Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
States Weigh Banning A Widely Used Pesticide Even Though EPA Won’t
The pesticide chlorpyrifos has been linked to developmental problems in children. Some state and federal lawmakers want the chemical banned, but federal regulators are fighting to keep it on the market. (Ana B. Ibarra, )
Welcome! President Donald Trump vowed at a summit on Wednesday to hold Big Pharma responsible for its role in the opioid epidemic. Critics, however, said the administration’s response to the crisis has been similar to someone pointing at a burning building, saying it’s an emergency, but not calling in firefighters. More on that below, but first here are some of your top California health stories of the day.
Emotions Run High As California Lawmakers Advance Legislation To Strip Doctors Of Exemption Authority: The measure put forth by state Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento) would put the decision whether to grant a child a vaccination exemption into the hands of a state public health official instead of a doctor. "We witnessed physicians who advertised exemptions for cash on social media and the internet," Pan said. "We’d see some parents post on social media that their child's regular physician refused to grant their child a medical exemption so they traveled to go purchase one from a distant physician."
Critics of the bill, who turned out in force at the Capitol, say it interferes with the doctor-patient relationship. “Patients have a right to have their medical treatment determined by their doctor, not a governmental appointee,” said Nicole Shorrock, a pediatrician who testified against the bill. “This bill will essentially destroy the sanctity of a doctor-patient relationship.” But the protestors were countered by dozens of doctors wearing white coats who urged the committee to pass the bill to prevent outbreaks of debilitating and preventable illnesses.
Although California’s vaccination rate among children entering kindergarten went up in recent years to 95.6 percent, the rising number of medical exemptions is showing up in clusters around the state — in concentrations inconsistent with the number of people who legitimately cannot be vaccinated — and that is leaving some schools with vaccination rates lower than 50 percent.
Read more about the legislation and the measles outbreak in the state from the Sacramento Bee, The Associated Press, KQED, Capital Public Radio and the Bakersfield Record.
California To Be Required To Better Provide In-Home Health Care To Children, Young Adults With Complex Medical Needs: A judge approved a preliminary settlement in a class-action lawsuit against the California Department of Health Care Services where plaintiffs alleged that the state failed to provide thousands of low-income children with sufficient in-home nursing services. Prior to the settlement, families were often given outdated referral lists or told to research in-home care options via Google or Craigslist. Now with the settlement, the state Health Care department “accepts that it is ultimately responsible to help these families,” says attorney William Leiner with Disability Rights California. “In the future, every family that needs assistance, regardless of where they live, will get a case manager whose job will be to arrange for all approved nursing hours.” Read more from the California Health Report.
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. And have a healthy weekend.
More News From Across The State
Reuters:
Bayer Asks California Appeals Court To Throw Out $78 Million Roundup Verdict
Bayer AG on Wednesday asked a California appellate court to throw out a $78 million judgment it was ordered to pay to a school groundskeeper who claimed the company's weed killers gave him cancer. In a filing in California's Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, the company said that there was "no evidence" that glyphosate, a chemical found in the company's Roundup and Ranger Pro products, could cause cancer. (4/24)
Capital Public Radio:
More Than 5,000 Cannabis Convictions Could Be Tossed Out Or Reduced In Sacramento County
The Sacramento District Attorney’s office has filed dismissal requests for nearly 2,000 cannabis-related convictions and wants to reduce more than 3,000 felonies to misdemeanors. Assistant Chief Deputy DA Rob Gold, says the move is part of a new state law that requires review of convictions that occurred before cannabis became legal for public consumption. (Moffitt, 4/24)
Ventura County Star:
California Regulations On Groundwater Aim To Reduce E.Coli In Romaine
The California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement board voted to strengthen testing requirements on both surface water and groundwater to prevent another E. coli outbreak like the one that hit the romaine lettuce industry last year. Last year's outbreak sickened dozens and sideswiped the industry in 2018. Although it's not one of Ventura County's top money-making crops, it is grown here. In 2017, the latest year for which figures are available, romaine was a $6 million crop in Ventura County. (Cimini, 4/24)
Los Angeles Times:
Robotic Device Winds Its Own Way Through A Beating Pig Heart
