In California's Legislature, Most Bills Die Quietly
 We know how legislatures work: lawmakers introduce bills, debate on them and vote yes or no. Right? Not exactly. Of the 2,403 bills that died in the recent two-year session, CalMatters’ Digital Democracy data found just 25 failed because a majority of lawmakers voted “no.”  (Kamal, 12/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Democratic Party Adopts New Guidelines For Handling Harassment
San Francisco’s Democratic Party adopted new guidelines Wednesday governing sexual assault and harassment accusations in the wake of recent high-profile allegations against two local politicos. San Francisco’s Democratic County Central Committee — the party’s governing body in the city — said it will soon retain an ombudsperson to investigate complaints about sexual harassment and assault and will mandate that chartered clubs complete relevant training within 90 days or face disciplinary action. (Toledo, 12/5)

Berkeleyside: Report: Black Boys, Young Men Make Up 48% Of Gun Homicide Victims In Alameda County
Gun violence in Alameda County killed on average three people and wounded 12 every week between 2019 and 2023, according to a new report from the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office. Published Wednesday by outgoing DA Pamela Price, it’s the first report from the District Attorney’s Office since 2018 to focus on the impacts of gun violence in Alameda County. The previous report, commissioned by former DA Nancy O’Malley, was never made publicly available, a spokesperson for Price told The Oaklandside. (Romero, 12/6)

Fox News: California Shooter Who Injured 2 Kindergartners Had Mental Health Problems
The California gunman who shot and gravely injured two kindergartners had a long criminal history and significant mental health issues, authorities said Thursday. Roman Mendez, 6, and Elias Wolford, 5, were identified by Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea as the two children injured in the Wednesday shooting at the Feather River Adventist School in Oroville, which has an enrollment of 35 students. Mendez was shot twice and Wolford sustained one gunshot wound in the abdomen and will likely need several surgeries, the sheriff said. (Casiano and Shaw, 12/6)

BBC: California Shooting Suspect Used Fake Story To Gain Access To School
A gunman in the US state of California who shot and injured two children aged six and five at a school before fatally shooting himself used a "guise" to gain access to the school. Authorities said the gunman had a lengthy mental health and criminal history, which included charges of theft, fraud and forgery over the years. Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said the gunman, Glenn Litton, 56, had scheduled a meeting with a school administrator to discuss enrolling a student - the ruse police say he used to get into the school. (Yousif, 12/5)

The New York Times: Torrent of Anger for Health Insurance Industry Follows C.E.O.’s Killing
The fatal shooting on Wednesday of a top UnitedHealthcare executive, Brian Thompson, on a Manhattan sidewalk has unleashed a torrent of morbid glee from patients and others who say they have had negative experiences with health insurance companies at some of the hardest times of their lives. “Thoughts and deductibles to the family,” read one comment underneath a video of the shooting posted online by CNN. “Unfortunately my condolences are out-of-network.” (Searcey and Kircher, 12/5)

The New York Times: Killing Of Brian Thompson Sets Off Fear Among Executives Already Worried About Safety 
A Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company raised its drug prices, and then board members and executives received phone calls threatening violence. A health care company’s board meeting was disrupted after board members were targeted in “swatting” attacks that wrongly sent law enforcement officers to their homes. These incidents happened before the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive, in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday. The police had not offered a motive for the shooting as of Thursday night, or said it was related to Mr. Thompson’s work in the insurance industry. (Goldberg, 12/6)

The Washington Post: Online Sleuths Are Racing To Catch The UnitedHealthcare CEO’s Killer
Amateur internet sleuths are racing to identify the gunman who killed the chief of the nation’s largest health insurer in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, hoping to piece together clues and beat police investigators at their own high-profile manhunt. (Harwell, Gilbert and MacMillan, 12/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: $700-Per-Month SF Sleeping Pods Lose City Approval
San Francisco has rescinded its approval of $700 per month housing pods after ruling that the project didn’t meet the city’s affordable housing requirements, the developer’s latest setback in a year-long dispute. The project, developed by Brownstone Shared Housing, converted a former downtown bank office at 12 Mint Plaza and aims to be affordable by design. But the city requires that all market-rate housing projects of 10 units or more set aside a portion of units to be restricted to low-income residents at a set price or pay a fee, which would total over $300,000 for the project. (Li, 12/6)

