- California Healthline Original Stories 1
- Under Pressure, California Lawmakers Ban Soda Taxes For 12 Years
- Sacramento Watch 1
- 'A Pick-Your-Poison Kind Of A Situation': California Passes Soda Tax Ban To Avoid Costly Ballot Box Fight
- Public Health and Education 2
- The Patients Using Right-To-Die Law Tend To Be White, Well-Educated
- California Girl At Heart Of Brain Death Debate Dies
- Around California 1
- LA Nursing Home To Settle Allegations Of Patient Care Violations, Including Dumping Diabetic Man On Skid Row
- Health Care Personnel 1
- Sacramento's Health Care Workers Take Home More Of Their Pay Than Their Peers Elsewhere
- National Roundup 3
- All Eyes Are On Collins And Murkowski As Fate Of Roe V. Wade Hinges On Who Fills Kennedy's Seat
- Separating Children From Parents Can Make Them Easy Prey For Traffickers, State Department Report Warns
- Amazon's $1B Purchase Of PillPack Offers Another Hint At Company's Ambitious Health Care Plans
Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Under Pressure, California Lawmakers Ban Soda Taxes For 12 Years
In a major coup for the beverage industry, California lawmakers agreed to ban cities and counties from adopting soda taxes for the next 12 years. In exchange, the beverage industry agreed to pull an initiative off the November ballot that, if passed, would have made it much harder for local governments to raise taxes. (Samantha Young, )
More News From Across The State
"The soda industry has deep pockets and used them to push the legislature into a no-win situation," said California state Sen. Bill Monning. Arizona and Michigan have also capitulated to the industry, which is backing a ballot initiative in California that would make it more difficult to raise taxes.
The Associated Press:
California Bows To Beverage Industry, Blocks Soda Taxes
A new push by the beverage industry is slowing the expansion of soda taxes in California and elsewhere. California cities pioneered soda taxes as a way to combat obesity, diabetes and heart disease, but the Legislature and Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday bowed to pressure from beverage companies and reluctantly banned local taxes on soda for the next 12 years. (6/28)
Reuters:
California Prohibits City Soda Taxes Through 2030
The law, signed by Governor Jerry Brown as a compromise in the face of a soda industry-backed ballot initiative, prevents any local government from imposing future taxes on groceries including carbonated and noncarbonated nonalcoholic beverages through 2030. So-called soda taxes gained traction in the San Francisco area in 2014 and 2016. (Prentice, 6/28)
California Healthline:
Under Pressure, California Lawmakers Ban Soda Taxes For 12 Years
“The industry is aiming basically a nuclear weapon at government in California and saying, ‘If you don’t do what we want, we’re going to pull the trigger and you’re not going to be able to fund basic government services,'” said state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco). “This is a ‘pick your poison’ kind of a situation, a Sophie’s Choice, if you will.” (Young, 6/28)
Capital Public Radio:
Soda Tax Ban Becomes Law, Industry Groups Yank California Ballot Measure Threatening Government Services
Wiener urged health advocates “not to criticize the Legislature for making a perfectly reasonable choice to protect the ability of local governments to fund services, but to criticize this rogue industry that is willing to burn down the house to get what it wants.” Republicans snapped back. “I find it comical that trying to avoid being overtaxed is considered a shakedown by some members of this Legislature, but that’s just the general nature of the population that’s seated in this body,” said Asm. Matthew Harper (R-Huntington Beach). (Adler, 6/28)
The Patients Using Right-To-Die Law Tend To Be White, Well-Educated
The new data may put to rest the fear that the disadvantaged would be pressured into dying, which was a main concern for critics of the law before it passed.
The Mercury News:
Right To Die: Who Uses California's End Of Life Options Act?
Two years after California enacted a right-to-die law, more residents are using it – but they tend to be white and well-educated. This suggests that more Californians are becoming aware of the law, but that it may not readily available to everyone. (Krieger, 6/28)
In other public health news —
The Mercury News:
Can Exercise Battle Depression?
