Los Angeles Times: Anger Over TikTok Video Of Santa Barbara Clinic Staff Mocking Patients
A group of healthcare workers in Santa Barbara were fired on Wednesday after a video apparently showing patients’ bodily fluids was posted on TikTok, according to their employer. The now-deleted post, made by a former employee at Sansum Clinic — a nonprofit outpatient care facility owned by Sutter Health — showed eight workers mocking what appeared to be the bodily fluid of patients on exam tables with the on-screen caption, “Are patients allowed to leave you guys gifts?” and “Make sure you leave your healthcare workers sweet gifts like these!” In one image, the medical staff are seen pointing and smiling at a spot with their thumbs up. The caption reads, “Guess the substance!” (Buchanan, 9/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: 109 Hospitals, Health Systems Earn AMA's Joy In Medicine Distinction
The American Medical Association has honored 109 hospitals, health systems and medical groups through its 2025 Joy in Medicine program. The Joy in Medicine program recognizes healthcare organizations for their commitment to  supporting physician well-being by reducing “system-level drivers of work-related burnout,” according to a Sept. 3 news release from the AMA. (Gregerson, 9/3)

CBS News: California Woman Used AI To Successfully Appeal Health Insurance Claim Denial 
A Bay Area woman received a nearly $2,000 insurance claim denial from her maternity stay two years prior. Stunned, she decided to fight it and said, at one point, the bill even came back with her toddler's name on it. That's when she turned to AI. (Nam, 9/3)

VC Star: Amgen To Build $600M Research Center In Thousand Oaks
On Sept. 2, Amgen announced that it plans to spend $600 million on a new pharmaceutical research and development facility at its main campus in Thousand Oaks. Construction is expected to begin soon, and the project will create "hundreds of U.S. jobs," the biotechnology company said in its announcement. (Biasotti, 9/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: From Cardiac Arrests To Childbirth: What Burning Man Doctors Saw
Burning Man medics treated nearly 1,500 people during this year’s festival, where dozens of people were transferred to outside hospitals, officials said Tuesday. Royal Ambulance, the Bay Area–based provider contracted to staff Black Rock City’s emergency facility, reported that its Nevada-licensed center, known as Rampart, cared for about 1,450 patients. (Vaziri, 9/3)

Los Angeles Times: UC Warns Of 'Distinct Possibility' Of Federal Funding Losses Beyond UCLA, With Billions At Risk In Spat With Trump
The University of California’s top leader has raised the “distinct possibility” that financial losses due to the Trump administration’s funding cuts could amount to billions of dollars and extend beyond UCLA to the entire 10-campus system, telling state legislators Wednesday that “the stakes are high and the risks are very real.” In a letter to dozens of lawmakers obtained by The Times, UC President James B. Milliken said the university is facing “one of the gravest threats in UC’s 157-year history” after the Trump administration cut off more than $500 million in grants to UCLA before demanding a $1.2-billion fine over allegations of campus antisemitism. (Kaleem, 9/4)

Los Angeles Times: Homelessness Has Declined In L.A. County. Funding Cuts Threaten That Progress.
There’s a long way to go, but the Los Angeles area appears to be making progress in its fight against homelessness. In the city, data show homeless people are moving into new permanent supportive housing faster. Countywide, there were 14% fewer people living on the streets than two years earlier, according to the 2025 count. Future progress could be much tougher, due in large part to a slowing economy that is reducing funding for homeless-services and programs. (Khouri, 9/4)

KQED: During Mental Health Crises, California Police Are Still First Responders. It’s Not Working
In August, a Richmond man called 911 for assistance: his brother, Angel Montaño, was armed with a knife in the family home, threatening to kill members of his family. “My brother became aggressive. He has mental issues,” Montaño’s brother, whose name has been redacted, told the emergency dispatcher in an audio recording released by the Richmond Police Department. (DeBenedetti, 9/3)

Los Angeles Times: 'Ketamine Queen' Pleads Guilty In Federal Court Over Drugs That Killed Matthew Perry
A drug dealer dubbed the “Ketamine queen” who provided the drugs that ultimately killed actor Matthew Perry pleaded guilty on Wednesday to several criminal charges in federal court. Jasveen Sangha, 42, was charged with conspiracy to distribute ketamine to Perry, whose struggles with drug addiction and numerous rehab visits were well documented and who died from acute effects of the drug in October 2023. Sangha supplied the ketamine the actor injected on the day of his death, according to the plea agreement. (Winton, 9/3)

Axios: Seniors Get Poor Treatment For Opioid Use Disorder: Study
More than 60% of Medicare enrollees with opioid use disorder are getting substandard care, according to a new study in Health Affairs. Opioid use is a growing health problem for older adults in the U.S. Drug overdose deaths for people age 65 and older increased 11.4% between 2022 and 2023, per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data — the largest increase of any age group that year. (Goldman, 9/4)

