Sacramento Bee: Sacramento County Shelves Homeless Shelter Plan After Sweeps
Sacramento County has scuttled plans to open a $1.3 million sanctioned parking lot for 30 homeless people after the city displaced dozens of individuals the county intended to serve through “sweeps” and then surprised the county with an announcement that it would open a different shelter not far from the parking lot. The lack of communication between the city and the county is a large factor in the sudden reversal. County spokeswoman Janna Haynes wrote on Wednesday, “The opening of the City’s Safe Ground wasn’t something we had planned on when initially applying for this grant and, in fact, did not know of this location until it was announced in early January.” (Lange, 1/26)

Bay Area News Group: Just How Many Homeless People Are In The Bay Area? Annual Census Aims To Nail Down A Number
From the outside, the bronze sedan parked on Sixth Avenue looked abandoned — its tires deflated, a window smashed. But Kerry Abbott noticed condensation fogging the windows — a sign someone might be inside. (Talerico, 1/25)

CalMatters: Approaching Bay Area Deadline A ‘Test Case’ For California’s Housing Crisis
Last January, local governments across the region were required to submit “housing elements” to state regulators — future development blueprints that spell out how each jurisdiction intends to make room for its share of the more than 2.5 million new homes the Newsom administration wants to see built across California by the end of the decade. (Christopher, 1/25)

The San Diego Union-Tribune: San Diego's Old Central Library Reopens As A Homeless Shelter For The Next Several Months 
Dozens of beds for homeless women are again available downtown at the old Central Library, offering a boost to the region’s strained shelter system even as the recent storm forced another facility to close for the foreseeable future. Officials said 34 spots opened up Monday. The building will only be accessible at night. (Nelson, 1/24)

Stat: Cardiologists Urge Adding Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity To Health Records
There are more openly LGBTQ+ people in the U.S. than ever, but little is known about the unique health challenges they may face. That’s why some researchers are urging health systems to build the acronym SOGIE — for patients’ sexual orientation and gender identity and expression — into their data collection. (Gaffney, 1/26)

Sacramento Business Journal: Matsui Secures SNAHC Florin Health Clinic $1 Million In Funding 
The Sacramento Native American Health Center got a gift of federal funds to pay for its expansion on Florin Road. (Hamann, 1/25)

The Bakersfield Californian: 'No Substitute For Blood Donations’: Houchin Thanks Those Who Give With Community Event 
J.R. Flores knows how important blood transfusions can be after watching his father battle cancer and require a lot of blood for his treatments. And 15 years after his passing, Flores' father is the main inspiration behind his son's donations at Houchin Community Blood Bank. (Nguyen, 1/25)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Bankruptcies In 2023 Hit Highest Level In 5 Years
Healthcare company bankruptcies soared in 2023 to their highest level in the last five years, according to a report released Thursday by Gibbins Advisors. The advisory firm's report, which looked at Chapter 11 bankruptcy case filings from 2019 to 2023, found 79 healthcare companies with more than $10 million in liabilities filed for bankruptcy protection last year. Pharmaceutical and senior care companies made up nearly half of the list. The next-highest year for bankruptcies was 2019, when 51 companies filed for protection. (Hudson, 1/25)

The Hill: Assisted Living Facilities Fall Short When Caring For Aging US Population, Witnesses Tell Senators 
The American population is aging — by 2060, nearly one in four Americans will be 65 or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Assisted living facilities are already inadequately prepared for the aging population, witnesses told a Senate panel during a Thursday hearing. Patricia Vessenmeyer, who testified at the hearing, assisted her husband, John Whitney, during his journey living with dementia after he was diagnosed in 2013. Doctors diagnosed Whitney with dementia with Lewy bodies, causing him to act t violently during dreams.  (Vickers, 1/25)

Reuters: Lilly's Mounjaro Dose In Limited Availability In US Through Next Month 
A dose of Eli Lilly's diabetes drug Mounjaro has limited availability through February 2024, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's website, due to an increase in demand. The health regulator's website showed the 12.5 milligram dose of the injection will be available in limited amounts, while other doses of Mounjaro are available. (1/25)