Just as suicide rates are spiking and a national conversation has begun on to how to fight depression, a disease that impacts 16 million adults in the U.S., a new study shows that exercise may be a key weapon in the battle. Published in JAMA Psychiatry, this new study shows that exercise combats depression, particularly in middle-age. (D'Souza, 6/28)
California Girl At Heart Of Brain Death Debate Dies
Jahi McMath's family has been waging a battle against the hospital that declared her brain dead in 2013. Her mother said that she died on June 22 after a surgery.
The Associated Press:
Mother: Girl At Center Of Debate Over Brain Death Dies
A girl at the center of the medical and religious debate over brain death has died after surgery in New Jersey, her mother said Thursday. Nailah Winkfield said doctors declared her daughter Jahi McMath dead on June 22 from excessive bleeding and liver failure after an operation to treat an intestinal issue. (6/28)
Los Angeles Times:
Jahi McMath, Girl At Center Of Debate Over Brain Death, Dies, Mother Says
In the years since Jahi McMath was declared brain dead, she sometimes showed signs of life: a twitch of her finger, the wiggling of a toe. Those moments, and their Christian faith, invigorated Jahi’s family in their fight to keep the girl on life support. “Jahi wasn't brain dead or any kind of dead,” her mother, Nailah Winkfield, told the Associated Press. “She was a girl with a brain injury, and she deserved to be cared for like any other child who had a brain injury.” (Tchekmedyian, 6/28)
UC Davis Makes National List For Best Children's Hospitals
UC Davis Children's Hospital ranked 26 for neonatology, 35 for pediatric nephrology, 44 in pediatric pulmonology and 49 in pediatric urology on the closely watched list put out by U.S. News and World Report.
Sacramento Bee:
UC Davis, Shriners Ranked Among Nation's Top Hospitals For Children
The UC Davis Children’s Hospital has been recognized by U.S. News and World Report for the eighth consecutive year in its annual ranking of Best Children’s Hospitals in the U.S. The 2018-19 list ranked the Children’s Hospital as one of the nation’s best 50 facilities in five categories, including in pediatric orthopedics, a collaborative effort with Shriners Hospitals. (Holzer, 6/28)
In other hospital news —
Fresno Bee:
Adventist Health Take Over Of Tulare Hospital Approved
The Tulare hospital could reopen within a year of its closure under a proposal approved by hospital directors to turn over the medical center to Adventist Health Central Valley Network. The board voted 4-1 Wednesday evening to accept the plan by Adventist that could have the hospital open within four months, which would meet a deadline for Tulare Regional Medical Center to reopen before a one-year temporary license suspension expires in October. (Anderson, 6/28)
Patient dumping has become a persistent problem both in California and nationwide. In agreeing to the settlement, Avalon Villa did not admit the allegations or concede liability.
Los Angeles Times:
South L.A. Nursing Home Will Pay $450,000 For Alleged Skid Row Dumping Of Diabetic Man
A South Los Angeles nursing home will pay $450,000 to settle allegations of patient care violations, including dumping a diabetic man in a wheelchair at a skid row homeless shelter without his permission or his medicine, City Atty. Mike Feuer announced Thursday. Ronald Anderson, 51, said that more than a year after he entered the Avalon Villa Health Care home in Willowbrook to recover from a partial foot amputation, staff members told him in April that they could no longer provide him care, put him in a van and dropped him at the Union Rescue Mission. (Holland, 6/28)
In other news from across the state —
Long Beach Press-Telegram:
9 More Medical Professionals Charged In Pacific Hospital Healthcare Fraud Scheme
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced nine more doctors will face federal charges tied to their alleged roles in a now $950 million healthcare scheme centered around Pacific Hospital in Long Beach. ...In exchange, the medical professionals referred thousands of patients who received surgeries and other services at Pacific Hospital. (Percy, 6/28)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Tri-City To Indefinitely Suspend Inpatient Mental Health Services
In a move that will significantly limit the availability of emergency psychiatric services in coastal North County, Tri-City Medical Center announced this week that it plans to close two heavily-used mental health units within the next 60 days. In a special meeting held Tuesday, hospital directors voted 7-0 to “suspend operations” of the Oceanside hospital’s 18-bed behavioral health unit and its recently-opened crisis stabilization unit. The move, announced to the public Wednesday, brought an extremely concerned response Thursday at the hospital’s monthly board meeting. (Sisson, 6/28)
Sacramento's Health Care Workers Take Home More Of Their Pay Than Their Peers Elsewhere
The list offers a view of which areas are best for health care workers to look for jobs if their focus is on disposable income.
