Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Federally Funded Obria Prescribes Abstinence To Stop The Spread Of STDs
Obria, a Christian medical chain, was awarded federal family planning funds for its California clinics for the first time this year. Clinics receiving Title X funds are expected to treat and prevent sexually transmitted diseases. Obria’s prohibition against condoms means its prevention efforts rest on abstinence, even as STD rates surge. (Sarah Varney, )
Happy Friday all! In a free-wheeling speech, President Donald Trump touts his Medicare Advantage executive order, attacks Democrats' health plans and alleges that drugmakers are behind impeachment efforts. And the Supreme Court will hear the case challenging Louisiana's abortion access law. More on that below, but first here are your top California health news stories of the day.
Vaping Bans: More Harm Than Good? As more and more cities across California and the nation consider various types of bans on e-cigarette and vaping products, a few public health officials warn that such measures could carry unintended consequences. Those include pushing people to traditional cigarettes or unregulated underground market products. “Inadvertently, you’re actually pushing people toward the very same products that are causing the outbreak. The bans seem really poorly configured to address the problem at hand," says Leo Beletsky, a public health professor at Northeastern University. Read the full story from Soumya Karlamangla with the Los Angeles Times.
Meanwhile, the CDC reports that the number of lung illnesses tied to vaping has surpassed 1,000. Read more related stories below.
Most Counties Fail To Apply For Medi-Cal Funds That Could Improve Mental Health Care: An analysis by the California Health Report finds most counties are potentially leaving millions of dollars on the table by not seeking reimbursement for Mental Health Medi-Cal Administrative Activities. The money is not easy to obtain, as described by an Alameda county official. But when they did, “We were able to use those tools to expand access to [mental health] care to 10,000 children,” said Alex Briscoe, who is with Alameda County’s Health Care Services Agency. Read the full story from Claudia Boyd-Barrett with the California Health Report.
Sutter Health Lawsuit Watched Closely: Next week kicks off the trial in the case brought by California against nonprofit Sutter Health over its billing practices. Ahead of that, The New York Times reports on the impact that the many recent consolidations of hospital groups and medical practices have had on the health care industry. The Sutter case underscores the trend, as well as potential government responses, and "is getting a tremendous amount of attention in hospital boardrooms across the United States,” says David Balto, a former federal regulator who is now an antitrust lawyer in Washington. Read the full story from Reed Abelson with The New York Times.
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
Politico Pro:
340B Drug Discount Model 'Rather Perverse,' Newsom says
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday the drug revenue model that some safety-net hospitals and other health organizations rely upon is "rather perverse," making clear his dissatisfaction with the federal 340B program that his Medi-Cal drug overhaul would undercut in California. Newsom has ordered a systemwide shift to fee-for-service Medi-Cal drug purchasing by 2021, a move that would save the state money but effectively gut the federal 340B drug discounting program that generates $150 million for community health centers alone, they said last week. (Hart, 10/3)
KQED:
Top State Lawmakers Question Chevron Oil Spill Fine
The heads of the state legislative committees that oversee much of California's oil and gas industry are questioning whether a fine issued by state regulators against Chevron this week, for a massive uncontrolled release of crude petroleum in a Kern County oil field, will be effective.California's Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources on Wednesday announced that it slapped the San Ramon-based oil giant with a $2.7 million fine for illegally allowing releases of large amounts of oil at one of the company's well sites in the Cymric Oil Field between May and July. (Goldberg, 10/3)
The New York Times:
A ‘Chilling Message’: Trump Critics See A Deeper Agenda In California Feud
