San Francisco Chronicle: Covered California Open Enrollment Deadline Extended
Californians aiming to sign up for health insurance through the state’s Covered California marketplace have a little extra time, with the open enrollment deadline extended until Friday, officials said. Covered California extended the Jan. 31 deadline after seeing “record-breaking enrollment nationally” and high demand in the state for health insurance, officials announced last week. The new deadline to sign up for 2024 coverage is midnight Feb. 9, with coverage effective from Feb. 1. (Flores, 2/5)

Becker's Hospital Review: California Hospital Sale Called Off 
Arcata, Calif.-based Mad River Community Hospital and management company Southwest Healthcare Services have ended sale discussions for the hospital. The hospital shared that it was set to be acquired by Southwest Healthcare last May, with a final agreement initially expected last fall.  (Ashley, 2/5)

Becker's Hospital Review: California Hospital To Pay $2M To Settle Overbilling Allegations
Pomona (California) Valley Hospital Medical Center agreed to pay more than $2 million to resolve allegations it overbilled the state's Medicaid program for prescription medications. From 2016 through September 2021, Pomona Valley improperly charged higher "usual and customary" costs, rather than lower "actual acquisition costs," as required under the 340B Drug Pricing Program, according to a Feb. 2 Justice Department news release. (Cass, 2/5)

Berkeleyside: Berkeley FD Consultants Urge New Staff To Lower Response Times
A city-hired consultant recommended that the Berkeley Fire Department bring on new ambulances and medical personnel to staff them and keep more firefighters on the clock in order to shorten response times and respond to major fires. Some of the gear and people are in place, but the department is still looking for a new ambulance headquarters. (Gecan, 2/5)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Is Apple's New Vision Pro A Health Care Machine? Sharp Healthcare Thinks So 
It remains to be seen whether Apple’s latest innovations will have what it takes to usher in a new era of virtual reality in health care, but the new Spatial Computing Center of Excellence now getting underway at Sharp HealthCare in San Diego aims to find out. (Sisson, 2/5)

Axios: Pharmacies Are Struggling To Refill Their Own Ranks
Pharmacy retail chains staking their future on expanding the health care services they offer are running into a big problem: It's getting harder to draw the next generation of pharmacists amid turmoil in the industry. (Reed, 2/6)

The Washington Post: U.S. Rules On Donated Transplant Organs To Be Tightened
The U.S. government is moving to tighten a regulation for the collection of human pancreases for research after a Senate committee and others complained the rule was being exploited by groups that also procure kidneys, hearts, livers and other organs for transplant. A rule issued in 2020 allows the nation’s 56 nonprofit organ procurement organizations to collect human pancreases for research and count them toward benchmarks they must meet so they can retain government certification to operate. (Bernstein, 2/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: New California Bill Would Legalize Magic Mushrooms In One Setting
State Sen. Scott Wiener will make a third attempt to legalize the use of psilocybin, colloquially known as magic mushrooms, in California — but this time with a much narrower proposal. Unlike his effort to decriminalize mushrooms last year, he thinks his new plan will survive Gov. Gavin Newsom’s veto. That’s because the new measure unveiled Tuesday, SB1012, co-written by Wiener, D-San Francisco, and Republican Assembly Member Marie Waldron, of Valley Center (San Diego County), is focused on using psychedelics under supervised treatment instead of trying to decriminalize them. (Garofoli, 2/6)  

San Francisco Chronicle: Silicon Valley’s Next House Member Wants To Rewrite Key Internet Law
Watch out, Big Tech. The next House member representing Silicon Valley wants to change a key piece of federal law that shields internet companies like X, Facebook and Snapchat from lawsuits over content their users post. That protection is considered the lifeblood of social media. The top eight Democratic candidates vying to succeed Democratic Rep. Anna Eshoo in her very blue district agree that something has to change with Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which was created in 1996, back when lawmakers shied away from doing anything that could limit the growth of the industry. Their unanimity is a sign that Eshoo’s successor won’t be a tool for the hometown industry. At least not on this issue. (Garofoli, 2/4)

The Daily Wire: ‘Completely Unjustified’: Medical Journal Retracts Major Studies Critical Of Abortion Pill Ahead Of Supreme Court Clash
Major scientific studies on the potential harm of abortion pills were retracted on Monday by their publisher, just weeks before the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the availability of such drugs. Three studies, including two on the potential harms of the abortion pill just, were retracted on Monday by Sage Publishing, an independent academic publishing company. The retraction notice states that an independent review of the studies was conducted due to a single reader’s complaint that the studies included misleading data and that the authors were affiliated with a pro-life organization, the Charlotte Lozier Institute, presenting a conflict of interest. (Le Mahieu, 2/5)

