By Miriam Raftery

October 2, 2017 (San Diego) – The countywide hepatitis outbreak that has sickened hundreds of people includes several cases contracted in San Diego County jails.

That prompted criticism from Dave Meyers, a candidate running against Sheriff Bill Gore in 2018. Meyers, in an email sent to those on his distribution list, states, “Sheriff Bill Gore has ignored basic CDC standards for sanitation and disease prevention in the county jails and has managed them as if they are a solution to homelessness.  As a result, the county jails have served as an incubator for this epidemic.”

By Greg Dill, Regional Medicare Administrator

October 1, 2017 (San Diego) -- At a family reunion last month, my Aunt Abby and Uncle Glen got into a squabble over the best way to get their Medicare benefits.

Uncle Glen is an Original Medicare man, and has been for nearly a decade. Aunt Abby prefers Medicare Advantage, which is similar to a health plan she had before enrolling in Medicare last spring.

September 27, 2017 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• City, county officials blame each other for growing hepatitis A outbreak (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Tijuana Sewage Is Not Fueling the Hep A Outbreak, But the San Diego River Might Be (Voice of San Diego)
• By the numbers: San Diego’s hepatitis outbreak (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• First paralyzed human regains his upper body movement after treatment with stem cells (Ideapod)
• What will be Hurricane Maria's impact on Puerto Rico's drug industry? (Marketplace)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Brazil Declares it Won't Abolish Massive Reserve in the Amazon After All (NPR)
• Big Antarctic iceberg edges out to sea (BBC)
• What happens if police officer forces you to unlock your iPhone X with your face? (Jewish World Review)
• Equifax CEO steps down after data breach; he'll still get $18-million pension (San Diego Union-Tribune)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Washing hands for at least 20 seconds with soap is an important step you can take to prevent spread of Hepatitis A.

September 25, 2017 (La Mesa) – After the County’s emergency declaration over Hepatitis A,  ECM learned that eight cases have been reported in La Mesa and at least six cases in Santee. So we asked both cities what steps they are taking to  address this public health problem.

East County News Service

September 24, 2017 (San Diego) – As San Diego County’s hepatitis A outbreak continues to grow, here are some helpful fact sheets from the County’s Health and Human Services agency to help you learn more about how to stay safe and minimize your chances of contracting the potentially dangerous disease, including clean-up tips for sanitizing your home or office. 

September 20, 2017 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH 

• Chinese roulette: deadly illegal drugs sent by U.S. mail (KD Report)
• VA hospitals flooded with complaints about care (Boston Globe)
• Car-T treatment shows promise to be a real cancer cure (Healthline, by Jamie Reno)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Facebook under fire over Russian ads in election (The Hill)
• Equifax screwed up its data breach from nearly every angle (SelectAll)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

September 17, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) -- According to a California Health Alert Network bulletin, San Diego County’s outbreak of hepatitis A now includes  cases in La Mesa, El Cajon and Santee as well as unincorporated areas of the County, though cases have now been confirmed “in all parts of the County,” the report states.

September 13, 2017 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Hepatitis A Outbreak Declared Emergency in San Diego County (Patch)
• HIV Survivors Give Their 'Last Gift' in a New San Diego Study (KPBS)
• Drinks industry distorts alcohol cancer risk: scientists (Reuters)
• Security warning over hospital syringe pumps (BBC)
• So Your Kitchen Sponge is a Bacteria Hotbed. Here's What to Do (NPR)
• R&D Costs for Cancer Drugs Are Likely Much Less Than Industry Claims, Study Finds (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Russian firm tied to pro-Kremlin propaganda advertised on Facebook during election (Washington Post)
• Hurricane Irma Blasts into the Record Books with Lasting Intensity (NPR)
• 4 Things You Should Do About the Equifax Hack (New York Times)
• Clothes that grow with your child win Dyson prize (BBC)
• Tesla remotely expanded car batteries near Irma’s path, questions linger (NPR)
• 'No fire risk' with new lithium batteries (BBC)
• How Tech Giants Use Their Power to Advance Corporate Interests (NPR)
• 'Quakeland' Warns the U.S. is Unprepared for the Next Big Quake (KPBS)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