President Trump’s political feud with California has spread collateral damage across more than a dozen other states, which have seen their regulatory authority curtailed and their autonomy threatened by a Trump administration intent on weakening the environmental statutes of the country’s most populous state. When the administration last month revoked California’s authority to set state-level standards on climate-warming tailpipe emissions, it simultaneously stripped that power from 13 other states that follow California’s standards and ensured that no other state could set fuel-efficiency standards in the future. The Environmental Protection Agency last week followed up with letters to California that threatened to wield rarely used provisions of environmental law to withhold federal funding from the state if it did not take specific steps to clean its air and water. (Davenport, 10/3)
San Jose Mercury News:
Clinics Closed As Health Workers Join Santa Clara County Strike
Day two of a rolling strike by Santa Clara County union employees forced the closure of two health clinics and pharmacies and rescheduling of appointments in some health departments. As clinicians and administrative support staff walked off the job Thursday at county health facilities, the impact on public services appeared more pronounced than during the first day of the employee strike. (Vo, 10/3)
East Bay Times:
Two Clinics Closed, Appointments Rescheduled On Second Day Of Santa Clara County Strike
Day two of a rolling strike by Santa Clara County union employees forced the closure of two health clinics and pharmacies and rescheduling of appointments in some health departments. As clinicians and administrative support staff walked off the job Thursday at county health facilities, the impact on public services appeared more pronounced than during the first day of the employee strike. Even County CEO Jeff Smith acknowledged as much. “The [disruptions] are larger than yesterday, but we’re still recommending clients come for services, except those with primary care needs,” he said. “This level [of disruption] we can tolerate…but it does damage to the public and the county.” (Vo, 10/3)
Ventura County Star:
VA Inks Deal For Clinic To Open At Former Ventura County Star Site
A new 41,000-square-foot VA clinic is scheduled to open in 2021 in a Ventura site that for decades housed the Ventura County Star. Congresswoman Julia Brownley, D-Westlake Village, announced Thursday the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has agreed to lease the site at 5250 Ralston St. The property will be developed into an outpatient clinic far larger than the current facility for veterans in Oxnard it will replace. The VA will pay an annual lease of $3.1 million along with a lump sum payment of $9.7 million to develop the new space, according to Brownley's office. The current owner of the property said the existing buildings will be torn down and rebuilt. (Kisken, 10/3)
Sacramento Bee:
Kaiser: Sacramento Data Breach Affects About 1,000 Patients
Kaiser Permanente said Thursday that a data breach had left personal information on 990 Sacramento-area patients exposed to an unknown and unauthorized individual for about 13 hours. ...In a letter to Kaiser members, issued Sept. 27, Anderson explained that the unauthorized individual had access to a Sacramento-area provider’s email account, and data in that email account included a combination or some of the following: date or dates of service, age, date of birth, gender, provider name, provider comments, payer name, diagnosis, medical history, benefit information, insurance coverage status, treatment procedure and service provided. (Anderson,10/3)
California Healthline:
Why Hospitals Are Getting Into The Housing Business
Legally and morally, hospitals cannot discharge patients if they have no safe place to go. So patients who are homeless, frail or live alone, or have unstable housing, can occupy hospital beds for weeks or months — long after their acute medical problem is resolved. For hospitals, it means losing money because a patient lingering in a bed without medical problems doesn’t generate much, if any, income. Meanwhile, acutely ill patients may wait days in the ER to be moved to a floor because a hospital’s beds are full. ... To address the problem, hospitals from Baltimore to St. Louis to Sacramento, Calif., are exploring ways to help patients find a home. With recent federal policy changes that encourage hospitals to allocate charity dollars for housing, many hospitals realize it’s cheaper to provide a month of housing than to keep patients for a single night. (Hawryluk, 10/4)
CBS Sacramento:
California Sees Declining Birth Rates In Youth Between Ages 15-19
