CBS News: California Gov. Newsom On Right To Contraception Bill Failing: "Republicans Are At It Again"
California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a fierce response Wednesday in the wake of U.S. Senate Republicans blocking legislation protecting access to contraception nationwide. The Right to Contraception bill needed 60 votes to advance but failed with 51 votes in favor to 39 against. Only two Republicans voted in favor. (Ramos, 6/5)

The Hill: Biden Urges Congress To Restore Roe V. Wade Protections After Senate GOP Blocks Contraception Bill
President Biden doubled down on his push for Congress to codify the protections of Roe v. Wade into federal law, after Senate Republicans blocked a bill from consideration Wednesday that would have established a federal right to birth control. “@VP and I believe that women in every state must have the freedom to make deeply personal health care decisions,” Biden wrote in a post on the social platform X, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris. (Fortinsky, 6/5)

USA Today: Even Where It's Settled Law, Abortion Is Motivating Voters
A rallying cry from the left and potential political quicksand for the right, reproductive rights weigh heavily on voters' minds in 2024 – even in states with some of the highest abortion protections. “It's not affecting women at this point in Michigan,” said Amy DeJonghe, 54, of Dearborn Heights, Michigan. There are currently no gestational limits on abortion in her state. “But look at how it's spreading, it's spreading like wildfire," she said. "So, who knows. Today, we're protected. We might not be next month, or the month after.” (Woodward, Kuchar and Cullen, 6/6)

Politico: The Supreme Court Is Poised To Take One Of Biden’s Few Tools On Abortion Access 
The Biden administration has tried with mixed success to use a federal law to preserve abortion access in medical emergencies. The Supreme Court this month could make that work much harder. The administration has been telling hospitals that they’re required to perform abortions when a patient’s life or health is threatened — even in states with bans. But doctors, health care lawyers and abortion-rights groups say the president’s strategy has had limited impact, as many red states threaten doctors with prison for providing such abortions. Republicans in Idaho asked the Supreme Court to decide whether state bans or federal law take precedence. But the ruling, which could come as soon as Thursday, is unlikely to be the final word. (Ollstein and Messerly, 6/6)

The New Republic: Every Republican Who Voted Against Right To Contraception 
Here’s a list of every Republican who voted against the measure. (Jane, 6/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: FDA Advisers Back New COVID-19 Vaccine Formula To Tackle JN.1 In Fall
On Wednesday, a committee of vaccine experts unanimously recommended updating the COVID-19 vaccine for the fall to target the predominant coronavirus lineage in 2024. The Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted to instruct vaccine manufacturers to revise their formulas to target the JN.1 variant, which dominated during the winter wave in the U.S. It has recently been overtaken by descendants known as KP.2 and KP.3.  (Vaziri, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: Report: Positive COVID Test Not Needed For Long COVID Diagnosis
People do not need to have tested positive for the coronavirus to be considered for a diagnosis of long COVID, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine concludes. The report, produced by a committee of experts at the request of the U.S. Social Security Administration, aims to summarize what is known about long COVID, a complex condition that was estimated to affect more than 9 million people in the United States in 2022. (Alpert Reyes, 6/5)

CIDRAP: Report: More Than 200 Symptoms Tied To Long COVID 
Today a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine presents a number of conclusions about long-COVID diagnosis, symptoms, and impact on daily function, including that the condition can cause more than 200 symptoms, and that a positive COVID-19 test is not necessary to make a long-COVID diagnosis. (Soucheray, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: California 'Overdue' For Whooping Cough Outbreak As U.S. Cases Spike
It’s been five years since the last major outbreak of whooping cough in California, but the disease is on the rise. Nationwide, cases of pertussis, as the illness is formally known, are nearly three times higher in 2024 than during the first five months of 2023, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And in California, case counts “have been higher during the first several months of 2024 than in the prior several years,” the state Department of Public Health said in a written statement to The Times. (Castleman, 6/5)

NBC News: First Case Of A Rare, Sexually Transmitted Fungal Infection Reported In The U.S.
A sexually transmitted ringworm caused by a rare fungus has been reported for the first time in the United States. The case report, published Wednesday in JAMA Dermatology by doctors at NYU Langone Health in New York City, comes as clinicians worldwide increasingly say they’re having trouble treating fungal infections. (Edwards, 6/5)