Sacramento Bee:
Which City’s Health Workers Boast Highest Disposable Income? Hint: It’s A Capital
Sacramento's health care workers take home more of their pay than their peers living in the nation's 100 most populous cities, including Dallas-Fort Worth and San Jose, according to a cost-of-living analysis done by the online rental listing service RentCafe. ..The RentCafe analysis looked at wages for individuals that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics classifies as health care practitioners and technical workers and those in the BLS category of health care support. (Anderson, 6/28)
All Eyes Are On Collins And Murkowski As Fate Of Roe V. Wade Hinges On Who Fills Kennedy's Seat
Abortion rights advocates are uniting behind a rallying cry of: “Remember Susan Collins! Remember Lisa Murkowski!” The two senators have a history of supporting abortions rights, and will be pivotal in the vote on whomever President Donald Trump chooses to fill Anthony Kennedy's seat. Meanwhile, without a fillibuster option, Democrats are scrambling to figure out how to have a say, and anti-abortion rights activists plot their strategy.
The New York Times:
With Roe In The Balance, Two Republicans Hold High Court In Their Hands
Justice Anthony M. Kennedy’s retirement announcement was less than a day old when liberal activists rallied on the steps of the Supreme Court on Thursday, invoking the names of two Republican senators who, they believe, hold the future of Roe v. Wade in their hands. “Remember Susan Collins! Remember Lisa Murkowski!” Neera Tanden, president of the liberal Center for American Progress, exhorted the crowd. “If they claim to be pro-choice, choice is on the line with this decision.” (Stolberg, 6/28)
The Washington Post:
‘Everyone Is Focused On Lisa And Susan’: The Two Most Powerful Senators In The Fight To Replace Kennedy
“It’s been kind of interesting in this firestorm. Afterward, everyone is focused on Lisa and Susan,” Murkowski said in an interview Thursday. “If I were John or Jerry or Bill, I’d say, ‘Wait a minute. How come I’m not being viewed as an important voice in this process?’ ” But Murkowski and Collins are the rare elected Republicans in Washington who support abortion rights and voted against repealing the Obama-era Affordable Care Act — issues Democrats are using to frame the battle over the Supreme Court nominee. (Kim, 6/28)
The New York Times:
Denied A Filibuster, Democrats Eye Other Tactics In Supreme Court Fight
This truly will be a Supreme Court confirmation like none before. It will be the first for a court vacancy that opened during the Trump administration. It will be the first in an election year since President Barack Obama’s nominee was blocked by Republicans in 2016. Most importantly, it will be the first time the process has begun with the threat of a filibuster off the table. (Hulse, 6/28)
The New York Times:
Political War Over Replacing Kennedy On Supreme Court Is Underway
A political war over replacing Justice Anthony M. Kennedy roared to life on Thursday in Washington, the start of an election-season clash over a Supreme Court retirement that will reshape the country’s judicial future. Hours after Justice Kennedy’s announcement on Wednesday that he will step down July 31, conservative organizations were mobilizing to support the Republican-controlled Senate in a quick confirmation of a justice who would be expected to vote against the court’s liberal precedents. One group, the Judicial Crisis Network, has already started a $1 million ad campaign urging people to support the president’s choice. (Shear and Kaplan, 6/28)
The Wall Street Journal:
Both Parties Mobilize For Supreme Court Battle Over Kennedy’s Successor
The White House again has enlisted Leonard Leo, executive vice president of the Federalist Society, a conservative lawyers network, to assist in a selection process that already is focusing on fewer than a half-dozen candidates. Within hours of Justice Kennedy’s retirement announcement Wednesday, Mr. Leo took a leave of absence from the Federalist Society to serve as Mr. Trump’s outside adviser on the nomination. (Radnofsky and Jamerson, 6/28)
The Washington Post:
Abortion Foes Play Down Possibility Of Immediately Overturning Roe V. Wade
