Health/Fitness

FREE HIV TESTING AVAILABLE IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY

 

Knowing your HIV status is essential to keep the virus from spreading.

To that end, the County Health and Human Services Agency and its many partners are offering free, confidential HIV testing throughout the region. The service is part of National HIV Testing Week in San Diego County, which lasts through June 30.


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ASSEMBLY SPEAKER KILLS SINGLE PAYER HEALTHCARE IN CALIFORNIA FOR THIS YEAR

 

Cost is key concern, though measure could advance with reforms in 2018

By Miriam Raftery

June 26, 2017 (Sacramento) – Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon has pulled the plug on the Healthy California Act, or Senate Bill 562, which would have provided free universal healthcare to all Californians.


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CA GROUPS: SENATE HEALTH BILL "MORE DRACONIAN" THAN HOUSE VERSION

 

By Suzanne Potter, California News Service

June 23, 2017 (Sacramento) --  Health advocates warn the Senate GOP bill to repeal and replace Obamacare would cause millions of Californians to lose their healthcare - by phasing out the Medicaid expansion and then capping the program altogether.

The "Better Care Reconciliation Act" or BCRA, lifts the government mandate for people to have insurance, and lets states allow insurance policies that exclude services like maternity and mental-health care.

Anthony Wright, executive director of the nonprofit Health Access California, says the bill would harm many different groups.  "It still eliminates the Medicaid expansion that 4 million Californians depend on," he says. "But it also has a harsher cap on the entire program, which 14 million Californians depend on - including a third of the state, half of all children, and two-thirds of all nursing-home residents."

The Senate bill also lets insurance companies charge Americans ages 50 to 64 five times what younger people pay, compared to the current limit of three times. And it lifts a ban on charging much higher premiums to people with preexisting conditions.


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SOMETIMES IT TAKES COURAGE TO CALL FOR HELP

 

 

When Angela and her husband were facing difficulties, they did not know where to turn for help. But one organization stepped up and gave them all the support they needed, and more.

Courage to Call is a free, confidential, veteran-staffed 24/7 helpline dedicated to assisting active duty military personnel, veterans, reservists, guard members, and their families, regardless of discharge status, through information, guidance, and referrals.


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RABID BAT FOUND AT SAN DIEGO ZOO SAFARI PARK

 

The County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency is looking for anybody that may have come into contact with a dead bat that tested positive for rabies and was found at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park on June 19.


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

 

June 21, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting-edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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


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SENATE HEALTHCARE BILL NEGOTIATED IN SECRET

 

 

By Jordan Damond

Update June 22, 2017 – The Senate Republican bill has just been released this morning. Watch for an update soon on its contents.

June 21, 2017 (San Diego) – After Republicans passed a measure to repeal the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare and pass their own healthcare reform plan, leading Senators asserted that the Senate would go it’s own way. Senator Lamar Alexander stated, "We're writing a Senate bill and not passing the House bill."  Senate Republicans are pushing for a vote by the end of next week, but the majority of the Senate, the press and public have not yet been allowed to view their revised proposal.

"Republicans are writing their health care bill under the cover of darkness because they are ashamed of it," Stated by Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer.


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WATER TESTING FOR LEAD COMES UP CLEAN IN CAJON VALLEY UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT

 

East County News Service

June 18, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) – A new state program authorizes school districts to work with local water districts to provide free lead testing of drinking water at all school sites.  The results are in for Cajon Valley Union School District campuses, which draw water from three water agencies: Helix Water District, Otay Water District and Padre Dam Municipal Water District.


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SHARP GROSSMONT HOSPITAL SENIOR RESOURCE PROGRAMS JULY 2017

 

Source: Sharp Grossmont Hospital

June 17, 2017 (La Mesa) - The Senior Resource Center at Sharp Grossmont Hospital offers free educational programs and health screenings each month. The Senior Resource Center also provides information and assistance for health information and community resources. For more information, call 619-740-4214. For other programs, call 1-800-827-4277 or visit our web site at www.sharp.com.


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HEAR OUR INTERVIEW: DR. JAMES VELTMEYER SPEAKS OUT ON HEALTHCARE REFORM PROPOSAL

 

By Miriam Raftery

June 16, 2017 (La Mesa) – Dr. James Veltmeyer, Chief of the Department of Family Medicine at Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, has proposed a new Medical Association Membership (MAM)  direct-payer health reform plan.   He has previously been named “Top Medical Doctor in San Diego,” for 2012, 2014, and 2016 according to his colleagues in the San Diego Medical Society,

He recently sat down for an interview with East County Magazine on KNSJ, which you can hear by clicking the audio link.

