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"slug": "remembering-papa-northern-californias-elderly-face-hidden-epidemic-of-gun-suicides",
"title": "Remembering Papa: Northern California’s Elderly Face Hidden Epidemic of Gun Suicides",
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"headTitle": "Remembering Papa: Northern California’s Elderly Face Hidden Epidemic of Gun Suicides | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the early afternoon of her 59th birthday, Kelly Frost had a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/healthnews\">sinking feeling\u003c/a> in the pit of her stomach. She had lunch with girlfriends near her home in Douglas City — a rural community nestled among the ponderosa pines of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/shasta-county\">Shasta\u003c/a>–\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1942299/onetime-enemies-over-logging-are-now-a-community-to-prevent-wildfire\">Trinity National Forest\u003c/a> in Northern California. But she kept thinking about her “Daddy-o,” Jeffrey Butler, her 81-year-old father. He was not returning her calls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she drove home around 4 p.m., she stopped to check in on him. Her dad lived in a two-bedroom cabin just up the road from her place. “I was kind of feeling angry with him because he hadn’t answered all day,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she opened the door, she glanced at the “Papa chair,” his favorite recliner, the spot where she usually found him. He wasn’t there. That’s when she noticed his feet on the kitchen floor. He was slumped over on his right side, a pool of blood around his head.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost’s first thought was that her dad had taken a fall. She blew an air horn that she and her dad kept around in case they ever needed help. A neighbor met her promptly, and it was he who noticed the revolver.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He said, ‘No, Kel, there’s a gun on the counter,’ and then I realized that he had shot himself,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler died on Dec. 18, 2024 from a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. His death is part of a dark reality — a public health crisis that often goes overlooked: older adults are increasingly turning to guns to end their lives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_38-1024x695.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>A motel in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In California, 5,825 adults aged 70 or older died by gun suicide between 2009 and 2023, according to mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention \u003ca href=\"https://datahub.thetrace.org/dataset/gun-suicides-older-americans/\">provided by the Gun Violence Data Hub\u003c/a>. The numbers are especially stark among older white men in rural areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Trinity County – population just over 15,600 – at least eight men 70 or older, including Butler, died from an apparent firearm suicide between 2020 and 2024, incident reports from the Trinity County Sheriff’s office show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trinity County isn’t alone. Rural Northern California counties have some of the nation’s highest rates of gun suicides among older adults. Over the course of 15 years, the gun suicide rate of adults 70 and older in Trinity, Tehama, Plumas, Lassen, Glenn, Calaveras, and Amador was 35.6 deaths per 100,000, more than triple the statewide rate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv style=\"min-height:624px\" id=\"datawrapper-vis-lOl3X\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/lOl3X/full.png\" alt=\"Rural counties have the highest rates of suicide by firearm among seniors (Bar Chart)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>Across the country, adults over 70 have the highest suicide rate of any age group. Experts say these deaths may get little attention because society empathizes with struggling older adults who want to control how their lives end.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think we sometimes don’t talk about them because I think people sort of brush it off as like, it’s understandable or it’s not preventable, and I think that’s the real piece of the narrative that we need to change,” said Dr. Emmy Betz, an emergency medicine doctor and a firearm injury prevention expert at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Behind the deaths are a number of factors, according to research and law enforcement incident reports. These include loneliness and social isolation, depression, financial struggles, illness and pain, and feeling like a burden.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In rural areas, easier access to guns is also a key contributor.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Unresolved pain\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For more than a year before his death, Butler had been in pain. It radiated through his abdomen, making the simple act of urinating an ordeal, Frost said. Last year, in February, a CT scan revealed the problem: a crystal blockage in his urethra. He found a urologist in Redding, one county over. Each visit to the specialist required navigating the hour-long descent down Highway 299, scenic but winding. Frost drove him to the appointments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A Bay Area native with Oklahoma roots, Butler had retired early to Trinity County, nearly 40 years ago. He had worked for large companies, including Hanes and Hostess, and done well in the stock market. Alongside the Trinity River, renowned for its steelhead trout and salmon, he bought cabins for himself and his daughter.[aside postID=news_12065708 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/250325-ApartmentsonWestside-06-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s here where Frost’s kids grew up. Butler’s granddaughter Michaela Frost grew up to be a horse lover like her Papa. His grandson Jake Ritter said he could spend hours talking and fishing with his grandfather. His Papa was happiest fishing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the last months of his life brought Butler little joy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July of 2024, Butler had surgery in Redding to remove the blockage in his urethra. But the pain and discomfort continued through the summer. In September, he was admitted for three days to the emergency room in nearby Weaverville with a severe urinary tract infection. Frost said that during this time she tried to call her dad’s urologist several times to reschedule a follow-up appointment he missed while in the hospital, but she could only reach an answering machine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler’s physician assistant in Weaverville called several times too, but no luck, Frost said. The physician assistant “literally threw her hands in the air and said, ‘I can’t get any response.’” That was one of the few times Frost saw her dad cry. “My dad never cried. He was a cowboy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After his death, first responders found an undated note in Butler’s home. It began:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pain???????\u003cbr>\n!!!!!!!!!!\u003cbr>\nTo much to stand\u003cbr>\nNo Help\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By mid-fall, the infections, desperation and heavy antibiotics use were changing her dad’s mental state, Frost said. He wasn’t interested in fishing. Or watching his 49ers. Or spending time with his wild mustang, Spade, or with the guys down at the Tangle Blue Saloon, where he would order a shot of whisky with a coke back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His cabin grew darker; he no longer drew his camo-print curtains open. Frost estimates that in the span of about a year, Butler lost almost 100 pounds, transforming him from a stout 230-pound man to a fragile version of himself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_03-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Kelly Frost and her father’s horse in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_41-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_31-1024x701.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First:\u003c/strong> Kelly Frost points to a photograph of her dad, Jeffrey Butler. \u003cstrong>Last:\u003c/strong> A collection of Jeffrey Butler photographs on a table at Kelly Frost’s home in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photos by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Older adults are likely to plan suicide more carefully, and their attempts are more likely to be fatal, according to the National Council on Aging. In California, older women are more likely to overdose, while most older men will use guns, according to state public health data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pain and health issues are a common thread among older adults who die by gun suicide. State data show that 55% of people 70 and over who died this way had a contributing physical health problem, and 27% had a diagnosed mental health condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv id=\"datawrapper-vis-KyQjs\" style=\"min-height: 539px\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/KyQjs/full.png\" alt=\"Many older adults who died by gun suicide had a contributing physical health problem (Range Plot)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>Among the eight older men that died by gun suicide in Trinity County between 2020 and 2024, two struggled with respiratory conditions. One had recently discovered a bladder tumor. One man’s antidepressants were found near his body, and another had reportedly been speaking about suicide for some time but did not meet the requirements for an involuntary psychiatric hold, according to incident reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The rural divide\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Trinity County holds a deep beauty: the rush of the Trinity River, the rising fog on a chilly morning, the sprawling pines that make the rugged mountain sides their home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But large supermarkets are a county over, a steep and twisty road away. And so is most of the medical care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_05-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Clouds sweep the sky in Trinity County on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We have more limited access to essential services and resources compared to the rest of California,” said Cathy Tillman, a health services program manager at Trinity County Health and Human Services. “We have to travel further for all services, which plays a role in the ability for people to get their needs met.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s rural counties have more older residents: about 25% compared to the state average of around 17%, according to the SCAN Foundation, an advocacy and research organization for older adults. By 2040, the 85-and-older population in rural California is \u003ca href=\"https://www.thescanfoundation.org/resource/aging-in-rural-california-policy-brief-series-on-long-term-care-health-and-housing/\">expected to grow 50 times faster\u003c/a> than the working age population. But access to medical and social services for seniors lag significantly when compared to larger, urban regions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trinity County has one 25-bed hospital, and a handful of clinics, largely in Weaverville, the county seat. But even reaching Weaverville from other Trinity County communities could take 30 minutes to an hour. For anything more specialized, residents here usually travel an hour to Redding, or two hours for providers in Eureka and Chico. With a small population, Trinity County can’t easily support specialists — like a neurologist or urologist — setting up practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Going further for care means people often miss appointments, or delay them, and live longer with pain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Arina Erwin, deputy director of the county’s health and human services agency, said even some general practitioners who come to Trinity don’t stay long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Living in a small community and a frontier community can be a challenge on its own,” Erwin said. Doctors and specialists have student loans to repay, making cities where they can earn a significantly higher income seem more attractive. For years, the hospital and clinics in Trinity have \u003ca href=\"https://krcrtv.com/news/local/trinity-hospital-in-decade-long-struggle-to-hire-doctors\">reported trouble replacing retiring doctors\u003c/a>. Even virtual care here can be a challenge, because broadband is spotty, especially in pockets with only a few dozen residents, Erwin said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People who live in rural areas also foster a cultural barrier — a rural spirit of sorts. Tillman said they tend to be more independent, and used to doing things on their own terms; they may also be less likely to seek help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost said that sounds familiar. She saw first-hand how her proud, self-reliant, sometimes stubborn father lost his independence as the pain took hold.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Remembering Papa\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In Frost’s living room – with the sun shining through the large windows on a December afternoon – memories of Butler, called Papa by his grandkids, stirred both laughter and tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_19-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_06-1024x758.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First:\u003c/strong> A photograph of Jeffrey Butler is displayed next to holiday items at Kelly Frost’s home. \u003cstrong>Last:\u003c/strong> Jake Ritter takes a moment to remember his grandfather, Jeffrey Butler in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photos by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As a kid, grandson Jake Ritter would get up before sunrise to go fishing with his Papa — sometimes begrudgingly — but by lunchtime they’d be happily eating their catch. He remembers cruising on Butler’s riding lawnmower and watching old westerns with him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ritter and his sister, Michaela, loved listening to his stories, like the time he shot a bobcat as it launched toward him while he was out deer hunting. He had the bobcat stuffed to prove it. Or how, as a teen in San Pablo, Butler chased and tackled a man trying to rob the Lucky store where he worked. The family still has the news clipping.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Michaela is glad her papa got to meet her first-born, Blake, and wishes her three-month-old, Daniella, could have as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler’s suicide left his family in turmoil and with so many questions. Ritter felt angry at his papa for the way he decided to go. Why do this on his mom’s birthday? Frost often wonders: What were her dad’s last thoughts?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After a suicide, families are more likely to experience a complicated grieving process, with feelings of guilt, confusion, shame, anger and trauma, research shows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the year since Butler’s death, Frost’s family has largely relied on each other through their grief. Ritter said his anger at his grandfather has subsided; he is now coming to terms with his Papa’s decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m sad that he didn’t get the help that he needed, and I’m sad that he felt so strongly that this is the road that he chose,” Ritter said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost said she gave herself a year to navigate the feelings on her own, but now with the encouragement of friends is considering seeking professional help.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Warning signs and storing guns\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In Trinity County, health officials are preparing to launch an injury and suicide prevention program, said Tillman, the county health services program manager. A big component of the county’s strategy will be education to help reduce the stigmas associated with suicide and mental health. Tillman said the plan is to find and train trusted messengers in the small pockets where people live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Amy Barnhorst, a psychiatrist and associate director of the \u003ca href=\"https://cvp.ucdavis.edu/\">Centers for Violence Prevention\u003c/a> at UC Davis, said that recognizing a sense of independence and self-reliance common to rural communities is essential to prevention programs. Education around safe gun storage is also key, she added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You can’t discount the fact that having access to a firearm, period, all other things being equal, increases the risk that somebody will die by suicide by a factor of more than three,” Barnhorst said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She helps lead a state-funded curriculum at UC Davis called \u003ca href=\"https://www.bulletpointsproject.org/\">The BulletPoints Project\u003c/a>, which trains health providers on how to identify at-risk patients and speak to them about gun safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project also trains people applying for and renewing concealed carry weapon permits. Under state law, that category of gun owners must complete at least an hour of mental health training.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The course aims to help these gun owners identify a mental health crisis. People who already own guns – like Jeff Butler – never had to take a course like this.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kelly Frost said she doesn’t know if her dad would have accepted mental health help. It was not something they talked about. His will to live wrestled in the words found in his house, the note she still clings closely to. It ends:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What would you do?\u003cbr>\nEnd it???\u003cbr>\nThe pain not life\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since her dad’s passing, Frost has had many sleepless nights, pondering questions and thoughts. She feels she tried her best to get him care, but wishes access had been easier. What signs did she miss? But mostly: Why hadn’t she taken away the guns?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_28-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Kelly Frost is reflected in a mirror next to Jeffrey Butler’s fishing poles in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Growing up around guns, it never crossed her mind that her Daddy-o would one day turn his revolver on himself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Had I known that he was capable of this, I probably would have worked a little harder to make sure that the guns were not accessible,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This Dec. 18, the one year anniversary of Butler’s death and Frost’s 60th birthday, she had a shot of Canadian whisky from the last bottle she gave him. His guns are now in a safe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>If you are having suicidal thoughts, you can get help from the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 988 or visiting \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/\">\u003cstrong>\u003cem>https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Data shared by the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://datahub.thetrace.org/dataset/gun-suicides-older-americans/\">\u003cem>Gun Violence Data Hub\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> by The Trace. Data analysis and visualizations by Natasha Uzcátegui-Liggett. Additional reporting by Aaron Mendelson. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which works to ensure that people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Visit www.chcf.org to learn more.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/12/trinity-county-gun-suicide-rural/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Senior Californians in rural communities are dying by suicide at troubling rates—struggling with pain, cut off from doctors and mental health care, with guns at hand. Access to care and safety planning would help, experts say.\r\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the early afternoon of her 59th birthday, Kelly Frost had a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/healthnews\">sinking feeling\u003c/a> in the pit of her stomach. She had lunch with girlfriends near her home in Douglas City — a rural community nestled among the ponderosa pines of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/shasta-county\">Shasta\u003c/a>–\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1942299/onetime-enemies-over-logging-are-now-a-community-to-prevent-wildfire\">Trinity National Forest\u003c/a> in Northern California. But she kept thinking about her “Daddy-o,” Jeffrey Butler, her 81-year-old father. He was not returning her calls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she drove home around 4 p.m., she stopped to check in on him. Her dad lived in a two-bedroom cabin just up the road from her place. “I was kind of feeling angry with him because he hadn’t answered all day,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she opened the door, she glanced at the “Papa chair,” his favorite recliner, the spot where she usually found him. He wasn’t there. That’s when she noticed his feet on the kitchen floor. He was slumped over on his right side, a pool of blood around his head.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost’s first thought was that her dad had taken a fall. She blew an air horn that she and her dad kept around in case they ever needed help. A neighbor met her promptly, and it was he who noticed the revolver.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He said, ‘No, Kel, there’s a gun on the counter,’ and then I realized that he had shot himself,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler died on Dec. 18, 2024 from a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. His death is part of a dark reality — a public health crisis that often goes overlooked: older adults are increasingly turning to guns to end their lives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_38-1024x695.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>A motel in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In California, 5,825 adults aged 70 or older died by gun suicide between 2009 and 2023, according to mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention \u003ca href=\"https://datahub.thetrace.org/dataset/gun-suicides-older-americans/\">provided by the Gun Violence Data Hub\u003c/a>. The numbers are especially stark among older white men in rural areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Trinity County – population just over 15,600 – at least eight men 70 or older, including Butler, died from an apparent firearm suicide between 2020 and 2024, incident reports from the Trinity County Sheriff’s office show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trinity County isn’t alone. Rural Northern California counties have some of the nation’s highest rates of gun suicides among older adults. Over the course of 15 years, the gun suicide rate of adults 70 and older in Trinity, Tehama, Plumas, Lassen, Glenn, Calaveras, and Amador was 35.6 deaths per 100,000, more than triple the statewide rate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv style=\"min-height:624px\" id=\"datawrapper-vis-lOl3X\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/lOl3X/full.png\" alt=\"Rural counties have the highest rates of suicide by firearm among seniors (Bar Chart)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>Across the country, adults over 70 have the highest suicide rate of any age group. Experts say these deaths may get little attention because society empathizes with struggling older adults who want to control how their lives end.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think we sometimes don’t talk about them because I think people sort of brush it off as like, it’s understandable or it’s not preventable, and I think that’s the real piece of the narrative that we need to change,” said Dr. Emmy Betz, an emergency medicine doctor and a firearm injury prevention expert at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Behind the deaths are a number of factors, according to research and law enforcement incident reports. These include loneliness and social isolation, depression, financial struggles, illness and pain, and feeling like a burden.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In rural areas, easier access to guns is also a key contributor.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Unresolved pain\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For more than a year before his death, Butler had been in pain. It radiated through his abdomen, making the simple act of urinating an ordeal, Frost said. Last year, in February, a CT scan revealed the problem: a crystal blockage in his urethra. He found a urologist in Redding, one county over. Each visit to the specialist required navigating the hour-long descent down Highway 299, scenic but winding. Frost drove him to the appointments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A Bay Area native with Oklahoma roots, Butler had retired early to Trinity County, nearly 40 years ago. He had worked for large companies, including Hanes and Hostess, and done well in the stock market. Alongside the Trinity River, renowned for its steelhead trout and salmon, he bought cabins for himself and his daughter.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s here where Frost’s kids grew up. Butler’s granddaughter Michaela Frost grew up to be a horse lover like her Papa. His grandson Jake Ritter said he could spend hours talking and fishing with his grandfather. His Papa was happiest fishing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the last months of his life brought Butler little joy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July of 2024, Butler had surgery in Redding to remove the blockage in his urethra. But the pain and discomfort continued through the summer. In September, he was admitted for three days to the emergency room in nearby Weaverville with a severe urinary tract infection. Frost said that during this time she tried to call her dad’s urologist several times to reschedule a follow-up appointment he missed while in the hospital, but she could only reach an answering machine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler’s physician assistant in Weaverville called several times too, but no luck, Frost said. The physician assistant “literally threw her hands in the air and said, ‘I can’t get any response.’” That was one of the few times Frost saw her dad cry. “My dad never cried. He was a cowboy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After his death, first responders found an undated note in Butler’s home. It began:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pain???????\u003cbr>\n!!!!!!!!!!\u003cbr>\nTo much to stand\u003cbr>\nNo Help\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By mid-fall, the infections, desperation and heavy antibiotics use were changing her dad’s mental state, Frost said. He wasn’t interested in fishing. Or watching his 49ers. Or spending time with his wild mustang, Spade, or with the guys down at the Tangle Blue Saloon, where he would order a shot of whisky with a coke back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His cabin grew darker; he no longer drew his camo-print curtains open. Frost estimates that in the span of about a year, Butler lost almost 100 pounds, transforming him from a stout 230-pound man to a fragile version of himself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_03-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Kelly Frost and her father’s horse in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_41-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_31-1024x701.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First:\u003c/strong> Kelly Frost points to a photograph of her dad, Jeffrey Butler. \u003cstrong>Last:\u003c/strong> A collection of Jeffrey Butler photographs on a table at Kelly Frost’s home in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photos by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Older adults are likely to plan suicide more carefully, and their attempts are more likely to be fatal, according to the National Council on Aging. In California, older women are more likely to overdose, while most older men will use guns, according to state public health data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pain and health issues are a common thread among older adults who die by gun suicide. State data show that 55% of people 70 and over who died this way had a contributing physical health problem, and 27% had a diagnosed mental health condition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv id=\"datawrapper-vis-KyQjs\" style=\"min-height: 539px\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/KyQjs/full.png\" alt=\"Many older adults who died by gun suicide had a contributing physical health problem (Range Plot)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>Among the eight older men that died by gun suicide in Trinity County between 2020 and 2024, two struggled with respiratory conditions. One had recently discovered a bladder tumor. One man’s antidepressants were found near his body, and another had reportedly been speaking about suicide for some time but did not meet the requirements for an involuntary psychiatric hold, according to incident reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The rural divide\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Trinity County holds a deep beauty: the rush of the Trinity River, the rising fog on a chilly morning, the sprawling pines that make the rugged mountain sides their home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But large supermarkets are a county over, a steep and twisty road away. And so is most of the medical care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_05-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Clouds sweep the sky in Trinity County on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We have more limited access to essential services and resources compared to the rest of California,” said Cathy Tillman, a health services program manager at Trinity County Health and Human Services. “We have to travel further for all services, which plays a role in the ability for people to get their needs met.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s rural counties have more older residents: about 25% compared to the state average of around 17%, according to the SCAN Foundation, an advocacy and research organization for older adults. By 2040, the 85-and-older population in rural California is \u003ca href=\"https://www.thescanfoundation.org/resource/aging-in-rural-california-policy-brief-series-on-long-term-care-health-and-housing/\">expected to grow 50 times faster\u003c/a> than the working age population. But access to medical and social services for seniors lag significantly when compared to larger, urban regions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trinity County has one 25-bed hospital, and a handful of clinics, largely in Weaverville, the county seat. But even reaching Weaverville from other Trinity County communities could take 30 minutes to an hour. For anything more specialized, residents here usually travel an hour to Redding, or two hours for providers in Eureka and Chico. With a small population, Trinity County can’t easily support specialists — like a neurologist or urologist — setting up practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Going further for care means people often miss appointments, or delay them, and live longer with pain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Arina Erwin, deputy director of the county’s health and human services agency, said even some general practitioners who come to Trinity don’t stay long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Living in a small community and a frontier community can be a challenge on its own,” Erwin said. Doctors and specialists have student loans to repay, making cities where they can earn a significantly higher income seem more attractive. For years, the hospital and clinics in Trinity have \u003ca href=\"https://krcrtv.com/news/local/trinity-hospital-in-decade-long-struggle-to-hire-doctors\">reported trouble replacing retiring doctors\u003c/a>. Even virtual care here can be a challenge, because broadband is spotty, especially in pockets with only a few dozen residents, Erwin said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People who live in rural areas also foster a cultural barrier — a rural spirit of sorts. Tillman said they tend to be more independent, and used to doing things on their own terms; they may also be less likely to seek help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost said that sounds familiar. She saw first-hand how her proud, self-reliant, sometimes stubborn father lost his independence as the pain took hold.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Remembering Papa\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In Frost’s living room – with the sun shining through the large windows on a December afternoon – memories of Butler, called Papa by his grandkids, stirred both laughter and tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_19-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_06-1024x758.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003c/figure>\u003cfigcaption>\u003cstrong>First:\u003c/strong> A photograph of Jeffrey Butler is displayed next to holiday items at Kelly Frost’s home. \u003cstrong>Last:\u003c/strong> Jake Ritter takes a moment to remember his grandfather, Jeffrey Butler in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photos by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As a kid, grandson Jake Ritter would get up before sunrise to go fishing with his Papa — sometimes begrudgingly — but by lunchtime they’d be happily eating their catch. He remembers cruising on Butler’s riding lawnmower and watching old westerns with him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ritter and his sister, Michaela, loved listening to his stories, like the time he shot a bobcat as it launched toward him while he was out deer hunting. He had the bobcat stuffed to prove it. Or how, as a teen in San Pablo, Butler chased and tackled a man trying to rob the Lucky store where he worked. The family still has the news clipping.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Michaela is glad her papa got to meet her first-born, Blake, and wishes her three-month-old, Daniella, could have as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler’s suicide left his family in turmoil and with so many questions. Ritter felt angry at his papa for the way he decided to go. Why do this on his mom’s birthday? Frost often wonders: What were her dad’s last thoughts?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After a suicide, families are more likely to experience a complicated grieving process, with feelings of guilt, confusion, shame, anger and trauma, research shows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the year since Butler’s death, Frost’s family has largely relied on each other through their grief. Ritter said his anger at his grandfather has subsided; he is now coming to terms with his Papa’s decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m sad that he didn’t get the help that he needed, and I’m sad that he felt so strongly that this is the road that he chose,” Ritter said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frost said she gave herself a year to navigate the feelings on her own, but now with the encouragement of friends is considering seeking professional help.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Warning signs and storing guns\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In Trinity County, health officials are preparing to launch an injury and suicide prevention program, said Tillman, the county health services program manager. A big component of the county’s strategy will be education to help reduce the stigmas associated with suicide and mental health. Tillman said the plan is to find and train trusted messengers in the small pockets where people live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Amy Barnhorst, a psychiatrist and associate director of the \u003ca href=\"https://cvp.ucdavis.edu/\">Centers for Violence Prevention\u003c/a> at UC Davis, said that recognizing a sense of independence and self-reliance common to rural communities is essential to prevention programs. Education around safe gun storage is also key, she added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You can’t discount the fact that having access to a firearm, period, all other things being equal, increases the risk that somebody will die by suicide by a factor of more than three,” Barnhorst said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She helps lead a state-funded curriculum at UC Davis called \u003ca href=\"https://www.bulletpointsproject.org/\">The BulletPoints Project\u003c/a>, which trains health providers on how to identify at-risk patients and speak to them about gun safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project also trains people applying for and renewing concealed carry weapon permits. Under state law, that category of gun owners must complete at least an hour of mental health training.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The course aims to help these gun owners identify a mental health crisis. People who already own guns – like Jeff Butler – never had to take a course like this.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kelly Frost said she doesn’t know if her dad would have accepted mental health help. It was not something they talked about. His will to live wrestled in the words found in his house, the note she still clings closely to. It ends:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What would you do?\u003cbr>\nEnd it???\u003cbr>\nThe pain not life\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since her dad’s passing, Frost has had many sleepless nights, pondering questions and thoughts. She feels she tried her best to get him care, but wishes access had been easier. What signs did she miss? But mostly: Why hadn’t she taken away the guns?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure>\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/120425_Trinity-Guns_SO_28-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\">\u003cfigcaption>Kelly Frost is reflected in a mirror next to Jeffrey Butler’s fishing poles in Douglas City on Dec. 4, 2025. Photo by Salvador Ochoa for CalMatters\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Growing up around guns, it never crossed her mind that her Daddy-o would one day turn his revolver on himself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Had I known that he was capable of this, I probably would have worked a little harder to make sure that the guns were not accessible,” Frost said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This Dec. 18, the one year anniversary of Butler’s death and Frost’s 60th birthday, she had a shot of Canadian whisky from the last bottle she gave him. His guns are now in a safe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>If you are having suicidal thoughts, you can get help from the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 988 or visiting \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/\">\u003cstrong>\u003cem>https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Data shared by the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://datahub.thetrace.org/dataset/gun-suicides-older-americans/\">\u003cem>Gun Violence Data Hub\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> by The Trace. Data analysis and visualizations by Natasha Uzcátegui-Liggett. Additional reporting by Aaron Mendelson. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which works to ensure that people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Visit www.chcf.org to learn more.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2025/12/trinity-county-gun-suicide-rural/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "South Bay Lawmaker Slams Trump Admin’s $1.6 Million Hepatitis B Study in West Africa",