Leaders of the antiabortion movement said Thursday that they are in no hurry to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision, saying they plan to stick with their long-standing strategy of pushing for incremental restrictions despite the tantalizing prospect of a more conservative Supreme Court. Even with Justice Anthony M. Kennedy’s announced retirement, these activists said they are not sure the time is ripe for a wholesale reconsideration of the 1973 ruling. (Gardner, 6/28)
The Wall Street Journal:
Abortion Foes To Take New Aim At Roe V. Wade
With Justice Kennedy’s retirement, President Donald Trump could replace him with a justice who is more likely to side with the court’s four conservative members on abortion issues. As a candidate, Mr. Trump promised to appoint “pro-life” justices with a “conservative bent” to the Supreme Court. His first appointee to the court, Justice Neil Gorsuch, has yet to review an abortion case. Justice Kennedy didn’t always side with the liberal bloc of the court on abortion cases, but he did in the 1992 ruling Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which reaffirmed the central holding of Roe—that women have a constitutional right to first-trimester abortions. He voted with the four left-leaning justices again in 2016 to strike down Texas restrictions on abortion providers, in a case that made it easier for women to argue that regulations placed an undue burden on their rights. (Palazzolo and Hong, 6/28)
NPR:
What Justice Kennedy's Retirement Means For Abortion Rights
Almost as soon as Kennedy's retirement was announced, several anti-abortion rights groups seized on the moment."We're the closest we've ever been to overturning Roe v. Wade," a woman says in a video released online by the group Students for Life of America shortly after the news broke. In an interview with NPR, Students for Life President Kristan Hawkins called the retirement of the court's swing vote "a day that we've been waiting for." (McCammon, 6/28)
Los Angeles Times:
If A Reshaped Supreme Court Tosses Abortion Decisions Back To States, Several Would Move Fast To Outlaw The Procedures
President Trump’s ability to reshape the Supreme Court with a conservative nominee could quickly send the nation back to a reality that had seemed far in the past: Abortion would be illegal in a large swath of America, subjecting doctors and perhaps pregnant women to criminal prosecution and potentially upending the political landscape in many states. As many as 17 states are poised to effectively ban abortion should the Supreme Court overturn Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 decision that guaranteed abortion rights nationwide. If the decision were overturned, each state could set its own rules on abortion. (Halper, 6/28)
The New York Times:
Inside The White House’s Quiet Campaign To Create A Supreme Court Opening
President Trump singled him out for praise even while attacking other members of the Supreme Court. The White House nominated people close to him to important judicial posts. And members of the Trump family forged personal connections. Their goal was to assure Justice Anthony M. Kennedy that his judicial legacy would be in good hands should he step down at the end of the court’s term that ended this week, as he was rumored to be considering. (Liptak and Haberman, 6/28)
The Washington Post:
‘If It Wasn’t The Roberts Court Already, It Is The Roberts Court Now’
With the retirement of Justice Anthony M. Kennedy and the likelihood that President Trump will choose a more conservative replacement, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. is poised to play a pivotal role on the court he has headed for 13 years. Roberts has been content to play the long game, moving the court to the right with incremental steps. But now, with more conservative colleagues on one side and liberals on the other, Roberts will have the ability to supply the deciding fifth vote and dictate the terms of the deal. (Barnes, 6/28)
The Associated Press:
US Supreme Court Declines City’s Bid On Abortion-Notice Law
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear from a Maryland city that wants pregnancy centers opposed to abortion to notify patients they don’t provide such services. The Daily Record of Baltimore reports the high court declined Thursday to hear Baltimore’s appeal of a lower-court ruling that struck down a city ordinance requiring notification. (6/28)
The State Department report also cautioned that the practice can cause lasting psychological harm and should only be used as a temporary, last resort.