Los Angeles Times: California Relaxes COVID-19 Isolation Guidance. What To Know 
With COVID-19 no longer the widespread public health emergency it was in years past, public health officials at both the state and Los Angeles County levels have relaxed their guidance on how long individuals need to isolate from others after they are infected. Both agencies note that earlier guidelines were implemented to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. But most policies are now focused on protecting those most at risk for serious illness while reducing social disruption. Here’s what you need to know about the new guidelines. Lin II and Money, 1/25)

Stateline.org: Wastewater Tests Show COVID Infections Surging
Although it’s spotty and inconsistent in many places, wastewater testing is pointing to a new wave of COVID-19 infections, with as many as one-third of Americans expected to contract the disease by late February. (Henderson, 1/25)

Los Angeles Times: Why High-Risk Patients Aren't Getting Anti-COVID Drugs  
As the toll from the COVID-19 pandemic continued to mount, antiviral medications such as Paxlovid were hailed by health officials as an important way to reduce the risk of severe illness or death. Yet the drugs have remained underused, studies have found. In Boston, a group of researchers wanted to know why — and what could be done about it. Their new findings, published Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suggest that some vulnerable patients were not offered the prescription medicines at all, and that doctors need more education to make sure the drugs get to patients who could benefit. (Alpert Reyes, 1/25)

NBC News: Covid In Pregnancy Can Cause Health Issues In Babies, Studies Suggest
Just over four years since Covid emerged, it has become increasingly clear that infections in pregnant mothers can lead to serious health risks in infants. The latest finding: Babies born to mothers who had Covid during pregnancy had "unusually high rates" of respiratory distress at birth or shortly thereafter, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature Communications. (Bendix, 1/25)

Fresno Bee: Warehouse Owner To Repay Costs To Clean Up Illegal Reedley Lab. How Much Does It Add Up To?
The owner of a warehouse in which a Chinese-owned company set up an illegal biological laboratory in late 2022 will pay a total of more than $260,000 to the city of Reedley and Fresno County to cover the two agencies’ costs for the months-long cleanup of the property. (Sheehan, 1/24)

The Washington Post: The Library Of Congress Has Created A Portal To Record Covid Stories. 
The Library of Congress and StoryCorps announced this week that they have created a website for people to record for posterity their experiences with the covid-19 pandemic. Stories, or interviews with others who were touched by the pandemic, can be recorded online. They will be preserved in the Library’s American Folklife Center and made accessible at archive.StoryCorps.org. (Ruane, 1/25)

CIDRAP: Closing Toilet Lid Before Flushing Doesn't Keep Viral Spray Inside, Study Suggests 
Contrary to previous study findings, closing the toilet lid before flushing doesn't stop aerosolized viruses from contaminating bathroom surfaces, scientists from the University of Arizona and Reckitt Benckiser LLC, the company that makes the disinfectant used in the study, report in the American Journal of Infection Control. The researchers added a bacteriophage (virus that targets and kills bacteria) to household and public toilet bowls as a proxy for human intestinal viruses. After they flushed the toilets (with the lid open or closed in case of the household toilets), they measured viral contamination of the toilet and bathroom floor and walls. (Van Beusekom, 1/25)

CIDRAP: CDC Alerts Healthcare Providers About Measles Cases
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today urged healthcare providers to be alert for patients who have fever and rashes and have traveled abroad, following reports of 23 measles cases since December 1, 2023. "The increased number of measles importations seen in recent weeks is reflective of a rise in global measles cases and a growing global threat from the disease," the CDC said in an email. (Schnirring, 1/25)

Los Angeles Times: Thief Steals Money Collected For Monterey Park Shooting Victims 
Francois and Shally Ung started collecting donations at their doughnut shop last weekend for survivors of the Monterey Park dance studio shootings, nearly a year after 11 people were gunned down at a Lunar New Year’s Eve celebration. And then on Tuesday, Francois Ung says, someone broke into his car and stole the money. Along with his laptop. The Ungs were raising the money for victims’ families and other survivors in the name of Shally’s longtime dance partner, Andy Kao, who was killed in the Jan. 21, 2023, massacre at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio. Shally witnessed the shooting. (Solis, 1/24)

