Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
The Disability Tax: Medical Bills Remain Inaccessible for Many Blind Americans
Health insurers and health care systems across the country are violating disability rights laws by sending medical bills that blind and visually impaired people cannot read, a KHN investigation has found. By hindering the ability of blind Americans to know what they owe, some bills get sent to debt collections. (Lauren Weber and Hannah Recht, )
Golden Gate’s Suicide-Prevention Net Has Doubled In Price: A suicide-prevention net on San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge that is already years behind schedule will cost about $400 million, more than double its original price, because of problems sparked by the government agency that manages the span, the lead contractors allege. Read more from AP and the Marin Independent Journal.
Few Californians Have Asked For An 'X' On Their ID: Four years after California began issuing nonbinary IDs, fewer than 16,000 people have asked the state to mark their gender with an X rather than an F or M, according to a California Public Records Act request. Read more from The Sacramento Bee.
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 Blade:
Biden Outlines Plan To Renew Fight Against HIV/AIDS
President Joe Biden detailed how his administration plans to improve the lives and health outcomes for people living with HIV/AIDS while strengthening treatment and prevention efforts at home and abroad in a statement published Wednesday on the eve of World AIDS Day. (11/30)
CBS News:
On World AIDS Day, Those Impacted By Disease Hope Others Recognize Their Fight
Thursday is World AIDS Day, a day to remember those who died due to AIDS-related complications and an opportunity to uplift the lives of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS."I was told I was HIV-positive, and in the same breath, my doctor said get your affairs in order, you have an average of two to three years to live," Brooklyn resident Alejandro Santiago said. That was back in 1992 when Santiago was 33 years old, and the HIV/AIDS crisis was sweeping across the nation. (Dias, 12/1)
The Wall Street Journal:
FDA Plans To Allow More Gay, Bisexual Men To Donate Blood
Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships would be allowed to donate blood without abstaining from sex under guidelines being drafted by the Food and Drug Administration, people familiar with the plans said. The change would be a departure from U.S. policy that for many years barred men who have sex with men from donating blood. (Whyte and Marcus, 11/30)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Powerful Photos Show San Francisco’s Fight Against AIDS Epidemic
The first headline about AIDS in The San Francisco Chronicle, published on June 6, 1981, was anything but a warning siren for the pain and death that was on the horizon. The story beneath it was just nine paragraphs with no byline — on a page dominated by a large photo of the Gay Men’s Chorus and a bright feature about their upcoming road trip. Most of the smiling men on the left of the page would later die of the condition described on the right. And within weeks of the first mention of the “mysterious disease” in the paper, San Francisco would find itself in the epicenter of an epidemic that would reveal local courage, expose national negligence and redefine the city. (Hartlaub, 12/1)
The Guardian:
‘I Lost My Retirement, My Career, My Home’: The HIV Laws Still Criminalizing Americans
Robert Suttle was 30 when he was arrested and imprisoned for the felony of “intentional exposure to the Aids virus”. He had met the man at a gay club on New Year’s Eve 2007 and they had quickly begun a relationship. Suttle says he disclosed his status as HIV-positive to his partner immediately. However, when the couple separated a few months later, the man pressed charges claiming that Suttle had not disclosed his status. Suttle now views this as “retaliation” over the breakup. (Abraham, 11/30)
Reuters:
COVID Hit HIV Detection In Europe, Threatens Eradication Progress
The number of people in Europe with undiagnosed HIV has risen as testing rates fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, threatening a global goal of ending the disease by 2030, a report said. (11/30)
NBC News:
DHS Warns Of Domestic Terror Threats To LGBTQ, Jewish And Migrant Communities
In a terrorism advisory bulletin, the Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday raised concerns about potential threats to the LGBTQ, Jewish and migrant communities from violent extremists inside the United States. (Ainsley, 11/30)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Time To Wear A Mask Again? What Health Experts Say Amid Rising COVID Cases
“I think it’s become much more of an individual judgment call,” said Dr. Bob Wachter, chief of medicine at UCSF. “So I rarely tell people what they should do, other than things that make no sense to me not to do, like for example getting a booster if you haven’t gotten one in over six months.” (Kawahara, 11/30)
Los Angeles Daily News:
Concern Grows Over Winter Coronavirus Spike In Los Angeles County
Hospitals are seeing significantly larger numbers of patients with COVID-19, as Los Angeles County reports 4,353 new cases on Wednesday, Nov. 30., a surge in daily infections from Tuesday, when 2,370 new cases were found. (Scauzillo and Harter, 11/30)
CIDRAP:
Similar Long-COVID Symptoms Noted After Omicron, Delta
Participants infected with Omicron were at comparable risk of long-COVID symptoms as those with Delta infections 14 to 126 days after diagnosis, including during the acute (14 to 29 days), sub-acute (30 to 89 days), and long COVID (90 days or later) phases. Symptoms included fatigue, cough, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, anxiety/depression, and brain fog. (Van Beusekom, 11/30)
CNN:
Bill Clinton Reports Mild Symptoms After Testing Positive For Covid-19
Former President Bill Clinton announced Wednesday that he has tested positive for Covid-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms. “I’m grateful to be vaccinated and boosted, which has kept my case mild, and I urge everyone to do the same, especially as we move into the winter months,” Clinton said in a tweet. The former president, 76, added that he is “doing fine overall and keeping myself busy at home.” (LeBlanc, 11/30)
The Hill:
FDA Pauses Authorization For Last Remaining COVID-19 Monoclonal Antibody Treatment
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Wednesday that the COVID-19 monoclonal antibody treatment bebtelovimab from Eli Lilly is no longer authorized for emergency use in the U.S. as it is not expected to be effective at neutralizing the two most dominant omicron subvariants in the country right now. (Choi, 11/30)
