Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
California Governor Knocks Down Proposal To Open Safe Injection Site In San Francisco
The Associated Press: California Governor Rejects Supervised Drug Injection Plan
California Gov. Jerry Brown rejected legislation on Sunday that would have allowed San Francisco to open what could be the nation's first supervised drug injection site under a pilot program. Advocates of "safe injection" sites say the locations would save lives by preventing drug overdoses and providing access to counseling. (Har, 10/1)
San Francisco Chronicle: California Bill To Let SF Open Safe Drug-Injection Site Is Vetoed By Brown
The bill by Assemblywoman Susan Eggman, D-Stockton, would have created a four-year pilot program in San Francisco aimed at reducing opioid overdoses and encouraging users to go into treatment by giving them supervised facilities to inject themselves and ride out the high under clinical supervision. (Gutierrez, 9/30)
Los Angeles Times: Gov. Jerry Brown Blocks Plan To Let San Francisco Establish 'Safe Injection Sites' For Drug Users
Proponents say such sites help prevent fatal overdoses by offering access to clean needles, trained supervisors and referral to treatment programs. There are about 100 secure injection facilities around the world, according to a legislative analysis. (Mason, 9/30)
Los Angeles Times: A Mandate For Abortion Medication On UC, CSU Campuses Is Rejected By Gov. Jerry Brown
Gov. Jerry Brown broke ranks with Democrats and abortion rights advocates Sunday by refusing to require student health centers at California’s public universities to provide abortion medication by 2022. Brown, who vetoed a bill requiring the health centers to provide abortion pills during the first 10 weeks of a pregnancy, said those services are already available to University of California and California State University students. (Myers, 9/30)
Sacramento Bee: Abortion Pill Mandate For State Universities Vetoed By Brown
Gov. Jerry Brown on Sunday vetoed a measure that would have required public university student health centers to provide abortion medication by no later than Jan. 1, 2022. Brown noted in his veto message that “the average distance to abortion providers in campus communities varies from five to seven miles, not an unreasonable distance.” (Koseff ,9/30)
Reuters: California Governor Signs Gun Control Bills Into Law
California Governor Jerry Brown signed several gun control bills into law on Friday, including one measure that raises the minimum age for buying rifles and shotguns from 18 to 21. The new laws come seven months after a gunman opened fire with a semiautomatic assault-style rifle at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 14 students and three adults, the second-deadliest mass shooting at a public school in U.S. history. (O'Brien, 9/29)
San Francisco Chronicle: SF Pushing To Draft Policy On Extended Holds For Mentally Ill Homeless
On Thursday, Gov. Jerry Brown signed SB1045, a law giving San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles counties permission to create five-year pilot programs intended to reach people who can’t care for themselves. Now, lawmakers have to craft local legislation to create and implement those programs. (Fracassa, 9/28)
The Hill: California Governor Vetoes Ban On Smoking At Parks And Beaches For Third Year In A Row
California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) on Saturday vetoed a proposed ban on smoking at state parks and beaches for the third year in a row. Three bills passed by state legislators would have imposed $25 fines on the use of tobacco, marijuana and e-cigarettes at parks and beaches, according to the Los Angeles Times. The measures cited wildfire concerns and public health as reasons to ban smoking in those outdoor areas. (Anapol, 9/30)