The New York Times:
In Human Trafficking Report, State Dept. Warns Against Separating Children From Parents
The State Department warned in a report on Thursday that separating children from their parents can cause lasting psychological damage that leaves them vulnerable to trafficking, a cautionary tale that comes amid an uproar over a Trump administration immigration policy that has temporarily broken up migrant families as they enter the United States. (Harris, 6/28)
Los Angeles Times:
Ivanka Trump Helps Unveil Administration Report That Decries The Effect Of Separating Children From Parents
A new 68-page report on international human trafficking, unveiled by Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo during a ceremony with Ivanka Trump at the State Department, devotes two pages to withering condemnation of separating families. The harmful "physical and psychological effects of staying in residential institutions," it said, put children at additional risk of human trafficking. (Bierman, 6/28)
Amazon's $1B Purchase Of PillPack Offers Another Hint At Company's Ambitious Health Care Plans
Amazon announced that it is buying PillPack, which sells pre-sorted packets of prescriptions drugs, delivering them to customers in their homes. The news seemed to be a confirmation of the worst fears of some in the industry -- that Amazon is going to make an aggressive play for a chunk of the pharmacy business. But actually disrupting the health care industry will be a challenge.
The New York Times:
Amazon To Buy Online Pharmacy PillPack, Jumping Into The Drug Business
In the world of health care, PillPack, an online pharmacy, is a pretty small player. Its work force of 1,000 or so people pales in comparison with the 235,000 who work for Walgreens. But when Amazon announced on Thursday that it was buying PillPack, the deal immediately shook the industry. Shares of Walgreens and Rite Aid tumbled more than 9 percent, while CVS Health dropped 6.6 percent. That’s because with one move, Amazon answered the question about when — and how — it would grab a piece of the $560 billion prescription drug industry. (Ballentine and Thomas, 6/28)
Reuters:
Amazon To Buy PillPack In Potentially Disruptive Drug Retail Push
The deal's potential to disrupt major players across the drug supply chain nationwide prompted a sell-off in shares of possible rivals, while sending Amazon shares up 2.5 percent. PillPack supplies pre-sorted prescription drugs and other services to people who take multiple medications, a growing market as the U.S. population ages and requires treatment for multiple complex, chronic conditions. Amazon is vying for a share of what is a more than $450 billion total U.S. prescription drug market, according to research firm IQVIA. (Rai and Banerjee, 6/28)
The Wall Street Journal:
Behind PillPack’s $1 Billion Sale, A Frustrated 32-Year-Old Pharmacist
TJ Parker grew up working the counter for his father’s pharmacy in Concord, N.H., where he became frustrated by how much customers struggled to keep track of their medications. He went to pharmacy school but rather than take up the family business, he and a friend set out to change it. In 2013, they launched an online pharmacy from Manchester, N.H. On Thursday, the 32-year-old CEO said he sold his startup to Amazon.com Inc. It was a roughly $1 billion deal, according to people familiar with the deal. Mr. Parker is expected to stay involved after the deal, said a person familiar with the matter. (Brown and Terlep, 6/28)
Stat:
Amazon’s Acquisition Of PillPack Not A Fatal Blow To The Pharmacy Industry
The announcement of this deal is the first step on a long and crooked path, and there is no guarantee that Amazon (AMZN), for all its size and success, will quickly become a major player in the nation’s $370 billion drug business. The acquisition of PillPack confirms Amazon’s intention to sell prescription drugs to consumers nationwide. With a primary pharmacy located in Manchester, N.H., PillPack has operations across the country and ships prescription drugs in pre-sorted packets to 49 states (the only exception being Hawaii). (Ross, 6/28)
Stat:
Amazon Is Taking On Health Care’s Most Vexing Challenge: The Chronically Ill
The company’s acquisition of the home delivery pharmacy PillPack is entirely separate from its venture with JPMorgan Chase and Berkshire Hathaway to improve and lower the cost of care for the companies’ 1 million employees. But taken together, the two initiatives realize the worst fears of many of the health care industry’s entrenched incumbents — that Amazon is making an aggressive play in portions of the market that many consumers, investors, and health industry specialists see as ripe for disruption. (Ross, 6/29)
Viewpoints: Empty Supreme Court Seat Chance For Trump To Fight His Populist Instincts
A selection of opinions on health care developments from around the state.