Los Angeles Times: Newsom Touts California Efforts On Fentanyl. Will It Matter To Trump?
Fentanyl and the border are key issues for Gov. Gavin Newsom as he attempts to navigate relations with President-elect Trump, who has blamed Democrats for failing to get tough on smugglers. Come January, Trump will once again oversee CBP and other federal agencies tasked with immigration and drug enforcement. Federal funds help support state efforts, and local agencies often coordinate with national counterparts on investigations or in response to major incidents. So far, Newsom has tried to thread the needle, promoting the economic benefits of trade with Mexico through California while continuing to tout state efforts to crack down at the border. (Sheets, 12/6)

Voice of OC: Costa Mesa Scores Legal Victory In Sober Living Home Court Battle
Costa Mesa’s ordinance requiring sober living homes to obtain a special permit from city officials was ruled legal by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. ... Sober living homes are intended to provide residential space for people with alcohol or drug addiction so they can stay clean and participate in a recovery program. However, these facilities can often go unregulated, drawing complaints from locals about noise and other disturbances in residential neighborhoods. (Hicks, 12/6)

Bay Area News Group: Federal Closure Of Scandal-Plagued FCI Dublin Women's Prison Will Be Permanent
Federal officials have notified Congress that they intend to permanently close the scandal-plagued FCI Dublin women’s prison, a facility wracked by a reputed “rape club” that led to the imprisonment of several jail officials for sexually abusing female inmates. (Hurd and Rodgers, 12/5)

San Diego Union-Tribune: After Years Of Jail Deaths, Newest County Supervisor Proposes Expanding Civilian Oversight Of Sheriff 
Almost three years after the California State Auditor uncovered a spate of serious and deadly lapses in San Diego County jails, the newest member of the Board of Supervisors is proposing sweeping changes to the civilian oversight board that monitors the sheriff and her department. (McDonald and Davis, 12/5)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. County Probation Chief To Quit As Juvenile Hall Closure Looms
L.A. County’s chief probation officer said he plans to depart the troubled agency as a deadline to evacuate Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall approaches, sources said, potentially leaving more than 200 incarcerated youths with no place to go. Probation chief Guillermo Viera Rosa sent a brief memo Wednesday to the county Board of Supervisors saying he planned to retire by the end of the year, according to several sources who requested anonymity to discuss a sensitive personnel matter. (Ellis and Queally, 12/5)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Newsom Sticks To His Refusal To Declare Sewage Crisis An Emergency. ‘It Would Have Meant Nothing.’ 
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that declaring the Tijuana River cross-border sewage crisis an emergency would “have been just a statement backed up by nothing” to address the longstanding problem. (Murga, 12/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: Here’s Why SF Emergency Siren System Didn't Work During Tsunami Alert
Smartphones across San Francisco blared Thursday morning as an emergency alert warned residents about a potential tsunami in the wake of a major earthquake off the North Coast of California. That alert should have been accompanied by loud sirens, but the city’s outdoor warning system has been out of commission for five years — and it’s not clear when it will be back in working order. (Toledo and Morris, 12/5)

The New York Times: How The Messy Process Of Milking Cows Can Spread Bird Flu 
On America’s large dairy farms, milking is a vast operation, and the potential for disease transmission is worrying, health experts say. (Anthes, 12/5)

CBS News: U.S. Sets Thanksgiving Record For Whooping Cough Cases
At least 364 pertussis infections were reported to health authorities last week, according to figures published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, marking the worst Thanksgiving week for whooping cough in recent decades. This tops the previous Thanksgiving record of 228 cases of pertussis which were reported for the week ending Nov. 27, 2010. That year there were 27,550 cases reported by the end of 2010, below the 28,167 already tallied so far this year. (Tin, 12/5)

CIDRAP: Flu Patients Less Likely To Die If Given Oseltamivir On Day Of Hospitalization, Data Suggest 
Patients given the antiviral drug oseltamivir on the day of hospital admission for influenza A had less severe disease and were less likely to die or require intensive care and dialysis or vasopressors (drugs to raise blood pressure) than those who didn't receive early therapy, suggests a US study published last week in Clinical Infectious Diseases. (Van Beusekom, 12/5)

Stat: FDA’s Califf: To Rein In Food Industry, Congress Must Invest More In The Agency
Senators on both sides of the aisle blasted the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday for not doing enough to prevent a surge in obesity and diabetes in the United States. The agency’s commissioner, Robert Califf, turned the blame back around, arguing that if Congress wants the FDA to issue tighter regulations on the food and beverage industry, it should give the agency more money and authority. (Lawrence, 12/5)