Scientists have created a robotic device that safely guides itself through the delicate chambers of a beating pig's heart. The surgical robot, whose motion was inspired by the way cockroaches skitter along walls, is able to navigate without any help from a doctor or anyone else, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Science Robotics. (Borenstein and Neergaard, 4/24)
The Desert Sun:
Medicaid Won't Cover Non-Medical Penis Vacuums And Prosthetics Anymore
Getting penis vacuums and implants paid for by health insurance will only get harder in 2020.In order to offset the costs of extending Medicaid programs for seniors, children and the mentally ill, Rep. Raul Ruiz’s [D-Palm Desert] Medicaid Services Investment and Accountability Act, which was signed April 18, will end federal funding for penile vacuums and prosthetics in January. Medicare stopped covering vacuums and prosthetics in 2015 after a study found that it was paying an average of $451 per pump. Ruiz's bill implements the provisions on Medicaid patients. It amends the law to deny local health jurisdictions Medicaid funding for vacuum erection systems and penile prosthetic implants unless a doctor determines they are "medically necessary." (Metz, 4/24)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Town Hall Meeting To Discuss Delano Regional Medical Center Merger
Delano-area community members are invited to a town hall from 5:30 to 7 p.m. April 30 at the Delano Regional Medical Center. At the meeting, DRMC representatives and Adventist Health Transition Officer David Butler will share information about DRMC’s decision to join Adventist Health, pending California Attorney General approval, and respond to community members’ questions.“ DRMC is our community’s hospital,” President Bahram Ghaffari said. “It’s important to us that community members understand the proposed affiliation and the steps in the transition.” Butler will discuss Adventist Health’s growth plans for the Delano area and share information about the nonprofit, faith-based organization’s mission, history and services. (Cauthron, 4/25)
The New York Times:
Trump Declares Commitment To Ending Opioid Crisis
President Trump, after a week devoted to criticizing the Mueller report and investigations by congressional Democrats, turned on Wednesday to a policy matter, vowing to “smash the grip of addiction” caused by the opioid epidemic. Addressing a conference of health professionals and addiction specialists in Atlanta, Mr. Trump promised to provide more funding for treatment, stronger scrutiny of what he called Big Pharma and tougher interdiction of drugs at the border with Mexico. (Tackett and Sullivan, 4/24)
The Associated Press:
Trump To Keep Fighting Opioids 'Until Our Job Is Done'
"My administration is deploying every resource at our disposal to empower you, to support you and to fight right by your side," Trump said. "We will not solve this epidemic overnight but we will stop. ... There's just nothing going to stop us, no matter how you cut it." Before leaving the White House for the Atlanta event, Trump claimed credit for progress in combating the drug scourge. (4/24)
The Washington Post:
Trump Defends Administration's Response To Opioid Crisis: ‘We Will Never Stop Until Our Job Is Done’
While accusing pharmaceutical companies of “rigging the system against our great seniors,” Trump also slipped in a veiled reference to special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s Russia probe, telling the crowd, “I know all about rigging the system because I had the system rigged on me.” Then, demonstrating the canny instincts of a TV producer, he offered a faux lament: “Unfortunately, that will be your sound bite tonight.” (Parker and Sonmez, 4/24)
Stat:
Senators Push HHS To Move Against Gilead On An HIV Drug Patent
Several U.S. senators have asked the Health and Human Services Department to explain what, if any, steps are being taken to ensure that patents held by the federal government on an HIV prevention pill are properly licensed. The lawmakers also asked agency officials to demonstrate how they take into account whether medicines are affordable when considering licensing patents. The move comes as AIDS activists have criticized the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for failing to reach a deal with Gilead Sciences (GILD) over royalties on its sales of the Truvada pill. (Silverman, 4/24)
Reuters:
Trump Says He Is Holding Big Pharma Accountable In Opioid Fight
On Tuesday, the government charged drug distributor Rochester Drug Co-operative Inc and company executives for their role in fueling the epidemic. The company agreed to pay $20 million and enter a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve charges it turned a blind eye to thousands of suspicious orders for opioid pain killers. "We are holding big Pharma accountable," Trump said at the Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit in Atlanta. (4/24)
Stat:
The Authors Of The CDC’s Opioid Guidelines Say They’ve Been Misapplied
The authors of influential federal guidelines for opioid prescriptions for chronic pain said Wednesday that doctors and others in the health care system had wrongly implemented their recommendations and cut off patients who should have received pain medication. “Unfortunately, some policies and practices purportedly derived from the guideline have in fact been inconsistent with, and often go beyond, its recommendations,” the researchers wrote in a paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine. (Joseph and Silverman, 4/24)