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"content": "\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/zoe-lofgren\">Bay Area lawmaker\u003c/a> slammed a Trump administration plan to conduct research on the Hepatitis B vaccine on infants in Guinea-Bissau, where nearly one in five adults lives with the virus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> The grant, awarded to a group of Danish scientists with ties to the anti-vaccine movement, will fund a five-year randomized control trial in the West African nation. According to the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, 14,000 newborns will either receive the vaccine at birth or after a six-week delay to compare health outcomes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>South Bay Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San José) called the decision to approve the $1.6 million dollar study — which followed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rollback of newborn Hepatitis B vaccine recommendations last week — “deplorable” and a “new low.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement released Friday, Lofgren alleged the study is being used to promote U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “anti-vaccine agenda.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To withhold a lifesaving vaccine from babies across the globe to promote your anti-vaccine agenda at home is deplorable,” Lofgren said. “How has it come to this? RFK Jr. must be stopped.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 1991, the CDC recommended newborns receive the Hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11901022\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11901022\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) speaks at a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 21, 2021 in Washington, DC. \u003ccite>(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In an email, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Emily G. Hilliard defended the award as an independent study designed to fill “evidence gaps” regarding the “broader health effects” of the vaccine. Hilliard noted that because Guinea-Bissau does not plan to officially introduce the birth dose until 2027, the infants not receiving the shot are still receiving the “current standard of care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Local medical experts, however, say the science behind the birth dose is already settled. Dr. Jake Scott, an infectious disease specialist at Stanford University, said waiting six weeks to vaccinate newborns in a region where Hepatitis B is common will lead to “preventable infections.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Scott, infants infected at birth have about a 90% chance of developing chronic hepatitis, which can lead to liver failure and cancer. He said the administration is attempting to “manufacture doubt” to justify the recent rollbacks.[aside postID=news_12068383 hero='https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/04/001_KQED_Oakland_HighlandHospital_041152020-1020x680.jpg']“They’re doing that to generate evidence for a policy they have already implemented,” Scott said. “It’s clearly going to cause far more harm than any benefits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott estimated that if the birth dose is successfully rolled back on a larger scale, it could lead to 1,400 additional chronic pediatric infections and nearly 500 preventable deaths annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to background information from the House Science Committee staff, the research group did not apply for an award through a standard competitive process; instead, staff said Kennedy specifically sought out the researchers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The typical way of going about it is to put out a request for proposal … and fund the most rigorous study,” Arthur Reingold, a former professor of epidemiology at UC Berkeley and a former Chief of the Respiratory Diseases Branch at the CDC, said. “Obviously, that was not done in this case.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reingold added that without a detailed study protocol, it is impossible to know if the trial can actually measure the “broader health effects” HHS claims to be looking for. He warned that if a study lacks the statistical power to answer important questions, it is a “waste of money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The House Science Committee stated it is considering all oversight options, though staff noted their authority is currently limited by their status in the Minority.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/zoe-lofgren\">Bay Area lawmaker\u003c/a> slammed a Trump administration plan to conduct research on the Hepatitis B vaccine on infants in Guinea-Bissau, where nearly one in five adults lives with the virus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> The grant, awarded to a group of Danish scientists with ties to the anti-vaccine movement, will fund a five-year randomized control trial in the West African nation. According to the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, 14,000 newborns will either receive the vaccine at birth or after a six-week delay to compare health outcomes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>South Bay Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San José) called the decision to approve the $1.6 million dollar study — which followed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rollback of newborn Hepatitis B vaccine recommendations last week — “deplorable” and a “new low.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement released Friday, Lofgren alleged the study is being used to promote U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “anti-vaccine agenda.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To withhold a lifesaving vaccine from babies across the globe to promote your anti-vaccine agenda at home is deplorable,” Lofgren said. “How has it come to this? RFK Jr. must be stopped.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 1991, the CDC recommended newborns receive the Hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11901022\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11901022\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/01/GettyImages-1341705981-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) speaks at a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 21, 2021 in Washington, DC. \u003ccite>(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In an email, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Emily G. Hilliard defended the award as an independent study designed to fill “evidence gaps” regarding the “broader health effects” of the vaccine. Hilliard noted that because Guinea-Bissau does not plan to officially introduce the birth dose until 2027, the infants not receiving the shot are still receiving the “current standard of care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Local medical experts, however, say the science behind the birth dose is already settled. Dr. Jake Scott, an infectious disease specialist at Stanford University, said waiting six weeks to vaccinate newborns in a region where Hepatitis B is common will lead to “preventable infections.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Scott, infants infected at birth have about a 90% chance of developing chronic hepatitis, which can lead to liver failure and cancer. He said the administration is attempting to “manufacture doubt” to justify the recent rollbacks.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“They’re doing that to generate evidence for a policy they have already implemented,” Scott said. “It’s clearly going to cause far more harm than any benefits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott estimated that if the birth dose is successfully rolled back on a larger scale, it could lead to 1,400 additional chronic pediatric infections and nearly 500 preventable deaths annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to background information from the House Science Committee staff, the research group did not apply for an award through a standard competitive process; instead, staff said Kennedy specifically sought out the researchers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The typical way of going about it is to put out a request for proposal … and fund the most rigorous study,” Arthur Reingold, a former professor of epidemiology at UC Berkeley and a former Chief of the Respiratory Diseases Branch at the CDC, said. “Obviously, that was not done in this case.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reingold added that without a detailed study protocol, it is impossible to know if the trial can actually measure the “broader health effects” HHS claims to be looking for. He warned that if a study lacks the statistical power to answer important questions, it is a “waste of money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The House Science Committee stated it is considering all oversight options, though staff noted their authority is currently limited by their status in the Minority.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>In anticipation of the Trump administration’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12047647/trumps-health-law-spurs-big-medi-cal-changes-what-californians-need-to-know\">major cuts to Medicaid\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/healthnews\">the Alameda Health System\u003c/a>, which runs public hospitals and clinics throughout the East Bay, is planning to lay off nearly 300 people in January.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s one of many healthcare systems around the state and nation threatened as a result of significant expected losses in revenue from Medicaid, the nation’s insurance system for lower-income people, known as Medi-Cal in California. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, some union employees of the health system have said layoff notices, which are expected on Jan. 6, are premature, as the financial impacts of the cuts have yet to be felt. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think they’re bowing to pressures before those pressures have actually come into play,” Reilly Gardine, a clinical dietitian at Wilma Chan Highland Hospital Campus in Oakland, told KQED on Monday. “And I think they’re not being creative enough in figuring out alternative ways for funding.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The health system, in an emailed statement to KQED, said it expects to lose “more than $100 million annually by 2030,” due to H.R. 1, the tax and spending bill President Donald Trump refers to as “Big” and “Beautiful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11891411\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11891411\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Monish Ullal speaks with patient Jay Flohr at Highland Hospital in Oakland on Oct. 6, 2021. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The total annual budget for AHS is roughly $1.4 billion, according to its budget documents. The system could face an additional potential $60 million in cuts annually in the coming years due to cuts to federal funding that allows states to pay hospitals who treat a large share of Medi-Cal patients, officials said. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AHS projects that cash will run out by approximately August of 2026 without immediate action,” the statement said. “In order to be proactive and ensure that AHS can continue to provide a range of emergency and comprehensive care, AHS has made the painful decision to reduce some services, reduce its workforce, and eliminate certain programs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Veronica Palacios, an eligibility specialist, and a chapter leader with labor union SEIU 1021, said workers have not been given a clear reason why the cuts need to be made now. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Because if it’s being done right now and it’s not necessarily needed at this point, it sounds like you’re purposely cutting services to the community. Why do that?” Palacios said.[aside postID=news_12067733 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/12/GettyImages-1262848052-1020x680.jpg']The cuts were initially planned to go out on Dec. 24, which Gardine called “insulting,” and which Palacios said sows chaos among workers when they should be spending time with family during the holidays. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In what appeared to be a response to pressure from union members, the health system said late Monday it would delay the notices until Jan. 6. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Palacios said the layoff notices will send workers into “damage-control” mode. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How am I going to support my family, how am I going to survive? Can I get another job if this is happening with our health care system? Is this happening throughout the state of California?” she said, reflecting her colleagues’ concerns. “They’re stressed out, they’re worried, they’re afraid of what the what ifs.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The health system said the 296 people it needs to lay off will be from “departments and disciplines across the system including management, support and administrative services, and clinical care,” and that those that are affected will have access to job search assistance and resume writing guidance. Some will receive severance packages. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AHS leadership continues to pursue multiple strategies to restore funding and strengthen sustainability,” the agency’s statement said. “We are working in partnership with federal, state and county leaders to hopefully mitigate these adverse conditions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gardine said before resorting to layoffs, executives at AHS should take pay cuts, and explore other options, such as ending leases at pricey office buildings in downtown and the Jack London areas of Oakland. The system should also consider hiring more permanent staff instead of relying on traveling contractors. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The resources are there, the state of California is an incredibly wealthy state. So, the fact that we are cutting essential services for our most vulnerable communities is completely outrageous,” Gardine said. “I think we have a huge fight ahead and that I think there’s a lot of us who are ready to start fighting.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think they’re bowing to pressures before those pressures have actually come into play,” Reilly Gardine, a clinical dietitian at Wilma Chan Highland Hospital Campus in Oakland, told KQED on Monday. “And I think they’re not being creative enough in figuring out alternative ways for funding.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The health system, in an emailed statement to KQED, said it expects to lose “more than $100 million annually by 2030,” due to H.R. 1, the tax and spending bill President Donald Trump refers to as “Big” and “Beautiful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11891411\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11891411\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/RS51824_066_Oakland_HighlandHospitalBridgeProgram_10062021-qut-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Monish Ullal speaks with patient Jay Flohr at Highland Hospital in Oakland on Oct. 6, 2021. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The total annual budget for AHS is roughly $1.4 billion, according to its budget documents. The system could face an additional potential $60 million in cuts annually in the coming years due to cuts to federal funding that allows states to pay hospitals who treat a large share of Medi-Cal patients, officials said. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AHS projects that cash will run out by approximately August of 2026 without immediate action,” the statement said. “In order to be proactive and ensure that AHS can continue to provide a range of emergency and comprehensive care, AHS has made the painful decision to reduce some services, reduce its workforce, and eliminate certain programs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Veronica Palacios, an eligibility specialist, and a chapter leader with labor union SEIU 1021, said workers have not been given a clear reason why the cuts need to be made now. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Because if it’s being done right now and it’s not necessarily needed at this point, it sounds like you’re purposely cutting services to the community. Why do that?” Palacios said.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The cuts were initially planned to go out on Dec. 24, which Gardine called “insulting,” and which Palacios said sows chaos among workers when they should be spending time with family during the holidays. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In what appeared to be a response to pressure from union members, the health system said late Monday it would delay the notices until Jan. 6. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Palacios said the layoff notices will send workers into “damage-control” mode. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How am I going to support my family, how am I going to survive? Can I get another job if this is happening with our health care system? Is this happening throughout the state of California?” she said, reflecting her colleagues’ concerns. “They’re stressed out, they’re worried, they’re afraid of what the what ifs.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The health system said the 296 people it needs to lay off will be from “departments and disciplines across the system including management, support and administrative services, and clinical care,” and that those that are affected will have access to job search assistance and resume writing guidance. Some will receive severance packages. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AHS leadership continues to pursue multiple strategies to restore funding and strengthen sustainability,” the agency’s statement said. “We are working in partnership with federal, state and county leaders to hopefully mitigate these adverse conditions.