September 6, 2017 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Triple Threat: New Pneumonia Is Drug-Resistant, Deadly and Contagious (NPR)
• Advertising cost for Obamacare to be cut by 90%: U.S. health agency (Reuters)
• FDA Approves First Gene Therapy for Leukemia (NPR)
• Cyber-flaw affects 745,000 pacemakers (BBC)
• Hookworm, a disease of extreme poverty, is thriving in the U.S. south. Why?  (Guardian)
• More Evidence That Everything the Government Teaches Us About Eating is Wrong (Reason)
• New research examines avocados’ potential impact on cognitive health in older adults (EurekaAlert)

SCIENCE & TECH

• Monster black hole discovered near center of Milky Way (Newsweek)
• How Technology Helped Rescuers (NPR)
• LinkedIn loses a court fight over users' public profiles: Why this is very BIG (Jewish World Review)
• Coral Reef Fish Are More Resilient Than We Thought, Study Finds (NPR)
• Scientists and astronauts join forces to create world's deepest coral farm (BBC)
• Northern lights linked to North Sea whale strandings (BBC)Footprint find on Crete may push back date humans began to walk upright (News.com.au)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

East County News Service

September 5, 2017 ( La Mesa) – The volunteer citizens group monitoring the spending of millions of dollars in public funds for new and improved patient care facilities at Sharp Grossmont Hospital has a new member. James Sly, vice president and chief operations officer of the San Diego East County Economic Development Council (ECEDC), has joined the Independent Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (ICBOC). The Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD), the public agency managing the bond-financed construction at the hospital, recently approved the appointment of Sly to the ICBOC.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo:  Jaundice, or yellowed eyes and skin, is one tell-tale sign of Hepatitis.

September 3, 2017 (San Diego) – The Joint Legislative Audit Committee on Thursday approved by a 10-3 vote auditing San Diego County’s Health and Human Service Agency for what Service Employees International calls “dangerously low staffing levels of public nurses.”  

Improvements proposed after ECM investigative series on ambulance response times in unincorporated areas

By Kendra Sitton

August 30, 2017 (Crest) — Last week, County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Administrator Andy Parr met with local communities to ask for input on EMS’s plan to improve ambulance service to the rural parts of San Diego because "the status quo of 30 min is no longer acceptable."

The updated plan goes before the Board of Supervisors on Oct. 10. If approved, when the contracts of the three ambulance companies expire in the next few years, they will have to comply with the new plan which will shorten response time.

The actions follow a five-part special series by East County Magazine published  in 2015, investigating slow ambulance response times in some unincorporated areas and changes in county ambulance providers. (See links to our five-part series at the bottom of this article.)

East County News Service

August 31, 2017 (Houston) -- Supplemental Health Care is working with multiple hospitals in Houston and surrounding flooded areas in southeastern Texas to help provide urgently needed registered nurses (RNs)  of all specialties.  “We need R Ns with a minimum of one year RN experience who can commit to traveling to Texas to help with Hurricane Harvey relief efforts immediately,” says Mary Lucas, chief talent officer for Supplemental Health Care.

By Valerie Watts

August 29, 2017 (Lakeside) -- The Grossmont Healthcare District presents its Kids Care Fest Saturday, October 14 from 9 a.m.to 1 p.m. at the Lakeside Rodeo Grounds, 12584 Mapleview Street in Lakeside.  This event will offer FREE checkups and health information as well as safety demonstrations and fun activities for the whole family.  This year there will be dental and vision screenings and flu shots (while supplies last),   The District hasn’t forgotten the adults--they can have their cholesterol and blood pressure checked.  To alleviate the sting of the flu shots,  the kids can ride ponies, climb a wall or participate in other fun activities.  For more details and to see a video of last year's event, go to kidscarefest.org.  You can also get more information by calling 619-825-5050.

August 29, 2017 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Thyroid cancer rates triple, and scientists look for cause (Live Science)
• Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? (Atlantic)
• FDA Seizes Risky Smallpox Vaccine from San Diego Stem Cell Co. (KPBS)
• Health officials advise older people to walk faster (BBC)
• The Battle Over Oil and Gas Development in Colorado (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Crowdfunding disaster: Silicon Valley start-up takes customers’ money, shuts down (San Jose Mercury News)
• AI threatens humanity (Washington Times)
• Unlikely Allies Join Fight to Protect Free Speech on the Internet (NPR)
• Los Angeles Tests Whether Lighter Color Streets Will Lower Temperature (NPR)
• Cars with advanced safety systems yielding lower crash rates (CS Monitor)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.