Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Doctor Alexa Will See You Now: Is Amazon Primed To Come To Your Rescue?
Amazon, along with a host of other technology companies, is working on ways to use its smart speaker devices to bring a range of health care services into your home. (Janet Rae-Dupree, )
Good morning! Los Angeles County officials warned Thursday that a county resident with measles may have exposed others at several shops on the Westside. More on that below, but first here are your top California health stories for the day.
At House Hearing, Details Emerge About How Juul Funded Summer Programs To Teach Kids 'Healthy' Habits, Paid Schools $10K To Come Talk To Students: In Richmond, Calif. last year, Juul gave the Police Activities League $90,000 to offer the company’s vaping education program “Moving Beyond” to middle school and high school students who faced suspension for using cigarettes. Those efforts were among many detailed by a House subcommittee on Thursday afternoon in the second day of hearings on the problem of youth vaping and Juul’s role in it — a topic that the Food and Drug Administration and two state attorneys general have been investigating for more than a year. James Monsees, Juul's co-founder and chief product officer, told the committee that the company's target audience from the beginning has been adult cigarette smokers. "All of these educational efforts were intended to keep youth from using the product," said Ashley Gould, Juul's chief administrative officer. Several committee members said Juul's initiatives appeared similar to past efforts by the tobacco industry to reach young people under the guise of smoking prevention programs. Read more from Sheila Kaplan of The New York Times; Chris Kirkham and Bryan Pietsch of Reuters; and Matthew Perrone and Richard Lardner of The Associated Press
Judge Slashes $2B Jury Verdict In Case Over Roundup's Possible Link To Cancer: A California judge on Thursday reduced a $2 billion jury verdict, slashing the award for a couple who blamed Bayer AG's glyphosate-based weed killer Roundup for their cancer to $86.7 million. Superior Court Judge Winifred Smith of the California Superior Court in Oakland said the jury's billion-dollar punitive damages awards were excessive and unconstitutional, but rejected Bayer's request to strike the punitive award outright. Evidence at the Oakland trial, though disputed, supports the jury’s conclusion that Roundup was “a substantial factor” in causing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in both Alva and Alberta Pilliod, said Superior Court Judge Winifred Smith. She said the evidence also supported the jury’s finding that Monsanto had known the herbicide’s active ingredient, glyphosate, could be dangerous while the Pilliods were still using it and had failed to warn them. Bayer faces Roundup cancer lawsuits by more than 13,400 plaintiffs across the United States. Plaintiffs allege Roundup causes non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and that Monsanto for decades tried to influence scientists and regulators to bury cancer evidence. Bayer denies those allegations. Read more from Tina Bellon of Reuters; and Bob Egelko of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Below, check out the full round-up of California Healthline original stories, state coverage and the best of the rest of the national news for the day.