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gardine said before resorting to layoffs, executives at AHS should take pay cuts, and explore other options, such as ending leases at pricey office buildings in downtown and the Jack London areas of Oakland. The system should also consider hiring more permanent staff instead of relying on traveling contractors. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The resources are there, the state of California is an incredibly wealthy state. So, the fact that we are cutting essential services for our most vulnerable communities is completely outrageous,” Gardine said. “I think we have a huge fight ahead and that I think there’s a lot of us who are ready to start fighting.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/flu\">Flu\u003c/a> season is back in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to data released Wednesday by the city’s Department of Public Health, the rate of tests positive for influenza reached 5% as of Dec. 6.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though cases are still low overall, they are on the rise — and the state’s respiratory virus dashboard indicates hospitalizations are “expected to increase.” Dr. Farrell Tobolowsky, an infectious disease physician for the city’s Public Health Department, said the holidays are prime time for gathering with loved ones and sharing germs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We suspect that this is definitely a time where there will be risk of transmission. We also know that people gather with people from other parts of the country where flu activity may actually be higher than it is in California at this time,” Tobolowsky said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, the state \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12028312/californias-worst-flu-season-years-may-finally-easing\">recorded one of its worst flu seasons\u003c/a> on record. Early mild symptoms can include a fever, runny nose, cough, body aches, sore throat or fatigue. More severe symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, these seasonal upticks of the flu can last for weeks to months. According to Dr. Tobolowsky, cases are lower than they’ve been at this time of year in the past, meaning the winter flu season could simply be beginning later than expected.[aside postID=news_12027283 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/02/GettyImages-1720991107-1020x680.jpg']Older adults, infants and toddlers, and people with chronic medical conditions are most at-risk for complications associated with the illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFDPH recommended the 2025-2026 shot for anyone over six months old who has not already received it. Experts usually suggest that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12027283/forgot-your-flu-vaccine-with-historic-infections-its-not-too-late-for-a-shot\">people get their shot in the fall,\u003c/a> ahead of the coming season’s peak. You can find \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/get-vaccinated-against-covid-19-flu-and-rsv\">access \u003c/a>to a vaccine here, and many local pharmacies accommodate walk-ins.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFDPH also suggests the use of high-quality masks — especially if you’re sick — but also beneficial even when you’re not. KN95 masks have been proven to lower the risk of spreading respiratory illnesses, and all mask types are especially recommended in crowded indoor spaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And as usual, the SFDPH urges good hygiene practices such as washing your hands frequently with soap and water, and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While sick, it’s important to stay home from school or work until symptoms resolve. Being fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication is a good indicator of when to return to ease back into your typical routine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/flu\">Flu\u003c/a> season is back in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to data released Wednesday by the city’s Department of Public Health, the rate of tests positive for influenza reached 5% as of Dec. 6.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though cases are still low overall, they are on the rise — and the state’s respiratory virus dashboard indicates hospitalizations are “expected to increase.” Dr. Farrell Tobolowsky, an infectious disease physician for the city’s Public Health Department, said the holidays are prime time for gathering with loved ones and sharing germs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We suspect that this is definitely a time where there will be risk of transmission. We also know that people gather with people from other parts of the country where flu activity may actually be higher than it is in California at this time,” Tobolowsky said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier this year, the state \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12028312/californias-worst-flu-season-years-may-finally-easing\">recorded one of its worst flu seasons\u003c/a> on record. Early mild symptoms can include a fever, runny nose, cough, body aches, sore throat or fatigue. More severe symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, these seasonal upticks of the flu can last for weeks to months. According to Dr. Tobolowsky, cases are lower than they’ve been at this time of year in the past, meaning the winter flu season could simply be beginning later than expected.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Older adults, infants and toddlers, and people with chronic medical conditions are most at-risk for complications associated with the illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFDPH recommended the 2025-2026 shot for anyone over six months old who has not already received it. Experts usually suggest that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12027283/forgot-your-flu-vaccine-with-historic-infections-its-not-too-late-for-a-shot\">people get their shot in the fall,\u003c/a> ahead of the coming season’s peak. You can find \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/get-vaccinated-against-covid-19-flu-and-rsv\">access \u003c/a>to a vaccine here, and many local pharmacies accommodate walk-ins.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFDPH also suggests the use of high-quality masks — especially if you’re sick — but also beneficial even when you’re not. KN95 masks have been proven to lower the risk of spreading respiratory illnesses, and all mask types are especially recommended in crowded indoor spaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And as usual, the SFDPH urges good hygiene practices such as washing your hands frequently with soap and water, and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While sick, it’s important to stay home from school or work until symptoms resolve. Being fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication is a good indicator of when to return to ease back into your typical routine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "sutter-healths-trans-youth-care-hasnt-stopped-parents-say-but-trump-wants-a-ban",
"title": "Sutter Health’s Trans Youth Care Hasn’t Stopped, Parents Say, but Trump Wants a Ban",
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"content": "\u003cp>After families were informed last month that Sutter Health planned to join a growing list of health care providers \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065480/its-just-cruel-bay-area-parents-say-sutter-health-is-set-to-halt-trans-youth-care\">limiting gender-affirming care for minors\u003c/a>, some say the Northern California-based network is reversing course, despite mounting pressure from the federal government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the temporary reprieve is shaky, according to East Bay mother Nikki, whose 14-year-old son relies on a Sutter doctor for frequent, steady care. The Trump administration on Thursday announced funding restrictions that could effectively \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/12/18/nx-s1-5647789/transgender-gender-affirming-care-rfk-jr-dr-oz-trump\">halt all pediatric gender-affirming care\u003c/a>, and Nikki worries the move could push Sutter to backtrack — and make it nearly impossible to find a provider.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m trying really hard to hold on to the victory of this last week and a half or so that this care has not stopped,” she told KQED. “But that unforeseeable future weighs heavily on my husband and I. We do our best to shelter our children, but this is the world intruding upon our lives and the government trying to make decisions for us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, Nikki, who asked to be identified by only her first name for fear of retribution against her and her son’s caregiver, was informed that his care would be discontinued just weeks later, on Dec. 10. Several other families with transgender children said their doctors had relayed similar messages.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But last week, according to Nikki, her son’s doctor said the hospital network appeared to reverse course and would no longer stop offering treatments on that date.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement, Sutter said it was working to ensure compliance with recent federal actions affecting gender-affirming care for patients under 19.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11980957\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11980957\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Sutter Health CPMC Davies Campus in San Francisco on Feb. 8, 2024. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Sutter-aligned physicians are engaging directly with their patients to have open and thoughtful conversations and to determine individual care plans that will meet anticipated requirements,” the nonprofit hospital network said, adding that gender-affirming surgeries for young patients had previously ceased. “We continue to support careful, patient-centered discussions with appropriate resources and guidance.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nikki said she’s still waiting for her son’s future appointments to be rescheduled after they were canceled last month, but she’s heard from other families that they’ve been able to get back on their caregivers’ calendars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, she said, the last few weeks have been extremely nerve-wracking as she and other families awaited pending federal policy moves that would essentially ban gender-affirming care for youth, even in states where it’s legal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That came Thursday morning, when Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Medicaid Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced two new rules.[aside postID=news_12065480 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-1_qed.jpg']The first would prevent hospitals and doctors from receiving Medicaid reimbursements for gender-affirming care for children. Medicaid offers health coverage to millions of low-income Americans. The second would go further, blocking all funding from Medicaid and Medicare, which covers older people and those with disabilities, for medical centers that provide gender-affirming care to youth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hospitals rely heavily on Medicaid and Medicare funding to operate — combined, the two federal programs covered about 45% of spending on hospital care in 2023, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kff.org/health-costs/key-facts-about-hospitals/?entry=national-hospital-spending-spending-by-payer\">according to the health policy research organization KFF\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The proposed rules have to go through a 60-day period during which the public can weigh in, and they are likely to face legal challenges; the American Civil Liberties Union has already said it plans to sue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If they’re finalized, though, Nikki worries that it will become nearly impossible to find a doctor who offers the care her son needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Then what am I going to do to find a physician? Who are those physicians?” Nikki asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because other major networks have already moved to limit gender-affirming care in light of the Trump administration’s crackdown. In June, Stanford Medicine paused gender-affirming surgeries and stopped providing prescriptions for puberty blockers to young people, and Kaiser Permanente halted surgical care in July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049926\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049926\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Calder Storm waves a transgender flag at a rally and vigil, honoring transgender patients affected by Kaiser’s decision to halt gender-affirming care to minors, outside of Kaiser Permanente on July 25, 2025. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nikki called the president’s efforts to withhold funding from caregivers who provide gender affirming care “financial sabotage.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s terrifying,” she said. “It feels completely helpless and hopeless.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’s been searching for a new provider who doesn’t rely on federal funding since the initial word last month from her Sutter doctor, but she hasn’t found one yet. The threat that her son’s care could be stopped with just days or weeks of notice is especially worrisome, she said, because of how time sensitive it is.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He takes a weekly testosterone shot, which has to be picked up one dose at a time, and re-prescribed every six months, due to their insurance coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right now, he’s out of refills. He’s still within his normal dose cycle, Nikki said, but if he’s unable to get a new prescription within days and falls behind, the effects will be pretty immediately noticeable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she thinks he’ll be able to see his Sutter caregiver for a prescription this time, if that option goes away in the future, “I’m, for lack of a word, shit out of luck,” Nikki said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/nnavarro\">\u003cem>Natalia Navarro\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>After families were informed last month that Sutter Health planned to join a growing list of health care providers \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065480/its-just-cruel-bay-area-parents-say-sutter-health-is-set-to-halt-trans-youth-care\">limiting gender-affirming care for minors\u003c/a>, some say the Northern California-based network is reversing course, despite mounting pressure from the federal government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the temporary reprieve is shaky, according to East Bay mother Nikki, whose 14-year-old son relies on a Sutter doctor for frequent, steady care. The Trump administration on Thursday announced funding restrictions that could effectively \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/12/18/nx-s1-5647789/transgender-gender-affirming-care-rfk-jr-dr-oz-trump\">halt all pediatric gender-affirming care\u003c/a>, and Nikki worries the move could push Sutter to backtrack — and make it nearly impossible to find a provider.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m trying really hard to hold on to the victory of this last week and a half or so that this care has not stopped,” she told KQED. “But that unforeseeable future weighs heavily on my husband and I. We do our best to shelter our children, but this is the world intruding upon our lives and the government trying to make decisions for us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, Nikki, who asked to be identified by only her first name for fear of retribution against her and her son’s caregiver, was informed that his care would be discontinued just weeks later, on Dec. 10. Several other families with transgender children said their doctors had relayed similar messages.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But last week, according to Nikki, her son’s doctor said the hospital network appeared to reverse course and would no longer stop offering treatments on that date.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement, Sutter said it was working to ensure compliance with recent federal actions affecting gender-affirming care for patients under 19.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11980957\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11980957\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/03/240208-HospitalViolence-11-BL_qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Sutter Health CPMC Davies Campus in San Francisco on Feb. 8, 2024. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Sutter-aligned physicians are engaging directly with their patients to have open and thoughtful conversations and to determine individual care plans that will meet anticipated requirements,” the nonprofit hospital network said, adding that gender-affirming surgeries for young patients had previously ceased. “We continue to support careful, patient-centered discussions with appropriate resources and guidance.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nikki said she’s still waiting for her son’s future appointments to be rescheduled after they were canceled last month, but she’s heard from other families that they’ve been able to get back on their caregivers’ calendars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, she said, the last few weeks have been extremely nerve-wracking as she and other families awaited pending federal policy moves that would essentially ban gender-affirming care for youth, even in states where it’s legal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That came Thursday morning, when Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Medicaid Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced two new rules.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The first would prevent hospitals and doctors from receiving Medicaid reimbursements for gender-affirming care for children. Medicaid offers health coverage to millions of low-income Americans. The second would go further, blocking all funding from Medicaid and Medicare, which covers older people and those with disabilities, for medical centers that provide gender-affirming care to youth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hospitals rely heavily on Medicaid and Medicare funding to operate — combined, the two federal programs covered about 45% of spending on hospital care in 2023, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kff.org/health-costs/key-facts-about-hospitals/?entry=national-hospital-spending-spending-by-payer\">according to the health policy research organization KFF\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The proposed rules have to go through a 60-day period during which the public can weigh in, and they are likely to face legal challenges; the American Civil Liberties Union has already said it plans to sue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If they’re finalized, though, Nikki worries that it will become nearly impossible to find a doctor who offers the care her son needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Then what am I going to do to find a physician? Who are those physicians?” Nikki asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because other major networks have already moved to limit gender-affirming care in light of the Trump administration’s crackdown. In June, Stanford Medicine paused gender-affirming surgeries and stopped providing prescriptions for puberty blockers to young people, and Kaiser Permanente halted surgical care in July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049926\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049926\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/20250725_KaiserTransProtest_GC-31_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Calder Storm waves a transgender flag at a rally and vigil, honoring transgender patients affected by Kaiser’s decision to halt gender-affirming care to minors, outside of Kaiser Permanente on July 25, 2025. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nikki called the president’s efforts to withhold funding from caregivers who provide gender affirming care “financial sabotage.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s terrifying,” she said. “It feels completely helpless and hopeless.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’s been searching for a new provider who doesn’t rely on federal funding since the initial word last month from her Sutter doctor, but she hasn’t found one yet. The threat that her son’s care could be stopped with just days or weeks of notice is especially worrisome, she said, because of how time sensitive it is.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He takes a weekly testosterone shot, which has to be picked up one dose at a time, and re-prescribed every six months, due to their insurance coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right now, he’s out of refills. He’s still within his normal dose cycle, Nikki said, but if he’s unable to get a new prescription within days and falls behind, the effects will be pretty immediately noticeable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she thinks he’ll be able to see his Sutter caregiver for a prescription this time, if that option goes away in the future, “I’m, for lack of a word, shit out of luck,” Nikki said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/nnavarro\">\u003cem>Natalia Navarro\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A medical association has petitioned California to prohibit the use of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">popular countertop construction material\u003c/a> linked to an aggressive lung disease disabling and killing stoneworkers. The campaign escalated pressure on the state to follow Australia, which became the first country to ban engineered stone last year after facing a similar health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has the U.S.’s strictest regulations to prevent workers from inhaling toxic silica dust — generated by the cutting, polishing and grinding of engineered stone slabs to make kitchen countertops, bathroom vanities, fireplace surfaces and other products. Most countertop fabrication shops, however, don’t have the money or capacity to comply with the rules, leaving thousands of stonecutters at risk of contracting silicosis, according to the Western Occupational & Environmental Medical Association.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The evidence is now clear that engineered stone containing crystalline silica is too toxic to fabricate and install safely, and education and enforcement alone will not be sufficient to curtail the escalating occupational health emergency caused by this product,” WOEMA’s Dec. 12 letter to regulators said. The association represents more than 600 occupational safety physicians and other experts in seven western states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The doctors requested that the state body that adopts new job safety rules to start the process to ban all fabrication and installation tasks on engineered stone containing more than 1% crystalline silica, similar to Australia’s policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, which declined to comment on WOEMA’s letter, has up to six months to review and decide. The proposal is likely to face stiff opposition from manufacturers, distributors and fabricators of engineered stone, also known as quartz or artificial stone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone represents a growing multibillion-dollar market in the U.S., with increasing demand expected in California due to the rebuilding effort in Los Angeles after the massive fires in January 2025. More than half of the silicosis cases in the state are located in Los Angeles County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Laurie Weber, who directs the International Surface Fabricators Association, said Australia’s model is not directly transferable to the U.S. economy, and that more research is needed to understand what would happen if hundreds of small and mid-size fabrication businesses suddenly had to stop working with their primary material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“ISFA does not believe a ban is the answer. The problem is not the material. The problem is employers ignoring the law and a lack of enforcement resources to ensure compliance,” Weber said in a statement. “Before California considers a prohibition that would reshape an entire segment of the construction economy, we respectfully request clarity on how WOEMA determined that engineered stone cannot be fabricated safely — even in shops fully compliant with Cal/OSHA’s existing silica standard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>ISFA and others in the industry instead support a licensing program, in which only shops certified to handle artificial stone following regulations have access to it. A \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB20\">recent law\u003c/a> signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom that addresses the rise of silicosis through education and enforcement initially included a certification system — but that component was removed from the final draft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About 450 silicosis cases have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">confirmed\u003c/a> among stoneworkers in California since 2019, and regulators expect the numbers could rise to between 1,000 and 1,500 within the next decade. Nearly all of those sick are Latino men, many immigrants lacking permanent legal status, who didn’t know about the hazards of working on crystalline silica products. Twenty-five stoneworkers died, and dozens received lung transplants, according to the California Department of Public Health.[aside postID=news_12064693 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-01-KQED-1.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As long as this dangerous material remains available and is purchased and used in California, it’s inevitable that people will continue to be exposed and die,” Robert Blink, an occupational medicine doctor in San Francisco and former WOEMA president, told KQED. “There’s always resistance to change. But when you’ve got something this dangerous out there that’s literally killing people … we’ve got to stop this from going up. This is not a time for small measures, frankly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Engineered stone can contain more than 90% crystalline silica, much more than natural stones such as marble. The factory-made material’s popularity has skyrocketed because it is stain-resistant, produced in attractive colors and designs and is often cheaper than natural stones. But many consumers are unaware of the hazards that artificial stone dust poses to the workers who shape and install their countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Growing scientific evidence has shown that the silica dust released by the material is so toxic that small amounts of exposure are enough to make workers sick. The tiny airborne particles can penetrate filter masks and lodge in the lungs, causing progressive scarring and injury in workers, some as young as their 20s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dozens of silicosis cases have also been reported by doctors in Illinois, Utah, Colorado, Massachusetts, as well as other states that are not tracking the disease as systematically as California’s public health authorities. Those figures are widely believed to be underreported. Israel, Spain and other countries have also seen a surge in silicosis tied to engineered stone. Medical experts in the UK are urging authorities to prohibit the use of the material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>James Nevin, an attorney at Brayton Purcell, a firm that represents hundreds of sick workers suing major manufacturers and distributors of artificial stone, said clients are located in 16 other states, including New York, Nevada, Florida, Kentucky and Hawaii.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033303\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033303\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone countertop fabricator’s hands are covered in dust at a shop on Oct. 31, 2023, in Sun Valley, California. Inhaling fine particles can contribute to silicosis. \u003ccite>(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>California currently bans the dry cutting of engineered stone and mandates the use of wet methods — machines that submerge or cover the material’s surface with water to suppress dust. Employers are also required to implement local exhaust ventilation, ensure employees wear powered air-purifying respirators and take other measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Cal/OSHA inspectors have found most of the 120 shops they’ve visited in the last two years were violating the rules, which fabricators and doctors consider too expensive and challenging for many employers to follow. California has about 4,600 countertop fabrication workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Major manufacturers, such as Israel-based Caesarstone, did not immediately return requests for comment on the California ban proposal, but publicly opposed a prohibition in Australia. A spokesperson for Cosentino, a company headquartered in Spain, also declined to comment, but told KQED last month that silicosis is preventable when proper safety and health measures are in place to protect workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both companies, which face hundreds of lawsuits by workers claiming silica-related injuries in the U.S. and other countries, have developed crystalline silica-free products for the Australian market but continue to sell high-silica engineered stone in the U.S.[aside postID=news_12066901 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251115-DEADLY-LUNG-DISEASE-MD-04-KQED-2.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Doctors who’ve followed the issue argue that the safer alternatives have similar qualities, appearance and cost to traditional engineered stone and could be made immediately available in California, without significant economic consequences for fabrication businesses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Policymakers have publicly expressed dismay at the rising number of silicosis cases in the state, but have not favored a prohibition so far. Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board Chair Joseph Alioto Jr. said that the state should focus its resources on expanding Cal/OSHA enforcement of current silica regulations. Alioto recommended the agency partner with local public health departments and district attorneys to assist with investigations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We currently have a regulation to do stuff. We just need to get out into the field and do it,” said Alioto, an attorney in San Francisco, during a Nov. 20 meeting. “We just need boots on the ground to police this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s office declined to comment on his stance on a ban on artificial stone, referring questions to the Public Health Department. An agency spokesperson said that they are tracking the silicosis situation closely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez, a 43-year-old former stonecutter who was diagnosed with silicosis last year, said he believes removing hazardous artificial stone from fabrication shops could save lives. The once-active father of four is now confined to his East Bay home, waiting for a double lung transplant, unable to work and reliant on an oxygen supply machine to breathe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I’d known about the seriousness of this disease from the beginning, I wouldn’t have worked in this field, in the stone industry, because I wouldn’t have wanted to get sick like I am now,” said Lopez, an immigrant who lacks permanent legal status, who cut countertops in California for decades. KQED is withholding his full name because he fears losing medical care if federal authorities arrest him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If they have the possibility of selling other products that contain zero silica, that would be better, so that people don’t get sick,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A medical association has petitioned California to prohibit the use of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064693/california-doctors-urge-ban-on-engineered-stone-as-silicosis-cases-surge\">popular countertop construction material\u003c/a> linked to an aggressive lung disease disabling and killing stoneworkers. The campaign escalated pressure on the state to follow Australia, which became the first country to ban engineered stone last year after facing a similar health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has the U.S.’s strictest regulations to prevent workers from inhaling toxic silica dust — generated by the cutting, polishing and grinding of engineered stone slabs to make kitchen countertops, bathroom vanities, fireplace surfaces and other products. Most countertop fabrication shops, however, don’t have the money or capacity to comply with the rules, leaving thousands of stonecutters at risk of contracting silicosis, according to the Western Occupational & Environmental Medical Association.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The evidence is now clear that engineered stone containing crystalline silica is too toxic to fabricate and install safely, and education and enforcement alone will not be sufficient to curtail the escalating occupational health emergency caused by this product,” WOEMA’s Dec. 12 letter to regulators said. The association represents more than 600 occupational safety physicians and other experts in seven western states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The doctors requested that the state body that adopts new job safety rules to start the process to ban all fabrication and installation tasks on engineered stone containing more than 1% crystalline silica, similar to Australia’s policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, which declined to comment on WOEMA’s letter, has up to six months to review and decide. The proposal is likely to face stiff opposition from manufacturers, distributors and fabricators of engineered stone, also known as quartz or artificial stone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Artificial stone represents a growing multibillion-dollar market in the U.S., with increasing demand expected in California due to the rebuilding effort in Los Angeles after the massive fires in January 2025. More than half of the silicosis cases in the state are located in Los Angeles County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033047\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033047\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/231017-StonecutterSilicosis-002-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone fabricator places his hand on a table that he cut at his home in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Laurie Weber, who directs the International Surface Fabricators Association, said Australia’s model is not directly transferable to the U.S. economy, and that more research is needed to understand what would happen if hundreds of small and mid-size fabrication businesses suddenly had to stop working with their primary material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“ISFA does not believe a ban is the answer. The problem is not the material. The problem is employers ignoring the law and a lack of enforcement resources to ensure compliance,” Weber said in a statement. “Before California considers a prohibition that would reshape an entire segment of the construction economy, we respectfully request clarity on how WOEMA determined that engineered stone cannot be fabricated safely — even in shops fully compliant with Cal/OSHA’s existing silica standard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>ISFA and others in the industry instead support a licensing program, in which only shops certified to handle artificial stone following regulations have access to it. A \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB20\">recent law\u003c/a> signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom that addresses the rise of silicosis through education and enforcement initially included a certification system — but that component was removed from the final draft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About 450 silicosis cases have been \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/Pages/essdashboard.aspx\">confirmed\u003c/a> among stoneworkers in California since 2019, and regulators expect the numbers could rise to between 1,000 and 1,500 within the next decade. Nearly all of those sick are Latino men, many immigrants lacking permanent legal status, who didn’t know about the hazards of working on crystalline silica products. Twenty-five stoneworkers died, and dozens received lung transplants, according to the California Department of Public Health.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As long as this dangerous material remains available and is purchased and used in California, it’s inevitable that people will continue to be exposed and die,” Robert Blink, an occupational medicine doctor in San Francisco and former WOEMA president, told KQED. “There’s always resistance to change. But when you’ve got something this dangerous out there that’s literally killing people … we’ve got to stop this from going up. This is not a time for small measures, frankly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Engineered stone can contain more than 90% crystalline silica, much more than natural stones such as marble. The factory-made material’s popularity has skyrocketed because it is stain-resistant, produced in attractive colors and designs and is often cheaper than natural stones. But many consumers are unaware of the hazards that artificial stone dust poses to the workers who shape and install their countertops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Growing scientific evidence has shown that the silica dust released by the material is so toxic that small amounts of exposure are enough to make workers sick. The tiny airborne particles can penetrate filter masks and lodge in the lungs, causing progressive scarring and injury in workers, some as young as their 20s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dozens of silicosis cases have also been reported by doctors in Illinois, Utah, Colorado, Massachusetts, as well as other states that are not tracking the disease as systematically as California’s public health authorities. Those figures are widely believed to be underreported. Israel, Spain and other countries have also seen a surge in silicosis tied to engineered stone. Medical experts in the UK are urging authorities to prohibit the use of the material.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>James Nevin, an attorney at Brayton Purcell, a firm that represents hundreds of sick workers suing major manufacturers and distributors of artificial stone, said clients are located in 16 other states, including New York, Nevada, Florida, Kentucky and Hawaii.