Stat: Key Senate Panel Considers Medicare Bonuses For Hospitals That Prevent Drug Shortages
A key Senate committee is proposing that Medicare pay bonuses to hospitals that take measures to prevent drug shortages. It also wants to change the way doctors are paid to administer drugs in outpatient settings. (Wilkerson, 1/25)

Stat: Democrats Urge Government To Rein In Medicare Advantage Overpayments And Denials
The Biden administration is about to set the ground rules for next year’s Medicare Advantage plans, and two Democratic lawmakers want the government to aggressively change how those insurance plans operate. (Herman, 1/26)

The Wall Street Journal: It Is Going To Be A Bad Year (Or More) For The Medicare Business
America’s seniors are going to keep up their elevated use of the medical system throughout the year. That is the message from Humana’s earnings release on Thursday, which is sending stocks of insurance giants sliding. The health insurer plunged over 10% on Thursday morning while competitors UnitedHealth, CVS Health and Centene were all down sharply. All four companies have significant Medicare Advantage businesses that have been facing pressure from slowing growth and tougher scrutiny by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The higher costs, which Humana says it expects will affect the whole industry, are only the latest bit of bad news, one which raises questions about how insurers’ internal modeling could be so off. (Wainer, 1/25)

Rolling Stone: Big Pharma Is Fueling Republicans' Radical MAGA Agenda For 2025
Big Pharma has invested big money in the organizations planning what a MAGA policy agenda will look like in a new Trump administration. Not surprisingly, that policy playbook contains a major gift for the drug industry: a swift end to the Biden administration’s landmark program to allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices. (Dickinson and Perez, 1/25)

Stat: Merck CEO Won’t Testify In Senate, Citing No Expertise In Drug Prices
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday jabbed the CEO of Merck for telling congressional staff that he didn’t have the expertise to testify at a Senate hearing on prescription drug prices because he’s a tax attorney. (Cohrs, 1/25)

Miami Herald: Are You Ordering Medications Online From Canada, Mexico, Other Countries? What To Know 
Finding a good deal on medication can be difficult. Even with insurance, prescription medicines can be pricey. Bargain hunters might search for cheaper prices online, but not every Internet pharmacy is legitimate. Sometimes, people turn to Canada, Mexico and other countries for cheaper drug prices. (Marchante, 1/25)

Politico: First Tech Platform Breaks Ranks To Support Kids Online Safety Bill 
The owner of Snapchat is backing a bill meant to bolster online protections for children on social media, the first company to publicly split from its trade shop days before the company’s CEO prepares to testify on Capitol Hill. A Snap spokesperson told POLITICO about the company’s support of Kids Online Safety Act. The popular messaging service’s position breaks ranks with its trade group NetChoice, which has opposed KOSA. The bill directs platforms to prevent the recommendation of harmful content to children, like posts on eating disorders or suicide. (Kern, 1/25)

CNN: Teen Suicide: Study Identifies Behavioral Risk Factor 
If your teen’s opting out of the school football game or shopping with friends, chalking it up to teen angst can be easy. But you should pay more attention since social withdrawal could signal something deeper is going on, a new study has found. Being socially withdrawn and experiencing physical discomforts as a preteen is associated with a higher risk of having suicidal thoughts at age 16, according to the study published Thursday in the journal JAMA Network Open. (Rogers, 1/25)

Grist: How Climate Disasters Hurt Mental Health In Young People
After a hurricane, flood, wildfire, or other disaster strikes, a great tallying commences: the number of people injured and killed; buildings damaged and destroyed; acres of land burned, inundated, or contaminated. Every death is recorded, every insured home assessed, the damage to every road and bridge calculated in dollars lost. When the emergency recedes, the insurance companies settle their claims, and the federal government doles out its grants, communities are expected to rebuild. But the accounting misses a crucial piece of the aftermath: Worsening disasters are leaving invisible mental health crises in their wake. (Teirstein, 1/25)

