Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Over 500 California Schools Face State Audit Over Low Vaccination Rates
EdSource: 570 California Schools Targeted For Low Vaccination Rates
More than 500 California public schools are being audited by the state because they reported that more than 10% of their kindergarten or seventh-grade students were not fully vaccinated last school year. Schools that allow students to attend school without all their vaccinations are in jeopardy of losing funding. (Lambert, Willis and Xie, 9/10)
In other California news —
San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area County Rolls Out New Help To Pay For Prescription Drug Costs
County officials have announced they are widening eligibility for the program, called MedAssist, begun last year to help middle-income earners pay for diabetes medications, EpiPens and asthma inhalers. It gives enrollees checks or direct deposits of $34 to $500 a month, with the amount depending on income, annual health care spending and medications. ... The program and its expansion helps fill a growing need as Americans struggle to shoulder the rising costs of prescription drugs. (Ho, 9/8)
More health news from across the U.S. —
CIDRAP: CDC: More Than 2 Dozen Hikers Sickened With Norovirus On Pacific Crest Trail In 2022
Today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report authors published accounts of at least 27 cases of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) reported among hikers of the Pacific Crest Trail in August and September of 2022, suggesting a possible norovirus outbreak that sickened hikers who shared latrines and a cabin. ... "Twenty-one (95%) survey respondents who reported an onset date noted that they became ill within a 73-mile stretch of the Washington Pacific Crest Trail," the authors wrote. (Soucheray, 9/8)
AP: Voters In North Carolina Tribe Back Adult Use Of Marijuana In Referendum
Members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have backed overwhelmingly the adult use of marijuana on their tribal land, even as they await the opening of a dispensary for those who seek it for medicinal use. Unofficial results show that 70% of voters said “yes” Thursday in a referendum that opens the door to the western North Carolina reservation being the first location in the state where pot for recreational use can be legally purchased, news outlets reported. (9/8)
The Texas Tribune: Caregivers For Disabled Texans Will Lose Money After Pay Raise
Inside an Austin high-rise north of the Texas Capitol in August, tearful parents lined up for a state health commission meeting to beg agency officials not to increase caretaking wages. It would backfire, they said. They would lose their livelihoods. (Bohra, 9/11)
KFF Health News: Montana State Officials Seek More Control Over Judicial Involuntary Commitments
Inside the white-brick hallways of the Flathead County Detention Center, Jail Commander Jen Root walked up to a steel door with a small window and pointed inside. “She’s been here almost a year, just laying on her bed,” she said. Inside the cell, dimly lit by a single window, a woman was curled up under a fleece blanket, only her bright-pink fingernails sticking out. This woman was charged with burglary in September 2022, Root said. An evaluation after her arrest determined that mental illness prevented her from standing trial and that she required treatment at the Montana State Hospital, the state-run inpatient psychiatric hospital. (Bolton, 9/11)
The Philadelphia Inquirer: EPA Says It Failed To Take Action On South Philly Refinery Emissions
A government watchdog for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said the agency has failed to adequately enforce benzene emission standards at refineries, singling out the former Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) refinery, which continued to exceed emissions standards two years after a 2019 explosion and fire caused it to close. PES in South Philadelphia was cited as a case study for lax enforcement in a report this week by the EPA’s Office of Inspector General that called on the agency to “enhance oversight” to ensure refineries comply with benzene fence-line monitoring regulations. (Kummer, 9/8)
Houston Chronicle: Texas Refineries Cited For Benzene Emissions By EPA Inspector General
The Environmental Protection Agency is not doing enough to rein in benzene pollution billowing from oil refineries, the agency's Inspector General said in a report released this week. ... Benzene is a known carcinogen and can, in high concentrations, cause acute health problems such as dizziness and headaches. The report calls on the EPA to do more to monitor facilities that regularly exceed benchmarks and ensure adjustments are made. (Drane, 9/8)