Los Angeles Times:
In Replacing Justice Kennedy, Trump Should Rein In His Partisan, Populist Tendencies
The retirement of Justice Anthony M. Kennedy after three decades on the Supreme Court presents President Trump with a fateful choice. He can nominate an extreme ideological conservative likely to receive only or mostly Republican votes in the U.S. Senate, pleasing his base but perpetuating the hyper-politicization of the court that reached its low point with the Republican Senate’s refusal in 2016 even to consider Merrick Garland, former President Obama’s third nominee to the court. Such a nominee would no doubt seek, if confirmed, to roll back Roe vs. Wade or to ease reasonable restrictions on guns or to weaken even further the nation’s campaign finance laws. (6/27)
Sacramento Bee:
Justice Kennedy Retires, Ending Era Of Sacramento Values On Supreme Court
Justice Anthony Kennedy, a native of Sacramento, brought his hometown’s pragmatism and values to the nation’s most powerful court. And that has mostly been good for California and America. Kennedy, 81, announced his retirement Wednesday, just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court issued its final decisions of the term. For more than a year, there had been speculation and discussion, but still, it felt like the end of an era. Perhaps that’s because it is. (6/27)
Sacramento Bee:
The Janus Ruling Doesn’t Have To Be Fatal For Public Sector Unions. Here’s How.
More than 7 million public sector union members in America are asking the same question now that the U.S. Supreme Court has forbidden their unions to collect mandatory fees: Is this the end of public employee unions? Not in the least. Pro-labor states can undo the Janus ruling by adopting a simple legislative workaround. (Tang, 6/27)
Sacramento Bee:
SCOTUS Ruling In Janus Frees Government Workers From Unions
Just in time for Independence Day, the U.S. Supreme Court has delivered millions into greater liberty – and a day of reckoning for public-sector union leaders. The court struck down as unconstitutional the arrangement – heretofore enshrined in law in 22 states – that forced government workers to pay union fees for the privilege of keeping their jobs. (Will Swaim, 6/27)
Sacramento Bee:
Supreme Court Janus Ruling Mutes California Unions
There is no sugar-coating Wednesday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision on public employee unions. The conservative majority’s 5-4 ruling in Janus v. AFSCME is a blow to the one sector of organized labor that still has significant clout. In that sense, it is also yet another blow to the American middle class and to efforts to close the gaping income disparities in this country. (6/27)
Sacramento Bee:
Supreme Court Ruling On Abortion And Free Speech Was A Win For Misinformation
There’s a reason California lawmakers in 2015 required “crisis pregnancy” centers to disclose if they’re unlicensed, and to post signs telling patients the state provides free or cheap “prenatal care and abortion for eligible women.” It’s the same reason the centers exist at all. Abortion. Federal law allows it, California protects the right to it and the centers – which are typically faith-based, unlicensed and offer no actual medical services – exist to talk pregnant women out of it, even if that sometimes means confusing them with misinformation. (6/26)
Los Angeles Times:
The Supreme Court Puts Religion-Based Dishonesty Above The Health And Welfare Of Vulnerable Pregnant Women
In 2014, a recent high school graduate named Dania Flores, posing as a pregnant teenager, visited 43 crisis pregnancy centers in California. What kind of care would they offer? How medically competent would they be? As Flores discovered, most crisis pregnancy centers are thinly disguised anti-abortion Christian ministries designed to steer women away from abortion. In the process they spew misinformation, if not downright lies. You will never hear in a crisis pregnancy center that a woman is far, far more likely to die of childbirth-related causes than abortion, which has an infinitesimal complication rate. (Robin Abcarian, 6/29)
CALMatters:
Abortion Notice Ruling A Victory For Free Speech
Californians of a liberal bent may not like it, but the U.S. Supreme Court this week struck an important blow for the constitutional right of free speech. It overturned a California law requiring clinics offering non-abortion alternative treatment to pregnant women to post notices telling them about the availability of abortions. (Dan Walters, 6/28)