CIDRAP: CDC: US TB Programs Are Making Progress In Preventing Spread 
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests US tuberculosis (TB) programs have made strides in identifying patients with TB and latent TB infection (LTBI) and in ensuring they complete treatment in a timely manner. The report, published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, examined the most recent 5 years of data from the National TB Indicators Project, a web-based performance monitoring tool that tracks the performance of state- and city-level TB programs. (Dall, 6/5)

The Washington Post: Man In Mexico Dies In First Known Human Case Of H5N2 Bird Flu Variant
A 59-year-old male resident of Mexico died after being infected with a bird flu subtype never before confirmed to have spread to humans, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. The man, who suffered from other underlying health conditions, had no known exposure to poultry or other animals before being formally diagnosed by a laboratory with the H5N2 subtype of avian flu. The case marks the first time a human has been confirmed to be infected with this subtype, and the first time an avian H5 virus was confirmed in a person in Mexico. (Cho, 6/6)

Reuters: No Evidence Of Person-To-Person Transmission In Fatal Bird Flu Case, Mexico Says 
There has so far been no evidence of person-to-person transmission of bird flu in the case of a man who died from the disease in Mexico, the nation's health ministry said on Wednesday. The man had several prior health conditions, the ministry said in a statement, and all people who had contact with him have tested negative. (6/5)

CNN: First National Look At H5N1 Bird Flu In Wastewater Suggests Limited Spread In US
Results from recent wastewater testing across the US suggests that H5N1 bird flu may not be as widespread as first feared. The data, released Monday by the nonprofit WastewaterSCAN network, showed detections of the H5 protein portion of the flu virus in sewage from 14 water treatment plants in five states, mostly in Texas and Michigan, suggesting that an ongoing outbreak in dairy cattle may largely be confined to states that have already been identified as having affected herds. (Goodman, 6/5)

The Telegraph: Why The Discovery Of H5N1 Bird Flu In Mice Is So Alarming
The discovery of the virus in mice is particularly alarming, as it significantly raises the risk of human transmission and further spread, say experts. Mice live in unnervingly close proximity to humans: they scurry beneath floorboards, hide in cupboards and roam our offices, larders and restaurants. Their excreta – urine, droppings and saliva – can carry and transmit a wide array of pathogens. “This brings the virus closer to human homes,” Dr Rick Bright, a former head of the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), told The Telegraph. “It increases the risk of direct exposure and infection.” (Cullinan and Nuki, 6/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Can't Say If Any Drug Users It Has Arrested Are Getting Treatment
A year after San Francisco launched a multi-agency effort to dismantle open-air drug markets in the Tenderloin and South of Market neighborhoods, it remains unclear whether arrests have led any drug users to engage in treatment programs. The Chronicle spoke to several unhoused people who use fentanyl and who were recently arrested or cited, all of whom said it had not affected their drug habits. (Angst, 6/6)

Times Of San Diego: Junior Seau's Nephew Pleads Not Guilty To Murder In Alleged Fatal Fentanyl Sale
The nephew of the late San Diego Chargers legend Junior Seau pleaded not guilty to a murder charge Tuesday for allegedly taking part in a fentanyl sale that led to a man’s fatal overdose. Micah Rodgers Seau, 31, is accused of providing fentanyl pills to 31-year-old Connor Gerhart, leading to the victim’s death on June 1, 2023. (Ireland, 6/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bill To Legalize Mushrooms In California Focuses On Three Counties
After seeing three previous efforts failed to legalize psychedelics, a bipartisan pair of California legislators are trying again to permit them for therapeutic purposes, this time narrowing their focus to helping veterans and first responders in three counties, including San Francisco. Republican State Senate Leader Brian Jones, of San Diego, and Democratic Sen. Josh Becker of Menlo Park will introduce legislation Thursday that will create a three-year psychedelic pilot program in San Francisco, Santa Cruz and San Diego counties. (Garofoli, 6/6)

Stat: Psychedelics Companies See FDA Panel Vote As An Opportunity For Growth
A day after a panel of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration expressed deep concerns about the use of MDMA to help treat post-traumatic stress disorder, companies working to develop other psychedelics said their optimism had not been dimmed — and that the concerns provided a clearer blueprint for what it might take to get such a drug approved. The advisory committee overwhelmingly voted that Lykos Therapeutics, which is seeking FDA approval for MDMA and therapist oversight, rather than just the drug itself, had failed to demonstrate that the therapy would be effective in treating PTSD. (Keshavan, 6/6)

