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California Healthline Original Stories
Groupons For Medical Treatment? Welcome To Today’s U.S. Health Care
Groupon and other deal sites are the latest marketing tactic in medicine, offering bargain prices but potentially unnecessary, duplicative services. (Lauren Weber, )
Good morning! Charges were announced Thursday against 30 defendants who were accused of a major Medicare fraud scheme in the Bay Area involving millions in illegal kickbacks to health care professionals. Read more about that below, but first here are some of your other top health care stories of the day.
California Sees Surge Of Applications After Expanding Food Stamp Program To Include More Disabled And Elderly Residents: Beginning June 1, elderly and disabled residents who receive federal Supplemental Security Income became eligible to enroll in the CalFresh program without getting any of their Social Security benefits decreased. The expansion is monumental, community groups say, as SSI recipients previously were not able to participate in CalFresh, and instead got only a flat $10 added to their monthly Social Security benefit if they applied for additional benefits for food. Advocates say the flat payment is not enough now as rents and living costs increase rapidly, leaving the beneficiaries with less money each month to spend on food. The state estimates that by the end of December, six months into the launch of the expansion, it should see about 400,000 SSI recipients enroll in CalFresh. Read more from Elaine Chen of the Sacramento Bee.
In related news from Jackie Botts and Crescencio Rodriguez-Delgado of CalMatters: Getting food stamps to poor Californians is surprisingly difficult
Newsom’s 11th-Hour Request For Changes To Controversial Vaccination Bill Create Mixed Messages On Both Sides Of Debate: Vaccine critics are now more hopeful that Gov. Gavin Newsom will reject any effort to crack down on exemptions, while supporters of the bill are concerned that the governor is sending mixed messages about the state’s commitment to ensuring the vast majority of children are vaccinated before attending public schools. So far, the governor has yet to make public key details about the revisions he is seeking. His office instead offered a broad overview of a proposed overhaul of Senate Bill 276 by state Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento) that surpasses technical touch-ups. The potential changes would delay when the California Department of Public Health could review and potentially reject medical exemptions written by doctors who have granted five or more in a year. Read more from Melody Gutierrez and Taryn Luna of the Los Angeles 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
San Francisco Chronicle:
30 Charged In $115 Million Bay Area Medicare Fraud Scheme
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Francisco on Thursday announced charges against 30 defendants accused of a major Bay Area Medicare fraud scheme involving millions of dollars in illegal kickbacks to health care professionals from the region’s largest home health care provider. Ridhima “Amanda” Singh, CEO of Hayward-based Amity Home Health Care and Advent Care hospice, allegedly bribed doctors, nurses and other health care professionals to receive patient referrals through Medicare, growing her company into the largest home health care provider in the Bay Area. (Sernoffsky, 9/5)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Despite Huge Need, Dozens Of Beds For SF’s Mentally Ill And Drug Addicted Sit Empty
The Department of Public Health came under fire last month after news surfaced that about 40 long-term mental health treatment beds at S.F. General Hospital’s campus had been unused since 2018 because of staffing shortages. But, according to data shared with The Chronicle, empty beds have been pervasive around the city beyond those at the public hospital. (Thadani, 9/6)
Los Angeles Times:
LGBTQ-Focused Town Hall With 2020 Democrats To Be Held In L.A.
An LGBTQ-focused town hall featuring 2020 Democratic presidential candidates will be held in downtown Los Angeles next month, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation announced Thursday. The “Power of Our Pride” event will take place Oct. 10, the day before National Coming Out Day, at the Novo and will be aired on CNN. (Díaz, 9/5)
Sacramento Bee:
Homeless Move Into New Downtown Sacramento CA Shelter
Ten homeless men and women moved into the Capitol Park Hotel in downtown Sacramento this week. By the end of the month, about 100 more will join them, officials say. Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency and Volunteers of America staff have moved the ten people into newly-cleaned rooms on the sixth floor of the historic hotel at the corner of Ninth and L streets. The rooms include two new twin beds each, dressers, and nightstands. Several toilets and faucets have been replaced and rooms were sprayed for bedbugs. (Clift, 9/6)
Modesto Bee:
CA Homes More Expensive Because Of Trump China Tariffs
President Donald Trump’s tariffs have created the “perfect storm” at the wrong moment for the housing industry, California builders say.The California Building Industry Association estimates tariffs have driven up the cost of an average-size new home by $20,000 to $30,000. That comes from tariffs on appliances, certain counter tops and other miscellaneous items that “at the end of the day, really add up,” according to Dennis Fitzpatrick, owner of Fitzpatrick Homes in Modesto. (Irby, 9/5)
Los Angeles Times:
Housing Crisis: How Will California's Plan To Cap Rent Increases Work?
