California Doctors Can Now Be Disciplined For Spreading Covid Misinformation: Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that will subject doctors to discipline and possible suspension of their licenses for spreading misinformation about the covid-19 pandemic to patients. Read more from Bay Area News Group and AP.
San Diego To Launch More Guaranteed-Income Programs: San Diego has become part of a new nationwide experiment with guaranteed income, where governments and nonprofits give no-strings-attached cash payments to targeted families to help them make ends meet. The goal is to bolster poor families by giving them money to use at their discretion, whether on food, rent, medical expenses, or child care. Read more from The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Below, check out the roundup of California Healthline’s coverage. For today's national health news, read KHN's Morning Briefing.
More News From Across The State
Los Angeles Times:
New Coronavirus Subvariants A Worry For Winter COVID Wave
As officials in California and beyond try to assess how severe a fall-and-winter coronavirus wave may be, one key factor is the growth of several new subvariants now emerging. It’s too soon to say whether any of the newer variants will rise to prominence in the ways Omicron and Delta did. None have been documented in significant numbers in California or the nation. Still, experts say another super-spreading subvariant — combined with more people being indoors when the weather gets cold — could bring new challenges. (Lin II and Money, 10/1)
San Francisco Chronicle:
COVID Can Infect Fat Cells. May Explain Why Some Get Much Sicker
The virus that causes COVID-19 can infect and replicate in fat cells, and cause inflammation in fat tissue, Stanford University researchers found in a new study that could help explain why obese people are at higher risk for severe COVID. (Ho, 9/30)
CIDRAP:
More Than 16,000 Americans Died Of Combination Cancer, COVID In 2020
In the first 10 months of the pandemic, COVID-19 was an underlying cause of 3,142 US cancer deaths, and cancer contributed to 13,419 COVID-19 deaths, according to a study published yesterday in JAMA Oncology. (9/30)
CIDRAP:
Kids With Shortness Of Breath After Covid-19 May Have Airway Obstruction
Yesterday in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, researchers from National Jewish Health published a study showing children who experienced shortness of breath after COVID-19 infection had evidence of peripheral airway obstruction. (9/30)
The New York Times:
What to Do if You’re Experiencing Hair Loss After Covid
If you recovered from Covid-19 in the past few months, such an increase in shedding may not be a coincidence. Some research estimates that 22 percent of those who were hospitalized with Covid-19 experienced temporary hair loss. It is harder to evaluate how common the condition is in people who had milder forms of the disease, but studies suggest hair loss is also among the more than 60 persistent symptoms often associated with long Covid — some of which are more well-known, such as the loss of smell, cognitive impairment and sexual dysfunction. Doctors say they too have noticed a surge in patients seeking help for the phenomenon. “I have never seen anything like it in my life,” said Dr. Michele Green, a New York City-based dermatologist affiliated with Northwell Health’s Lenox Hill Hospital who specializes in hair loss. “I’m seeing more male and female patients, from every age group, every working profession. It’s really been across the board.” (Sheikh, 9/30)
CIDRAP:
COVID Study Spotlights Unsafe Wait Times For Hospital Beds
A research letter today in JAMA Network Open shows that, in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, US hospitals dealing with patient surges held emergency-department (ED) patients in places like hallways while awaiting an inpatient bed for a median of 6.6 hours, far longer than the Joint Commission's 4-hour standard. The Joint Commission, a US-based healthcare accreditation organization that sets standards for hospitals and other medical settings, has deemed ED boarding—or holding admitted patients in the ED, often in hallways, as they wait for a bed to open up—a patient safety risk. (Van Beusekom, 9/30)
VC Star:
Early Flu, COVID-19 Uncertainties Trigger More Vaccine Decisions
COVID-19 is still here. The flu season may be arriving early with some emergency rooms reporting a rise in cases. (Kisken, 9/30)
KCRA:
California Monkeypox Cases Fall, But Health Disparities Remain
The number of monkeypox cases in California hit 5,000 this week, but overall the outbreak is trending downward, state health officials said on Friday. There are also “substantial health disparities” with higher case rates reported among Black and Hispanic Californians compared to other groups, the Department of Public Health said. (Macht, 10/1)
CIDRAP:
Studies Detail Monkeypox Transmission Risks
A study of almost 400 samples taken from men with monkeypox reveals a high prevalence of the virus on skin, throat, and anus swabs compared to in blood or urine—with detections in semen in the midrange—and high viral loads in skin and anal swabs. Two other new studies detail transmission risk in a tattoo parlor and in healthcare settings, and in US news, officials report a monkeypox-related death in Ohio. (Soucheray, 9/30)
CNN:
US Monkeypox Deaths Are Rare, But Here's Why They Can Be Difficult To Confirm