San Francisco Chronicle: One In Six US Adults Use Cannabis — Most Therapeutically, Study Finds
One in six U.S. adults use cannabis, and more than a third who do are using at levels considered moderate to high risk for cannabis use disorder, according to a new study by UCLA researchers. The study, published in JAMA Network Open on Wednesday, found that 17% of adults who saw their primary care doctor for an annual wellness visit between 2021 and 2023 reported using cannabis in the last three months. Most, more than three-quarters of the patients, said they used cannabis to manage symptoms such as stress, sleep and pain. (Ho, 6/5)

The War Horse: US Military Contractors Exposed To Burn Pits Lack Care Access 
As an Army infantryman, Ernest Barrington was very familiar with the thick smoke and fumes that came off the burn pit at Joint Base Balad in Iraq. The toxic dust that wafted from the huge, open-air ditches where the military burned everything from tires and ordnance to medical waste and plastic would coat his skin and settle on the inside of his nose and under his eyelids. “You go to take a shower, it’s in the shower with you. So you’re cleaning your skin, and as you’re drying, the stuff is landing on your body. By the time you make it back to your room, you have the toxins right back on you,” he said. “Every day that you’re there, you’re breathing it in.” (Kehrt, 6/6)

Military.com: Veterans Crisis Line Experiences Brief Outage Due To Phone Carrier Technical Issues
Some callers to the Veterans Crisis Line faced difficulties Tuesday reaching the Department of Veterans Affairs directly through the service's "Press 1" option, an issue VA officials said was resolved within hours. The VA placed alerts across its websites and social media early Tuesday evening after learning of problems with the service, which officials said were the result of an "external issue" outside the crisis line's control and were specific to a technical glitch at a phone carrier's facility in Indiana. (Kime, 6/5)

Military Times: Enlisted Pay Raise, Abortion Ban Included In Panel’s Defense Budget
A House panel on Wednesday advanced plans to fund large pay raises for enlisted troops next year and ban the Pentagon from providing travel stipends for abortion services in their initial draft of the annual defense appropriations bill. The $833.1 billion measure would provide a 1% increase in overall spending for the military next fiscal year but likely faces significant changes when moving through the Republican-controlled House and Democrat-controlled Senate. (Shane III, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: How American Medical Institutions Helped Make D-Day A Success 
The beginning of the end of World War II occurred 80 years ago Thursday, when roughly 160,000 Allied troops made landfall in Normandy on D-day. The initial battle against some 50,000 armed Germans resulted in thousands of American, British and Canadian casualties, many with grave injuries. Who would care for them? By June 6, 1944, the United States medical establishment had spent years preparing to treat these initial patients — and the legions of wounded warriors that were sure to follow. (Kaplan, 6/6)

Sacramento Bee: Loaves and Fishes Doubts Sacramento Homelessness Count
Sacramento’s largest homeless service provider is questioning a new report that claims Sacramento’s homeless population has drastically decreased in the last two years. There are now an estimated 6,600 homeless people living in Sacramento County’s shelters, streets and vehicles, according to a new federally-mandated count released Wednesday. That’s 29% fewer total homeless people than volunteers counted during the preceding count in February 2022, and 41% fewer homeless people sleeping outside. (Clift, 6/5)

CapRadio: Sacramento County’s Unhoused Population Drops 29%, Bucking Recent Trends
Rows of RVs, tent encampments and other make-shift homes still line Sacramento County’s streets and sidewalks, as they have for years. But progress on the region’s vexing homelessness crisis is underway, according to a closely-watched report released on Wednesday. The county’s unhoused population dropped 29% over the past two years — to an estimated 6,615 people, breaking a trend of surging homelessness numbers, according to the 2024 Point In Time Count. (Nichols, 6/5)

LAist: Despite Promise To Judge, LA Isn’t Detailing How Homeless Dollars Are Spent
The judge was clear. He wanted a promise from top L.A. officials to give the public full transparency about how homelessness dollars are spent on specific city shelter programs, including Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe initiative. At a March hearing in federal court, Judge David O. Carter asked Bass and other leaders to commit to posting full invoices within two weeks — on a city website — showing how service providers have been spending the millions the city pays them through the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA). (Gerda, 6/5)

