California Healthline

The United States has made almost no progress in closing racial health disparities despite promises, research shows. The government, some critics argue, is often the underlying culprit. Fred Clasen-Kelly and Renuka Rayasam report: https://lnkd.in/g6-h8rKa

Without national regulations on preventing heat-related illness and death, OSHA has difficulty, in general, protecting workers before it’s too late, said Paloma Rentería, a Department of Labor spokesperson. Laborers have suffered as summers have grown progressively hotter with climate change. But health policy and occupational health researchers say that worker deaths are not inevitable. Employers can save lives by providing ample water and breaks and building in time for new workers to adjust to extreme heat. A UCLA analysis of workers’ compensation claims in California suggests that a national heat standard saves money overall. Amy Maxmen reports: https://lnkd.in/gVjckHK2

The outcome of the upcoming presidential election could affect the number of insured Americans, the fate of premium-reducing subsidies, the shape of Medicaid, and the cost of coverage for tens of millions of people. Stephanie Armour reports: https://lnkd.in/gm5XMC8r

Toby Ewing, executive director of California’s Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission, is resigning amid an investigation into his conduct and revelations that he traveled to the U.K. courtesy of a vendor as he sought to protect state funding for its contract. Molly Castle Work reports: https://lnkd.in/gGi3hw9R

The director of a California state mental health agency traveled to the U.K. courtesy of Kooth, a digital mental health company with a $271 million contract to build a therapy app for the state’s youth. Weeks earlier, he pressed key legislative staffers to restore a proposed cut to Kooth’s funding. Molly Castle Work reports: https://lnkd.in/gcR7C-6v

Amid what has been called the fourth wave of the opioid epidemic, doctors and researchers are walking back medication-heavy methods of treating babies born experiencing opioid withdrawal symptoms, replacing the regimen with the simplest care: parenting. Taylor Sisk reports https://lnkd.in/gt9nw-z4

Patients who survive on IV nutrition are stranded in the hospital or running short on supplies due to hurricane damage and CVS business decisions. Arthur Allen reports ⤵️ https://lnkd.in/ggVjPFek

Eight months after the Feb. 14 shooting, people wounded at the Kansas City Chiefs parade are wary of more gun violence. In this installment of “The Injured,” survivors of the shooting say they feel gun violence is inescapable and are desperately seeking a sense of safety. Peggy Lowe, KCUR and Bram Sable-Smith report: https://lnkd.in/gfwMMR6d

This legislative cycle, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed bills affirming reproductive rights and mandating insurance coverage of in vitro fertilization, but the Democrat was reluctant to impose new regulations and frequently cited costs for vetoing bills. https://lnkd.in/eMupdWhJ

In a health care system that assumes older adults have family caregivers to help them, those facing dementia by themselves often fall through the cracks. Judith Graham reports: https://lnkd.in/gRjAZ7ad