The California Department of Public Health (CDHP) announced Thursday that the adolescent birth rate for females between the ages of 15 and 19 has reached record low numbers. The CDHP said a new state report shows a rate of 13.9 births per 1,000 females between the aforementioned ages. The numbers reflect an 11.5 percent decline between 2016 and 2017, officials say. (10/3)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Ex-Microsoft Exec's Fund Targets Health And Gig Economy Startups In San Diego
A new startup investment fund, Greatscale Ventures, has opened its doors in San Diego with an aim of backing early stage companies that tap technology to help people with wellness, learning, personal finance and navigating the gig economy. Founded by technology executives and angel investors Tyson McDowell and Aaron Contorer, Greatscale Ventures plans to invest up to $5 million each in software-centric startups. It has already funded three San Diego entrepreneurs, which Contorer declined to name while Greatscale Ventures continues to raise capital. (Freeman, 10/4)
Ramona Sentinel:
Health Council Reports On Crisis Care, School Starts, Crime Rate
The $320 from Palomar Health will help pay the costs of implementing “The Bandana Project.” The objective of the project is to start first at Ramona High School and possibly later at Olive Peirce Middle School and Montecito High School. Similar to the yellow ribbon emblem for suicide awareness, The Bandana Project incorporates bandanas that will be used to identify students and school staff who are trained in mental health and suicide prevention. The idea is that someone in crisis who may be experiencing a panic attack or acute depression on campus will be able to spot a lime green bandana on a backpack or garment and recognize the wearer as someone who is safe to talk to about their situation. (Gallant, 10/3)
Sacramento Bee:
California College Students Cope With Housing, Rent, Food Crisis
Faced with tuition escalation and fast-rising rents – particularly in Sacramento – higher-education students find themselves struggling to get a decent night’s sleep, find permanent shelter and put food in their stomach so they can focus enough in class to make it to graduation. Nearly 40 percent of Sacramento-area college students struggle to find affordable housing. (Bizjak and Morrar, 10/3)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Jail Is Bakersfield’s Solution To Fighting Homelessness
In the face of an ever-growing homelessness crisis, cities across California have been searching for solutions, from adding shelters and affordable housing to improving mental health and substance abuse services. But in Bakersfield, officials are considering a more radical approach: They want to put homeless people in jail for misdemeanor drug offenses and potentially for trespassing. (Wick, 10/3)
Los Angeles Times:
Immigrant Detainee Suffers Brain Hemorrhage And Dies In ICE Custody In San Diego
A 37-year-old man from Cameroon died Tuesday in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, after undergoing treatment for a brain hemorrhage since Sept. 26 at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center. Nebane Abienwi was being detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, according to an ICE news release. He was rushed to the emergency room a week ago after experiencing a hypertensive event in the middle of the night, according to the news release. (Fry, 10/3)
The Associated Press:
Trump Cites His Support For Medicare, Slams Medicare For All
President Donald Trump on Thursday accused Democrats of an all-out attempt to “totally obliterate Medicare” and portrayed himself as the program’s defender as he signed a directive to expand the program’s private insurance options. Trump skipped past his own proposals for Medicare budget cuts, and he ignored the fact that no Democrat is proposing to take coverage or benefits away from seniors. (Freking and Alonso-Zaldivar, 10/3)
KHN and Politifact:
Trump Speech Offers Dizzying Preview Of His Health Care Campaign Strategy
President Donald Trump offered a preview of what his 2020 health agenda might look like in a speech Thursday — blasting Democratic proposals for reform and saying he would tackle issues such as prescription drug prices and affordability. He outlined the pillars of his health care vision, which included protecting vulnerable patients; delivering affordable care and prescription drugs; providing choices and control; and improving care for veterans. (Luthra, 10/3)
ProPublica:
They’re Retired. They’re Insured. The Government Pays For It. And Trump Loves It.