The Associated Press:
US Measles Cases Hit Highest Mark In 25 Years
Measles in the U.S. has climbed to its highest level in 25 years, closing in on 700 cases this year in a resurgence largely attributed to misinformation that is turning parents against vaccines. "This is alarming," said Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University vaccine expert. Not only is measles dangerous in itself, but its return could mean other vaccine-preventable diseases seemingly consigned to the past may be coming back as well, he said. (4/24)
The New York Times:
Measles Outbreak Infects 695, Highest Number Since 2000
Most cases are linked to two large and apparently unrelated outbreaks. One is centered in Orthodox Jewish communities in New York City and its suburbs; that outbreak began in October and recently spread to Orthodox communities in Michigan. The other outbreak began in Washington State. “The longer these outbreaks continue, the greater the chance measles will again get a sustained foothold in the United States,” the C.D.C. said in a statement. (McNeil, 4/24)
The Washington Post:
Measles Outbreak: U.S. Measles Cases Surpass Previous Record, Highest Since 2000
This year, as in the past, officials say the majority of people in the U.S. who have fallen ill were unvaccinated. In some communities, anti-immunization activists have spread false claims about the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, causing concern among parents about inoculating their children. When many people in a community have not been vaccinated, the disease can spread quickly. The CDC said misinformation about the safety of the vaccine is “a significant factor contributing to the outbreaks in New York."” The agency said some organizations, which it did not name, are “deliberately targeting these communities with inaccurate and misleading information about vaccines.” (Sun, 4/24)
The Washington Post:
Americans Are More Focused On Health Costs Than Medicare-For-All, Poll Shows
Most Americans want Congress to take action to lower their family’s health care expenses, rather than make sweeping changes such as adopting Medicare-for-all, or repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act, according to a new survey. At a time when Democratic presidential candidates are emphasizing universal health coverage — with those on the left advocating Medicare-for- all — not quite half of the respondents who identify as Democrats regard that as a priority for Congress in the latest poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation. That compares with 14 percent of Republicans. (Goldstein, 4/24)
The Washington Post:
Trump Administration Prepares A Rule Civil Rights Groups Worry May Deny Care To Transgender Patients
Trump administration officials are working on a new rule that civil rights organizations fear could essentially blow up the nondiscrimination protections of the Affordable Care Act for LGBTQ individuals and make it easier for hospitals, physicians or insurers to deny care or coverage to transgender people for religious reasons. The debate centers on the word “sex” as it applies to those provisions. Some faith-based health-care organizations protested in 2016 when President Barack Obama’s Health and Human Services Department interpreted the term to include gender identity and transgender people as protected classes. (Cha, 4/24)
The Hill:
House Dem Chairmen To Meet With Progressives Amid Drug Pricing Divisions
Two key House Democratic committee chairmen will meet with progressive House Democrats next week amid divisions in the party over how to craft their signature legislation to lower drug prices, according to House Democratic aides. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) will meet with members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus next week to discuss legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. (Sullivan, 4/24)
The New York Times:
Scientists Create Speech From Brain Signals
“In my head, I churn over every sentence ten times, delete a word, add an adjective, and learn my text by heart, paragraph by paragraph,” wrote Jean-Dominique Bauby in his memoir, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.” In the book, Mr. Bauby, a journalist and editor, recalled his life before and after a paralyzing stroke that left him virtually unable to move a muscle; he tapped out the book letter by letter, by blinking an eyelid. Thousands of people are reduced to similarly painstaking means of communication as a result of injuries suffered in accidents or combat, of strokes, or of neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or A.L.S., that disable the ability to speak. (Carey, 4/24)
The New York Times:
W.H.O. Says Limited Or No Screen Time For Children Under 5
In a new set of guidelines, the World Health Organization said that infants under 1 year old should not be exposed to electronic screens and that children between the ages of 2 and 4 should not have more than one hour of “sedentary screen time” each day. Limiting, and in some cases eliminating, screen time for children under the age of 5 will result in healthier adults, the organization, a United Nations health agency, announced on Wednesday. (Rueb, 4/24)