More News From Across The State
Ventura County Star:
Covered California Rates Will Climb 4.6% In Ventura County
Covered California premiums will rise an average of nearly 5% next year in Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Leaders of the health insurance exchange created by the Affordable Care Act announced earlier this month statewide rates will rise an average of 0.8%, the lowest increase in Covered California’s six-year history. New data released for the 19 pricing regions across the state show premiums will rise in some areas and fall in others. Rates will climb an average of 4.6% in Region 12, encompassing Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. The hike is the second highest in the state, behind only the 6.6% increase in San Francisco County. (Kisken, 7/25)
The New York Times:
Doctors In Debt: These Physicians Gladly Struck A Deal With California
Dr. Michael Gabriel Galvez, a pediatric hand surgeon who treats mostly low-income patients at a hospital in California’s Central Valley, jokes with families that he went to “30th grade.” But that did not come cheap. The debt he has accrued from 18 years of higher education and medical training, including Stanford Medical School, fellowships and residency, is about $250,000. (And that does not include credit card debt.) (Rueb and Zraick, 7/25)
Los Angeles Times:
L.A. County Health Officials Warn Of Measles Exposure At Westside Shops
Los Angeles County officials warned Thursday that a county resident with measles may have exposed others at several shops on the Westside. Officials identified businesses in Venice, Brentwood and Santa Monica that the infected person visited, along with a coffee shop in downtown L.A., over a three-day period last week. (Karlamangla, 7/25)
Sacramento Bee:
Gun Advocates Sue To Stop New CA Ammunition Law
Gun rights advocates are suing to block California’s new ammunition purchasing law, calling it an unconstitutional scheme that violates the Second Amendment. The preliminary injunction motion filed by the California Rifle & Pistol Association Monday in San Diego federal court names Kim Rhode, the seven-time trap and skeet shooting Olympian and National Rifle Association board member, as lead plaintiff. (Smith, 7/25)
LAist:
How One LA Charity Is Keeping Food From Being Wasted — And Feeding Needy Families
At the Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market fresh food comes in from around the world on its way to markets around the U.S. And tons of perfectly good produce gets trashed every day — even as local families go hungry and lack access to fresh fruit and vegetables. Keeping more of that food out of landfills has been a longtime goal for food banks trying to feed needy families. Logistics and the short shelf life for fresh food can make that tricky. (McNary, 7/25)
Fresno Bee:
Fresno CA Center Meets Southeast Asians’ Mental Health Needs
The Living Well Center on Thursday will have a grand opening for an expansion that will help meet the huge need for mental health services in the Southeast Asian community. The center will play an important role because Southeast Asians often don’t openly talk about their mental health issues, or instances of trauma they’ve experienced, said Ghia Xiong, director of the center. (Amaro, 7/25)
Capital Public Radio:
Fairgoers Should Take Caution Around Animals To Lower Chances Of Disease, State Officials Say
Many fairgoers enjoy visiting the goats, llamas and cows at petting zoos and livestock exhibits, but interacting with these animals carries a risk of disease, according to public health officials. The California Department of Public Health and the California Department of Food and Agriculture put out a notice this week recommending people practice good hygiene after interacting with animals during fair season. (Caiola, 7/25)
The San Francisco Chronicle:
SF’s Treasure Island School Dorm Ready For Students In Need: ‘They’re Saving Kids’
Abisai Aguilar, 15, walked into the dorm room, outfitted with two new beds, nightstands and armoires, and shook his head, his eyes wide. “Some of us don’t really sleep in a bed,” he said, referring to sleeping on the floor of a room in a homeless shelter that he shares with his entire family. (Tucker, 7/26)
Modesto Bee:
Modesto CA Center Responds To ‘Straight Pride’ Event
A Modesto group announced Thursday it will provide “safe spaces” to LGBTQ people during the Aug. 24 event planned by the National Straight Pride Coalition. The board of the Central Valley Pride Center decided on that response after a Wednesday evening meeting that overflowed its D Street offices in Modesto. (Holland, 7/25)
The Associated Press:
Donald Who? Pelosi, Democrats Vow To ‘Own August’ On Issues
Congressional Democrats on Thursday pivoted away from questions of impeachment by saying they are going to “own” the upcoming August recess on issues like health care and prescription drug costs. “We will own August, make it too hot to handle for the Senate” to ignore Democratic legislative goals to streamline government and lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs, Pelosi said. Other Democrats gathered on the House steps under brilliant sunshine echoed that phrasing in a likely preview of the party’s message during the many town halls they’ve scheduled over the next six weeks. (Kellman, 7/25)
