AP: Budget Office Says Trump’s Tax Law Will Add $3.4 Trillion To Deficits, Leave 10 Million Uninsured
President Donald Trump’s tax and spending law will add $3.4 trillion to federal deficits through 2034, the Congressional Budget Office reported Monday, a slight increase in the projection that takes into account the final tweaks that Republicans made before getting the legislation over the finish line. More than 10 million people will be uninsured under the law in 2034 because of the law, CBO found, an improvement from an earlier projection that found 11.8 million people losing coverage over the decade. (Freking, 7/21)

CalMatters: GOP Budget Bill Will Increase California Health Insurance Costs
Heather Altman quit her corporate job and opened an environmental consulting business in 2014 when the Affordable Care Act made it possible for her to afford independent health insurance. Her monthly premium for a platinum plan was $356. Today, Altman has downgraded to a gold plan and pays $1,147 per month. That’s a 222% increase over the past decade for less comprehensive coverage. Medical inflation has always outpaced general inflation, but early analyses project premiums will increase even more dramatically as a result of the reconciliation budget recently signed by President Donald Trump, and Altman is worried she won’t be able to pay for health insurance any longer. (Hwang, 7/22)

The New York Times: Disabled Americans Fear What Medicaid Cuts Could Do To Them
Medicaid is best known as a program for low-income people, but it is also a key vehicle by which disabled Americans of varying income levels receive health care that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive. June is one of about 4.5 million Americans who depend specifically on its home- and community-based care services, which often come through specialized programs known as waivers. That 4.5 million includes many older Americans who are on Medicare too but can’t get the home care they need through that. (Astor, 7/21)

California Healthline: Are 5 Million Nondisabled Medicaid Recipients Watching TV All Day? That’s Unsupported
Republicans defended the GOP megabill’s Medicaid changes as targeting a group of people they believe shouldn’t qualify: people who can work but instead choose to stay home and chill. Several Republican politicians and pundits, including CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings, pegged that group’s size at about 5 million people. (Tuquero, 7/22)

Los Angeles Times: California Sues Trump For Blocking Undocumented Immigrants From Benefit Programs 
California and a coalition of other liberal-led states sued the Trump administration Monday over new rules barring undocumented immigrants from accessing more than a dozen federally funded “public benefit” programs, arguing the restrictions target working mothers and their children in violation of federal law. (Rector, 7/21)

The New York Times: F.D.A. Panel Debates ‘Black Box’ Warning For Antidepressants In Pregnancy
Over nearly four decades since Prozac was approved for the treatment of depression, waves of concern about the effects of antidepressants during pregnancy have resulted in a practical consensus: Though use of the drugs may be associated with a slight rise in the odds of birth defects, the risk of leaving a mother’s depression untreated is often greater. But a high-level shift is taking place within the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has made reducing the prescription of psychotropic drugs a policy priority. (Barry, 7/21)

Military.com: VA Extends Deadline For Changes To Caregiver Program, Giving Longtime Recipients A Reprieve
The Department of Veterans Affairs has delayed its deadline for announcing changes to its family caregiver program, giving longtime participants who faced possible dismissal up to three more years of benefits. The VA announced Friday that the extension for veterans and their caregivers who are "legacy" participants under the original eligibility criteria has been moved to September 2028. The original deadline had been Sept. 30, 2025 -- the date the department had set to review the criteria that it changed in 2020. (Kime, 7/21)

California Healthline: Cuts To Food Benefits Stand In The Way Of RFK Jr.’s Goals For A Healthier National Diet
Belinda McLoyd has been thinking about peanut butter. McLoyd, 64, receives a small monthly payment through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, previously known as food stamps.“ They don’t give you that much to work with,” she said. To fit her tight budget, she eats ramen noodles — high on sodium and low on nutrition — multiple times a week. (Rayasam, 7/22)

CalMatters: How 'Endless' Insurance Reviews Threaten CA Mental Health Centers
The letter from Anthem landed on Bernadette Cattaneo’s desk on a sunny day in June 2023. Beginning later that summer, it said, the addiction treatment facility she ran in the rural Sierra foothills would no longer be included in several of the insurance company’s networks. Confused, she read it again. The move could bankrupt The Lakes, one of few facilities of its kind serving a region struggling under a national addiction epidemic. (Wiener and Lyons, 7/22)

Becker's Hospital Review: How 1 California Hospital Is Rethinking Maternity Care
As maternity care closures and OB-GYN shortages increase nationwide, San Jose, Calif.-based Good Samaritan Hospital is embracing a new approach to help tackle these challenges. The 474-bed hospital, part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, has adopted a midwifery-integrated model to help with care access and provider workload management. (Ashley, 7/21)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Workers To Stage One-Day Strike At UCSD Health Tuesday 
The work stoppage is set to begin at 12 a.m. and continue through midnight, with picketing at UC San Diego Medical Center in Hillcrest. In a statement, the university health system says that it has “detailed plans in place to minimize patient impact and maintain access to hospitals and clinics,” with all of its facilities “expected to remain open and operational.” (Sisson, 7/21)

Becker's Hospital Review: California Union Nurses Vote No-Confidence In Management
Members of the California Nurses Association at MemorialCare Long Beach (Calif.) Medical Center and Long Beach-based Miller Children’s and Women’s Hospital unanimously passed a vote of no confidence in the hospital’s administration on July 17, the union said in a news release. ... Union members contend that management has engaged in bad faith bargaining practices and disregarded what they say are failures in patient care standards. They specifically cited staffing levels, workplace violence and financial decisions among their concerns. (Gooch, 7/21)