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033303\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033303\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/StonecutterGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A stone countertop fabricator’s hands are covered in dust at a shop on Oct. 31, 2023, in Sun Valley, California. Inhaling fine particles can contribute to silicosis. \u003ccite>(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>California currently bans the dry cutting of engineered stone and mandates the use of wet methods — machines that submerge or cover the material’s surface with water to suppress dust. Employers are also required to implement local exhaust ventilation, ensure employees wear powered air-purifying respirators and take other measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Cal/OSHA inspectors have found most of the 120 shops they’ve visited in the last two years were violating the rules, which fabricators and doctors consider too expensive and challenging for many employers to follow. California has about 4,600 countertop fabrication workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Major manufacturers, such as Israel-based Caesarstone, did not immediately return requests for comment on the California ban proposal, but publicly opposed a prohibition in Australia. A spokesperson for Cosentino, a company headquartered in Spain, also declined to comment, but told KQED last month that silicosis is preventable when proper safety and health measures are in place to protect workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both companies, which face hundreds of lawsuits by workers claiming silica-related injuries in the U.S. and other countries, have developed crystalline silica-free products for the Australian market but continue to sell high-silica engineered stone in the U.S.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Doctors who’ve followed the issue argue that the safer alternatives have similar qualities, appearance and cost to traditional engineered stone and could be made immediately available in California, without significant economic consequences for fabrication businesses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Policymakers have publicly expressed dismay at the rising number of silicosis cases in the state, but have not favored a prohibition so far. Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board Chair Joseph Alioto Jr. said that the state should focus its resources on expanding Cal/OSHA enforcement of current silica regulations. Alioto recommended the agency partner with local public health departments and district attorneys to assist with investigations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We currently have a regulation to do stuff. We just need to get out into the field and do it,” said Alioto, an attorney in San Francisco, during a Nov. 20 meeting. “We just need boots on the ground to police this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s office declined to comment on his stance on a ban on artificial stone, referring questions to the Public Health Department. An agency spokesperson said that they are tracking the silicosis situation closely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lopez, a 43-year-old former stonecutter who was diagnosed with silicosis last year, said he believes removing hazardous artificial stone from fabrication shops could save lives. The once-active father of four is now confined to his East Bay home, waiting for a double lung transplant, unable to work and reliant on an oxygen supply machine to breathe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I’d known about the seriousness of this disease from the beginning, I wouldn’t have worked in this field, in the stone industry, because I wouldn’t have wanted to get sick like I am now,” said Lopez, an immigrant who lacks permanent legal status, who cut countertops in California for decades. KQED is withholding his full name because he fears losing medical care if federal authorities arrest him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If they have the possibility of selling other products that contain zero silica, that would be better, so that people don’t get sick,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "CDPH: Don’t Eat This Brand of ‘Magic Mushroom’ Gummies, Chocolates and Syrups",
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"content": "\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california-department-of-public-health\">California Department of Public Health\u003c/a> on Thursday warned residents not to use a line of “magic mushroom” products sold online and at smoke shops throughout the state, which they’ve determined contain illegal and dangerous psychedelic compounds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state agency said they’ve discovered that some of the mushroom chocolate bars, syrups and gummies made by TRE House, a Los Angeles-based company that also makes THC and hemp “recreational products,” contain an equivalent of the illegal psychedelic psilocin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These food products have the potential to cause severe adverse health effects, including hospitalization and even death,” CDPH said in a statement. “The risk of misuse, overuse, or negative interactions with other medications is high, especially without oversight or consultation with medical professionals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While psychedelics have been decriminalized in two states and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11752455/oakland-becomes-second-u-s-city-to-legalize-magic-mushrooms\">some California cities\u003c/a>, and there’s growing momentum to widen \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982857/magic-mushrooms-may-treat-depression-but-hurdles-to-psilocybin-access-abound\">medical\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/lifestyle/article/magic-mushroom-the-great-shroom-boom\">recreational use\u003c/a>, so-called “magic mushrooms,” and their synthetic variants, remain illegal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TRE House’s line of mushroom products, which they say “may cause psychotropic effects,” contains a “Magic Mushroom Microdose Blend” and “Proprietary Nootropic Mushroom Blend.” The ingredients listed online for its magic mushroom gummies don’t include psychedelics, but include a form of gabapentin, along with a variety of mushrooms that could be found in most health food stores, like lion’s mane, chaga and cordyceps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12066862\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12066862\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/TRE-House-1-scaled-e1765498264942.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1061\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California Department of Public Health found that TRE House’s Milk Chocolate bar, along with other products, contains illegal and potentially dangerous psychedelic compounds. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the California Department of Public Health.)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>TRE House’s \u003ca href=\"https://trehouse.com/lab-reports/\">publicly-posted lab reports\u003c/a> from as recently as Dec. 8 say no psilocin and psilocybin, another illegal psychedelic, were detected in mushroom gummies, syrups, chocolates and vapes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the CDPH said its laboratory testing found that products contained two illegal analogues of psilocin: 4-Acetoxy-DET and 4-Acetoxy-DMT, as well as synthetic mushroom-based psychoactive drugs. The compounds are considered Schedule 1 drugs by the Drug Enforcement Administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TRE House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.[aside postID=news_12066441 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/LEDE-Amanita-phalloides-Bay-Area-2016-1.jpg']Dr. John Gray, associate director of UC Davis’s Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics, said it’s possible that CDPH could be cracking down on TRE House specifically because of their use of artificial compounds, since synthetics are often easier to regulate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials said that no illnesses associated with the products have been reported, but that “individuals looking for psychedelic mushroom products for therapeutic effects run the risk of serious or life-threatening illness.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The packaging of the products as syrups and sweets could also be dangerous for children, who might view them as regular candies and chocolates, according to CDPH.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The form can make it easy for children and adults to overdo it: edibles are often dosed by one square of chocolate or a single gummy, compared to a whole bar or bag you might eat as a snack.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While many of these products are considered medically safe in small amounts, they can increase heart rate and blood pressure, body temperature and the risk of serotonin syndrome for people on serotonin-based prescription drugs if overused.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDPH said it is investigating TRE House and its manufacturers, and that more than 1,000 lbs of the brand’s products have been destroyed. The company could face civil or criminal penalties pending further investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california-department-of-public-health\">California Department of Public Health\u003c/a> on Thursday warned residents not to use a line of “magic mushroom” products sold online and at smoke shops throughout the state, which they’ve determined contain illegal and dangerous psychedelic compounds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state agency said they’ve discovered that some of the mushroom chocolate bars, syrups and gummies made by TRE House, a Los Angeles-based company that also makes THC and hemp “recreational products,” contain an equivalent of the illegal psychedelic psilocin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These food products have the potential to cause severe adverse health effects, including hospitalization and even death,” CDPH said in a statement. “The risk of misuse, overuse, or negative interactions with other medications is high, especially without oversight or consultation with medical professionals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While psychedelics have been decriminalized in two states and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11752455/oakland-becomes-second-u-s-city-to-legalize-magic-mushrooms\">some California cities\u003c/a>, and there’s growing momentum to widen \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982857/magic-mushrooms-may-treat-depression-but-hurdles-to-psilocybin-access-abound\">medical\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/lifestyle/article/magic-mushroom-the-great-shroom-boom\">recreational use\u003c/a>, so-called “magic mushrooms,” and their synthetic variants, remain illegal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TRE House’s line of mushroom products, which they say “may cause psychotropic effects,” contains a “Magic Mushroom Microdose Blend” and “Proprietary Nootropic Mushroom Blend.” The ingredients listed online for its magic mushroom gummies don’t include psychedelics, but include a form of gabapentin, along with a variety of mushrooms that could be found in most health food stores, like lion’s mane, chaga and cordyceps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12066862\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12066862\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/TRE-House-1-scaled-e1765498264942.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1061\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California Department of Public Health found that TRE House’s Milk Chocolate bar, along with other products, contains illegal and potentially dangerous psychedelic compounds. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the California Department of Public Health.)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>TRE House’s \u003ca href=\"https://trehouse.com/lab-reports/\">publicly-posted lab reports\u003c/a> from as recently as Dec. 8 say no psilocin and psilocybin, another illegal psychedelic, were detected in mushroom gummies, syrups, chocolates and vapes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the CDPH said its laboratory testing found that products contained two illegal analogues of psilocin: 4-Acetoxy-DET and 4-Acetoxy-DMT, as well as synthetic mushroom-based psychoactive drugs. The compounds are considered Schedule 1 drugs by the Drug Enforcement Administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TRE House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Dr. John Gray, associate director of UC Davis’s Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics, said it’s possible that CDPH could be cracking down on TRE House specifically because of their use of artificial compounds, since synthetics are often easier to regulate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials said that no illnesses associated with the products have been reported, but that “individuals looking for psychedelic mushroom products for therapeutic effects run the risk of serious or life-threatening illness.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The packaging of the products as syrups and sweets could also be dangerous for children, who might view them as regular candies and chocolates, according to CDPH.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The form can make it easy for children and adults to overdo it: edibles are often dosed by one square of chocolate or a single gummy, compared to a whole bar or bag you might eat as a snack.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While many of these products are considered medically safe in small amounts, they can increase heart rate and blood pressure, body temperature and the risk of serotonin syndrome for people on serotonin-based prescription drugs if overused.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDPH said it is investigating TRE House and its manufacturers, and that more than 1,000 lbs of the brand’s products have been destroyed. The company could face civil or criminal penalties pending further investigation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-fire-department\">San Francisco’s fire department\u003c/a> is set to become the largest in the country to phase out “forever chemicals” in firefighting gear, officials said Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With cancer \u003ca href=\"https://worksitemed.com/firefighter-cancer/\">surpassing heart disease\u003c/a> as the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths for firefighters in recent years, researchers and advocates have increasingly raised alarms about the use of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in their protective equipment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These chemicals have known links to \u003ca href=\"https://dceg.cancer.gov/research/what-we-study/pfas\">certain types of cancer,\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38662859/\">cardiovascular disease\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7473499/\">birth defects\u003c/a> and other health problems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Firefighting is inherently dangerous, and our personnel deserve access to the most modern, protective, and safest turnout gear available,” San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen said in a statement. “Transitioning to PFAS-free equipment is a critical step in advancing our mission: safeguarding the public by ensuring our firefighters remain healthy and able to serve at their highest capacity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In May 2024, San Francisco became the first city in the country to ban the use of PFAS in firefighting PPE. The department said it has already received the first shipments of the new gear and expects to receive 1,100 sets, enough for every frontline firefighter, by the end of the month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10600578\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-10600578\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/07/62545444_43740a918e_o-e1450826725132.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1172\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The facade of the San Francisco Fire Department’s old Station 1 on Howard Street on July 14, 2015. \u003ccite>(\u003ca href=\"https://flic.kr/p/6wyzJ\">Thomas Hawk/Flickr\u003c/a>)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The switch comes after years of growing concerns over the use of PFAS to make gear resistant to water and oils. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11760106/high-levels-of-harmful-chemicals-found-in-blood-of-firefighters-who-battled-2017-tubbs-fire-new-analysis-finds\">After the deadly Tubbs Fire in 2017\u003c/a>, former San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine R. Nicholson said the chemicals were contributing to firefighters “dying with what we call ‘their boots off.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A study by the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation and researchers at UC Berkeley found that first responders’ blood contained higher levels of PFAS after that blaze than those not on the front lines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Instead of dying in an incident in a fire or a vehicle accident, they’re dying of cancer and other diseases,” Nicholson told KQED at the time.[aside postID=news_11982531 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/04/111020_Tap_Water_AW_CM_02-1020x680.jpg']Efforts to ban PFAS statewide have advanced this year: in October, Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/california-bans-pfas-firefighting-gear-protect-health/509-e8913821-b052-4786-a02e-427ca3eba5db\">signed\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://a17.asmdc.org/press-releases/20250916-california-bill-removing-cancerous-chemicals-firefighter-uniforms-passes\">AB 1881\u003c/a>, introduced by San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney, which banned the use of PFAS in firefighting equipment for all California firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And across the U.S., other departments have begun to make the transition: earlier this year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/pfas-cancer-massachusetts-san-francisco-american-cancer-society-b2816452.html\">Providence, Rhode Island\u003c/a>, rolled out new gear, and in 2024, Massachusetts passed a\u003ca href=\"https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/S2902\"> ban\u003c/a> on the use of PFAS in firefighting PPE, set to take effect in 2027.