MedPage Today: Private Equity Acquisition Of Opioid Programs No Help For Methadone Supply
Private equity acquisition of opioid treatment programs did not appear to increase the methadone supply, according to a difference-in-differences study. While opioid treatment programs acquired by private equity firms had a "consistent differential increase" in methadone shipments (159.9 g per program, or 13.3%) during the 2 years post-acquisition relative to matched controls (P=0.007), the pooled increase was not significantly different from the pre-acquisition trend (P=0.214), reported Yashaswini Singh, PhD, of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, and co-authors. (Firth, 9/3)

ScienceDaily: Powerful New Painkiller ADRIANA Shows Promise In Ending Opioid Dependence
Japanese scientists have developed ADRIANA, a non-opioid painkiller that could provide powerful relief without the dangers of addiction. With successful trials already completed, large U.S. studies are now underway, raising hopes for a safer future in pain treatment. (9/2)

VC Star: California Sees Higher COVID-19 Levels During August, Data Finds
Central California experienced a “very high” COVID-19 test positivity level during August, one of several regions where the virus has been increasingly detected in recent weeks. (Barraza, 9/3)

Politico: Kennedy Prepares To Name New Vaccine Panel Members
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is considering appointing seven members to the new CDC independent vaccine advisory panel — many of whom share his skepticism of Covid-19 vaccines or the pharmaceutical industry — according to an internal list seen by POLITICO and confirmed by two people with knowledge of the list. The list of names — which was first made public by Dr. Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston — includes at least three people who have questioned the safety of messenger RNA vaccines against Covid. (Gardner and Gardner, 9/3)

NBC News: Senators Prepare To Grill RFK Jr. Amid Turmoil At The CDC And Vaccine Changes
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. heads to Capitol Hill for testimony Thursday, a week after Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez was fired and a series of vaccine-related decisions drew criticism from lawmakers, including Senate health committee chair, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. Monarez’s firing led several senior CDC officials to resign and fueled a staff protest outside the agency’s Atlanta headquarters last week. In a scathing editorial in The New York Times on Monday, nine former CDC directors called Kennedy “dangerous” and said his actions are “unlike anything our country has ever experienced.” (Lovelace Jr., Kamisar, Kapur and Thorp V, 9/3)

The New York Times: F.D.A. Official Overruled Scientists On Wide Access To Covid Shots
Memos released in recent days by the Food and Drug Administration show that the agency’s vaccine chief overruled staff scientists who favored widespread access to Covid shots, setting off a firestorm of criticism from lawmakers, state officials and doctors. Agency staff members had concluded that the F.D.A. should allow a wide range of age groups to receive the vaccines, citing high hospitalization rates among young children with Covid and saying that the virus’s evolution is “complex and remains unpredictable.” (Jewett, 9/3)

The Hill: New COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters Won't Get Rubber Stamp, FDA Commissioner Says
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary says the agency will not overlook anything in developing new guidelines for updated COVID-19 vaccines. “A lot of people report vaccine injury,” Makary told “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” on Tuesday evening. “A lot of people report complications, including children who have died from the vaccine. So, we can’t just be blind.” (Taub, 9/3)

The Washington Post: FDA Questions Safety Of Receiving Covid, Flu Vaccines Together 
The Food and Drug Administration is scrutinizing the common practice of giving coronavirus and flu shots together, signaling a reversal of years of federal guidance and a broader crackdown on administering multiple vaccines at the same time. Vinay Prasad, the FDA’s top vaccine regulator, recently announced that his team will require new clinical trials before allowing pharmaceutical companies to claim that coadministering multiple respiratory virus vaccines is safe and effective — a plan that was dismissed by outside experts as unnecessary and potentially counterproductive. (Diamond, Roubein and Sun, 9/3)

The Hill: Poll: Kennedy's Health Advice Distrusted By Many
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the face of the federal government’s health care policies, but a new poll suggests few Americans trust his advice when it comes to their own medical decisions. An Economist/YouGov poll released Wednesday found that 26 percent of respondents said that they at least “somewhat” trust Kennedy’s medical advice, compared to 48 percent who said that they distrust him. (Crisp, 9/3)

Bloomberg: Trump Pollster Briefed Republicans On Support For Vaccines
A Trump pollster briefed Republican congressional staff on Wednesday about polling that showed broad support for childhood vaccines even among voters who supported the president, according to people familiar with the discussions. Voters’ opinions were divided, however, on Covid-19 shots. The presentation comes ahead of a hearing with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday where lawmakers may question him about vaccine policy. (Cohrs Zhang, 9/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: This Low-Calorie Ingredient Could Be Contributing To Cognitive Decline
Some sugar substitutes, like those in diet soda and ultraprocessed snacks, could have consequences for long-term brain health, according to a study published Wednesday in Neurology. Scientists found the consumption of low- and no-calorie sweeteners was associated with faster cognitive decline. The new results are “at least a suggestion that this consumption is not (as) harmless as we think,” said study author Claudia Suemoto, a geriatrician at the University of São Paulo in Brazil. “Or a safer option to sugar, like we’ve thought before.” (Lee, 9/3)