California lawmakers are on the verge of approving one of the only state laws in the nation to limit rent increases after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a deal with legislative leaders last week on a bill to cap annual rent hikes. The measure, Assembly Bill 1482, would limit yearly rent increases statewide to 5% plus inflation for the next decade. (Dillon, 9/5)
Sacramento Bee:
Sacramento Agrees To Pay $2.4 Million To Stephon Clark’s Sons, Court Filings Say
The city of Sacramento has agreed to pay out $2.4 million to the children of Stephon Clark to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by his family after police shot the unarmed black man in March 2018, according to newly filed court documents. The settlement, which comes after the family initially sought $20 million from a lawsuit filed in federal court in Sacramento, is spelled out in court documents that describe the outcome of negotiations the two sides had in June in a closed session in federal court. (Stanton and Sullivan, 9/5)
Capital Public Radio:
Sacramento Will Pay Stephon Clark’s Children $2.4 Million In Wrongful Death Lawsuit Settlement
The city of Sacramento will pay $2.4 million to the two children of Stephon Clark as part of a settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed earlier this year, according to federal court documents filed on Wednesday. A declaration by one of the Clark family’s attorneys indicates that a confidential settlement was agreed to in May and would give Clark’s two young children $893,000 each after attorney’s fees. (Miller, 9/5)
Ventura County Star:
Parking Issue Holding Up Oxnard Approval Of New Clinicas Office
Health care provider Clinicas del Camino Real wants to build a new office on an empty lot in south Oxnard but a disagreement in the needed parking spaces has become a real sticking point. On Tuesday, the City Council directed staff to continue working with Clinicas on a new parking study to resolve a discrepancy between the proposed spaces and the city's code. It was a middle ground reached in the hopes that Clinicas can eventually build a new medical facility on Statham and Oxnard boulevards. (Leung, 9/5)
CNN:
California Meat-Processing Company Recalls Nearly 25,000 Pounds Of Raw Beef Deemed Unsafe To Eat
A California beef processing and packaging company has announced a recall of approximately 25,000 pounds of beef after declaring it's just not safe to eat, the USDA announced. American Beef Packers, Inc., of Chino, California, deemed the beef "unfit for human consumption," according to the the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service. The company told the regulator a carcass that was awaiting test results had been mistakenly put back into the production line, where it was processed into a variety of products. (Johnson, 9/5)
Los Angeles Times:
Why Does So Much News Seem Negative? Blame Human Attention
Ever wonder why there’s so much bad news out there? Maybe it’s because people find bad news more interesting than good news. A new study involving more than 1,000 people across 17 countries spanning every continent but Antarctica concludes that, on average, people pay more attention to negative news than to positive news. The findings, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, hint that this human bias toward negative news might be a large part of what drives negative news coverage. (Khan, 9/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
PG&E’s Long Record Of Run-Ins With Regulators: A ‘Cat And Mouse Game’
The company had several warnings. In-house audits at PG&E Corp. as early as 2010 said workers were falsifying records of ground-marking at excavation sites intended to protect buried electricity cables and gas pipelines. The workers made it appear they were keeping up with their workload when they were not. Midlevel managers told higher-ups by 2014 that an ambitious program director was pressuring people to burnish on-time results, according to sworn testimony from utility employees to a California regulator. (Smith, 9/5)
Sacramento Bee:
Cal Fire Announces Red Flag Warning In Northern California
Cal Fire announced a red flag warning Wednesday afternoon, meaning hazardous weather conditions in Northern California could lead to wildfires through Thursday morning. The state agency said the potential of dry lightning in Butte, Mendocino, Plumas and Shasta Counties, among others, poses a serious risk and high fire danger. (Moleski, 9/4)
Sacramento Bee:
Time For Gov. Newsom To Pick A Side On Vaccination Debate