Stat:
Covid Evolution Wipes Out Another Antibody Treatment
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday ended its emergency authorization for the only remaining Covid-19 antibody therapy cleared for use, saying variants that render it ineffective are now dominant in the United States. (Joseph, 11/30)
CIDRAP:
Paxlovid Safe For Pregnant COVID Patients, Fetuses, Study Finds
Pregnant women can safely take the antiviral drug Paxlovid to reduce the risk of serious COVID-19 pregnancy or fetal complications, according to a small study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (11/30)
The Hill:
GOP Governors, Senators Take Aim At Pentagon COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate
Nearly all Republican governors and 13 GOP Senate lawmakers are taking aim at the Biden administration’s military COVID-19 vaccine mandate, with the two groups on Wednesday urging congressional leadership to try to alter or altogether dismantle the ruling. The 21 GOP governors, led by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, issued a joint letter to top lawmakers asking them to “take immediate action to remove and prohibit” the mandate. (Mitchell, 11/30)
Fresno Bee:
COVID, Flu And More Force Ambulance Limits In Fresno
A fresh surge of serious respiratory infections — including COVID-19 and other ailments — is forcing health officials in Fresno and the central San Joaquin Valley to reinstate a policy that limits ambulance crews from transporting patients to hospital emergency departments unless the case is a true life- or limb-threatening emergency. (Sheehan, 11/30)
Politico:
Biden Administration Prepares To End Monkeypox Emergency Declaration
The Biden administration is eyeing an end to its public health emergency declaration for mpox, a sign that officials believe they’ve brought the monthslong outbreak under control. Health officials are likely to issue a 60-day notice later this week for winding down the declaration, two people with knowledge of the matter told POLITICO. Such a move would put it on track to officially expire by Jan. 31. (Cancryn, 11/30)
San Francisco Chronicle:
This California Hospital Opened A Critical Care Unit For Kids. Four Of Them Died
Eight years ago, hospital leaders at John Muir Health and Stanford donned tuxedos, gowns and feathered masks. At a masquerade-themed gala, they mingled with donors to raise money for a new unit that would provide care for critically ill children in the East Bay. The eight-bed pediatric intensive care unit at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek would operate in partnership with Palo Alto-based Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, lending the prestige of one of the country’s top medical institutions to the community hospital in Contra Costa County, while allowing Stanford to expand its footprint in the Bay Area. (Dizikes, Gafni and Kopf, 12/1)
The Bakersfield Californian:
As 2030 Deadline Looms, Kern Valley Hospital Applies For Grant To Make Vital Fixes
Administrators at Kern Valley Hospital are scrambling to meet a 2030 deadline that requires their hospital to be entirely quake-proof. (Donegan, 11/30)
Modern Healthcare:
Hospitals Expected To End 2022 With Negative Margins
Higher expenses due to staff shortages and fewer patients are straining finances in the hospital sector, which is on track to end the year with negative margins, according to data Kaufman Hall published Wednesday. (Devereaux, 11/30)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Dad Reveals Horrific Details Of Baby’s Reported Fentanyl OD At SF Park
A 10-month-old baby suffered an accidental fentanyl overdose Tuesday at a Marina district playground, the boy’s father told The Chronicle in an interview, a medical emergency that required paramedics to administer overdose-reversing medication Narcan. (Moench, 11/30)
Roll Call:
Older Adults Face Medicare Hurdles For Substance Use Treatment
For the staff at the Senior Recovery Center in Maplewood, Minn., helping older adults overcome substance use disorders is a calling, said Christine Martinek, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor there. But it’s a more challenging calling when the adults who need treatment are on Medicare. (Hellmann, 11/30)
Times Of San Diego:
Woman Loses Lawsuit Over C-Section Allegedly Performed Without Anesthesia
A woman who was given an emergency cesarean section — allegedly without anesthesia — at an Oceanside hospital lost a medical negligence and battery lawsuit earlier this month against the federal government. (Ireland, 11/30)
Bay Area News Group:
"She Took Care Of Me, Now It's My Turn" Hearts And Minds Activity Center Gives Dementia Patients New Life
Dementia isn’t a specific disease, but a group of conditions that impair judgment and brain function, leading to memory loss, forgetfulness and limited social skills, according to Alz.org, a website specializing in information on Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. (Toldeo, 12/1)
Bay Area News Group:
Health Officials: East Bay Oil Refinery Did Not Notify Them Of Thanksgiving Night Hazardous Materials Leak
Health officials in Contra Costa County are seeking an explanation as to why they weren’t notified after a hazardous substance leaked into the air from a refinery for several hours starting Thanksgiving night. (Hurd, 11/30)
KVPR:
Purpose In The Pain: Cambodian Refugees Pave A Path Forward, Decades After Resettlement
There was no such thing as a childhood for siblings Danny and Chinda Kim. What little of it Chinda had experienced suddenly ended on April 17th, 1975 - the day that Cambodia fell to the communist Khmer Rouge regime led by dictator Pol Pot. “We didn't know what was going on, we just followed everyone. I was 7 years-old, holding my parents’ hands,” she says. Like millions of other Cambodians, the soldiers told them they’d be gone for only a couple of weeks. But it was the beginning of a nightmare that lasted years. (Hok, 12/1)
Reuters:
U.S. FDA Gives First-Ever Approval To Fecal Transplant Therapy
The U.S. health regulator on Wednesday approved Switzerland-based Ferring Pharmaceuticals' fecal transplant-based therapy to reduce the recurrence of a bacterial infection, making it the first therapy of its kind to be cleared in the United States. The therapy, Rebyota, targets Clostridium difficile, or C. difficile – a superbug responsible for infections that can cause serious and life-threatening diarrhea. In the United States, the infection is associated with 15,000-30,000 deaths annually. (11/30)