End-of-life fraud

Doctors, nurses and others charged with taking kickbacks in end-of-life fraud case

KIM CHRISTENSEN and BEN POSTON, LA Times: "They were supposed to be near death and in desperate need of end-of-life care to ease their pain.

Authorities, however, allege that many of the patients were not dying but merely unwitting pawns in a sophisticated Medicare fraud scheme engineered by two Inland Empire couples who took in more than $4.2 million in federal reimbursements.

State prosecutors say the couples ran two hospice businesses and paid doctors and others for bogus diagnoses or illegal kickbacks for patient referrals — accusations that mirror the type of widespread hospice fraud detailed in a 2020 Los Angeles Times investigation of the industry."

UC smashes record for first-year fall applications, with gains in most racial groups 

LAT, TERESA WATANABE: "For the second straight year, the University of California shattered records for first-year fall applications, as the elimination of standardized test requirements and greater online outreach paid dividends in drawing the largest and most diverse applicant pool ever despite pandemic challenges, according to preliminary data released Thursday.

But transfer applications fell at each of the nine undergraduate campuses — recording an overall drop of 12.6% systemwide — reflecting continuing declines in community college enrollment that have swept the nation and raised deep concerns about the well-being of students in the two-year system.

Overall, UC drew 210,840 first-year applications, a 3.5% increase over last year, with more students seeking admission from California, other states and other countries for fall 2022. Among them, California residents numbered 132,337, led again by Latinos at 38%, followed by Asian Americans at 31%, white students at 21%, Black applicants at 7%, American Indians at 1% and Pacific Islanders, less than 1%."

Biden to nominate Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court

TYLER PAGER, SEAN  SULLIVAN and SEUNG MIN KIM, Washington Post: "President Biden will nominate federal judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to replace retiring Justice Stephen G. Breyer, according to people briefed on the process, a historic choice that fulfills the president’s pledge to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.

S.F. police in the Tenderloin will now help get drug users off the streets — and may arrest those who refuse

MALLORY MOENCH, Chronicle: "San Francisco Mayor London Breed plans to intensify police intervention into open-air drug use in the Tenderloin, with a top official saying Thursday that officers will now join outreach workers seeking to get people doing drugs off of sidewalks and into a new linkage center where they can access housing, addiction treatment and other services.

If people continue illegal behavior and don’t comply, the official said, they could be arrested. The new approach signals the desire by officials to see significant change in the Tenderloin, and is likely to reignite criticism from some city supervisors, District Attorney Chesa Boudin and community groups who say criminalizing addiction is counterproductive.

When Breed first announced her emergency declaration to crack down on open-air drug dealing and use in the Tenderloin more than two months ago, she said people who rejected intervention could go to jail. The emergency was meant to stem the city’s overdose epidemic, which has killed more than 1,300 people across San Francisco in the past two years."

Sen. Padilla to unveil housing bill, wading into fierce debate 

The Chronicle, Tal Kopan: "Sen. Alex Padilla is unveiling a housing and homelessness bill on Friday, legislation that would massively increase federal investments in both traditional and experimental approaches to one of California’s most intractable problems.

While the bill faces long odds of becoming law, the California Democrat’s proposal sets a marker for what a progressive federal housing policy could look like. It also enters Padilla into some of the thornier controversies on the subject, including investing in safe parking sites that have been met with fierce neighborhood opposition in communities across the state and hotel/motel conversions to house homeless residents.

Padilla says his bill is a holistic approach, aiming to tackle the problem of housing insecurity from different angles. The hundreds of billions of dollars for new housing would be paired with other large investments in short-term options like the parking sites and with programs to help those who historically are most vulnerable, like the elderly and disabled people."

California’s reparations task force split over who should be eligible for restitution, postpones vote

The Chronicle, Dustin Gardiner: "California’s task force to study reparations for Black residents gridlocked Thursday over the pivotal question of who should qualify for potential restitution.

The nine-member task force, which Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators created in 2020, has been sharply divided over eligibility criteria for months. Some members have argued reparations should be limited, at least initially, to those who can directly trace their lineage to chattel slavery in the United States.

Other task force members have suggested that reparations should also be open to the countless Black Californians whose families came here after the end of the Civil War in 1865, as well as those who cannot easily trace their ancestry."

Grass Valley high school teachers skip class after district pulls back from mask mandate

DARRELL SMITH, SacBee: "A Northern California high school canceled classes Thursday as dozens of its teachers refused to report to class in protest of the high school district’s decision to relax state-imposed campus mask mandates.