Los Angeles Times:
I Was Separated From My Parents 50 Years Ago. The Trauma Has Marked The Rest Of My Life
Despite changes in White House policy, there are thousands of children separated from their immigrant parents — some under a year old at so-called tender age shelters — and no concrete plans for how they will be reunited. The trauma those children are suffering remains far from over. (Margareta Larsson, 6/22)
Los Angeles Times:
Well-Meaning Proposals To Change California's Mental Health Law Fall Short
At the core of the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles and around California is the simple fact that thousands of people spend their nights beneath overpasses, beside freeways and on the street because they cannot afford other places to live. There is a significant subset that is homeless because mental illness leaves them incapable of doing much of the day-to-day business of living beyond finding a place to sleep, something to wear and a little to eat; but for most of those street-dwellers as well, the problem is essentially the same: There is no other place for them to go. (6/23)
The Mercury News:
From America's War On Poverty To A War On The Poor
Without health care, financially strapped parents have no choice but to put their health on the backburner as they deal with immediate issues like jobs, paying rent and putting food on the table. Consequently, they may wait to seek health care until their health reaches a crisis stage, which leads to the most expensive, and least effective, form of health care. (Anna Roth, 6/27)
Los Angeles Times:
The Last Thing L.A. Should Be Spending Resources On Is Rousting Homeless People From The Sidewalks
The bigger issue here is whether the city will use the construction of a modest number of housing units as an excuse to start rousting homeless people off streets across Los Angeles at night. That’s the last thing the city should be doing right now. Whether the city has reached what amounts to an arbitrary number of housing units set 11 years ago, there are still — and this should not come as a news flash to city officials — thousands more homeless people than there are available housing units or beds in decent shelters. And until we can solve that problem, police should not be breaking up homeless encampments wholesale at night. (6/26)
Sacramento Bee:
California's SB 1152 Helps Homeless Patients Discharged From Hospitals
Often, discharged patients are dropped off at homeless facilities by ambulance or Uber or Lyft, many still in hospital gowns. ...Being discharged to the streets without a plan not only hinders recovery, but often makes the health issues worse, resulting in readmission to the hospital, or worse. (Sharad Jain, 6/22)
The Jose Mercury News:
Time To Admit Criminal Reform Change Isn't Working
The Bay Area News Group editorial board recently lauded Californians for taking a “leap of faith” in 2014 and voting to reduce the penalties for certain crimes. From a police chief’s perspective, Proposition 47 has been an ill-conceived measure that has increased property crimes, decreased participation in proven drug rehabilitation programs and is now the subject of a ballot initiative to address the unintended consequences. (David Swing, 6/28)
Sacramento Bee:
California Soda Tax Ban Is A New Backroom Low
As the CEO of the American Heart Association, I’ve seen my fair share of industry efforts to oppose health initiatives and protect their profits.California Senate Bill 872 is one of the worst. The bill would prevent Californians and their local elected officials from enacting measures they feel are necessary to protect the health of their communities and allow public investments in critical local programs. (Brown, 6/26)
The Mercury News:
Drink Industry’s Devious Move To Stop Soda Taxes
In a devious political move, the beverage industry is leveraging California’s new initiative rules to extract legislation banning more cities from taxing soda pop. The scheme has left taxpayer groups that had lent support to an initiative campaign sitting on the sidelines, the League of California Cities reluctantly conceding defeat and health advocates who back soda taxes furious. (Daniel Borenstein, 6/27)