San Diego Union-Tribune: COVID Variant On Horizon Said To Be Big Evolutionary Leap 
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects a refreshed booster vaccine to be available next month, but it remains to be seen whether the new shot will be able to snipe a highly mutated coronavirus variant that is just starting to appear. (Sisson, 8/26)

CBS News: As Schools Resume, CDC Reports New Rise In COVID Emergency Room Visits From Adolescents
Reports of COVID-19 in emergency room visits from adolescents have nearly doubled over the past week, new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows, reaching levels not seen in a year. Measured as a share of all emergency room visits in children ages 12 to 15 years old, the figures published late Thursday by the CDC show weekly COVID-19 averages have accelerated to 2.43% through August 21. (Tin, 8/25)

The Hill: COVID Summer Surge: Should You Get A Booster Now Or Wait? 
COVID cases are still on the rise, but an updated vaccine could be more than a month away. That leaves some concerned people in a predicament: get boosted now, or wait? (Martichoux, 8/26)

CIDRAP: US Hospital Patient Survey Reveals Worse Perceived Care Amid COVID-19
The steepest declines were in staff responsiveness and cleanliness, possibly reflecting pandemic staffing shortages and the effects of COVID-19 prevention measures (eg, healthcare workers having to don personal protective equipment). Communication about medicines, care transition, overall hospital rating, communication with nurses, hospital recommendations, and communication with doctors were moderately affected. (Van Beusekom, 8/25)

The New York Times: Covid Closed The Nation’s Schools. Cleaner Air Can Keep Them Open
Scientists and educators are searching for ways to improve air quality in the nation’s often dilapidated school buildings. (Mandavilli, 8/27)

The New York Times: Some Older Adults Are Being Charged Over $300 for the New R.S.V. Vaccine
Lucien Dhooge, 63, likes to get his flu shot early every year before being around college students at the University of Washington Tacoma, where he teaches law and ethics. This year, he decided to get the new vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus at the same time, so he made an appointment earlier this month for both shots at his local Walgreens in Gig Harbor, Wash. But when he arrived at the pharmacy, he was told that the R.S.V. vaccine wasn’t covered by his insurance provider, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. The out-of-pocket cost? About $330. (Smith, 8/25)

CIDRAP: COVID Omicron Carries 4 Times The Risk Of Death As Flu, New Data Show 
The risk of death from SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infection was four times higher than that from influenza in late 2022 and early 2023 in France, a Harvard Medical School researcher reports today in Epidemiology & Infection. (Van Beusekom, 8/25)

The Bakersfield Californian: Bakersfield Memorial Breaks Ground On Pediatric Surgical Suites 
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital broke ground Friday on its Pediatric Surgical Suites Project at its Lauren Small Children’s Center. The more than $23 million expansion is to include two dedicated pediatric surgical suites, the addition of 5,000 square feet to the current children’s center; a pre- and post-anesthesia care unit; dedicated surgical support spaces; and its own reception and waiting areas, according to a hospital news release. (8/26)

Sacramento Bee: Some Hospitals Ban Vaginal Birth After Cesarean. This California Obstetrician Rebelled And Won
A cesarean is a significant surgery and can put the person giving birth in danger. A vaginal birth after cesarean, or VBAC, raises other concerns, but each C-section further increases the probability of bad birth outcomes. (Lange, 8/27)

Axios: Keeping Talent A Top Risk For Health Care, Execs Say
More than 8 in 10 health care leaders in a new survey say hiring and keeping talent is a top risk for their business — a reflection of the labor issues continuing to roil health care and other high-stakes industries. Health care executives (82%) were more likely than those from most industries (71%) to indicate concern about talent retention in this inflationary environment, according to a PwC August Pulse Survey. (Reed, 8/28)

CalMatters: Families Have High Hopes For Gavin Newsom’s CARE Courts. Providers Want To Lower Expectations
Under the low hum of cold fluorescent lights in a nondescript office park in Orange County, dozens of Californians gathered to find out if they could get help for their loved ones under the state’s new CARE Court system. Unless that loved one has a medical diagnosis specific to schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorders, the answer was probably not. (Kuang, 8/28)

The New York Times: Mental Health Spending Surged In Pandemic, Study Finds 
Use of mental health care increased substantially during the coronavirus pandemic, as teletherapy lowered barriers to regular visits, according to a large study of insurance claims published Friday in JAMA Health Forum. From March 2020 to August 2022, mental health visits increased by 39 percent, and spending increased by 54 percent, the study found. Its examination of 1,554,895 claims for clinician visits also identified a tenfold increase in the use of telehealth. (Barry, 8/25)