LAist: California's Big Plan To Get Help For People With Serious Mental Illness Is Off To A Slow Start
It’s been six months since Los Angeles County launched a new program aimed at getting more people with serious mental illness into treatment, but the number of petitions so far is much lower than expected. Known as CARE Court, the program that launched Dec. 1 allows family members, behavioral health workers, first responders and others to petition a court to step in with a voluntary care plan for someone living with serious mental illness, like schizophrenia. (Garrova, 6/5)

KVPR: A Heat Dome Can Bring Dangerously High Temperatures. What Is It?
Much of the Western U.S. is experiencing extreme heat this week — with temperatures easily topping 100. Blame a condition known as a heat dome. But what is it? If you want to visualize how a heat dome can trap a region in intensely hot weather, picture yourself making a grilled cheese sandwich. “It almost acts like a lid on a pot,” the National Weather Service’s Alex Lamers tells NPR. He’s the operations branch chief at the Weather Prediction Center. (Chappell, 6/6)

USA Today: As Heat Dome Bears Down On California, Maps Show How It Works
The heat is on for the California desert and much of the western United States, which are gripped in the nation's first heat dome of the year. (Loehrke, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: Worsening Heat Waves Threaten Health At Most Stages Of Life
As the planet continues its streak of record-breaking heat, the World Health Organization has issued urgent new warnings about the ways in which climate change is affecting the most vulnerable members of society at almost every stage of life. Pregnant people, newborns, children, adolescents and seniors are all facing serious health complications from global warming, yet the needs of each group have been largely neglected, researchers argue in a series of papers published recently in the Journal of Global Health. (Smith, 6/6)

Los Angeles Blade: White House AIDS Czar Talks To The Blade After Pride Blood Drive
Francisco Ruiz, director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, spoke to the Washington Blade by phone following the first-ever LGBTQ-inclusive Pride Month blood drive hosted on Tuesday by the White House Office of Public Engagement in partnership with the American Red Cross. “The Biden-Harris administration is really steadfast and committed to advancing the science, and the change in the FDA guidelines is a testament to that,” Ruiz said during the event, referring to the agency’s easing of restrictions last year on blood donation by men who have sex with men. (Kane, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: Poll: Americans Support LGBTQ+ People But Split On Some Trans Issues 
Americans broadly support LGBTQ+ people living as they wish, with large majorities backing same-sex marriage, same-sex couples raising children and laws to protect queer people from job discrimination, according to a new nationwide poll for the Los Angeles Times. The public offers less support for transgender and nonbinary people. And support for all LGBTQ+ groups drops among Republicans, people who identify as Protestant and those who don’t personally know anyone queer, the poll found. (Rector, 6/6)

Reuters: Alphabet Names Lilly Executive Anat Ashkenazi As CFO 
Alphabet named Anat Ashkenazi as its chief financial officer on Wednesday, turning to a top executive from drugmaker Eli Lilly to help steer the Google parent in the generative artificial intelligence era. Ashkenazi's departure from Lilly was announced earlier in the day. At Alphabet, she will succeed Ruth Porat, the company's longtime CFO whose transition to the role of investment chief was unveiled in July 2023 after years of strong growth. (Malik and Satija, 6/5)

San Diego Union-Tribune: San Diego County Renews Support For Legislation To Ensure Foster Youths Get Survivor Benefits
Former foster youths and advocates are cautiously optimistic once again, after San Diego County officials endorsed new state legislation that would ensure foster children whose parents have died receive survivor benefits when they come of age — rather than allowing counties to take those benefits. (Alvarenga, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: Before A Palmdale Baby Vanished, There Were Multiple Abuse Allegations. Why Didn’t Agencies Intervene?
Roselani Gaoa was accused of child abuse three times while pregnant with her youngest son, Baki Dewees. The boy was born on April 14. Less than three weeks later, he was missing and presumed dead. An investigation into the baby’s disappearance led L.A. County sheriff’s officials to search an Antelope Valley landfill last month. His father, Yusef Ibn Dewees, was charged Wednesday with murder and child abuse, according to court records. Gaoa is jailed in Utah on suspicion of aggravated child abuse. (Queally, 6/6)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Napa County Divvies Up $5 Million In Tobacco Settlement Funding To Support Community Health 
The Napa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved an award of about $5 million, split between 16 different nonprofit organizations, in an effort to support health across housing, senior transportation and food insecurity, among other areas. (Booth, 6/4)