It’s time for Gov. Gavin Newsom to pick a side in the debate over vaccines. Will he choose science and public health? Or will he side with conspiracy theories and the spread of dangerous yet preventable diseases? We think the choice is clear, but Newsom seems uncertain. After signaling his intention to sign Senate Bill 276 earlier this summer, the governor seems to be waffling at the last minute. SB 276, authored by State Senator Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, aims to prevent “unscrupulous” doctors from providing baseless medical exemptions to parents who don’t want to vaccinate their children. (9/4)
San Jose Mercury News:
California Must Close Loophole In Vaccine Bill
One way or another, when all is said and done, Gov. Gavin Newsom must sign legislation closing the loophole in California’s vaccination law. Californians needs to restrict unwarranted medical exemptions in order to protect residents from contagious diseases. (9/5)
Los Angeles Times:
What We Don't Know About Vaping Can Hurt Us
Many people, including health professionals, have assumed that e-cigarettes are safer than traditional cigarettes because they use heated liquid vapor (hence the term “vaping”) rather than burning tobacco leaves in a process that has been proved to be carcinogenic. But “safer” doesn’t mean “risk-free.” A troubling increase of acute lung disease among e-cigarette users across 25 states is making the sobering point that there is still a lot we don’t know about the health implications of vaping. (9/4)
The Hill:
San Francisco Banning Flavored E-Cigarettes Is A Model For The Nation
In June of 2019, Mayor London Breed signed an ordinance effective January 2020 to suspend the sales and distribution in San Francisco of electronic cigarettes that have not undergone premarket review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This legislation by Supervisor Shamann Walton and unanimously approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors represents a logical and powerful public policy strategy to enforce the law. (John Maa and Jeffrey Wigand, 9/5)
Sacramento Bee:
AB 824 Will Enable Generic Drugs, Save Lives Like Mine
My name is Cynthia Stockton. I am a 71-year-old senior living in Sacramento. I have spent a lifetime wearing many hats: self-made college graduate, Army wife and a contributor to the workforce for more than 50 years, including 22 years spent working as a public servant for Sacramento County and 10 years managing senior communities. I had planned to write children’s books and create artwork for friends in my retirement. (Cynthia Stockton, 9/4)
San Jose Mercury News:
Cancer Survivors Aren't Getting The Help They Need
In 2006, the Institute of Medicine determined that most cancer survivors in this country were not getting the support they needed. The agency recommended that all U.S. hospitals give cancer patients who have completed their initial treatments a plan for survival. ...What has happened in the 13 years since the Institute’s recommendation? The vast majority of cancer survivors are still adrift. (Jen Lands, 9/4)
Fresno Bee:
Protecting New Black Mothers Shouldn’t Be Up For Debate
SB 464 aims to reduce adverse maternal health outcomes in California by mandating implicit bias training for perinatal health care workers and requiring rigorous tracking of pregnancy-related deaths and complications. The California Department of Finance opposes this bill, deeming it too costly and saying it should be considered as an addition to next year’s budget instead. As medical students, we strongly disagree. (Jazzmin Williams and Christina Schmidt, 8/30)
Sacramento Bee:
How Sacramento CA Can Fix Capitol Park Hotel Homeless Plan
Sacramento City Councilman Steve Hansen’s plan to open a 180-bed temporary homeless shelter in the Capitol Park Hotel was always going to be complicated. That’s because people at risk for homelessness already live in almost half the units. Yet last April the City Council voted to approve Hansen’s plan unanimously, appointing the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency to oversee the transition and relocation of 90 tenants then living in the 107-year-old building. (9/5)
Los Angeles Times:
Homeless People Are Dying On L.A.'s Streets In Record Numbers
On average, nearly three homeless people are dying daily in the county, nearly double the rate of deaths by homicide. Illness, addiction, accidents, suicide and the ravages of being unsheltered are among the primary causes of death. ...The average age of the first 666 homeless people who died in L.A. County as of Aug. 25 was 51, well below the county’s average life expectancy of roughly 80. (Steve Lopez, 9/4)
Sacramento Bee:
People Need To Stop Calling ADA Lawsuits Frivolous