Bay Area News Group: She Secretly Funds Psychedelic Trips For Bay Area Firefighters. Is This The Future Of Mental Health Treatment?
For Angela Graham, it all started eight years ago. Nearly two decades of encountering disturbing scenes while on the job triggered extreme anxiety, nightmares and uncontrollable anger in the retired Santa Clara County firefighter. She tried talk therapy, medication and a treatment that involves moving one’s eyes in a specific pattern while processing traumatic memories called EMDR. (Greschler, 8/27)

The Washington Post: 5,000 Pilots Suspected Of Hiding Major Health Issues. Most Are Still Flying
Federal authorities have been investigating nearly 5,000 pilots suspected of falsifying their medical records to conceal that they were receiving benefits for mental health disorders and other serious conditions that could make them unfit to fly, documents and interviews show. The pilots under scrutiny are military veterans who told the Federal Aviation Administration that they are healthy enough to fly, yet failed to report — as required by law — that they were also collecting veterans benefits for disabilities that could bar them from the cockpit. (Rein and Whitlock, 8/27)

San Francisco Chronicle: How Social Media Rivalries Fuel Deadly Gun Violence Among US Teens
Juan Campos has been working to save at-risk teens from gun violence for 16 years. As a street outreach worker in Oakland, he has seen the pull and power of gangs. And he offers teens support when they’ve emerged from the juvenile justice system, advocates for them in school, and, if needed, helps them find housing, mental health services, and treatment for substance abuse. (Szabo, 8/27)

AP: Many Big US Cities Now Answer Mental Health Crisis Calls With Civilian Teams -- Not Police
The Associated Press has found that 14 of the 20 most populous U.S. cities are experimenting with removing police from certain, nonviolent 911 calls and sending behavioral health clinicians. (Peltz and Bedayn, 8/28)

The Bakersfield Californian: Health For The Homeless Along The River: 4 Years In, Street Medicine Reflects 
Street medicine crews see an average of 12 to 15 patients every Thursday, though Beare said that can jump to 30 on a busy day. Treatment includes almost everything you would see in a clinic — HIV, high blood pressure, diabetes — as well as wound care, particularly incisions and draining abscesses, and medication provided on the spot. Previously reliant on grants, Beare said the program is now billed through Medi-Cal, which makes it “self-sufficient.” (Donegan, 8/26)

Military Times: VA Helped House More Than 26,000 At-Risk Vets Since The Start Of 2023
Veterans Affairs staffers have found housing for more than 26,000 veterans at risk of homelessness through the first seven months of this year thanks to unprecedented outreach through community partners, department leaders announced Monday. Combined with similar efforts last year, more than 67,000 veterans have received permanent housing since the start of 2022, part of an administration-wide effort to cut down on homelessness across America. (Shane III, 8/28)

Los Angeles Times: Rising Temperatures Prompt Excessive-Heat Warnings This Week For Much Of Southern California
Temperatures are expected to rise by as much as 16 degrees above normal early this week, elevating the risk of wildfires and heat-related illnesses as another blistering August heat wave hits Southern California. (Gutierrez, 8/27)

AP: Workers Exposed To Extreme Heat Have No Consistent Protection In The US 
State and federal agencies are scrambling to find measures to combat what experts call one of the harshest and most neglected effects of climate change in the U.S.: rising heat deaths and injuries of people who work in triple-digit temperatures. (Stern, 8/28)

NPR: As Classes Resume In Sweltering Heat, Many Schools Lack Air Conditioning
Eric Hitchner teaches English on the fourth floor of a 111-year-old high school in Philadelphia. Come September, his classroom will be packed with a new crop of teenagers, but one thing will be the same: the lack of air conditioning. It can get so hot in his room, he says, "no one wants to even move, let alone do some strenuous thinking." (Carrillo, 8/28)

Berkeleyside: How Can Seniors And People With Disabilities Prepare For Wildfires?
The same basic wildfire prevention steps apply to everyone, such as having a go bag packed. But more vulnerable populations such as people with disabilities or older adults may need additional help. Issues with mobility, hearing, vision, frailty, and intellectual or developmental disabilities make emergency response and preparedness much more challenging. Taking steps in advance can help and may save lives. (Updated 8/23)