Reuters: California Ammunition Background Check Law Can Remain In Effect, Court Rules 
California can proceed with enforcing a law requiring people to undergo background checks to buy ammunition, after a divided federal appeals court on Monday put on hold a judge's ruling declaring it unconstitutional. A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel on a 2-1 vote stayed last week's ruling by U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez in San Diego holding that the background checks law violated the right the bear arms protected by the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment. (Raymond, 2/6)

Stateline: Gunfire, Screams, Carnage: As Mass Shootings Proliferate, Training Gets More Realistic
First responders and law enforcement agents have for decades used simulations to train for mass casualty events such as shootings or natural disasters, especially after the Columbine school shooting in 1999. But in recent years, as mass shootings have become increasingly common in the United States, the simulations have become more and more realistic. Now they feature visceral sound effects, trained actors, pyrotechnics and even virtual reality. The trainings also have become more and more expensive for public agencies. (Vasilogambros, 2/5)

AP: San Francisco Considers A Measure To Screen Welfare Recipients For Addiction
The Democratic mayor of San Francisco is pushing a pair of controversial public safety proposals on the March 5 ballot, including one that would require single adults on welfare be screened and treated for illegal drug addiction or else lose cash assistance. Mayor London Breed also supports a ballot measure that would grant police more crime-fighting powers, such as the use of drones and surveillance cameras. In November, she’ll face cranky voters in a competitive reelection bid. (Har, 2/5)

Times Of San Diego: San Diego Man Sentenced To More Than Eight Years For Fentanyl Sale That Caused Fatal Overdose
A San Diego man who sold fentanyl pills to a woman, leading to her fatal overdose, was sentenced Monday to 97 months in prison.29-year-old Derek Neal Turfler pleaded guilty to selling pills to Faithe Sioban Thogode, 27, who fatally overdosed on May 9, 2022. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that Turfler knew that Thogode victim was going through a relapse, worked at a drug and alcohol treatment center, and had just celebrated five years of sobriety. Prosecutors say Turfler was himself an addict and thus knew the dangers of fentanyl, yet still sold Thogode the pills. (Binkowski, 2/5)

AP: The Effect Of Police Violence On Black Americans' Health Is Documented In 2 New Studies
The effect of police violence on Black Americans is tracked in two new studies, with one tying police-involved deaths to sleep disturbances and the other finding a racial gap in injuries involving police use of Tasers. The health effects of police violence on Black people “need to be documented as a critical first step to reduce these harms,” three editors of JAMA Internal Medicine wrote in an editorial published Monday with the studies. (Johnson, 2/5)

Bloomberg: A Growing Climate Threat Is Putting Californians’ Health At Risk
Californians exposed to both extreme heat and wildfire smoke on the same day run a greater risk of hospitalization for cardiorespiratory illness than from either threat alone, according to a new study. (Woody, 2/5)

CalMatters: Northern California Cannabis Grower To Pay $750,000 For Violating State Water, Wildlife Regulations
A Humboldt County cannabis grower has agreed to pay $750,000, remove unpermitted ponds and restore streams and wetlands after state officials accused him of  violating regulations protecting water supplies, wildlife and waterways. (Becker, 2/6)

San Francisco Chronicle: More UC Students Identify As Nonbinary Or Trans, New Enrollment Data Shows
over the past four years, the number of undergraduate students identifying as transgender or nonbinary has climbed dramatically, though they remain a small percentage of the campus population. Those shifts are reflected across much of the University of California system. The number of undergraduate students identifying as nonbinary on all UC campuses rose by more than 2,000 from 2019 to 2023, according to demographic data released last month. UC changed how it collects gender data last year, consolidating “nonbinary,” “genderqueer” and “gender non-conforming” into one “nonbinary” category. Even taking into account that shift, the number and percentage of students identifying as trans or nonbinary increased significantly. (Allday and Stiefel, 2/6)

Times Of San Diego: 54-Year-Old San Diego Central Jail Inmate Dies After Suffering Medical Emergency 
A 54-year-old inmate was stricken by an unidentified medical emergency at San Diego Central Jail over the weekend and died a short time later, authorities reported Monday. A deputy and a nurse realized that the man needed medical care as they were handing out medication in a housing area at the Front Street detention facility about 10 a.m. Sunday, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. (Ireland, 2/5)