There have been more than 25,000 monkeypox cases in the United States during the current outbreak, and deaths among monkeypox patients are rare. Among the few reported, it has sometimes been difficult to determine the role monkeypox played in the deaths. “It’s sort of the old situation we had with Covid: Did you die of Covid, or did you die with Covid? And so this is the same scenario: Did you die with monkeypox, or did you die of monkeypox?” said Lori Tremmel Freeman, chief executive officer of the National Association of County and City Health Officials. (Howard, 10/3)
Modern Healthcare:
Rural Medicare Programs Get Short-Term Extensions From Congress
Two Medicare programs that boost payments for hundreds of rural hospitals were extended through mid-December with the House’s passage of a short-term federal spending package on Friday. (Kane, 9/30)
Fierce Healthcare:
Congress Passes Spending Bill That Extends Rural Programs
The House voted 230 to 201 to advance to President Joe Biden’s desk a continuing resolution that funds the federal government through Dec. 16. Biden is expected to sign the legislation. The short-term package gives providers another chance to include key end-of-the-year policy priorities such as delays to Medicare doctor payment cuts and extensions of a key quality bonus. The legislation also extends through Dec. 16 the hospital payment adjustment for certain low-volume hospitals (LVH) and the Medicare-Dependent Hospital (MDH) program. Both programs were set to expire after September. (King, 9/30)
Forbes:
Big Health Insurers Will Expand Medicare Advantage To Hundreds Of New Counties For 2023
Health insurance companies that are big players in Medicare Advantage, including Humana, Cigna, CVS Health’s Aetna unit, Elevance Health and UnitedHealth Group are launching popular plans in several new states and hundreds of new counties for 2023. Aetna, which is in 1,875 counties and 46 states plus Washington, D.C. with 3.2 million Medicare Advantage enrollees today is expanding to 2,014 counties and 46 states plus Washington, D.C. (Japsen, 10/1)
Berkeleyside:
Temporary CVS Closure Gives Berkeley Customers The Jitters
Thursday wasn’t a great day for anyone trying to pick up a prescription from the CVS pharmacy inside the Target store on University Avenue. The pharmacy was — unexpectedly — shut tight. And, according to social media posts as well as readers getting in touch with Berkeleyside, Wednesday wasn’t much better. Customers reported long lines at the CVS/Target pharmacy — so long that some people gave up and hustled to find another place to fill their order. (Rauch, 9/30)
Denver Post:
High-Tech Company Virta Health Moving To Colorado From California
Virta Health, a health technology company that aims to reverse type 2 diabetes without drugs, is moving its headquarters from California to Colorado. (Kohler, 9/30)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
Petaluma Health Fair Seeks To Shrink Racial Disparity In Outcomes
When life gives you lemons, grab some apples, as well. That was one take-away from Saturday’s Petaluma Health Fair, held under sunny skies in the parking lot of the Petaluma Health Center, just a couple blocks south of the Lagunitas Brewing Company on North McDowell Boulevard. (Murphy, 10/1)
KQED:
Prop. 29: New Rules For Dialysis Clinics
Launched for a third time by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, Prop. 29 would add new rules on dialysis clinics. If approved, dialysis clinics would be required to have a physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant on site during all treatment hours, among other requirements. Opponents say Prop. 29 imposes unnecessary requirements and would cause clinics to shut down. (Guevarra, Stark, Montecilla and Esquinca, 10/3)
The Mercury News:
Aging Boom: Active Seniors Not Ready To Retire Quietly
Marilyn Fedorow isn’t your grandmother’s grandmother. She’s 70, so, OK, her chronological age is grandmother-ish. But everything else – the full-time job, the later-in-life master’s degree, the energy and the sharp recall and the excitement to see and do new things – all suggest a woman in her prime, not later life.On her own, Fedorow might be inspiring if not particularly novel. Though American culture looks down on age, that doesn’t mean older Americans have ever actually matched ageist stereotypes. For many people, maybe even most, humor and productivity haven’t waned in tandem with a calendar. There have always been Fedorows. The difference, now, is that there soon will be tens of millions more. (Mouchard, 10/2)
Orange County Register:
As Southern Californians Grow Old, Housing Will Be Scarce; Solutions, Pitfalls Are Already Here
Last winter, Barbara Miller, 69, was desperate. She needed to move from her home in Foothill Ranch, and wanted to relocate to Los Angeles to be closer to her children. But her career as a teacher and artist left her with too small of a pension to cover rent in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets. James Niven, an artist and former dancer, wanted a roommate. At 81, he had extra space in his 99-year-old, three-story house in the Los Feliz neighborhood of L.A. A non-profit home-sharing program, Affordable Living for the Aging, brought the two together last spring, believing their shared love of art, dance and Eastern philosophies made them a good match. (Collins, 10/2)
Orange County Register:
Home Sharing, Backyard Cottages And Renting Out Rooms Help Seniors Find Housing