Now, as President Donald Trump campaigns for reelection while fighting an impeachment effort in Washington, it is the place he’ll visit on Thursday to trumpet this privately run alternative as a model of what Medicare should look like. Under Medicare Advantage, the federal government still foots the bill, but it is a starkly different model than the universal, Medicare-for-all plans some Democratic presidential candidates are pushing. (Johnson, 10/3)
The New York Times:
Medicare Shopping Season Is Almost Here
If you’re enrolled in Medicare but worry about the cost of health care, your chance to do something about it is right around the corner. Most people enroll in Medicare when they become eligible at age 65. But every fall, they have the opportunity to change their coverage during an enrollment season that runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. This is the time of year when you can switch between original fee-for-service Medicare and Medicare Advantage, the all-in-one managed care alternative to the traditional program. You also can re-evaluate your prescription drug coverage — whether that is a stand-alone Part D plan, or wrapped into an Advantage plan. (Miller, 10/4)
Modern Healthcare:
Medicare Patients' Access To Primary-Care Docs Not Hurt By Drop
Patients' access to care hasn't been hurt by a decline in the number of primary-care physicians practicing, but a continued drop-off in the rate of new physicians could create problems down the line, according to new research presented Thursday. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission found that about 1 in 5 physicians that it previously considered primary-care physicians are actually hospitalists—physicians whose focus is providing medical care to hospitalized patients. (Brady, 10/3)
Politico:
Trump Baselessly Accuses Drug Industry Of Fueling Impeachment Push
President Donald Trump charged Thursday without evidence that the pharmaceutical industry was behind House Democrats' impeachment proceedings, suggesting it was payback for his administration's effort to lower drug costs. "Lowering the cost of prescription drugs, taking on the pharmaceutical companies, you think that’s easy, it’s not easy. It’s not easy. ... I wouldn’t be surprised if the hoax didn’t come a little bit from some of the people that we’re taking on." Trump said. (Karlin-Smith and Owermohle, 10/3)
Stat:
White House Insists Drug Prices Are Falling, But Critics Say Report Is Flawed
In a bid to seize the narrative on prescription drug pricing, the White House issued a report that criticized a steady stream of news stories for saying prices are rising and, instead, argued that an economic index shows prices have actually fallen recently. However, the effort was quickly denounced because the index does not account for all medicines, including some newer and pricier drugs. (Silverman, 10/3)
Reuters:
CVS Drug Coverage Plan Based On Outside Pricing Review Is Off To A Slow Start
A CVS Health Corp health plan that uses an outside drug pricing group to help it decide whether to cover certain new medicines has gained little traction with customers, according to its top medical executive, and has drawn fierce criticism from patient advocacy groups. The company has held back on marketing the pharmacy benefit plan while it talks to these groups, CVS said. (Humer, 10/3)
The Associated Press:
Sanders Still Hospitalized But Expected To Be At Next Debate
Bernie Sanders remained hospitalized in Nevada on Thursday because of a blocked artery in his heart but will participate in the next Democratic presidential debate, according to his campaign. ... Sanders’ wife, Jane O’Meara Sanders, said in a statement released by the campaign Thursday that her husband was expected to be discharged and fly back to Vermont before the end of the weekend. “Bernie is up and about. Yesterday, he spent much of the day talking with staff about policies, cracking jokes with the nurses and doctors, and speaking with his family on the phone. His doctors are pleased with his progress, and there has been no need for any additional procedures,” she said. (Price, 10/3)
Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Harris Rips Trump, Touts Health Care Plan In Reno Speech
California Sen. Kamala Harris tore into President Donald Trump over calling for China to investigate a political rival and touted her plan for a Medicare-for-all option. (Lochhead, 10/3)
CNN:
Supreme Court Says It Will Consider Louisiana Abortion Access Law