Sacramento attorney Scott N. Johnson, who is known for filing lawsuits against businesses who aren’t compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), was indicted on tax fraud charges in May. Some business owners who operated facilities that weren’t compliant with the nearly 30-year-old law took the opportunity to accuse his ADA lawsuits of being “abuse” and say that the violations that he brought to court were only “minor” and “technical.” They said these lawsuits were a “racket” made up by a man “looking for target businesses,” which did not in the end “provide meaningful access, per se.” (Adam Byers, 9/1)
Politico:
Trump Prepares To Pitch Gun Proposals Few Really Want
President Donald Trump is finalizing his proposals designed to curb gun violence. But it's unclear whether anyone really wants what he’ll be offering. Most Democrats consider them too weak. Most Republicans, long resistant to triggering their base or the gun lobby, fear Trump won’t push them forcefully enough — leaving them hanging. (Kumar, 9/5)
Reuters:
Walgreens, CVS, Wegmans Ask Shoppers To Not Openly Carry Firearms
Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc, CVS Health Corp and supermarket chain Wegmans Food Markets Inc said on Thursday they would start asking customers to not openly carry firearms in their stores, joining Walmart Inc and Kroger Co, in a change of gun policy following several deadly mass shootings in the United States. The retailers are among a growing number of U.S. companies, such as Delta Air Lines and Bank of America, that are responding to calls for action to help curtail the rash of gun violence that has plagued the nation, risking backlash from powerful gun owners' groups as politicians consider options. (9/5)
The New York Times:
New York State Suspects Vitamin E May Have Played A Role In Vaping Illnesses
Health officials in New York State said on Thursday that they are investigating a possible cause of a recent surge in severe vaping-related illnesses: a compound called vitamin E acetate. The state Department of Health said in a news release that “very high levels” of the compound had been found in 13 samples from eight of 34 patients who have gotten ill in New York. The samples were analyzed as part of an investigation by the Wadsworth Center, a state laboratory. (Richtel, 9/5)
The Hill:
House Dem Accuses Juul Of Illegally Advertising As A Way To Quit Smoking
A House Democrat accused e-cigarette company Juul of making false and misleading advertising claims, and called on the Food and Drug Administration to investigate. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) said Juul has been marketing itself as a tool to help people quit smoking, claiming its pods are safer and healthier than traditional cigarettes. (Weixel, 9/5)
The Associated Press:
Lawsuit Challenges End Of Immigrant Medical Relief Program
Civil rights groups sued President Donald Trump's administration Thursday over its decision to stop considering requests from immigrants seeking to remain in the country for medical treatment and other hardships. The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and Lawyers for Civil Rights filed a lawsuit in Boston federal court challenging the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' decision to end its "deferred action" program as of Aug. 7. (9/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Insurers Pitch New Ways To Pay For Million-Dollar Therapies
Insurers are scrambling to blunt the expense of new drugs that can carry prices of more than $2 million per treatment, offering new setups aimed at making the cost of gene therapies more manageable for employers. Cigna Corp. announced Thursday a new program that allows employers and insurers to pay per-month fees for a service that will cover the cost of gene therapies and manage their use. CVS Health Corp. says it plans to offer a new layer of coverage specifically for gene therapies, which would handle employers’ costs above a certain threshold. (Walker and Wilde Mathews, 9/5)
Stat:
Against Doctors' Advice, Some Pregnant Women Refuse Ultrasounds
When Sarah Carter was pregnant with her first child, she started digging into the research on ultrasounds, scouring studies in mice and rats. She couldn’t find any evidence in humans they cause harm — professional groups agree that ultrasounds are helpful and safe to perform during pregnancy. But Carter didn’t see any studies that explicitly showed they were safe. Then, she heard something that compounded her concerns. After an ultrasound, a friend of a friend was told her fetus had a limb malformation. She spent her pregnancy riddled with anxiety, only to find out nothing was wrong after the baby’s birth. (Thielking, 9/6)