Dr. Veltmeyer has been a vocal critic of  the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare based in part on his wife, Laura, and her battle with breast cancer. 

Audio: 

Interview with Dr. James Veltmeyer on KNSJ

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ATTORNEY GENERAL BECERRA: BEWARE OF TOBACCO SCAM CIRCULATING ON INTERNET

 

Source:  Attorney General Becerra's office

June 15, 2017 (Sacramento) - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today issued a consumer alert to warn Californians about a tobacco scam circulating on the internet. The scam suggests individuals can sign up to receive payments under the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement. This is false, as individuals are not entitled to receive payments under the Agreement, which is between state governments and tobacco companies. All payments under the Settlement are made to state and local governments.


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STUDY REVEALS PERCEPTION OF AGING ACROSS THE GENERATIONS

 

By Joey Collado, General Manager at The Montera 

June 14, 2017 (San Diego's East County) - WESTliving, the organization that operates our senior living community, is a private family business founded through the efforts of Gary and Mary West. The Wests are also philanthropists and committed to successful aging. They have established a nonprofit institute that funds research into successful aging and develops solutions to support seniors and their quality of life. The Gary and Mary West Health Institute recently shared some interesting findings about aging.


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS


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LA MESA HEALTH CARE LIBRARY TO HOST FREE MEETING ON QIGONG MEDITATION ON JUNE 28TH

 

East County News Service

June 13, 2017 (La Mesa) – The Grossmont Healthcare District’s Dr. William C. Herrick Community Health Care Library, 9001 Wakarusa St. in La Mesa, will host “Qigong: Meditation in Motion,” a free program on Qigong, an ancient breathing technique originated in China, from 10 to 11 a.m., Wednesday, June 28. The program is part of the library’s “Wellness Wednesday” series, normally held on the fourth Wednesday of the month. Admission is free. Light refreshments will be served. Advance RSVP is not necessary. Handouts will be available.


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FOURTH DEATH REPORTED IN CONTINUED HEPATITIS A OUTBREAK

 

A fourth person has died as a result of the hepatitis A outbreak in San Diego County that now totals 160 cases, the County Health and Human Services Agency announced today.


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COUNTY, CITY GET $6 MILLION GRANT FOR PROP. 47 COMMUNITY TREATMENT

 

The County and City of San Diego will receive $6 million to provide substance abuse and mental health services to hundreds of people cited or charged with misdemeanor drug and property crimes across the region.


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READER’S EDITORIAL: THE BIG MEDIA LIE ABOUT SINGLE-PAYER HEALTHCARE

 

It won't cost taxpayers $400 billion. We have to pay that much for health care anyway. Single-payer would save us all a lot of money.

By Tim Redmond, originally published at 48.Hills.org

June 9, 2017 (San Diego) -- The headlines were so consistent, so predictably bad, that I almost couldn’t read them. “Single-payer will cost $400 billion.” “Single-payer costs dwarf entire state budget.”


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SINGLE-PAYER: JUST ANOTHER FORM OF BUREAUCRATIC CONTROL

 

By Dr. James Veltmeyer

Dr. Veltmeyer is Chief of the Department of Family Medicine at Sharp Grossmont Hospital, La Mesa.  In 2016 he was a Republican candidate in the 53rd Congressional District.

June 8, 2017 (La Mesa) -- Have you or a loved one ever been refused medical treatment because your insurance company refused to pay? Would you feel better if it was a government bureaucrat refusing to pay for your treatment, instead of an insurance company commissar? Of course not. Yet, this is the alternative that the misguided advocates of “single-payer” health care are offering Americans.


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ARBITRATION ABOUT-FACE: FEDS SIDE WITH CORPORATE INTERESTS OVER VULNERABLE NURSING HOME RESIDENTS

 

East County News Service

June 8, 2017 (San Francisco) – In what a patient advocacy group calls a ”devastating turn," the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to not only terminate its short-lived ban on pre-dispute arbitration agreements in nursing homes but to endorse their use as a condition to receiving vital care and services.