Bobbie Hill has been renting out rooms in her two-story Claremont house since her first child went off to college more than 25 years ago.Since then, at least 120 college students have boarded in her 112-year-old Craftsman-style home, helping the 82-year-old make ends meet. She now has five tenants, including her ex-husband, an artist who rents a backyard cottage and displays his sculptures throughout the property. ... Hill’s house in leafy Claremont is an example of the unconventional housing solutions already surfacing throughout Southern California and across the country as society ages. (Collins, 10/2)
Los Angeles Times:
Ketamine May Help Severely Depressed, Study Shows
Patients arriving at Dr. Philip O’Carroll’s Newport Beach office for their first ketamine treatment are in pain and often lost. They have visited other doctors, tried other solutions and are ready for what is considered a last resort. They are led to a private room with a reclining lounge chair. Their blood pressure is checked, and they are handed a bottle of nasal spray. One whiff into each nostril, and they feel the edges of life suddenly soften. Tranquility overcomes them. (Curwen, 10/2)
ABC News:
Biden Admin Announces More Than $300M In Mental Health Funding In Part From Bipartisan Gun Bill
The Biden administration on Monday announced more than $300 million in new mental health funding, via awards and grants, with much of the money coming from the bipartisan anti-gun violence law passed this summer by Congress. (Jones II, 10/3)
The Washington Post:
More States Are Allowing Children To Take Mental Health Days
With child mental health problems on the rise in the past few years, a growing number of states have adopted laws that let students take an excused absence if they feel anxious, depressed or need a day to “recharge.” A dozen states already have measures in place that allow kids to take off for mental health and not just physical health reasons. A handful of others are considering making similar changes to school absentee rules. (Atkins, 10/2)
Los Angeles Times:
An L.A. Journalist's Death By Suicide Still Confounds Years Later. "Can We Ever Understand That?"
Three years after her husband took his life, Sara Scribner wants to talk. She knows it won’t be easy, but the time is right. Suicide and mental illness have long been the subject of whisper campaigns and conjecture, but the pandemic, she believes, has changed that. “Scott’s suicide has been the background noise every minute of my life,” she said, “but whenever I bring up his name in conversation, people get uncomfortable.” (Curwen, 10/2)
Reuters:
Amylyx Prices Newly Approved ALS Drug At $158,000 Per Year
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc on Friday set the list price of its newly approved drug to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at about $158,000 per year in the United States, a discount to its most recently approved competitor. The drug Relyvrio was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday, making it the third ALS treatment to get the regulator's nod after Japanese firm Mitsubishi Tanabe's Radicava, priced at around $170,000 per year, and the generic drug riluzole. (Leo, 9/30)
Axios:
New ALS Treatment Sparks Yet Another Drug Pricing Debate
The FDA's expedited approval of a new ALS treatment priced at $158,000 a year, has touched off another debate over balancing regulation with patient access. (Owens, 10/3)
AP:
NIH To Fund Unproven ALS Drugs Under Patient-Backed Law
When patients with a deadly diagnosis and few treatment options have tried to get unapproved, experimental drugs, they have long faced a dilemma: Who will pay? Responsibility for funding so-called compassionate use has always fallen to drugmakers, though many are unwilling or unable to make their drugs available for free to dying patients. After years of lobbying Congress, patients with the debilitating illness known as Lou Gehrig’s disease have found an unprecedented solution: make the federal government pay. (Perrone, 10/1)
NPR:
ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Helped Fund The Development Of A New Drug For Treatment
The ALS Association said that $2.2 million of funds that were raised from the Ice Bucket Challenge went into funding the development and trial of the new drug that the Food and Drug Administration approved this week for treatment of ALS, which is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. (Davis, 10/1)
CapRadio:
Sacramento Revamps Cannabis Enforcement System After Facing Dozens Of Lawsuits, Racism Allegations
Sacramento has made significant changes to its illegal cannabis cultivation enforcement program, in the face of mounting legal challenges and allegations of racism. The underlying problem is real: Hundreds of houses across Sacramento have been converted to illegal grow operations in recent years. (Rodd, 10/3)
Politico:
Courts Could Throw State Marijuana Markets Into Disarray
President Joe Biden is showing no interest in loosening federal restrictions that have left states in charge of developing how the multibillion-dollar U.S. cannabis industry grows. The nation’s courts may ultimately force the issue — in a chaotic fashion that could undermine efforts to diversify the industry and protect public health. (Zhang, 10/2)
The New York Times:
Elias Theodorou, Pioneer Of Medical Marijuana In Sports, Dies At 34
Elias Theodorou, a cerebral, charismatic mixed martial arts fighter who campaigned to change his sport’s drug rules and is widely believed to be the first professional athlete to receive a therapeutic exemption to use marijuana, died on Sept. 11 at his home in Woodbridge, Ontario, a suburb of Toronto. He was 34.His brother, Michael, said the cause was colon cancer that had metastasized to his liver. (Risen, 10/2)