The New York Times:
Divided House Passes 2-Year Budget Deal To Raise Spending
A divided House on Thursday passed a two-year budget deal that would raise spending by hundreds of billions of dollars over existing caps and allow the government to keep borrowing to cover its debts, amid grumbling from fiscal conservatives over the measure’s effect on the federal deficit. (Cochrane, 7/25)
The Associated Press:
Governors Weigh Health Care Plans As They Await Court Ruling
As they gather at a conference in Utah, governors from around the U.S. are starting to think about what they will do if an appeals court upholds a lower court ruling overturning former President Barack Obama's signature health care law. More than 20 million Americans would be at risk of losing their health insurance if the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agrees with a Texas-based federal judge who declared the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional last December because Congress had eliminated an unpopular tax it imposed on people who did not buy insurance. (7/25)
Stat:
Senators Advance Major Drug Pricing Bill — And Keep Caps On Price Hikes
A key Senate committee on Thursday advanced a sweeping bill to lower drug prices after its members voted — narrowly — to retain its most controversial element: a cap on some drug price increases under Medicare. The broader package passed by a 19-9 margin and earned unanimous support from Democrats. GOP lawmakers opposed the legislation by a 9-5 margin. Just before the final vote on the package, a top Republican had attempted to strip the bill of its most contentious element: a cap on drug price increases that exceed the rate of inflation in the Medicare program. (Facher and Florko, 7/25)
The New York Times:
Top Border Official Is Reassigned Amid Criticism Of Conditions For Migrant Children
The highest ranking immigration official in the troubled El Paso region of the southwest border, where hundreds of children were reportedly held for weeks without enough food or the ability to bathe, has been temporarily removed from his job amid growing criticism over health and safety conditions for migrants there. Aaron Hull, a veteran border official who became the sector chief in El Paso in 2017, will be moved to Detroit on Monday, where he will oversee operations along the much slower and less contentious Canadian border, according to a statement from the agency. (Dickerson and Kanno-Youngs, 7/25)
The New York Times:
McKinsey Advised Johnson & Johnson On Increasing Opioid Sales
At the global consulting firm McKinsey & Company, the rule is sacrosanct: Never publicly disclose client advice. And for the most part, adherence to that rule has served the company well. But in recent months, as government officials seek to assign blame for the opioid crisis that has strangled large parts of the nation, McKinsey’s advice is surfacing in ways that are deeply embarrassing for the influential firm, whose clients include many of the world’s most admired companies. One lawsuit revealed McKinsey recommending that a pharmaceutical company “get more patients on higher doses of opioids” and study techniques “for keeping patients on opioids longer.” (Bogdanich, 7/25)
Stat:
Health Websites Are Notoriously Misleading. So We Rated Their Reliability
For millions of Americans, including health professionals, the resurgence of measles is a confounding and frightening development. How can a disease declared eliminated nearly two decades ago come back when it can be prevented with a vaccine proven to be safe and effective? But that’s not the reality for those getting their health information from online sources such as NaturalNews.com, one of many health-focused sites that peddle false and misleading claims to large audiences. (Gregory, 7/26)
Los Angeles Times:
New Data Show That Failing To Expand Medicaid Has Led To 16,000 Unnecessary Deaths
Adversaries of Medicaid expansion have always pointed to the lack of evidence that enrollment in Medicaid improves health and saves lives, and therefore the expansion is a waste. A new study should put that argument to rest, permanently. The researchers found not only that the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act brought appreciable improvements in health to enrollees, but also that full expansion nationwide would have averted 15,600 deaths among the vulnerable Medicaid-eligible population. (Michael Hiltzik, 7/22)
CalMatters:
California’s Small Business Owners Cannot Afford Health Care. Here Are Ways To Help
