Becker's Hospital Review: California Hospital CEO Steps Down
John Hennelly has stepped down as CEO of Sonoma (Calif.) Valley Hospital, effective April 22, after four years in the role. Ben Armfield, the hospital’s CFO, has been named interim CEO, according to an April 22 hospital statement from Wendy Lee Myatt, board chair of the Sonoma Valley Health Care District, and Sheila Antrum, COO of UCSF Health. (Kuchno, 4/23)

The Bakersfield Californian: CSUB, Kern Medical Team Up To Introduce Students To Medicine
On Wednesday morning, the two local institutions co-hosted an event outside the university’s Student Union. Kern Medical surgeons and researchers were there to talk with students, offer engaging interactive activities and let them know about potential, hands-on learning opportunities offered through a variety of programs at the hospital. "Our SIM center is kind of a pipeline program for students interested in a career pathway to medicine," said Dr. Danish Khalid, an inaugural SIM fellow at Kern Medical. (Mayer, 4/23)

Los Angeles Times: Ad Campaign Will Target Trump Allies For Looming Medicaid Cuts
With the Trump administration slashing budgets and threatening to revoke tax-exempt status for nonprofits, some Southern California social justice organizations have gone into a defensive crouch, hoping to wait out the passing storm. ... But other local nonprofits intend to fight. They have slammed Trump’s policies. They declined suggestions to alter their mission statements. They have gone to court. And one, giant St. John’s Community Health — which has provided care for the region’s working class and immigrants for 60 years — is launching a campaign to call out congressional Republicans it believes are enabling Trump budget cuts that they believe will cripple healthcare for the poor. (Rainey, 4/24)

AfroLA: Black Women Were At Increased Risk For Lead Absorption During The L.A. Wildfires
In the first three days of the L.A. wildfires, lead levels detected in the air increased 110 times, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The toxic chemical burned off of old homes, businesses, and cars, filling the air with small particles that eventually rained down over large swaths of the county. (Moss, 4/23)

Voice of OC: Orange County Opposes Proposed Regional Gas-Powered Water Heater Crackdown
More officials across Orange County are joining the increasing push back in Southern California against a regional air quality board’s plan that initially proposed to ban the sale of new gas-powered water heaters and furnaces. ... Proponents like environmentalist groups say a transition to zero emission appliances will reduce air pollution and prevent thousands of premature deaths, emergency room visits and onset asthma. (Elattar and Gradillas, 4/23)

CNN: FEMA Losing Roughly 20% Of Permanent Staff, Including Longtime Leaders, Ahead Of Hurricane Season
The agency tasked with delivering billions of dollars in assistance to communities devastated by natural disasters is about to lose a huge portion of its workforce, including some of its most experienced and knowledgeable leaders who manage disaster response. With hurricane season just weeks away, about 20% of FEMA’s permanent full-time staff – roughly 1,000 workers – are expected to take a voluntary buyout as part of the latest staff reduction effort from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, according to several sources briefed on the looming departures. (Cohen, 4/23)

EdSource: How Federal Cuts Are Already Affecting Disabled Students In CA
Jake, a 17-year-old junior, is beginning to think about life after he graduates from Mt. Carmel High School in San Diego County. This is a daunting task for any teen, but his mother, Angela, says it’s been especially thorny for Jake, who is on the autism spectrum, has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and struggles with anxiety. The prospect of getting a job one day soon has made him “suicidal,” said Angela, who asked not to share her family’s last name to protect her son’s privacy about his diagnoses. She said her son has told her, “I’m going to be homeless; I won’t get a job.” (Gallegos, 4/24)

Axios: HHS Leaked Budget Draft Proposes Cutting Suicide Hotline's LGBTQ+ Services
A Trump administration budget proposal that calls to strike a number of programs from the federal health bureaucracy would also seek to eliminate funding for specialized crisis services for LGBTQ+ youth. The national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline's LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services has received more than 1.2 million crisis contacts since 2022. Scrapping the program, advocates say, would put young people at risk. (Lotz, 4/23)

The Washington Post: FDA’s Milk Testing Program Pause Is Not Cause For Alarm, Experts Say
An FDA spokesperson confirmed to The Washington Post that the program is “currently paused” but said in an email that it will resume once transferred from its current home to another FDA laboratory, which they described as “an effort that is actively underway.” “In the meantime, state and federal labs continue to analyze food samples, and FDA remains committed to working with states to protect the safety of the pasteurized milk supply,” the spokesperson said. (Heil, 4/23)

Axios: Key FDA Drug Data Goes Missing Amid DOGE Cuts
Food and Drug Administration databases that physicians and public health experts rely on for key drug safety and manufacturing information have been neglected due to DOGE-directed layoffs, leaving health professionals flying blind on basic questions about certain drugs they're prescribing, current and former FDA officials tell Axios. (Reed, 4/24)

CBS News: FDA Head Falsely Claims No Scientists Laid Off, As Agency Shutters Food Safety Labs
The head of the Food and Drug Administration has repeatedly claimed in recent interviews that no scientists have been laid off at his agency, but one of the scientists in a food safety lab shuttered by the FDA's cuts says he is either "blatantly lying" or "out of touch." "There were no layoffs to scientists or food inspectors," FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary told CNN on Wednesday. Makary previously said in an April 17 interview with Megyn Kelly that there "were not cuts to scientists, or reviewers, or inspectors. Absolutely none." (Tin, 4/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: Whole Foods In Bay Area Closed Due To ‘Imminent Threat To Health’
A Whole Foods Market in the South Bay has been ordered to close temporarily following repeated food safety violations, including evidence of a rodent and cockroach infestation, county officials confirmed Wednesday. The Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health suspended the store’s permit after inspectors deemed it posed “an imminent threat to health and safety.” (Vaziri, 4/23)

Bloomberg: Food Industry Says There’s No Agreement With RFK Jr.’s HHS To Cut Dyes
The US Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday it plans to work with food companies to phase out use of many artificial food colorings by 2026, but industry lobbyists say there’s no agreement in place to remove the dyes, according to people familiar with the matter. In its announcement, HHS said it planned to eliminate artificial food dyes by working with companies that rely heavily on them. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said his agency and the Food and Drug Administration had an “understanding” with the industry about their removal on a voluntary basis. (Kubzansky and Cohrs Zhang, 4/23)

NBC News: Rise In Colon Cancer Among Young People May Be Tied To Gut Toxin Known To Cause DNA Damage
A gut toxin that’s been linked to colorectal cancers for more than two decades may be contributing to the sharp rise of the disease in younger people, according to landmark research published Wednesday in the journal Nature. ... Since the mid 2000s, studies have repeatedly shown that this toxin can inflict distinct DNA damage on colon cells that’s difficult to repair and can eventually lead to the development of cancer. (Cox, 4/23)

Stat: Quitting Vaping With Varenicline Effective For Young People: Study
The young people who wanted to quit e-cigarettes didn’t necessarily think they were addicted. But they did think nicotine cravings were a problem. When they enrolled in a Massachusetts General Hospital trial, they told researchers they couldn’t study in the library or work at their desks for long before getting the urge to vape. “They really didn’t like that loss of control,” said Eden Evins, director of the Center for Addiction Medicine at Mass General. (Todd, 4/23)