San Diego Union-Tribune: Palomar Health Exec Ranks High In State Special District Pay
The top executive at Palomar Health District earned more than $841,200 in wages last year, making him the fourth-highest-paid special district employee in the state, according to 2105 data. The CEO, Robert A. Hemker, was one of three employees at special districts in San Diego County to be paid more than $500,000 last year, according to data compiled by the state controller and the open government group Transparent California. The three — two Palomar Health executives and the chief executive officer for Tri-City Hospital District — were among the 14 special district employees throughout the state to crack the half-million-dollar pay mark. (Cook, 11/21)

In other hospital news —

KPBS Public Media: High-Tech Jacobs Medical Center Opens In La Jolla 
It's a hospital: the Jacobs Medical Center opened in La Jolla becoming the latest addition to the UC San Diego Health system. The new hospital stands 10 stories tall and is filled with the latest state-of-the-art medical equipment. The high-tech experience starts when you walk in the door; instead of checking in with a receptionist, you check in with a machine that resembles an automatic teller. (Goldberg, 11/21)

Los Angeles Times: Why Your Doctor Might Start Grocery Shopping With You
A mother and her teenage son approach Ana Cristina Jurczyk near the entrance of a Food 4 Less grocery store in Anaheim. Boxes of Cheetos and Frosted Flakes are stacked to the ceiling next to them. The mother explains to Jurczyk, a registered dietitian, that her son wants to vomit when he eats vegetables. “That’s probably psychological,” says Jurczyk, smiling. (Karlamangla, 11/22)

In other public health news —

Capital Public Radio/KXJZ: People With Sleep Apnea Are At Increased Risk Of Cardiovascular Disease 
People with sleep apnea can experience changes in their blood pressure in as little as six hours after falling asleep. That's the finding of a study from The University of British Columbia. Glen Foster is principal investigator for the study. He says people with sleep apnea are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, primarily hypertension. He also says these risks are higher in people with other health conditions. (Johnson, 11/21)

KPBS Public Media: San Diego Chemist On Globetrotting Trip To Study Surfers' Microbiomes
Surfers spend a lot of their time in the ocean and a UC San Diego doctoral student is on a worldwide trek to find out how much of the ocean winds up in surfers. Cliff Kapono, a chemistry Ph.D. candidate, is launching the Surfer Biome Project to collect samples of the chemicals and microorganisms on surfers' skin and in their guts. He left for England in September and will visit Spain, Morocco, Chile, Indonesia and Hawaii before returning to California in June. (Cavanaugh and Lipkin, 11/21)

Sacramento Bee: More California Seniors Are Treated For Falls 
Across California, more seniors are winding up in hospital emergency rooms after taking a tumble, hitting a high of more than 232,000 last year, according to new statewide data. That’s no surprise to Wendi Skala, trauma injury prevention coordinator for Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento. “The numbers are going up and up because our population is aging,” she said. “As baby boomers go into their older adult years, the things that make them susceptible to falls just multiply. It’s a huge problem.” (Buck, 11/21)

The New York Times: Telling Mosquitoes Apart With A Cellphone
Simple cellphones can tell one type of mosquito from another by their hums, which may be useful in fighting mosquito-borne diseases, according to new research from Stanford University. Calling their project “Shazam for Mosquitoes,” after the phone app that identifies music, students from the university’s Bio-X institute showed that common cellphones could record mosquito wing beats accurately enough to distinguish, for example, Culex mosquitoes, which spread West Nile virus, from Aedes mosquitoes, which spread Zika. (McNeil, 11/21)

In other Zika news —

The Mercury News: California Public Health Officials Say Travel To Mexico, Latin America, Comes With Risk Of Zika Virus
If you’re heading down to Mexico for the holidays, California public health officials are warning travelers to protect themselves from mosquito bites in areas with known transmission of the Zika virus. State public health officer Dr. Karen Smith said many areas of Mexico are afflicted with the virus, particularly popular tourist destinations such as Cancun, Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, Ixtapa, and Mazatlan. (Seipel, 11/21)

The Wall Street Journal: Some In Marijuana Industry Fear Jeff Sessions Will Hinder — Or Reverse — Legalization Trend
Seven states passed ballot initiatives easing marijuana laws this year, four of them legalizing it for recreational use. But some in the nascent, if growing marijuana industry fear President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions for attorney general will hinder progress toward legalization. (Kite, 11/21)

Orange County Register: Costa Mesa Detox Center Could Permanently Lose License After Patient Death 
The state Department of Health Care Services is seeking to revoke the license of Costa Mesa substance abuse facility Pacific Coast Detox, after a patient died at the center and staff allegedly falsified his medical records. State spokeswoman Carol Sloan said the facility’s license has been suspended pending the outcome of a revocation hearing, which was requested by Pacific Coast. A date has not yet been set. (Perkes, 11/21)