Alma Beltran owns a successful small business, but that doesn’t mean she can afford healthcare for herself and her family. In fact, the Chula Vista entrepreneur who is president of Graphic Image Label, Inc., is facing a hard choice between the health of her loved ones and the health of her business. It’s all because the size of her household shrank after one of her children went to college. “Since I no longer qualify for federal assistance, my healthcare premium costs six times as much as it did before,” Alma said in a March phone conversation with Small Business Majority staff. (Mark Herbert, 7/24)
Los Angeles Times:
The Key To Reducing Suicide Rates? It's Definitely Not Lowering Taxes
The fascinating thing about economic research is that it moves in ways that often can’t be anticipated. Sometimes, your assumptions are upended. I was recently part of a research team that showed that people living in states with relatively high taxes tended over time to move to states with lower taxes. Case in point: The states with the highest rates of taxation — New Jersey, California and New York — also had the highest levels and rates of net outward migration. (James Doti, 7/23)
Los Angeles Times:
Deleting The Graphic ‘13 Reasons Why' Suicide Scene Won't Fix Anything
Two years after the series “13 Reasons Why” debuted, Netflix has finally edited out a graphic and highly controversial suicide scene. The network deserves some credit for deleting the on-camera suicide of a teenage girl, Hannah Baker, who remains a central character of the show even in death. But her suicide never should have been shown in the first place. U.S. and international guidelines for safe and responsible portrayals of suicide in the media recommend that graphic depictions of suicide be avoided. (Mark Sinyor, 7/25)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Stop Ambulances From Gouging Patients
Emergency services provided to people with little to no alternative should not, after all, be subject to unbridled capitalism, which is why local governments were entrusted with providing them in the first place. It’s time for the Legislature and Congress to protect the sick and hurt from further victimization. (7/22)
Sacramento Bee:
Sacramento CA Homelessness On American River Needs Solution
Ground zero for homelessness in Sacramento is a 1.7-mile stretch between Interstate 5 and the Highway 160 bridge. It’s a virtual village of tents and lean-tos along the south side of the American River, a home of human misery just a few minutes ride from Old Sacramento, Golden 1 Center, Township 9 and other symbols of Sacramento stability and prosperity. I biked down there last week on what is officially called the Two Rivers trail, but nobody calls it that. A more appropriate moniker could be: Sacramento’s trail of shame. (Marcos Breton, 7/25)
Los Angeles Times:
Wonder Where Generic Drug Names Come From? Two Women In Chicago, That's Where
Orange resident Wayne King had a simple enough question: How do prescription drugs get named? My initial guess was there must be some blue-ribbon panel of experts involved, or maybe a fancy computer algorithm. I couldn’t have been more wrong. King, 80, made clear that he wasn’t so interested in brand names, which drug companies typically struggle to concoct because, simply, all the good ones have been taken. (David Lazarus, 7/23)
Sacramento Bee:
American Culture Has An Affinity For Guns. Change Is Needed
People assume killers like me suffered a violent or troubled upbringing, but my childhood was perfectly normal. I never had to witness any real violence, never lived in a gang-infested neighborhood, never went to bed hungry. Not me. I was an honor student who went to college straight after high school, who even managed to achieve my own version of the “American Dream.” But it all imploded instantly with one reckless – and life-altering – decision to use a handgun. (Joe Garcia, 7/24)
Los Angeles Times:
Harvesting More DNA From Low-Level Offenders Could Result In Fewer Crimes Solved
As someone who has devoted his life to law enforcement, it pains me to see that some prominent voices in the law enforcement community are using their platforms to mislead and frighten the public. California, for example, is getting safer, even while a small group of fearmongers continues to insist that the sky is falling. (Downing, 7/22)
Sacramento Bee:
UC Should Study A Problem In Its Own Backyard: Sexual Assault
Where are students being sexually assaulted on University of California campuses? At frat parties? In their dorms? Who is being targeted on the 10 UC campuses? Freshman women? Graduate students? LGBTQ folks? Students of color? Is the UC providing adequate services to students who are sexually assaulted? Are there enough counselors on campus? Are prevention measures making a dent? (Sunney Poyner, 7/25)
San Francisco Chronicle:
SF District May Finally Fix Teacher Sick Leave After ‘Heartbreaking’ Stories
The San Francisco Unified School District charges teachers out on extended sick leave for the cost of a substitute, which if you’re on the low end of the seniority scale can quickly swallow up your pay. This ridiculous, unfair scenario — which I’ve told you about in two recent columns — might finally end, thanks to a new commitment from the Board of Education president. (Heather Knight, 7/26)