Roll Call: How Backlash To The Pandemic Helped Shape Trump’s Health Picks 
If there’s a theme among President-elect Donald Trump’s health Cabinet picks, it’s this: The vast majority were critics of how the Biden administration handled COVID-19. The pandemic upended Americans’ perspective on public health and health care delivery, both throughout the United States and among Republican lawmakers. Policy experts say that change is evident in Trump’s selections to lead major U.S. health agencies. (Cohen, 12/5)

Stat: RFK Jr.'s MAHA Coalition Is Already Showing Some Cracks
What began as an unlikely, diverse alliance — “Make America Healthy Again,” inclusive of everyone from ex-Bernie supporters to vaccine-critical mothers and Joe Rogan listeners — is showing some cracks. As President-elect Donald Trump and his transition team stack the next administration with officials from different backgrounds, some in MAHA are dissatisfied with his choices to lead health-related agencies. (Cueto, 12/6)

Becker's Hospital Review: Hospital Workplace Violence Is A Public Health Emergency. Why Is No One Listening?
As many of us scroll through our favorite news app, we are greeted by reports of workplace violence, from verbal and physical confrontations to fatal shootings. What is often missing from the headlines are stories of the increasingly high frequency of workplace assaults suffered by health care professionals across the country. (Damond W. Boatwright, 12/4)

Los Angeles Times: Taking Trans Rights To The Supreme Court Isn't About Politics
In the last weeks we have seen an increasing demand for the Democratic party to abandon its association with political issues reflecting the “identity” of marginalized or vulnerable communities. While few constituencies have been spared recrimination, some of the most cynical and pernicious scapegoating has been reserved for the transgender community. This is deeply troubling because trans people are particularly vulnerable; with an estimated population of 1.6 million people nationwide, they are barely half of 1% of the U.S. adult population. (Anthony D. Romero, 12/3)

Orange County Register: California’s Unaccountable Homeless Industrial Complex 
In the March 5 primary, Proposition 1 was a $6.3 billion bond for mental health facilities and housing, along with a requirement for counties to reallocate existing funding, to address the crisis of homelessness. Voters just barely agreed to it. (Susan Shelley, 12/4)

Times of San Diego: It's Unacceptable That Thousands In California Lack Clean Drinking Water
The world views California as a leader in environmentalism and good living, but reports on the safety and availability of clean drinking water in the Golden State contradict that view.  State health and water regulators recently announced that nearly a quarter of a million California residents lack safe drinking water in their homes. It is unacceptable that any residents of the sixth largest economy in the world can’t drink the water from their kitchen faucets, and even more so for low-income and less fortunate Californians who don’t have a choice in where or how they get their drinking water. (Raoul Lowery Contreras, 12/4)

East Bay Times: California's Rules Prioritize Short-Term Climate Gain Over Long-Term Health
As long-serving members of the California Air Resources Board, we have prioritized environmental justice and community health, championing efforts to combat climate change. However, we believe state policies must thoughtfully address the consequences for communities least able to bear the associated costs. (Dean Florez and Diane Takvorian, 12/4)

CalMatters: California Voters Deliver Accountability To Health Care Providers Exploiting Drug Program
While the official vote won’t be certified until next month, the results were clear enough to declare a victory for a California ballot initiative on health care, namely Proposition 34, an effort to make sure that drug sale revenue is used solely on health care. (Julie Gill Shuffield, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: Democrats Could Use A Lame Duck To Save Medication Abortions
Before Democrats lose the White House and the Senate, they should push through legislation to repeal the Comstock Act, which could be used to prevent legal medically induced abortions everywhere in the United States. Given the success of ballot initiatives that protect the right to abortion in even conservative states in last week’s election, the politics could be right to repeal that 1873 law. The Comstock Act was adopted to prohibit the interstate shipment of obscene materials. The law also outlawed the shipment of anything meant to prevent conception or end pregnancy. (Erwin Chemerinsky and Miles Mogulescu, 12/4)

San Francisco Chronicle: My Life Would Have Been So Much Worse Without The Autism CARES Act
My mother discovered the Winston School of San Diego, a private school that embedded services and support for autistic children within the classroom environment. Unlike my previous school, this one was more personalized, offered one-on-one support and had teachers and speech therapists who specialized in autism and smaller learning environments. I transferred to the school and flourished. (David Rivera, 12/3)