Archdiocese Of Los Angeles Settles Childhood Sex Abuse Claims For $880M
“My hope is that this settlement will provide some measure of healing for what these men and women have suffered," Archbishop José H. Gomez said. News from around the nation also includes psychiatric hospital changes in Maryland, meningococcal disease in Texas, and more.
The Washington Post:
Archdiocese Of Los Angeles To Pay $880M In Sexual Abuse Settlement
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $880 million to settle more than 1,300 claims of childhood sexual abuse. The sprawling agreement is believed to be the largest single child sexual abuse settlement with a Catholic archdiocese and comes after a state law provided a three-year window to revive past civil claims of sexual abuse involving minors. Some of the claims date to the 1940s, and the acts are alleged to have been perpetrated by archdiocesan clergy, lay people and religious order priests and clergy from other dioceses who were serving in Los Angeles, a letter from Archbishop José H. Gomez said. The Archdiocese of Los Angeles is the largest Catholic diocese in the United States. (Ables, 10/17)
The Washington Post:
Md. Health Secretary Says Changes Coming To Mental Hospital After Post Report
Maryland’s top health official told employees in a letter Wednesday that she is implementing reforms to address “critical deficiencies” at the state’s maximum security psychiatric hospital, a move that comes in the wake of a Washington Post investigation into chronic understaffing and violence at the facility. The letter from Health Secretary Laura Herrera Scott said that the allegations raised by the Post investigation were “of serious concern” to her and the administration of Gov. Wes Moore (D), and that officials were conducting a “top-to-bottom review and investigation into all aspects of policy and procedure” at Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center. (Mettler, 10/16)
Axios:
Native Healing Practices To Get Medicaid Coverage
Several state Medicaid programs will soon cover Indigenous healing practices used by American Indians and Alaska Natives under waivers granted Wednesday by the Biden administration. Native patients are likelier to trust traditional healing that's been used for generations, and may experience better outcomes if they're incorporated into their care. (Reed, 10/17)
AP:
Texas Man Set To Be First In US Executed Over Shaken Baby Syndrome Makes Last Appeals
A Texas man who could be the first person in the U.S. executed for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome is facing a lethal injection Thursday evening amid assertions by his attorneys and a diverse coalition of supporters who say he’s innocent and was convicted on faulty scientific evidence. Robert Roberson waited to hear whether his execution might be stopped by either Gov. Greg Abbott or the U.S. Supreme Court — his last two avenues for a stay. He is scheduled to receive a lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. (Lozano, 10/17)
Houston Chronicle:
Case Of Meningococcal Disease At HISD School
The Houston Health Department and Houston ISD confirmed Wednesday that it is investigating a case of a Bonham Elementary School student having meningococcal disease. KHOU reported a Bonham third-grader died Oct. 10 and parents were informed in a letter. It is unclear whether this is related to the meningococcal case under investigation. (Mizan, 10/16)
North Carolina Health News:
Advocates Push To Raise Tobacco Sales Age To 21
Solomon Wynn came down with bronchitis in the spring of his freshman year in high school. The family doctor tried antibiotics and steroids, but nothing worked. The football player became so weak that he couldn’t even walk to the bus stop, his stepmother said. A trip to a specialist at Novant Health found the source of his worsening condition — vaping. It had destroyed his lungs and weakened his heart, eventually leading him to collapse on Friday, June 16, 2023. By the time he got to the hospital, he was already brain dead. (Fernandez, 10/17)
KFF Health News:
Super Bowl Rally Shooting Victims Pick Up Pieces, But Gun Violence Haunts Their Lives
Twenty-four minutes before the mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory parade in February left one person dead and at least 24 people injured, Jenipher Cabrera felt a bullet pierce the back of her right thigh. The 20-year-old and her family were just four blocks from Union Station, in a river of red-shirted Chiefs fans walking toward the massive rally after the parade that warm Valentine’s Day. The bullet — fired by teen boys fighting in the street — thrust Cabrera forward. (Lowe, KCUR and Sable-Smith, 10/17)
Three Mile Island, site of the worst U.S. nuclear accident, takes steps to reopen in Pa. —
Reuters:
Constellation Orders $100 Million Transformer For Three Mile Island Restart
Constellation Energy has ordered a main power transformer for the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor it is attempting to restart in Pennsylvania, pushing ahead with work critical to the plant's revival, Reuters learned on a tour of the site on Wednesday. ... No modern U.S. nuclear power plant has been restarted after fully shutting down, according to regulators. Three Mile Island is largely known as the site of the worst nuclear power accident in U.S. history. (Kearney, 10/16)