In other health care news from across the state —

KPBS Public Media: Two Tuberculosis Cases Reported At San Diego County Schools 
Two cases of tuberculosis in which others may have been exposed were reported Monday by the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency at high schools in National City and Tierrasanta. The period of possible exposure at Sweetwater High in National City was from July 20 to Oct. 25, according to the HHSA. Free testing for students and staff will take place Nov. 29 on campus. (11/21)

Orange County Register: Five Questions With CSUF Speech Language Hearing Student Leader Shay Gasperian 
With 220 Cal State Fullerton students involved in the university’s National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) chapter, the on-campus Speech and Hearing Clinic and Center for Children Who Stutter are hardly at a shortage of student volunteers and assistants. The gold-accredited CSUF NSSLHA chapter – founded in 1972 – is one of more than 320 college and university chapters in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Greece, Israel and Saudi Arabia. (Marcos, 11/21)

The Associated Press: House Seeks Delay In Health Law Appeal Pending New President
The Republican-led House of Representatives is asking the federal appeals court in Washington to delay consideration of a case involving the Obama health care law because Donald Trump has pledged to repeal and replace it when he becomes president. The House won a ruling in U.S. district court that held the administration is illegally subsidizing medical bills for millions of people while ignoring congressional power over government spending. (11/21)

In other news related to Donald Trump and the health law —

NPR: Trump Health Overhaul Could Follow Paul Ryan's Playbook
Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are vowing to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, the signature health care overhaul of President Obama. Trump has offered a few ideas of where he'd like to see a health care overhaul go, such as a greater reliance on health savings accounts, but he hasn't provided a detailed proposal. The absence of specifics on health care from the president-elect makes the 37-page plan that Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has released the fullest outline of what Republicans would like to replace Obamacare. Some health policy analysts say it looks a bit like Obamacare light. (Kodjak, 11/21

The Associated Press: For Trump And GOP, 'Obamacare' Repeal Is Complex And Risky
Here's the idea: Swiftly pass a repeal of President Barack Obama's health care law, perhaps soon enough for Donald Trump to sign it the day he takes the presidential oath. Then approve legislation restructuring the nation's huge and convoluted health care system — despite Republican divisions, Democratic opposition and millions of jittery constituents. What could go wrong? (Fram, 11/22)

The Wall Street Journal: Uncertainty Ahead For Health Insurer Started By Kushner’s Brother
For health insurance startup Oscar Insurance Corp., the election of Donald Trump could be a tough pill to swallow, complicated by ownership ties to the incoming administration that will put it under a bright spotlight. The New York company built its business on the Affordable Care Act, the health law that Mr. Trump and congressional Republicans have vowed to dismantle. Josh Kushner, brother of Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, is a co-founder, and prominent Trump supporter Peter Thiel is among Oscar’s main investors. (Winkler and Wilde Mathews, 11/21)

Fiscal Times: Pelosi Warns Trump And Ryan Are Overplaying Their Hands On Medicare
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi vowed on Monday to lead the fight to defeat any GOP effort to overhaul and cut Medicare. The veteran California lawmaker warned that President-elect Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan would be seriously overpaying their hands if they try to tamper with the nation’s premier health care programs for seniors. (Pianin, 11/22)

In other national health care news —

Modern Healthcare: Anthem, DOJ Attorneys Present Opening Statements In Merger Trial 
Attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice and Anthem laid out their arguments Monday in opening statements of a court battle over what would be the largest ever health insurer mergers in the country. The sides clashed over how to define the commercial insurance market and what the merger could mean for the future of value-based payment models. Anthem and Cigna are proposing a $54.2 billion deal that would scramble the health insurance industry by combining two of the “big five” national insurers. Two others—Aetna and Humana—are defending their own merger that is being challenged by the DOJ. That case will be heard next month. (Muchmore, 11/21)

The Associated Press: EpiPen Manufacturer Will Be A No-Show At Senate Hearing
Pharmaceutical company Mylan is refusing to testify at a congressional hearing next week on a settlement between the company and the Justice Department over its life-saving EpiPen. In a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee, an attorney for Mylan said company executives wouldn't testify at the Nov. 30 hearing because the settlement is a pending matter and the Justice Department would also not be attending. (Jalonick, 11/21)

Stat: Could The FDA Be Dismantled Under President Trump?
Has President-elect Donald Trump put a bull’s-eye on the Food and Drug Administration? It’s been less than a year since Robert Califf was sworn in as the Food and Drug Administration’s chief, but already the agency is facing post-election upheaval. Public health advocates are bracing for a seismic shift: a surrender of the agency’s rules for off-label promotion of drugs; the importation of more drugs from other countries; and fewer requirements for clinical trials — long the gold standard for determining whether medicines are safe and effective. (Kaplan, 11/22)