Stat: HPV Vaccine, Cervical Cancer Study Delivers Historic Results 
A historic new study out of Scotland shows the real-world impact of vaccines against the human papillomavirus: The country has detected no cases of cervical cancer in women born between 1988-1996 who were fully vaccinated against HPV between the ages of 12 and 13. (Merelli, 1/25)

Axios: Cervical Cancer Deaths Rise Among Low-Income Americans
Women in low-income regions of the U.S. are experiencing significantly more cases and deaths from cervical cancer despite an overall decline of the disease, according to a new study in the International Journal of Cancer. (Reed, 1/26)

AP: Report Finds 93 US Deaths After Cosmetic Surgery In Dominican Republic Since 2009 
U.S. health officials say 93 Americans have died after cosmetic surgery in the Dominican Republic since 2009, with many of the recent deaths involving a procedure known as a Brazilian butt lift. The operation has grown in popularity recently and has led to deaths in other countries as well, including the U.S. A report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could not say how common these deaths are or whether they are more common in the Dominican Republic. The report suggests steps that medical tourists should consider before traveling to get work done. (Stobbe, 1/25)

CNN: People Who Mostly Sit At Work Have A 16% Higher Risk Of Mortality, Study Says 
Tired of sitting at that desk all day long? Turns out it’s not good for your health, either, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open. People who predominantly sit at work have a 16% higher risk of mortality from all causes, and a 34% higher risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease. To counteract the increased risk, individuals who sit a lot at work would have to engage in an additional 15 to 30 minutes of physical activity per day to reduce their risk to that of individuals who do not predominantly sit, researchers estimated. (Hetter, 1/25)

The Desert Sun: Tenet Proposal Is A Common Sense Solution For Desert Regional Medical Center And The Desert Healthcare District
The leadership of Tenet Healthcare and the Desert Care Network are currently working with the Desert Healthcare District on a proposal that will shape the future of Desert Regional Medical Center and define healthcare delivery for Coachella Valley for the next 30 years and beyond. (Dr. Amir Lavaf, 1/21)

Los Angeles Daily News: State-Backed Mental Health Apps Won’t Fix The Damage Done By California’s Leaders
California Governor Gavin Newsom wants to give your kids mental health counseling, on their phones. This week, the Office of the Governor announced the launch of two new apps to provide “digital mental health support for youth, young adults and families.” (Susan Shelley, 1/25)

San Francisco Chronicle: California's Mental Health Crisis Demands Infrastructure. Prop. 1 Will Help
California is short thousands of mental health beds at all levels of care, according to a 2021 study from the nonprofit think tank Rand Corp. Furthermore, even when beds are available, many facilities are unwilling or unable to accept patients with complex co-occurring conditions, criminal records and a history of violence. Other times, beds sit empty because there aren’t enough workers to staff them. As of late last year, some behavioral health nonprofits that contract with San Francisco had vacancy rates reaching 40%. (1/25)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Many College Students Struggle With Their Mental Health. They Need Our Support.
Mental health problems are often overlooked because their symptoms aren’t the ones that can physically be seen. No matter how fine people seem on the outside, no one can have any idea of how much they may be suffering on the inside. (Natanya Abigail, 1/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: Mammograms Didn’t Catch My Breast Cancer. But An MRI Did
Last year, I joined the 1 in 8 women who will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Despite being in my mid-40s, drinking minimally and maintaining excellent health, I received a terrifying call from my radiologist last winter. The tiny lump they’d biopsied was cancer. (Jennie Durant, 1/21)

Sacramento Bee: Reproductive Leader CA Should Champion IVF Coverage
For many families, an infertility diagnosis is not the largest barrier to becoming a parent. Sadly, the biggest barrier is cost. An average in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle in the U.S. costs between $15,000 to $20,000 — roughly the same as arthroscopic knee surgery. The difference is that knee surgery is covered by insurance, while infertility treatment — in California, at least — is not, placing it out of reach for many who must pay out of pocket for this healthcare. (Betsy Campbell, 1/23)