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’ve been some setbacks — finding alternatives to a moisture barrier without using PFAS has been a challenge, according to SFFD, and in other cities, some gear purchased to replace the toxic suits has tested \u003ca href=\"https://www.firerescue1.com/personal-protective-equipment-ppe/mass-fds-pfas-free-gear-fails-lab-test-shows-high-toxic-levels\">positive\u003c/a> for the chemicals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But SFFD said a new flame-resistant, non-PFAS moisture barrier introduced by textile innovator Milliken & Company last October made it possible for the department’s manufacturer, Fire-Dex, to meet all of its requirements to deliver on the new gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The equipment was purchased with a $2.35 million FEMA grant and matching funds from SFFD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This distribution represents more than new gear,” Crispen said. “A protected workforce is the foundation of a protected community. By investing in the well-being of our firefighters, we strengthen the health, resilience, and safety of San Francisco as a whole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-fire-department\">San Francisco’s fire department\u003c/a> is set to become the largest in the country to phase out “forever chemicals” in firefighting gear, officials said Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With cancer \u003ca href=\"https://worksitemed.com/firefighter-cancer/\">surpassing heart disease\u003c/a> as the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths for firefighters in recent years, researchers and advocates have increasingly raised alarms about the use of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in their protective equipment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These chemicals have known links to \u003ca href=\"https://dceg.cancer.gov/research/what-we-study/pfas\">certain types of cancer,\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38662859/\">cardiovascular disease\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7473499/\">birth defects\u003c/a> and other health problems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Firefighting is inherently dangerous, and our personnel deserve access to the most modern, protective, and safest turnout gear available,” San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen said in a statement. “Transitioning to PFAS-free equipment is a critical step in advancing our mission: safeguarding the public by ensuring our firefighters remain healthy and able to serve at their highest capacity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In May 2024, San Francisco became the first city in the country to ban the use of PFAS in firefighting PPE. The department said it has already received the first shipments of the new gear and expects to receive 1,100 sets, enough for every frontline firefighter, by the end of the month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10600578\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-10600578\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/07/62545444_43740a918e_o-e1450826725132.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1172\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The facade of the San Francisco Fire Department’s old Station 1 on Howard Street on July 14, 2015. \u003ccite>(\u003ca href=\"https://flic.kr/p/6wyzJ\">Thomas Hawk/Flickr\u003c/a>)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The switch comes after years of growing concerns over the use of PFAS to make gear resistant to water and oils. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11760106/high-levels-of-harmful-chemicals-found-in-blood-of-firefighters-who-battled-2017-tubbs-fire-new-analysis-finds\">After the deadly Tubbs Fire in 2017\u003c/a>, former San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine R. Nicholson said the chemicals were contributing to firefighters “dying with what we call ‘their boots off.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A study by the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation and researchers at UC Berkeley found that first responders’ blood contained higher levels of PFAS after that blaze than those not on the front lines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Instead of dying in an incident in a fire or a vehicle accident, they’re dying of cancer and other diseases,” Nicholson told KQED at the time.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Efforts to ban PFAS statewide have advanced this year: in October, Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/california-bans-pfas-firefighting-gear-protect-health/509-e8913821-b052-4786-a02e-427ca3eba5db\">signed\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://a17.asmdc.org/press-releases/20250916-california-bill-removing-cancerous-chemicals-firefighter-uniforms-passes\">AB 1881\u003c/a>, introduced by San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney, which banned the use of PFAS in firefighting equipment for all California firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And across the U.S., other departments have begun to make the transition: earlier this year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/pfas-cancer-massachusetts-san-francisco-american-cancer-society-b2816452.html\">Providence, Rhode Island\u003c/a>, rolled out new gear, and in 2024, Massachusetts passed a\u003ca href=\"https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/S2902\"> ban\u003c/a> on the use of PFAS in firefighting PPE, set to take effect in 2027.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’ve been some setbacks — finding alternatives to a moisture barrier without using PFAS has been a challenge, according to SFFD, and in other cities, some gear purchased to replace the toxic suits has tested \u003ca href=\"https://www.firerescue1.com/personal-protective-equipment-ppe/mass-fds-pfas-free-gear-fails-lab-test-shows-high-toxic-levels\">positive\u003c/a> for the chemicals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But SFFD said a new flame-resistant, non-PFAS moisture barrier introduced by textile innovator Milliken & Company last October made it possible for the department’s manufacturer, Fire-Dex, to meet all of its requirements to deliver on the new gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The equipment was purchased with a $2.35 million FEMA grant and matching funds from SFFD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This distribution represents more than new gear,” Crispen said. “A protected workforce is the foundation of a protected community. By investing in the well-being of our firefighters, we strengthen the health, resilience, and safety of San Francisco as a whole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "friends-honor-alice-wong-as-disabled-advocates-brace-for-deep-medicaid-cuts",
"title": "After Alice Wong’s Death, Her Friends Vow to Keep Fighting for Disability Justice",
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"content": "\u003cp>With a smile, Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson, 38, closes her eyes when she says her friend’s name. She pauses. A tear rolls down her cheek.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a real level of rage that I feel around Alice’s death,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s been \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13983848/alice-wong-disability-rights-activist-obituary\"> a month\u003c/a> since disability activist and author \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101912041/remembering-disability-activist-alice-wong\">Alice Wong\u003c/a> died in San Francisco. Since her passing, KQED has spoken with many of Wong’s friends and collaborators in the Bay Area to better understand what motivated her decades of organizing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In her writings and public appearances, Wong spoke of the need for disabled people to advocate loudly for their health needs. This mission brought together a bold and effective network of advocates living with different disabilities. But now, folks are preparing for the biggest challenge yet: more than a trillion dollars in cuts to Medicaid and other social services in the coming decade, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058930/medicaid-cuts-could-put-services-for-disabled-californians-at-risk\">slashing a lifeline\u003c/a> for disabled people nationwide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alice fought like hell to exist in her body and mind every day,” said Hernandez-Wilson, who works for a nonprofit that advocates for domestic workers and caretakers. “There is a larger system at play that dictates if we are worthy enough of getting care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raised in rural Minnesota, Hernandez-Wilson was the only student with a disability in her class and one of the few students of color in her entire school. “I was afraid that if I was labeled as a certain type of disabled person, I would be locked away in a classroom … that deep internalized ableism can really mess with your mind,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As an adult, she picked up \u003ca href=\"https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/617802/disability-visibility-by-alice-wong/\">\u003cem>Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, an anthology edited by Wong.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065500\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sandy Ho, left, and Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson, right, hold hands at Lake Merritt in Oakland on Nov. 24, 2025. Hernandez-Wilson and Ho, who both worked closely with disability justice leader Alice Wong, are mourning their loss, yet continuing their fight for disability justice. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It was the first time in my entire life that I really saw disabled people who looked like me embody self-love, embracing their body and mind,” she said. “It was like a hug from the universe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After Hernandez-Wilson moved to the Bay Area last year, Wong became her mentor and friend. They shared jokes, stories of old crushes and how each managed their health. Born with spinal muscular atrophy, Wong dealt with chronic health issues throughout her life. After a series of medical emergencies in 2022, she began communicating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/perspectives/201601143471/alice-wong-i-still-have-a-voice-2\">through text-to-speech technology\u003c/a> and her family confirmed that her death was due to an infection.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If the systems weren’t the way they are, many of our people would still be here,” said Hernandez-Wilson. But even after Wong’s passing, she said, a generation of activists mentored by her is ready to push forward a bolder vision of liberation for all disabled people.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Centering the most marginalized\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Gifted with radiant charm and a disarming sense of humor, Wong, who was 51, built coalitions between different disabled communities. Cross-disability solidarity is \u003ca href=\"https://sinsinvalid.org/10-principles-of-disability-justice/\">a core principle of disability justice\u003c/a>, a framework developed over the last decade by queer and trans disabled activists of color in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the 20th century, the primary objective for many disabled activists was securing equal employment, political participation and economic self-sufficiency — as outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1980.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065194\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065194\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alice Wong, a disability rights activist and founder of the Disability Visibility Project, sits in the courtyard at the Disability Cultural Center on Aug. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This organizing was rooted in the Bay Area: the independent living movement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kalw.org/news/2017-04-05/berkeley-disability-activists-took-cues-from-the-civil-rights-era-and-sparked-a-national-movement\">took off here in the 1970s\u003c/a>; activists in Berkeley created the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/they-took-sledgehammers-sidewalks-heres-why-curb-cut-effect/\">first sidewalk curb cuts\u003c/a>; and in 1977, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13966861/judith-heumann-disability-rights-uc-berkeley-center-independent-living\">more than 100 disabled protesters\u003c/a> occupied the San Francisco Federal Building to demand implementation of the rule that prohibited discrimination based on disability in federally funded programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Proponents of disability justice maintain that ableism affects everyone — particularly those living with disabilities — and call for a future free of all systems that oppress disabled people. This fight, Wong said in \u003ca href=\"https://www.buzzsprout.com/2003809/episodes/10799918-making-the-world-brighter-sassier-and-more-colorful-alice-wong-on-disability-justice\">a 2022 podcast\u003c/a>, “must center on the most marginalized.” Nowhere is this more necessary, she added, than in a post-COVID world.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While cities and states rushed to loosen pandemic restrictions, Wong pushed back and demanded hospitals — including her own care provider, UCSF — continue \u003ca href=\"https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2024/01/25/n95s4ucsf-call-to-action/\">requiring face masks\u003c/a> and expand \u003ca href=\"https://nursing.ucsf.edu/news/disability-and-health-care-conversation-activist-alice-wong\">research into treatments\u003c/a> for those living with long COVID.[aside postID=news_11984990 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/12/Featured-photo-horizontal-Alice-Wong-1020x574.png']That’s how she met Charlie McCone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before contracting COVID in 2020, McCone, 35, said he had never experienced a serious health problem before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you go from biking 10 miles a day to work to being housebound indefinitely, losing your job and not having any answers from the medical system, it is absolutely devastating,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/long-covid\">Long COVID\u003c/a> — a chronic condition that follows many coronavirus infections and still confounds researchers — permanently altered McCone’s life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Searching for answers to his condition, he joined Twitter (now known as X). From his San Francisco home, he shared his experiences online, hoping more people would take long COVID seriously. But after two years, “I came to the realization that otherwise good and reasonable people are still completely unfazed by the fact that their next COVID infection could cause extreme harm to them or their family,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He started to feel rage at the injustices he saw.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People disabled by this virus and those already disabled prior to the pandemic are being completely disregarded and considered disposable by the general public,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Preparing for cuts\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While others recommended he temper his emotions online, Wong encouraged McCone to lean into them. They met in person for the first time in 2023 over tea and soon got to work: over the next year, their online network launched \u003ca href=\"https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2024/01/02/disabled-outrage-and-podsavejon/\">a massive social media campaign\u003c/a> to pressure federal lawmakers to address the needs of those with long COVID.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their efforts would bear fruit in January 2024 when Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) held the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/01/20/1225862790/advocates-push-for-greater-investment-in-long-covid-research-at-senate-hearing\">first Congressional hearing\u003c/a> on long COVID. Patients and doctors testified and called for long-term investments in research. Democrats \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12006894/bay-areas-long-covid-community-celebrates-moonshot-bill-for-10-billion-in-funding\">later proposed $10 billion\u003c/a> in funding for research, treatment and education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12052187\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12052187\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(From left) Eli Gelardin, Director of the Mayor’s Office on Disability, speaks with Alice Wong, a disability rights activist, and Debbie Kaplan, Deputy Director of Programmatic Access, at the Disability Cultural Center on Aug. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Alice could make incredibly meaningful change through media,” McCone said, adding that folks living with long COVID need to keep sharing their stories — now more than ever.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Legislation to fund long COVID research has stalled since Republicans took control of Congress, but the Trump administration is moving quickly to implement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1997707/how-will-trumps-mega-bill-impact-health-care-in-california\">major health care reforms\u003c/a> outlined in the sweeping legislation known as the One Big Beautiful Bill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bill establishes \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12047647/trumps-health-law-spurs-big-medi-cal-changes-what-californians-need-to-know\">new eligibility rules for Medi-Cal\u003c/a>, the state’s Medicaid program that covers over 15 million low-income Californians. State health officials predict that up to 3.4 million Medi-Cal recipients could lose their coverage in the coming years under new rules that include more frequent eligibility screenings and work requirements for certain groups. While the White House \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/06/myth-vs-fact-the-one-big-beautiful-bill/\">insists\u003c/a> that the bill will not take coverage away from Americans with disabilities, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058930/medicaid-cuts-could-put-services-for-disabled-californians-at-risk\">independent policy experts note\u003c/a> that California will lose matching federal funds as residents lose their Medi-Cal coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers could respond by \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/history-repeats-faced-medicaid-cuts-states-reduced-support-older-adults-and-disabled\">cutting home and community-based services\u003c/a>, which allow people with disabilities to receive treatment, care and job training in their own communities rather than in institutions like nursing homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you really want people with disabilities to get jobs, then you don’t cut the health care that allows people to stay well enough to work,” said Silvia Yee, public policy director at the Berkeley-based Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund. “You don’t cut the services that help people with disabilities navigate hiring and settling into a job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides Medicaid changes, Yee noted that the One Big Beautiful Bill also failed to extend subsidies for people who bought health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces like Covered California. Many people with a disability or chronic illness have an ACA insurance plan and will have to pay more to receive necessary care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These all seem like different cuts, but they affect the same pool of people,” Yee said. “All of this together makes it incredibly hard for people with disabilities to participate and live as part of the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The weight of carrying out disability justice’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The future can quite often feel precarious when you’re disabled, said Sandy Ho, one of Wong’s closest friends and executive director of the Disability and Philanthropy Forum. Ho, originally from Boston, met Wong 15 years ago online. They didn’t meet in person until Ho moved to Oakland, but the bond of their friendship endured.