Word came from Grass Valley’s Nevada Union High School principal in a one-paragraph announcement to families posted to social media and first reported in The Union newspaper:

“Nevada Union High School will be closed today, Thursday, February 24, 2022, due to the number of teacher absences needed to support students in the classroom.”

The Union reported as many as 40 teachers did not show up to work Thursday. Roughly the same number sat out Wednesday’s classes, according to a Union report. Photos in the Grass Valley newspaper show students clustered in the school’s theater.

The return of California’s tule fog 

LAT, DIANA MARCUM: This winter the tule fog returned to California’s Central Valley. It had been as good as gone for years.

But now, as I write this, it’s whiting-out my window like a coat of paint. On the highway, the Caltrans signs will be flashing in orange lights, “Caution Heavy Fog.” But drivers who don’t know tule fog won’t realize how serious the warning. They won’t slow in time. There is danger literally in the air.

This fog isn’t the type that rolls in from the ocean, or wraps curling tendrils around hillsides. Tule fog is not the mist in a horror movie, parting to reveal a monster. It is the monster, suddenly materialized."

CDC to significantly ease pandemic mask guidelines Friday

AP, ZEKE MILLER: "The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission on Friday, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor public settings.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday will announce a change to the metrics it uses to determine whether to recommend face coverings, shifting from looking at COVID-19 case counts to a more holistic view of risk from the coronavirus to a community. Under current guidelines, masks are recommended for people residing in communities of substantial or high transmission — roughly 95% of U.S. counties, according to the latest data.

The new metrics will still consider caseloads, but also take into account hospitalizations and local hospital capacity, which have been markedly improved during the emergence of the omicron variant. That strain is highly transmissible, but indications are that it is less severe than earlier strains, particularly for people who are fully vaccinated and boosted. Under the new guidelines, the vast majority of Americans will no longer live in areas where indoor masking in public is recommended, based on current data."
 

Judge’s order blocks Herb Wesson from serving on L.A. City Council

LAT, BY DAVID ZAHNISER: "A Superior Court judge Thursday blocked the city of Los Angeles from allowing former Councilman Herb Wesson to return to City Hall, handing a victory to a civil rights group and allies of Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mary H. Strobel issued a temporary restraining order barring Wesson from participating as a council member until March 17, the next hearing on a lawsuit challenging his eligibility for the seat.

Wesson was sworn in Tuesday as a temporary replacement for Ridley-Thomas, who is fighting corruption charges and was suspended by his colleagues in October."

Santa Clara City Council votes to fire city manager amid ongoing feuds with 49ers 

The Chronicle, Lance Williams, Ron Kroichick: "Four Santa Clara City Council members who regularly support the 49ers’ interests on Levi’s Stadium issues voted to fire City Manager Deanna Santana on Thursday, even though they couldn’t find a lawyer to represent the city on the issue.

Mayor Lisa Gillmor said the closed-session vote was 4-2 in favor of one resolution to remove Santana from office and another to suspend her. Council members Anthony Becker, Kevin Park, Karen Hardy and Raj Chahal voted in favor, while Gillmor and council member Kathy Watanabe voted against. Vice mayor Sudhanshu “Suds” Jain was absent.

“The council majority has clearly put themselves and the city of Santa Clara in a really precarious situation,” Gillmor said. “No city council has ever gutted City Hall and put our residents in jeopardy. No city council has put private interests above the public interest. I think this is a really sad day in Santa Clara history.”"

L.A. police union backs Rick Caruso for mayor, spurning Buscaino, a former LAPD officer 

LAT, BY BENJAMIN ORESKES: "The Los Angeles Police Protective League on Thursday endorsed Rick Caruso for mayor, a coveted nod for the businessman because of the union’s considerable political clout.

It represents the first major endorsement for Caruso since entering the race this month. He previously served as president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, where he maintained a good relationship with the union leadership.

“We believe that the people of Los Angeles and the members of the LAPD agree: Our approach to public safety needs to change. Rick is not a typical politician, and we believe that he can fix L.A.,” Lt. Craig Lally, the union president, said in a news release put out by the Caruso campaign."

Russian forces close in on Kyiv as fighting rages throghout Ukraine

HENRY CHU, PATRICK J. MCDONNELL: "Russian troops appeared to be closing in on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Friday as fighting continued throughout a country under increasing threat of being completely overrun by invading forces.

The sound of explosions before dawn was reported in Kyiv, as well as the wail of air-raid sirens and the staccato bursts of gunfire in several parts of the city. Ukraine’s military said that Russian spies and saboteurs were spotted about three miles north of the city center.

The Ukrainian Border Guard said on its Facebook page that Russian troops were in the northern suburb of Obolon and asked residents to report on their movements. It also urged them to “make Molotov cocktails, neutralize the occupier!”"