This is the first abortion case that will be argued since Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch joined the bench, solidifying a conservative majority. While the case does not directly challenge Roe v Wade, supporters of abortion rights are fearful that this is the first of what could be a growing number of opportunities for the new conservative majority to chip away at abortion rights. (de Vogue, 10/4)
The New York Times:
Why Lifesaving Drugs May Be Missing On Your Next Flight
Epinephrine, or adrenaline, is one of a handful of lifesaving drugs that are supposed to be “no-go” items for commercial passenger planes. According to federal regulations, flights are not supposed to take off without these medicines. Citing chronic drug shortages, however, the Federal Aviation Administration has granted airlines exemptions that permit passenger planes to fly without a complete medical kit if the airlines say they cannot replenish the drugs. The exemptions apply to international as well as domestic flights. (Caryn Rabin, 10/3)
California Healthline:
‘What The Health?’ Podcast: Trump Turns To Medicare
President Donald Trump, dogged by an impeachment inquiry, tries to change the subject by unveiling an executive order aimed at expanding the role of private Medicare health plans. The Trump administration also launched an effort this week to expand “wellness” programs aimed at getting people with insurance to practice better health habits – even though research has shown the efforts don’t generally improve health or save money. This week, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
California Healthline:
Where Contraception’s A Lifestyle Drug Not A Medical Need — So Women Pay The Tab
Unlike in the U.S., health insurance in Germany doesn’t cover birth control. Advocates here say that causes health problems — but change is unlikely. (Luthra, 10/4)
The Associated Press:
Consumer Watchdog Agency Probes Juul And 5 More Vaping Firms
Federal law prohibits traditional tobacco companies from numerous sales tactics, including giving away cigarettes, sponsoring sports events and advertising on television, radio, public transportation and billboards. But those laws don’t apply to e-cigarettes, which first launched in the U.S. in 2007. (Perrone, 10/3)
The Hill:
Conservative Groups Urge Trump To Back Off Ban On Flavored Vaping Products
A coalition of conservative groups led by Americans for Tax Reform is urging the Trump administration to abandon its plan to ban flavored e-cigarette sales. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to issued guidance on the prohibition soon, arguing the flavors are appealing to children and leading to rising youth vaping rates. (Hellmann, 10/3)
Sacramento Bee:
Vape Test Reveals Meth, THC In Student Devices: Utah School
A Utah public school system said Thursday that vaping devices used by students have tested positive for methamphetamine in “more than one incident.” “At this time, it is unclear as to how the methamphetamine was acquired or who was responsible for the vaping devices containing the drugs,” Grand County School District officials in Moab, Utah, said in a news release. (Gilmour, 10/3)
The Associated Press:
Illegal Vape Name Draws Scrutiny As Illness Spreads
It’s a widely known vape cartridge in the marijuana economy, but it’s not a licensed brand. And it’s got the kind of market buzz no legitimate company would want. The vape cartridges that go by the catchy, one-syllable name “Dank” -- a slang word for highly potent cannabis -- are figuring prominently in the federal investigation to determine what has caused a rash of mysterious and sometimes fatal lung illnesses apparently linked to vaping. Most of the cases have involved products that contain the marijuana compound THC, often obtained from illegal sources. (Blood, 10/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Thousands Of Schools Fall Below Recommended Measles Vaccination Rate
Thousands of individual schools in the U.S. don’t have high enough immunization levels to meet the threshold considered adequate to protect a population from measles, a Wall Street Journal examination found. While the majority of schools have relatively high measles-mumps-rubella vaccination rates of 90% or above, many schools have rates in the 70% to 80% range, and some small, private schools have rates hovering around 50%. While the U.S. overall had a fairly high and stable MMR immunization rate of 94.3% of kindergartners during the 2017-2018 school year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these pockets of low vaccination leave local communities vulnerable to outbreaks. (Abbott, Umlauf and Moriarty, 10/3)
The Wall Street Journal:
What’s The Measles Vaccination Rate At Your Child’s School?