Los Angeles Times: An Ex-NFL Player Died In Custody. His Grieving Family Demands To Know What Happened
Painstakingly, snippet by snippet, the parents of former NFL and Stanford football player Stanley Tobias Wilson Jr. collect information about the last day of their son’s life. It’s agonizing work. Wilson had been locked up for more than five months at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles after he’d entered a home in the Hollywood Hills during a psychotic break. On Feb. 1, 2023, he was transported by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies to Metropolitan State Hospital in Norwalk for psychiatric treatment. (Henson, 2/6)

Roll Call: GOP Lawmakers Argue Pandemic Treaty Threatens US Sovereignty 
The World Health Organization is rushing to finalize a treaty to prevent and combat future pandemics, but some House Republicans say the U.S. should not be a part of the global accord, arguing that the health group is infringing on the rights of American taxpayers. They’re concerned that the treaty will result in U.S. taxpayer dollars going toward abortion. They’re also concerned about threats to U.S. intellectual property rights The sentiment underscores a large and growing Republican mistrust in the international body. (Cohen, 2/5)

Stat: Supreme Court To Hear If Covid Misinformation Is Protected Speech
As social media sites were flooded with misleading posts about vaccine safety, mask effectiveness, Covid-19’s origins and federal shutdowns, Biden officials urged platforms to pull down posts, delete accounts, and amplify correct information. Now the Supreme Court could decide whether the government violated Americans’ First Amendment rights with those actions — and dictate a new era for what role, if any, officials can play in combating misinformation on social media. (Owermohle, 2/6)

CNN: Respiratory Virus Season In The US Isn’t Over Yet
After a few weeks of decline, some measures show that flu activity is starting to pick up again and respiratory virus levels remain high overall in the United States. During the week ending January 27, more than 82,000 people who visited an emergency department were diagnosed with influenza, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — an 8% bump, or about 6,000 more than the week before. The test positivity rate for flu also ticked up in the US overall. (McPhillips, 2/5)

CBS News: COVID Variant JN.1 Now More Than 90% Of Cases In U.S., CDC Estimates 
Close to all new COVID-19 cases in the United States are now being caused by the JN.1 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, with an estimated 93.1% of infections now blamed on the highly mutated strain. The CDC's latest biweekly estimate of the variant's spread was published Friday. It comes as key trends reflecting COVID-19's spread are now showing signs of slowing, following a peak over the winter holidays. (Tin, 2/5)

The New York Times: Alternating Arms For Vaccines May Boost Your Immunity, Study Says 
If you’ve presented the same arm for every dose of a particular vaccine, you may want to reconsider. Alternating arms may produce a more powerful immune response, a new study suggests. The researchers studied responses to the first two doses of Covid-19 vaccines. Those who alternated arms showed a small increase in immunity over those who got both doses in the same arm. For individuals who respond poorly to vaccines because of age or health conditions, even a small boost may turn out to be significant, the researchers said. (Mandavilli, 2/6)

CBS News: A Mild Case Of COVID-19 May Cause People To Lose Sleep, Study Says
A new study finds that having even a mild case of COVID-19 could cause you to lose sleep. Insomnia has been associated with COVID among hospitalized patients, but a team of researchers in Vietnam wanted to know whether it also affected people with mild illness. They looked at more than a 1,000 adults who had COVID within the past six months, but did not need to be hospitalized. They found that 76% of them reported experiencing insomnia. (Marshall, 2/5)

The Atlantic: Flu Shots Need To Stop Fighting ‘Something That Doesn’t Exist’
In Arnold Monto’s ideal vision of this fall, the United States’ flu vaccines would be slated for some serious change—booting a major ingredient that they’ve consistently included since 2013. ... To include it again now, Monto, an epidemiologist and a flu expert at the University of Michigan, told me, would mean vaccinating people “against something that doesn’t exist.” That probably nonexistent something is Yamagata, a lineage of influenza B viruses that hasn’t been spotted by global surveyors since March of 2020, shortly after COVID mitigations plummeted flu transmission to record lows. (Wu, 2/5)

NBC News: How The Anti-Vaccine Movement Is Downplaying The Danger Of Measles
As outbreaks of measles spread throughout the world, anti-vaccine activists aren’t just urging people not to get vaccinated — they’re taking a page from a well-worn playbook, falsely downplaying the dangers from the highly contagious respiratory disease. ... But national health agencies warn the fear of measles is well-founded. ... For every 1,000 cases of  measles, about 200 children may be hospitalized, 50 may get pneumonia, one child may develop brain swelling along with deafness or disability, and between one and three may die. (Zadrozny, 2/5)