Newsweek: US Warned Of 2032 Hospital Crisis
U.S. hospitals are on track for a crisis come 2032 that may lead to hundreds of thousands of additional deaths each year. This is the warning of a study by researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), who found that hospitals are not only fuller now than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic—but are on track to exceed the critical threshold of 85 percent hospital occupancy within just seven years. (Randall, 2/19)

The Washington Post: UC-Davis Lab Workers Key To California’s Bird Flu Response To Go On Strike
Workers at the only lab in California with the authority to confirm high-risk bird flu cases will go on a brief strike next week, claiming that years of understaffing, poor training and burnout have left them struggling to protect the state’s food chain from the rampant virus. ... Limited career advancement and poor management prompted a staff exodus early last year, former lab workers said, and chronic staffing shortages have since increased errors and left remaining workers ill-equipped to handle virus testing. (Ziegler, 2/19)

Becker's Hospital Review: UC Irvine Gets $11M For Cancer Research
The Clemons Family Foundation has pledged $11 million to support cancer research and the completion of two building projects at UCI Health-Irvine in California. The majority of the gift will be used to fund cancer research under the direction of Richard Van Etten, MD, professor of hematology/oncology and director of Orange, Calif.-based UCI Health's Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, according to a Feb. 18 news release from UC Irvine. (Gregerson, 2/19)

Becker's Hospital Review: Valley Children's Bets On Paid Study Time To Retain Nurses
Leaders at Madera-based Valley Children's see employer-sponsored education programs as a critical strategy for addressing healthcare workforce gaps. As such, the hospital recently launched an Associate-to-Bachelor of Science in Nursing pathway program in partnership with Fresno State. The 18-month program is designed to help associate degree nurses advance their careers while continuing to work full-time. (Carbajal, 2/20)

Becker's Hospital Review: Former American Hospital Association Chair Dies
David Reed, a longtime healthcare executive and former chairman of the American Hospital Association, died Jan. 16 at his home in Palm Desert, according to his obituary. He was 91. ... In 1990, he became chairman of the American Hospital Association and CEO of St. Joseph Health System in Orange, according to the AHA. (Gooch, 2/19)

The Bay Area Reporter: Twice-Yearly PrEP Could Be Available This Summer
Twice-yearly lenacapavir PrEP could be available as early as this summer pending federal Food and Drug Administration approval, with a decision expected in mid-June, [Foster City-based] Gilead Sciences Inc. announced Tuesday. Preparations for the U.S. launch are "well underway," according to Gilead chief commercial officer Johanna Mercier. ... Lenacapavir is an HIV capsid inhibitor with a long half-life in the body, meaning it can be administered once every six months. Phase 3 studies showed that it dramatically reduced HIV acquisition in groups at high risk. Lenacapavir is an antiretroviral drug that blocks HIV replication. It's not a vaccine that trains the immune system to fight the virus. (Highleyman, 2/19)

CapRadio: State Insulin Program Still Has No Firm Timeline
Governor Gavin Newsom’s first executive order back in 2019 called for California to reduce costs for certain medications and led to the creation of CalRx, the state’s project for creating and distributing low-cost, common medicines. In 2023, Newsom announced that CalRx would make its own biosimilar insulin available the following year. (Myscofski, 2/19)

MedPage Today: Will The Egg Shortage Affect Flu Shots? 
While millions of vaccine doses are made using chicken eggs each year, experts say the current egg shortage won't hamper next year's flu vaccine production cycle. Previous bird flu outbreaks and decades-old public health infrastructure have led industry to protect the hens used for vaccine production, experts told MedPage Today. Moreover, flu vaccines that don't require eggs are available, and mRNA-based flu shots are in development. (Robertson, 2/19)

Politico: Drug Industry: Let Us Make Americans Healthy
Drug company executives on Tuesday touted their industry’s work to keep and make Americans healthy during a Washington event that came on the heels of one of their biggest critics, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., being sworn in to helm federal health agencies. PhRMA CEO Steve Ubl took to the stage at The Anthem to carefully walk the line between supporting the Trump administration and cautioning against policies that could damage the drug industry — obliquely nodding at the tension between the industry’s goal of getting new medicines to market and Kennedy’s desire to address health problems with less pharma influence. (Gardner and Lim, 2/19)