Use the drop-down feature to choose your state to look up local kindergarten immunization rates, how the state collects its data, and the number of measles cases so far this year. If your state only has county-level data available, you can see the county-level rates here. The separate county-level article also contains more information about our methodology and results. (Moriarty, Umlauf and Abbott, 10/3)
The Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Expects To Hold On To Measles Elimination Status
Federal health authorities expect the U.S. will retain its coveted status as a nation that has eliminated domestic transmission of measles, dodging a bullet after outbreaks in New York state threatened the designation. It came down to the wire for U.S. officials to be able to determine, at the last minute, that the elimination status had likely not been lost. It would have been if outbreaks in New York state were continuing. (McKay and West, 10/3)
Sacramento Bee:
UC Davis Researchers Develop Breath Test For Opioids
Engineers and physicians at the University of California, Davis, have developed a breath test for opioids that they foresee first responders using one day with overdose victims and physicians using in offices to counsel patients on prescription drug use, one of the inventors said Thursday. Cristina Davis, chair of UC Davis’ Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, said that she has been working with Drs. Michael Schivo and Nicholas Kenyon for about 15 years to find the best method to analyze human breaths, and they now have achieved it. The UCD research team published a paper on their findings Thursday in the Journal of Breath Research. (Anderson, 10/4)
The Associated Press:
States Say OxyContin Maker Purdue Should Not Pay Bonuses
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma should be prohibited from giving $38 million in employee payouts as it goes through bankruptcy, attorneys general from 24 states said in a court filing Thursday. Purdue has said it needs to make bonus payments to keep employees and maintain operations at a time of high turnover, which also is requiring the company to provide severance packages for employees heading to the exits. (10/3)
The Associated Press:
Ohio Counties Tell Court: Don’t Let State Stop Opioid Trial
Two Ohio counties have asked a court to deny their state attorney general’s request to delay a major trial over the toll of opioids. In their filing Wednesday with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Cuyahoga and Summit counties argued the state doesn’t have a say in the matter because it’s not part of the federal case set for trial Oct. 21 in Cleveland. (Mulvihill, 10/3)
Los Angeles Times:
She's 82. The Cost Of Her Long-Term Care Insurance Just Went Up 80%
Joyce Viets’ dad was in the life insurance business, so she knew from an early age that you have to plan ahead. “I heard about actuarials my entire life,” the Temecula resident told me. Viets, 82, purchased long-term care insurance nearly two decades ago, anticipating there would come a time when she’d be glad to cover the costs of a nursing home, which can run nearly $300 a day in California for a private room. So it was with more than a little dismay — and a strong sense of betrayal — that she received a recent letter from her long-term care insurance provider, Genworth Financial, informing her that her monthly premium is rising by 80%, to $530.71 from $294.84. (David Lazarus, 10/1)
Los Angeles Times:
If Democrats Want Universal Coverage, They Need To Abandon The 'Medicare For All' Fantasy
Sen. Bernie Sanders’ once-quixotic campaign to abolish private health insurance in the U.S. — most of it employer-sponsored — in the name of “Medicare for all” has now become the leading progressive litmus test for anyone seeking the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination. Twelve of the remaining candidates subscribe to it, in various versions. Unfortunately, the progressives’ eagerness to upend the entire $3.5-trillion U.S. healthcare system while canceling the current health insurance of 217 million Americans is based on some serious misconceptions. (Peter D. Salins, 10/4)
Los Angeles Times:
Here's One Thing We Don't Need To Fight Homelessness: A State Of Emergency Declaration
Homelessness has been a humanitarian crisis in the state of California for some time now, as the number of homeless people keeps growing along with their visibility on sidewalks, in riverbeds, in parks. Casting about for solutions, some officials in L.A. County — including Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who co-chairs a state task force on homelessness, and L.A. City Councilman Joe Buscaino — are calling on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency on homelessness. But that’s not a solution. It’s a press release. (10/4)
CalMatters:
Doctor’s Orders: Provide Affordable Housing, And People’s Health Will Improve
Americans are less healthy than their peers in other developed countries. On most measures—chronic illness, maternal mortality, longevity—Americans lag their international counterparts despite leading the world in health care spending per capita by a wide margin.For years, researchers have sought to explain this discrepancy by pointing not only to the absence of universal insurance coverage, which consistently leads to a healthier population, but also to social determinants such as education, transportation, and eating habits. (Leslie Teicholz and Leif Wellington Haase, 10/1)
