Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Los Angeles Times: Homeless Mortality Is Down In L.A. County For The First Time In A Decade.
Health and homeless service officials hope the trend can continue as homeless programs face significant funding cuts. (Smith, 3/10)
CalMatters: Medi-Cal Cuts Could Strip Health Care From L.A.'s Homeless
Unhoused Californians risk losing Medi-Cal under new federal work requirements, threatening access to health care and housing support. (Hwang, 3/5)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: Homeless Shelters Are Full. Could Beds In Private Homes Offer A Solution?
A nonprofit is housing formerly homeless people, including many who are working to get sober, in residential neighborhoods. (Nelson, 3/9)
Imperial Beach News: Magnolia Project Food Pantry To Continue Operations
Despite the announcement earlier this year that the Magnolia Project food pantry would close on March 2, a solution has been found, and it will remain open, a relief to many. (Selgi-Harrigan, 3/6)
Los Angeles Daily News: A 110-Year-Old LA County Mental Health Complex Is Getting New Life
Six decaying, vacant buildings on the site of the 162-acre Metropolitan State Hospital grounds in Norwalk are being turned into a mental health treatment village with 162 beds for troubled youth and those experiencing homelessness. (Scauzillo, 3/6)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: Why Didn’t San Diego County Make The Governor’s CARE Court List?
The says region's per-capita numbers of petitions in 2025 didn't quite make the cut. (Sisson, 3/9)
The Mendocino Voice: Families With Missing Loved Ones Like Nancy Guthrie Face Ambiguous Loss. It Freezes Grief
Experts say families of missing people often experience “ambiguous loss,” a form of grief without closure. (White, 3/9)
Fox News: Blood Test May Predict Women’s Dementia Risk Up To 25 Years Early, Study Finds
A new UC San Diego study finds a simple blood test measuring p-tau217 could predict dementia risk in women up to 25 years before symptoms appear. (Rudy, 3/10)
The Desert Sun: Eisenhower Hospital Plans To Upgrade Emergency Room Trauma Center
Eisenhower Health is seeking to upgrade its Rancho Mirage trauma center to provide more advanced care and reduce the number of seriously injured patients who need to be transferred to other hospitals, most often Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs. (Coulter, 3/9)
CBS News: CBS News Investigation: Hundreds Of LA Hospices Have Multiple Indicators Of Fraud
A CBS News analysis of records for every hospice operating in Los Angeles County finds indications of fraud are growing. (Gold, Geller, Yamaguchi and Kates, 3/10)
The New York Times: Ex-Executive At Blood Filter Start-Up Is Charged With Covering Up Deaths
Federal prosecutors charged a former executive of ExThera Medical, a California medical-device manufacturer, with concealing from the government the deaths of two cancer patients who were treated with the company’s blood filter. Dr. Sanja Ilic, ExThera’s former chief regulatory officer, agreed to plead guilty and faces up to three years in prison, the Justice Department said Thursday. Prosecutors also entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with ExThera in which the company admitted that it defrauded and misled the Food and Drug Administration by failing to report the deaths. (Carreyrou, 3/5)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: Meet Sach Jain, The Entrepreneur Revolutionizing American Specialty Care
La Jolla resident leads Carrum Health, a fast-growing platform that helps self-insured companies save on medical procedures. (Sisson, 3/9)
Bay Area News Group: Californians Worry More About Surprise Medical Bills Than Housing
Californians worried more about unexpected medical bills than any other expense in 2025, according to a new survey by the California Health Care Foundation. (Stringer, 3/7)
Southern California News Group: 6-Year-Old Deaf Child Deported Without Due Process, Medical Devices, State Superintendent Says
A 6-year-old deaf boy who attended the California School for the Deaf at Fremont, alongside his mother and brother, have been detained and deported by federal immigration agents, according to California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. (Rivera, Hutchings, and Solanga, 3/6)
Los Angeles Times: 33 People Have Died In ICE Custody. Lawmaker Wants California’s Detention Center To Be Accountable
California state Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena) announced Friday new legislation that will institute fines and suspend or revoke state-issued licenses to immigration detention facilities when they fail to meet minimum health and safety standards. (Vives, 3/6)
CalMatters: San Diego County Sues ICE After It Blocked Health Inspection At Detention Center
San Diego County filed a lawsuit in federal court Tuesday alleging the Trump administration illegally blocked a public health inspection of the Otay Mesa Detention Center, escalating a dispute over oversight of the privately-run immigration detention facility near the U.S.-Mexico border. (Fry, 3/10)
CalMatters: Will California Restore Medi-Cal For Undocumented Immigrants?
A California senator is pushing to restore Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented immigrants after last year's budget cuts stripped their access. (Hwang, 3/9)
The Orange County Register: Disneyland Hazmat Incident Sends 7 Employees To The Hospital
Building materials used by a contractor produced a reaction backstage, according to Disneyland officials. (MacDonald, 3/10)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: County Warns Of Possible Tuberculosis Exposure At South County High School
Students, staff and visitors at Southwest High School in Nestor may have been exposed to tuberculosis last fall, the county warned late Monday. (Stephenson, 3/10)
NBC News: Oysters And Clams In 9 States Could Be Contaminated With Norovirus, FDA Warns
The Food and Drug Administration warned consumers Monday about oysters and clams that could be contaminated with norovirus and were sent to nine states, including California. (Li, 3/10)
VC Star: California Health Officials Urge Vaccinations Amid New Measles Cases
New measles cases were recently reported in two Northern California counties, leading health officials to urge vaccination. (Araujo, 3/9)
CNN: California’s Produce Helps Feed The Nation. Nearly 40% May Contain Toxic ‘Forever’ Pesticides
Nearly 40% of nonorganic fruits and vegetables grown in California contain traces of pesticides that are also PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” according to a new investigation. California supplies nearly half of the vegetables and more than three-quarters of the fruits and nuts eaten in the United States. (LaMotte, 3/11)
Bay Area News Group: Silver Alerts Surge In The Bay Area As Aging Population Grows
In 2021, there were 39 Silver Alert activations recorded across Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa and San Mateo counties, according to a data analysis by this news organization. In 2025, activations jumped 52% from the previous year, rising to 87 from 57 in 2024. (Matemba-Mutasa, 3/10)
Victorville Daily Press: Throat Infection Caused Permanent Paralysis For 13-Year-Old Hesperia Boy
A Hesperia teen's life changed after antibiotics caused 13 strokes. His family seeks donations for an "adaptive bike" for his recovery. (Mobley, 3/10)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: Rady Children’s Study Finds More Severe Trauma With E-Bikes
Researchers from Rady Children’s Hospital and UC San Diego presented preliminary findings at the Annual Meeting of American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in New Orleans last week that show how the greater velocities involved in e-bike crashes appear able to cause a broader range of trauma than was the case when pedal power was more prevalent. (Sisson, 3/9)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: UCSD Professors Wanted Money To Research Telepathy. They Turned To Jeffrey Epstein.
By the time Jeffrey Epstein wrote a $50,000 check to fund unusual research into the paranormal by UC San Diego scientists, they had already known they could turn to him for money. (Robinson and Robbins, 3/8)
