State Highlights: Ohio Governor Targets ‘Gaps In Our System’ For Reporting Gun Sales; Remnants Of Florence’s Rain Continue To Plague Carolinas

Columbus Dispatch: Kasich Moves To Close Gaps In Gun Background Checks
Ohio Gov. John Kasich is moving to close background-reporting gaps that could permit criminal suspects and mentally ill individuals to buy guns — despite laws forbidding such sales. A group Kasich appointed to dig into Ohio’s submission of information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System used by federally licensed firearms dealers found several reporting flaws. (Ludlow, 9/24)

The Associated Press: Ten Days After Florence Came Ashore, Waters Still Rising In South Carolina
More than a week ago, pastor Willie Lowrimore and some of his congregants stacked sandbags around their South Carolina church to protect it from the fury of Hurricane Florence. They moved the pews to higher ground and watched anxiously for days as the nearly black, reeking water from the swollen Waccamaw River rose, even though the hurricane was long gone. Finally, before dawn Monday, the water seeped around and over the sandbags, flooding the sanctuary. (9/24)

The Wall Street Journal: The Most Dangerous Place To Bicycle In America
Trung Huynh used a marked crosswalk with flashing yellow lights when he rode his bike across busy, six-lane Park Boulevard in Pinellas Park, Fla., one morning in June. The 18-year-old didn’t make it to the median. A white Chevy Malibu going an estimated 45 mph slammed into him and his bike, police said. Mr. Huynh died at the scene. (Calvert and Rust, 9/25)

The Washington Post: Hospital ER Reports 161 Percent Spike In Visits Involving Electric Scooters
As injured electric-scooter riders pour into emergency departments across the country, doctors have scrambled to document a trend that many view as a growing public safety crisis. A detailed statistical portrait of that crisis won’t be available for another year, emergency physicians say, but some early samples are beginning to emerge. (Holley, 9/24)

The Washington Post: Case Of Legionnaires’ Disease At Upper NW Washington Retirement Home
One case of Legionnaires’ disease has been confirmed at a retirement home in upper Northwest Washington, the D.C. health department said Monday. According to the department, the disease is serious, but can be treated successfully with antibiotics. No information about the victim’s condition was available, and the victim was not identified. The case was confirmed at the Ingleside at Rock Creek Retirement Community, on Military Road, the health department said. (Weil, 9/25)

The Associated Press: 3 Deaths Found In Investigation Of Impaired Pathologist
A Veterans Affairs hospital official said Monday investigators have discovered 11 significant errors including three deaths in more than 30,000 cases originally seen by a fired Arkansas pathologist officials say was working while impaired. Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks spokeswoman Wanda Shull said those 11 errors constituted "institutional disclosures," which are mistakes in patient care that could or did result in "death or serious injury." Shull said those veterans and their families, including families of the three deceased veterans, have been notified. (9/24)

The Associated Press: Ken Burns Turns His Attention To The Mayo Clinic
After spearheading an epic, 18-hour documentary on the Vietnam War, acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns has turned to more personal subject matter — one that knows him very intimately, too. Burns tackles the famed Mayo Clinic in his next film, exploring the history of the innovative Rochester, Minnesota-based hospital that has been dubbed "The Miracle in a Cornfield." It has treated luminaries such as the Dalai Lama — and Burns. (9/24)

The Associated Press: Texas Prisons Often Deny Dentures To Inmates With No Teeth
Inmates without teeth in Texas are routinely denied dentures because state prison policy says chewing isn’t a medical necessity because they can eat blended food. Texas prisons’ medical providers approved 71 dentures to a state inmate population of more than 149,000 in 2016, the Houston Chronicle reported. It’s a sharp decline from 15 years ago, when more than 1,000 dental prosthetics were approved. (9/24)

Los Angeles Times: West Nile Virus Kills At Least 4 In California, Health Officials Say
At least four people in California have died of West Nile virus this year, state health officials said. The first deaths were reported earlier this month in Glenn and Yuba counties, the officials said. Two other deaths occurred in Placer and Yolo counties. On Monday, Butte County reported a West Nile virus death. The patient who died reported symptoms in August and was between 50 to 70 years old. (Parvini, 9/24)

Wyoming Public Radio: Flu Vaccine Fell Short Last Year, But Experts Say Getting Your Flu Shot Is Still Critical
The flu epidemic was especially deadly last year. And our region was no exception. Tens of thousands of people are estimated to have died in the U.S. from the flu virus last season, including a record high of 180 children. (Budner, 9/24)

Austin American-Statesman: Health Experts Push For Early Flu Shots To Prevent Epidemic
With the last flu season’s record death count of 49 in Travis County, local health experts say Austin residents should get the flu vaccination as soon as possible to avoid an epidemic. ...Dr. Philip Huang, the health authority for the city of Austin, said he was not aware of any recent flu cases in the Austin area this season but he recommended that residents, especially children and people 65 or older, take precautions and get the flu vaccine by Oct. 1. (Mendez, 9/24)

Iowa Public Radio: Northwest Iowa Town Asks Residents To Conserve Water After Heavy Rain Affects Water System
High water pressure caused a City of Paullina water line to burst last week. The line feeds into the city’s wells and water tower – the main source of drinking water for the city’s 1,000 people. Officials have since fixed and cleaned the line, but after testing on Sunday showed bacteria in the line, they’re cleaning it again. (Peikes, 9/24)

Des Moines Register: Des Moines Psychiatrist Bertroche Surrenders Medical License, Retires
A Des Moines psychiatrist has surrendered his medical license and is retiring, state regulators said. J. Patrick Bertroche, 51, turned in his license this month, the Iowa Board of Medicine reported. The board, which regulates physicians, said the action came after the agency “received information which indicates (Bertroche) suffers from a health condition which impairs his ability to practice medicine.” Bertroche paid a $5,000 fine to the state board last year, after regulators said he inappropriately pre-signed blank prescription orders for his staff to fill out later. Besides paying the fine, he agreed to attend a medical-ethics course. (Leys, 9/24)

Kaiser Health News: Parents Are Leery Of Schools Requiring ‘Mental Health’ Disclosures By Students
Children registering for school in Florida this year were asked to reveal some history about their mental health. The new requirement is part of a law rushed through the state legislature after the February shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. On registration forms for new students, the state’s school districts now must ask whether a child has ever been referred for mental health services. (Ochoa, 9/25)

San Francisco Chronicle: Explainer: What Is This “SF Mandates” Healthcare Surcharge On My Restaurant Bill?
San Franciscans may have grown accustomed — in a grumbling, resentful kind of way — to spotting an “S.F. Mandates” surcharge on the bottom of the check they receive from a restaurant. But it still comes as a surprise to visitors from other parts of the country. (Kauffman, 9/24)

New Hampshire Public Radio: Study Of Marijuana Legalization In N.H. Nears Completion
The commission studying marijuana legalization in New Hampshire will be making up to 50 recommendations in its report due November 1st. Just don’t expect an up-or-down vote to recommend recreational pot. (Tuohy, 9/24)

The Star Tribune: 'Doing Our Best': Health Care Arrives At Mpls. Homeless Camp
The street medical team is part of the first sustained and coordinated effort to bring medical care to the fast-growing encampment in south Minneapolis since people started arriving here in large numbers in early August. Alarmed by recent deaths at the camp and reports of communicable illnesses, an unprecedented coalition of local government agencies, American Indian tribes and private medical providers has joined forces to identify sick inhabitants and treat them on site. (Serres, 9/24)