The Wall Street Journal:
The Streets Of San Francisco
This city has been conducting a three-decade experiment in what happens when society stops enforcing bourgeois norms of behavior. It has done so in the name of compassion for the homeless. The result: Street squalor and misery have increased, while government expenditures have ballooned. Yet the principles guiding city policy remain inviolate: Homelessness is a housing problem, it is involuntary, and it persists because of inadequate public spending. These propositions are readily disproved by talking to people living on the streets. (Heather Mac Donald, 10/3)
San Francisco Chronicle:
SF's Homelessness Crisis Crash-Lands On One Tiny Street
The much-discussed boulders of Clinton Park symbolize the anger and frustration simmering over our incredibly wealthy city’s total inability to provide basic services to its swelling homeless population or to enforce laws when street behavior turns dark and violent. The boulders also symbolize the righteousness displayed by too many San Franciscans who are certain they’re morally superior when it comes to the city’s most pressing issue, and the loss of any sort of nuance or understanding in the debate. (Heather Knight, 10/1)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Juul Waves The White Flag On SF Prop. C
Juul spent more than $10 million on a campaign to regain its ability to sell vaping products in San Francisco. On Monday, it withdrew from the fight for its Proposition C. It was a smart move, one that saved the company millions of additional dollars it had been prepared to spend on an exercise in futility. Its campaign was as disastrous as it was disingenuous, and it was against the backdrop of an onslaught of national news stories about the concerns over the health hazards of vaping. (10/1)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Newsom Takes A Back Seat On Environmental Legislation
Gov. Gavin Newsom insisted he takes “a back seat to no one” on environmental advocacy just before he vetoed the most significant environmental-protection bill of the legislative session. His rejection of Senate Bill 1 puts Newsom squarely at odds with just about every major conservation group in the state in fortifying defenses for endangered species against the Trump administration’s efforts to weaken federal law. (9/30)
San Jose Mercury News:
Equip Students, Schools With Mental Health First Aid
More than 6 million California students returned to school over the past few weeks; many excited to reunite with friends, dive into new classes or engage in sports, clubs, and other activities. Nevertheless, a significant number of our students struggle to make it through each day and need our support and help. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs, one in three high schoolers reported feeling sad or hopeless almost every day for two or more weeks in a row. While their faces may not always show their depression, nonetheless they struggle under the weight of it on a daily basis. (Mary Ann Dewan, 10/1)
The Bakersfield Californian:
3 California Immigrants And Their Health Startup
Immigrants, already essential to California health care, will become even more important in the future. Today, one in six medical professionals and nearly one-third of physicians are foreign-born, and many are bringing not just their labor but new ideas and practices. Immigrants are responsible for one-fifth of all biomedical research and clinical trials. We also are dependent on immigrant entrepreneurs (since more than 40 percent of California companies are started by immigrants) to transform research into treatments, devices or drugs. In other words, we need people like Harsh Vathsangam, Ade Adesanya and Shuo Qiao to succeed. (Joe Mathews, 9/29)
Los Angeles Times:
No, The Abortion Debate Isn't Anything Like The Vaccine Debate
It happened a few weeks ago, when many readers responded angrily to a brief, flippant letter asking why it’s acceptable for dogs but not humans to relieve themselves in public. This week it’s happening again, only the topic is far weightier: In response to a three-sentence letter asking what the difference is between the freedom to choose on abortion and the freedom to choose on childhood vaccination, several readers wrote forceful responses. (Paul Thornton, 9/28)
Los Angeles Times:
Mental Illness Was My Family's Secret — And America's Great Shame
In 2011, I began a professional and personal journey to understand my profession’s abandonment of our sickest patients. I had been trained as a psychiatrist at an Ivy League medical center on the East Coast. Like most of my colleagues in my generation, I did not end up treating those with schizophrenia and severe bipolar disorder. Also, like many people in my field, I had a personal connection to the disease that I kept to myself. When I was 14, Merle, my beautiful and kind 20-year-old sister, developed schizophrenia. My older sister, Gail, eventually took Merle to the hospital in Philadelphia, our hometown. After two weeks of failed treatment, my parents promptly took her out. (Kenneth Paul Rosenberg, 9/29)