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are always forces trying to take away our health care, and Alice understood that on a level that emboldened her to just say, ‘F— it all, either you’re with me, or you’re not,’” said Ho, who Wong tasked with carrying forward some of her unfinished projects, including her next book.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065498\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065498\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sandy Ho, a disability justice activist, poses for a portrait at Lake Merritt in Oakland on Nov. 24, 2025. Ho worked closely with Alice Wong, a disability justice leader who died in November. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“So many of us got to witness her life and be a part of it on so many different levels,” she said, adding that Wong loved organizing dinner parties for her friends, bringing together artists, organizers, researchers and health care workers. “She is our future — the future looks like getting fed really well because disabled people deserve delicious things. Disabled people deserve joy, to have fun and create.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year also saw the death of another leader in the disabled community: Patty Berne — co-founder of the Bay Area-based performance group \u003ca href=\"https://sinsinvalid.org/about-sins/\">Sins Invalid\u003c/a> and one of the minds behind the disability justice framework — \u003ca href=\"https://19thnews.org/2025/08/patty-berne-obituary-disability-justice-movement/\">died last May in Berkeley\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the things that I have unfortunately experienced a lot in the disability community is grief,” said Rosemary McDonnell-Horita, a Berkeley-based writer who was a friend to Wong and Berne. “The depths of love also come with the depths of grief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Campaigns both online and in Sacramento \u003ca href=\"https://dredf.org/oppose-cuts-to-medi-cal/\">are already underway\u003c/a> to protect Medi-Cal funding that serves disabled Californians. Other friends of Wong are \u003ca href=\"https://llps.substack.com/p/alice-wong-was-crips-for-esims-for\">continuing her call\u003c/a> to help provide disabled Palestinians in Gaza with cellular data. And McDonnell-Horita plans to keep working on a project that Wong loudly cheered: a cookbook for disabled people by disabled people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We all now bear the weight of carrying out disability justice to the best of our ability,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>With a smile, Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson, 38, closes her eyes when she says her friend’s name. She pauses. A tear rolls down her cheek.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a real level of rage that I feel around Alice’s death,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s been \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13983848/alice-wong-disability-rights-activist-obituary\"> a month\u003c/a> since disability activist and author \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101912041/remembering-disability-activist-alice-wong\">Alice Wong\u003c/a> died in San Francisco. Since her passing, KQED has spoken with many of Wong’s friends and collaborators in the Bay Area to better understand what motivated her decades of organizing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In her writings and public appearances, Wong spoke of the need for disabled people to advocate loudly for their health needs. This mission brought together a bold and effective network of advocates living with different disabilities. But now, folks are preparing for the biggest challenge yet: more than a trillion dollars in cuts to Medicaid and other social services in the coming decade, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058930/medicaid-cuts-could-put-services-for-disabled-californians-at-risk\">slashing a lifeline\u003c/a> for disabled people nationwide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alice fought like hell to exist in her body and mind every day,” said Hernandez-Wilson, who works for a nonprofit that advocates for domestic workers and caretakers. “There is a larger system at play that dictates if we are worthy enough of getting care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raised in rural Minnesota, Hernandez-Wilson was the only student with a disability in her class and one of the few students of color in her entire school. “I was afraid that if I was labeled as a certain type of disabled person, I would be locked away in a classroom … that deep internalized ableism can really mess with your mind,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As an adult, she picked up \u003ca href=\"https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/617802/disability-visibility-by-alice-wong/\">\u003cem>Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, an anthology edited by Wong.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065500\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00424_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sandy Ho, left, and Brittanie Hernandez-Wilson, right, hold hands at Lake Merritt in Oakland on Nov. 24, 2025. Hernandez-Wilson and Ho, who both worked closely with disability justice leader Alice Wong, are mourning their loss, yet continuing their fight for disability justice. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It was the first time in my entire life that I really saw disabled people who looked like me embody self-love, embracing their body and mind,” she said. “It was like a hug from the universe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After Hernandez-Wilson moved to the Bay Area last year, Wong became her mentor and friend. They shared jokes, stories of old crushes and how each managed their health. Born with spinal muscular atrophy, Wong dealt with chronic health issues throughout her life. After a series of medical emergencies in 2022, she began communicating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/perspectives/201601143471/alice-wong-i-still-have-a-voice-2\">through text-to-speech technology\u003c/a> and her family confirmed that her death was due to an infection.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If the systems weren’t the way they are, many of our people would still be here,” said Hernandez-Wilson. But even after Wong’s passing, she said, a generation of activists mentored by her is ready to push forward a bolder vision of liberation for all disabled people.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Centering the most marginalized\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Gifted with radiant charm and a disarming sense of humor, Wong, who was 51, built coalitions between different disabled communities. Cross-disability solidarity is \u003ca href=\"https://sinsinvalid.org/10-principles-of-disability-justice/\">a core principle of disability justice\u003c/a>, a framework developed over the last decade by queer and trans disabled activists of color in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the 20th century, the primary objective for many disabled activists was securing equal employment, political participation and economic self-sufficiency — as outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1980.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065194\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065194\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/250813-DisabilityCulturalCenter-10_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alice Wong, a disability rights activist and founder of the Disability Visibility Project, sits in the courtyard at the Disability Cultural Center on Aug. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This organizing was rooted in the Bay Area: the independent living movement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kalw.org/news/2017-04-05/berkeley-disability-activists-took-cues-from-the-civil-rights-era-and-sparked-a-national-movement\">took off here in the 1970s\u003c/a>; activists in Berkeley created the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/they-took-sledgehammers-sidewalks-heres-why-curb-cut-effect/\">first sidewalk curb cuts\u003c/a>; and in 1977, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13966861/judith-heumann-disability-rights-uc-berkeley-center-independent-living\">more than 100 disabled protesters\u003c/a> occupied the San Francisco Federal Building to demand implementation of the rule that prohibited discrimination based on disability in federally funded programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Proponents of disability justice maintain that ableism affects everyone — particularly those living with disabilities — and call for a future free of all systems that oppress disabled people. This fight, Wong said in \u003ca href=\"https://www.buzzsprout.com/2003809/episodes/10799918-making-the-world-brighter-sassier-and-more-colorful-alice-wong-on-disability-justice\">a 2022 podcast\u003c/a>, “must center on the most marginalized.” Nowhere is this more necessary, she added, than in a post-COVID world.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While cities and states rushed to loosen pandemic restrictions, Wong pushed back and demanded hospitals — including her own care provider, UCSF — continue \u003ca href=\"https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2024/01/25/n95s4ucsf-call-to-action/\">requiring face masks\u003c/a> and expand \u003ca href=\"https://nursing.ucsf.edu/news/disability-and-health-care-conversation-activist-alice-wong\">research into treatments\u003c/a> for those living with long COVID.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>That’s how she met Charlie McCone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before contracting COVID in 2020, McCone, 35, said he had never experienced a serious health problem before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you go from biking 10 miles a day to work to being housebound indefinitely, losing your job and not having any answers from the medical system, it is absolutely devastating,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/long-covid\">Long COVID\u003c/a> — a chronic condition that follows many coronavirus infections and still confounds researchers — permanently altered McCone’s life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Searching for answers to his condition, he joined Twitter (now known as X). From his San Francisco home, he shared his experiences online, hoping more people would take long COVID seriously. But after two years, “I came to the realization that otherwise good and reasonable people are still completely unfazed by the fact that their next COVID infection could cause extreme harm to them or their family,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He started to feel rage at the injustices he saw.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People disabled by this virus and those already disabled prior to the pandemic are being completely disregarded and considered disposable by the general public,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Preparing for cuts\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While others recommended he temper his emotions online, Wong encouraged McCone to lean into them. They met in person for the first time in 2023 over tea and soon got to work: over the next year, their online network launched \u003ca href=\"https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2024/01/02/disabled-outrage-and-podsavejon/\">a massive social media campaign\u003c/a> to pressure federal lawmakers to address the needs of those with long COVID.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their efforts would bear fruit in January 2024 when Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) held the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/01/20/1225862790/advocates-push-for-greater-investment-in-long-covid-research-at-senate-hearing\">first Congressional hearing\u003c/a> on long COVID. Patients and doctors testified and called for long-term investments in research. Democrats \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12006894/bay-areas-long-covid-community-celebrates-moonshot-bill-for-10-billion-in-funding\">later proposed $10 billion\u003c/a> in funding for research, treatment and education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12052187\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12052187\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250813-DISABILITYCULTURALCENTER-05-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(From left) Eli Gelardin, Director of the Mayor’s Office on Disability, speaks with Alice Wong, a disability rights activist, and Debbie Kaplan, Deputy Director of Programmatic Access, at the Disability Cultural Center on Aug. 13, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Alice could make incredibly meaningful change through media,” McCone said, adding that folks living with long COVID need to keep sharing their stories — now more than ever.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Legislation to fund long COVID research has stalled since Republicans took control of Congress, but the Trump administration is moving quickly to implement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1997707/how-will-trumps-mega-bill-impact-health-care-in-california\">major health care reforms\u003c/a> outlined in the sweeping legislation known as the One Big Beautiful Bill.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bill establishes \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12047647/trumps-health-law-spurs-big-medi-cal-changes-what-californians-need-to-know\">new eligibility rules for Medi-Cal\u003c/a>, the state’s Medicaid program that covers over 15 million low-income Californians. State health officials predict that up to 3.4 million Medi-Cal recipients could lose their coverage in the coming years under new rules that include more frequent eligibility screenings and work requirements for certain groups. While the White House \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/06/myth-vs-fact-the-one-big-beautiful-bill/\">insists\u003c/a> that the bill will not take coverage away from Americans with disabilities, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058930/medicaid-cuts-could-put-services-for-disabled-californians-at-risk\">independent policy experts note\u003c/a> that California will lose matching federal funds as residents lose their Medi-Cal coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers could respond by \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/history-repeats-faced-medicaid-cuts-states-reduced-support-older-adults-and-disabled\">cutting home and community-based services\u003c/a>, which allow people with disabilities to receive treatment, care and job training in their own communities rather than in institutions like nursing homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you really want people with disabilities to get jobs, then you don’t cut the health care that allows people to stay well enough to work,” said Silvia Yee, public policy director at the Berkeley-based Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund. “You don’t cut the services that help people with disabilities navigate hiring and settling into a job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides Medicaid changes, Yee noted that the One Big Beautiful Bill also failed to extend subsidies for people who bought health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces like Covered California. Many people with a disability or chronic illness have an ACA insurance plan and will have to pay more to receive necessary care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These all seem like different cuts, but they affect the same pool of people,” Yee said. “All of this together makes it incredibly hard for people with disabilities to participate and live as part of the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The weight of carrying out disability justice’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The future can quite often feel precarious when you’re disabled, said Sandy Ho, one of Wong’s closest friends and executive director of the Disability and Philanthropy Forum. Ho, originally from Boston, met Wong 15 years ago online. They didn’t meet in person until Ho moved to Oakland, but the bond of their friendship endured.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are always forces trying to take away our health care, and Alice understood that on a level that emboldened her to just say, ‘F— it all, either you’re with me, or you’re not,’” said Ho, who Wong tasked with carrying forward some of her unfinished projects, including her next book.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12065498\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12065498\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251124-DISABILITYJUSTICELEADERS00080_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sandy Ho, a disability justice activist, poses for a portrait at Lake Merritt in Oakland on Nov. 24, 2025. Ho worked closely with Alice Wong, a disability justice leader who died in November. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“So many of us got to witness her life and be a part of it on so many different levels,” she said, adding that Wong loved organizing dinner parties for her friends, bringing together artists, organizers, researchers and health care workers. “She is our future — the future looks like getting fed really well because disabled people deserve delicious things. Disabled people deserve joy, to have fun and create.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year also saw the death of another leader in the disabled community: Patty Berne — co-founder of the Bay Area-based performance group \u003ca href=\"https://sinsinvalid.org/about-sins/\">Sins Invalid\u003c/a> and one of the minds behind the disability justice framework — \u003ca href=\"https://19thnews.org/2025/08/patty-berne-obituary-disability-justice-movement/\">died last May in Berkeley\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the things that I have unfortunately experienced a lot in the disability community is grief,” said Rosemary McDonnell-Horita, a Berkeley-based writer who was a friend to Wong and Berne. “The depths of love also come with the depths of grief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Campaigns both online and in Sacramento \u003ca href=\"https://dredf.org/oppose-cuts-to-medi-cal/\">are already underway\u003c/a> to protect Medi-Cal funding that serves disabled Californians. Other friends of Wong are \u003ca href=\"https://llps.substack.com/p/alice-wong-was-crips-for-esims-for\">continuing her call\u003c/a> to help provide disabled Palestinians in Gaza with cellular data. And McDonnell-Horita plans to keep working on a project that Wong loudly cheered: a cookbook for disabled people by disabled people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We all now bear the weight of carrying out disability justice to the best of our ability,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
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"possible": {
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"radiolab": {
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"reveal": {
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"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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