Becker's Hospital Review: The Data Investments Moving The Needle At Health Systems
Two major health systems say their most valuable data-related investments this year are already making an impact — one through a custom AI-powered tool for clinical workflows, the other through a modernized enterprise data foundation. ... At Palo Alto, Calif.-based Stanford Health Care Nigam Shah, MD, PhD, chief data scientist, pointed to chatEHR as their most impactful tool. (Diaz, 7/21)

Becker's Hospital Review: Dignity California Hospital Names CEO
Austin Manning has been appointed president and CEO of Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Sacramento, Calif., part of San Francisco-based Dignity Health. He stepped into the role July 14. Mr. Manning most recently served as CEO of Timpanogos Regional Hospital in Orem, Utah, according to a July 17 health system news release. Under his leadership, the hospital expanded women’s health and pediatrics services, increased patient volumes and improved operational performance. (Kuchno, 7/21)

Stat: Sarepta Will Stop Shipping Elevidys, Duchenne Gene Therapy
Sarepta Therapeutics said Monday evening it will pause all shipments of Elevidys, its gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, acceding to a request made by the Food and Drug Administration after several patient deaths. It’s a surprising reversal by Sarepta. The company had initially rejected the agency’s request, which was issued Friday. (Feuerstein and Mast, 7/21)

MedPage Today: Study Cites Urgent Care Clinics For Inappropriate Prescribing
Urgent care clinics often inappropriately prescribed antibiotics, glucocorticoids, and opioids for common conditions, found a cross-sectional study involving more than 22 million U.S. patient visits from 2018 to 2022. For antibiotics, there were high rates of prescribing for "never appropriate" indications such as otitis media (31%), genitourinary signs and symptoms (46%), and acute bronchitis (15%), reported Shirley Cohen-Mekelburg, MD, of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and co-authors in Annals of Internal Medicine. (Firth, 7/21)

Bay Area News Group: West Nile Virus Detected In Contra Costa County 
West Nile virus was detected in Contra Costa County, the Contra Costa Mosquito and Vector Control District said Monday. (Gibbs, 7/22)

CBS News: COVID-19 Cases Are Rising In These States Amid Summer Wave, CDC Data Shows
The summer surge of COVID-19 is here, with data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing increases across much of the country. In its latest report, the CDC said the number of cases is now growing or likely growing in at least 26 states and Washington, D.C. COVID-related emergency room visits for young kids are also the highest they've been since March, according to the data. (Moniuszko, 7/21)

Newsweek: Thousands Of Workers Tried A 4-Day Week—The Impact On Their Health Was Clear
A four-day workweek with no reduction in pay improves both workers' health and overall job performance and satisfaction, according to a new study. Working norms were reshaped by the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago, making remote work a necessity for some amid lockdowns. But it also exposed widespread burnout and disengagement among workers across most markets. (Azzurra Volpe, 7/21)

The Bay Area Reporter: New Biannual PrEP Injectable Option Rolls Out In SF
Patients are already receiving the new PrEP injectable option lenacapavir in the Bay Area, though issues with insurance are complicating the process of getting shots. The new injectable was approved last month by the federal Food and Drug Administration. ... Lenacapavir, made by Gilead Sciences Inc. under the brand name Yeztugo, is the longest-acting HIV prevention method yet. While the other injectable option, Apretude, by ViiV Healthcare, approved in 2021, requires injections every two months, lenacapavir only requires injections twice a year. (Ferrannini, 7/21)

The Mercury News: Uber Accuses California Lawyers, Surgeon Of Faking Client Injuries To Inflate Medical Claims
Uber Technologies filed a lawsuit Monday, July 21, against two Los Angeles law firms and a spinal surgeon for allegedly conspiring to inflate medical claims against the ride-hailing service through fabricated injuries and unnecessary or overpriced surgeries. Uber is pursuing the suit against the Downtown L.A. Law Group, the law offices of Jacob Emrani and spinal surgeon Greg Khounganian under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, a law typically used to fight organized crime. (Henry, 7/22)

Los Angeles Times: Cedars-Sinai Doctors Develop AI-Powered Mental Health ‘Robot’ Therapist
Misty Williams checks into the emergency room at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center from time to time for treatment of debilitating pain from sickle cell disease, which causes red blood cells to stiffen and block the flow of blood. After pain medication and hydration are ordered, the 41-year-old Los Angeles resident makes an unusual request: access to a virtual reality headset with an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot that can carry on a dialogue with her. (Woodruff, 7/22)

The New York Times: First Pill For Postpartum Depression Shows Varied Real-World Results
Depression descended on Samantha Cohn about two months after her baby boy was born. He was thriving, but she became convinced she was a terrible mother. ... Clinical trials had found that the drug, zuranolone, marketed as Zurzuvae and taken daily for 14 days, can ease symptoms for some women in as little as three days, while general antidepressants can take weeks. For Ms. Cohn, its impact was swift and striking. On her fourth day of taking it, she said she suddenly “felt so much clarity in my head, like I didn’t have nagging thoughts about not being good enough.” Now, a year and a half after the drug became available, thousands of women have tried it, and their experiences have run the gamut. (Belluck, 7/22)