KQED: Belmont Students Honor Classmate’s Life After Fentanyl Overdose
In 2021, students at Carlmont High School in Belmont were shocked when 17-year-old senior Colin Walker died of a fentanyl overdose. In this episode of TBH, a podcast from KALW made by, for, and about teenagers, one of his classmates tells the story of how students honored Colin’s life after his death, and educated each other about the dangers of fentanyl. (Guevarra, Esquinca and Montecillo, 8/28)

Reuters: Rite Aid Prepares Bankruptcy That Would Halt Opioid Lawsuits
Rite Aid Corp is preparing to file for bankruptcy in coming weeks to address lawsuits the drugstore chain is facing over its alleged role in the sale of opioids, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the plan. (8/25)

Reuters: Drugmaker Mallinckrodt Files For Second Bankruptcy In The US
Drugmaker Mallinckrodt on Monday said the company and some of its units have filed for a second bankruptcy in 3 years in the U.S., with the newest restructuring plan set to reduce its debt by about $1.9 billion. The Ireland-based company initiated Chapter 11 proceedings after reaching a debt reduction deal that would cut $1 billion from the amount it owes to victims of the opioid crisis. (8/28)

AP: Schoolkids In 8 States Can Now Eat Free School Meals, Advocates Urge Congress For Nationwide Policy 
When classes resume for kids in eight states, they won’t have to worry about where their next meals will be coming from because they’ll be free. Minnesota, New Mexico, Colorado, Vermont, Michigan, and Massachusetts will make school breakfasts and lunches permanently free to all students starting this academic year, regardless of family income, following in the footsteps of California and Maine. Several other states are considering similar changes and congressional supporters want to extend free meals to all kids nationwide. (Karnowski and Bryan, 8/26)

The Bakersfield Californian: Almond Board Turns To Science, Sanders To Build Demand
If scientists say eating almonds help muscles recover more quickly after a workout, then that's what some weekend warriors are probably going to do — especially if a coach tells them to. (Cox, 8/27)

AP: Bronny James Has A Congenital Heart Defect That Caused His Cardiac Arrest, A Spokesperson Says
Bronny James went into cardiac arrest during a basketball workout at the University of Southern California last month because of a congenital heart defect. ... “It is an anatomically and functionally significant Congenital Heart Defect which can and will be treated,” the statement said. “We are very confident in Bronny’s full recovery and return to basketball in the very near future.” (Harris, 8/25)

Bloomberg: Billion-Dollar Drugs’ Makers Set To Face Their First US Price Negotiations
Some of the most widely used drugs in the US may be heading for lower prices under Medicare, a move that could save taxpayers billions of dollars and squeeze profits for big pharmaceutical companies. The US government is preparing to release a list this week of 10 drugs that the health program for the elderly will be able to negotiate prices for — one of the key elements of President Joe Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act. Analysts expect Johnson & Johnson’s Xarelto blood thinner and Eli Lilly & Co.’s Jardiance for diabetes to be among the medications chosen. (Tozzi and Cattan, 8/28)

USA Today: Medicare's Priciest Drugs May Get Cheaper As Feds Start Negotiations. Big Pharma Objects.
For the first time, the federal government is allowed to negotiate drug prices for older Americans because of the Inflation Reduction Act, the sweeping climate and health legislation passed by Congress last year. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must publish the list of 10 drugs by Friday, but administration officials have signaled the announcement could come earlier in the week. (Alltucker, 8/27)

Stat: AstraZeneca Challenges Medicare Drug Negotiation Program 
AstraZeneca is the sixth drugmaker to pile on a legal challenge to the Biden administration’s drug pricing reform law. The Medicare drug price negotiation program created in the Inflation Reduction Act is set to kick off in the next week, as officials will release the names of the first 10 medicines that will be selected for the program. Medicines are eligible for selection if they are one of the highest-spend drugs for Medicare, and they have no generic competition. (Cohrs, 8/25)

Politico: The Real Reason Drugs Cost So Much — And Do Too Little 
Until 2003, Medicare covered most hospital and doctor visits for the elderly, but it did not cover the ever-growing costs of prescription medications. Former President George W. Bush changed that when he signed a law adding prescription drug coverage to Medicare. But there was a catch. At drug companies’ behest, the Republican-controlled Congress banned Medicare from using its market power to drive down drug prices. The prohibition was controversial at the time — Nancy Pelosi, then the House Minority Leader, called it “unconscionable.” Critics saw the prohibition as the government’s abandonment of the single most effective tool for restraining drug costs. (Bagley, 8/27)