Axios: Insurers To Trump: Stop Biden's Medicare And Medicaid Obesity Drug Proposal
Health plans are lobbying the Trump administration to scrap a proposal dating from the final days of the Biden administration that would require Medicare and Medicaid to cover anti-obesity drugs, including GLP-1s, for weight loss. Why it matters: The final decision, expected in April, is an important barometer of which health care interests have President Trump's ear, since many providers, patients and drugmakers want Medicare to cover the products. (Goldman, 2/20)

Truthout: Trump Backs House GOP Bill Slashing $1 Trillion From Medicaid And Food Stamps 
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump endorsed a House Republican budget plan that would impose hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid, a healthcare program jointly funded by federal and state money, which helps provide coverage for Americans with lower incomes, including pregnant women, children and people with disabilities, among others. Trump endorsed the plan over another Senate proposal, which sought to pass much of his legislative agenda through two separate bills. Trump, who had previously said either plan was fine with him, said in a Truth Social post on Wednesday that the House plan was better, in his mind, because it puts most everything he wants into “one big beautiful bill.” (Walker, 2/19)

Politico: Trump Blindsides Staff, Congress With Conflicting Medicaid Messages 
Trump’s seemingly contradictory comments — shared in a Fox News interview Tuesday evening and then Truth Social Wednesday morning — are also fueling confusion and concern among Republicans on Capitol Hill, who are looking to him for political cover as they contemplate a potentially risky vote. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, said he has “concerns” about “the House’s proposal for very deep cuts to Medicaid.” (Leonard, Cancryn and King, 2/19)

The New York Times: Trump Administration Has Fired Health Inspectors At Some Border Stations
At the nation’s borders, federal workers keep the country safe in many ways: Some investigate sick passengers. Some examine animals for dangerous pathogens. And some inspect plants for infestations that could spread in this country. Late last week, the Trump administration dispatched hundreds of those federal employees with the same message that colleagues at other agencies received: Their services were no longer needed. (Mandavilli and Anthes, 2/19)

NPR: Trump Administration Terminates CDC Flu Vaccine Campaign
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is stopping a successful flu vaccination campaign that juxtaposed images of wild animals, such as a lion, with cute counterparts, like a kitten, as an analogy for how immunization can help tame the flu. The news was shared with staff during a meeting on Wednesday, according to two CDC staffers who spoke with NPR on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, and a recording reviewed by NPR. (Stone, 2/19)

MedPage Today: Federal Register Blackout Blocks NIH Funding
Scientists around the country fear that an apparent halt of the Federal Register's publication of meeting schedules for research grant reviews is an attempt to evade a judge's order that was supposed to lift the Trump administration's freeze on federal research funding. Pausing Federal Register notice publication means numerous NIH study sections and advisory councils — panels of subject experts who evaluate each grant application — can't meet to make decisions on those proposals. (Clark, 2/19)

Stat: AdvaMed Pushes Back Against Trump’s FDA Cuts 
AdvaMed, the medical device lobby, pushed back Wednesday on the Trump administration’s weekend firings of Food and Drug Administration employees. AdvaMed CEO Scott Whitaker sent a letter Tuesday to administrators at the Health and Human Services Department urging them to consider the terminations’ potential ramifications on patient health and medical device innovation. In a call with reporters on Wednesday, he noted that many of the roles were funded, at least in part, by fees paid by device makers to help speed the review of their products. Device companies have already noticed delays, he said. (Lawrence, 2/19)

Axios: Trump Appeal On Birthright Citizenship Order Rejected By Court
President Trump remains blocked from ending birthright citizenship in the U.S. after a federal appeals court ruling on Wednesday night. The big picture: Trump's executive order to end birthright citizenship is facing multiple lawsuits, including from Democratic attorneys general and civil rights groups who say it violates the Constitution. The case is likely to end up in the U.S. Supreme Court. (Falconer, 2/19)

Modern Healthcare: Dr. Oz To Divest Of Healthcare Companies If Confirmed To Lead CMS
Dr. Mehmet Oz has agreed to divest stakes worth millions of dollars in numerous healthcare companies, including UnitedHealth Group and HCA Healthcare, if he is confirmed as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. In an ethics agreement posted by the Office of Government Ethics Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead CMS said he would end investments in many companies within 90 days of confirmation. He also said upon confirmation, he would resign from numerous advisory positions he holds. (Early, 2/19)