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS


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UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE BILL ADVANCES IN CALIF. LEGISLATURE, WITHOUT DETAILED PLAN TO COVER HEFTY COSTS

 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Senator Ricardo Lara and Toni Atkins, authors of Healthy California Act.

June 4, 2017 Sacramento) – Both houses of California’s Legislature have passed a landmark bill  called the “Healthy California Act”  to create a single-payer, universal healthcare system and eliminate private insurance companies  from covering anything covered by the state plan, which is broad.   

If enacted  the measure coauthored by Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) would  cover all Californians, with no premiums, copays or deductibles, for all medical, dental, vision care, mental health and chiropractic services.   

But Senate bill 352 must go back to the Assembly to remedy a major flaw: the bill was advanced without details on how to pay for it, in order to meet legislative deadlines, and contains a clause that without the Secretary of Health and Human Services determining that a new Healthy California Trust Fund has sufficient revenues to fund the bill’s costs,  it will not become law.  


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS


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REPORT: ONE IN THREE LOCAL STUDENTS OVERWEIGHT OR OBESE

 

 

By Jose A. Alvarez, County of San Diego Communications Office

Video by James Kecskes

May 30, 2017 (San Diego's East County) - More than one-third of local fifth, seventh and ninth graders in public schools are overweight or obese.

This the key finding in the 2016 State of Childhood Obesity report released today by the San Diego County Childhood Obesity Initiative, a public-private partnership tasked with reducing and preventing childhood obesity in the region.


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BECERRA ANNOUNCES $33M NATIONWIDE SETTLEMENT WITH MAKER OF TYLENOL, MOTRIN, AND BENADRYL OVER QUALITY PROBLEMS

 

California to receive largest share of any state after faulty medicine put children’s health at risk

Source:  Office of Xavier Becerra

May 26, 2017 (Sacramento) - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced a $33 million settlement with drug manufacturer Johnson & Johnson after it violated federal regulations between 2009 and 2011 that ensure the quality of certain medicines, including many consumed by children. California will receive $2.3 million, the largest share of any state. The judgement remains subject to court approval. 


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REPUBLICAN HEALTHCARE PLAN WOULD LOWER DEFICIT BUT AT HIGH COST: 23 MILLION LOSING HEALTHCARE, AND SOME SENIORS WOULD PAY 850% MORE FOR PREMIUMS

 

By Miriam Raftery

May 25, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – House Republicans passed repeal of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and  passage of their own American Health Care Act (Trumpcare) without waiting for a report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO). Now the CBO’s report is published—and shows mostly negative consequences of the Republican plan now before the Senate. 


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SAVE A LIFE: CPR AND AED CETIFICATION CLASS JUNE 10 IN ALPINE

 

East County News Service

May 24, 2017 (Alpine) -- Would you know how to respond if your child stopped breathing or someone you love had a heart attack? The Alpine Woman's Club is hosting CPR & AED Certification Class on Saturday June 10th from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at  The Town Hall , 2156 Alpine Blvd.


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS


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HEALTHCARE HEROES AWARD WINNERS OF 2017

 

By Jordan Damond

 

May 23, 2017 (San Diego East County) -- The Grossmont Healthcare District presented the eleventh annual Healthcare Heroes award at the Steele Canyon Golf Club. The Healthcare Heroes award are meant to be given to the unrecognized volunteers who assist in health care in San Diego’s East Region community.


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NEW RESEARCH: PTSD, ALCOHOL USE DISORDER COMMON IN ADOLESCENTS EXPOSED TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

Source: American Psychiatric Association

Photo: Hurricane Katrina damage

May 21, 2017 (San Diego) – Adolescents exposed to natural and environmental disasters show higher levels of alcohol misuse and emotional trauma than their peers, according to new research presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in San Diego. The findings indicate the importance of mental health services for youth that have experienced emotional trauma.


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CHILD POISONINGS PROMPT STATE TO PROPOSE LIMITS ON EDIBLE MARIJUANA PRODUCTS THAT RESEMBLE KIDS’ TREATS

 

By Miriam Raftery

May 21, 2017 (Sacramento) – California’s Public Health Department wants to limit the potency of edible marijuana products.  That’s because since recreational marijuana became legal after last year’s ballot initiative, emergency rooms are reporting children have been accidentally overdosing on cannabis-laced products such as cookies and candies, including gummy bears, lollipops and other items that look appealing to youngsters, CBS news in Sacramento reports.


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