Los Angeles Times: CHLA Hasn't Reversed Restrictions On Transgender Care For Youth
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is keeping its recent restrictions on gender-affirming care in place as hospital officials review decisions by federal judges to pause parts of Trump’s executive order targeting the use of puberty blockers, hormones and other procedures for transgender youth. In separate rulings, U.S. District Court judges in Baltimore and Seattle issued temporary restraining orders to put parts of Trump’s executive order on hold, including a section that directs federal agencies to ensure that hospitals receiving federal research or education grants “end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children.” (Alpert Reyes, 2/19)

CNN: HHS Issues New Definitions Of Terms Like ‘Sex,’ ‘Man’ And ‘Woman’ That Critics Say Ignore Science 
In one of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s first moves as secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, the agency released guidance Wednesday for the US government, external partners and the public that offers a narrower definition of sex than the ones used by many scientists and that aligns with a January executive order signed by President Donald Trump. The department also launched a website promoting these definitions and created a video defending a ban on transgender women participating in women’s sports. (Christensen, 2/20)

The New York Times: Nearly One In 10 U.S. Adults Identifies As L.G.B.T.Q.
Nearly one in 10 adults in the United States identifies as L.G.B.T.Q., according to a large analysis from Gallup released Thursday — almost triple the share since Gallup began counting in 2012, and up by two-thirds since 2020. (Cain Miller and Paris, 2/20)

Los Angeles Daily News: LA County Public Health Will Test Soil Amid Concerns Over Toxins In Eaton, Palisades Areas, Officials Say 
Los Angeles County will lead  “comprehensive” testing of soil in the burn areas, responding to concern of many residents about the potential of toxic materials to be embedded in the ground in the wake of the Eaton and Palisades fires, officials said on Wednesday, Feb. 19.As a part of the L.A. County comprehensive post-fire assessment, air, soil and water sampling and monitoring will be done by L.A. County Public Health, the department’s Director Barbara Ferrer said. (Van Der Brug, 2/19)

Los Angeles Times: FEMA Rejects Call By Newsom's Office To Test Soil After Fire Cleanup
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s chief disaster officer on Wednesday urged the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency to reconsider its decision to forgo post-cleanup soil testing for the Los Angeles County wildfires. The request drew a swift response from FEMA: No. (Briscoe,2/19)

Los Angeles Daily News: Deferred To Phase 2? Why The EPA Can’t Clear Some Burned Properties Right Away 
The Environmental Protection Agency is roughly 80% done with its Phase 1 cleanup during which the agency removes household hazardous materials burned in January’s wildfires. Phase 2, which involves the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, or a private contractor if residents so choose, removing debris from properties where Phase 1 removal has been completed, is also well underway. But for some properties, where there are risks deemed too dangerous for EPA employees, the properties are deferred to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Over 8,000 properties have been cleared by the EPA, while about 3,400 properties have been deferred directly to the Corps of Engineers. (Van Der Brug, 2/19)

Los Angeles Daily News: Granada Hills Residents Protest Over Taking Fire Debris To Sunshine Canyon Landfill
Granada Hills residents gathered to voice their opposition to fire debris from the Palisades and Eaton wildfires being taken to Sunshine Canyon Landfill, holding a protest near Van Gogh Elementary School on Tuesday, Feb. 18. Sunshine Canyon Landfill is one of seven locations proposed for storage of debris removed from properties burned in the Palisades and Eaton fires that devastated parts of Los Angeles in January. (Van Der Brug, 2/19)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Trying To Reduce Violence In Homeless Housing After Shooting
A month after a social worker at a subsidized housing complex for formerly homeless residents was shot in the face, San Francisco has adopted a policy designed to improve the safety of tenants and employees. The policy, launched this month by the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, requires city-funded permanent supportive housing providers to adopt and enforce a weapons policy that tenants must agree to through a lease addendum. ... [It] also requires providers to adopt and train employees on a workplace emergency plan that details how they will respond to serious incidents such as an active shooter. (Angst, 2/19)

East Bay Times: Concord’s Strict Tenant Protections Spark Controversy Ahead Of First Annual Review
Less than a year after Concord adopted a hard-won residential tenant protection program that outpaced similar state and local housing laws, some of its most strict regulations have reignited debate. Pablo Benavente, the city’s newest councilmember, is now caught in the crosshairs — facing accusations that he has prioritized landlords and property owners’ financial demands over efforts to keep lower-income tenants housed and safe. (Lauer, 2/20)