Big changes coming to Medi-Cal, the state’s health plan for 40% of Californians
The Chronicle, KATHLEEN PENDER: "Some big changes are coming to Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid health care program for low-income people, next year.
Starting Jan. 1, two groups of people that had not been eligible for full-scale Medi-Cal will gain access: low-income adults ages 26-49 and some people who are disabled or older than 64. On the other hand, some current Medi-Cal enrollees will lose coverage as the state finishes unwinding the federal “continuous coverage” program that kept people on Medicaid in the pandemic, even if they no longer qualified."
Will California Democratic Party chair run for North Bay Assembly seat?
The Chronicle, JOE GAROFOLI: "California Democratic Party chair Rusty Hicks declined to address speculation that he is running for the North Bay Assembly seat now held by Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, who is not seeking re-election.
“I’ll turn to any other decision or announcement after the convention,” said Hicks, a Los Angeles transplant who now lives in the district."
California Democrats are divided on Senate race, Gaza war
CALMatters, YUE STELLA YU: "Donning yellow-and-green pom poms and holding matching banners, supporters of U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee let out a deafening roar as she took the stage at the California Democratic Party convention. “Barbara Lee! Speaks for me!” hundreds of delegates chanted repeatedly Saturday.
But it wasn’t enough for the Oakland Democrat to secure the official party endorsement in the U.S. Senate March 5 primary: None of the leading candidates — Reps. Lee, Katie Porter, Adam Schiff and tech executive Lexi Reese — reached the 60% threshold needed, according to results ratified today."
At Democratic Party convention, Israel-Hamas war divides progressives and moderates
Sacramento Bee, JENAVIEVE HATCH, LINDSEY HOLDEN: "Hundreds of California Democrats gathered in the capital this weekend for the state party’s endorsement convention, but one topic disrupted the entire event: The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, and how party leaders are responding to it.
The Israel-Hamas war has deepened a preexisting schism in the Democratic Party between centrist moderates (who tend to support Israel) and younger, more diverse progressives urging party leaders to call for a cease-fire in the region. At the 2023 California Democratic Party November State Endorsing Convention in Sacramento this weekend, that schism was more apparent than ever."
‘Shocking to see’: Here’s what APEC attendees thought of San Francisco
The Chronicle, ROLAND LI: "Vietnam resident Desmond Lin first visited San Francisco in 1988. “Before, it is the best city,” he said. “At that time, Union Square is like a dream come true with those fancy hotels, retail.”
But Lin, who attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this week, thinks the city has fallen to the worst state he’s ever seen, even compared with his visit last year."
Outrage against Univision grows after Trump interview
LA Times, HANNAH WILEY, JULIA WICK: "Univision has found itself at the center of a growing controversy after a recent interview with former President Trump that critics have blasted as too friendly.
The interview that aired Nov. 9 was noticeably warm, and Trump received little pushback as he gave false or misleading statements on border security and immigration policies he instituted as president."
Education Policy – Look Ahead: Ballot Measures and Legislation (PODCAST)
Capitol Weekly, STAFF: "This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Education Policy which was held in Sacramento on Tuesday, November 7, 2023
This is Panel 3 – LOOK AHEAD: BALLOT MEASURES AND LEGISLATION
PANELISTS: Michael Borges, California Teachers Association; Christina Laster, Bold Enterprises LLC; Scott Richards, Teach For America
Moderated by Rich Ehisen, Capitol Weekly"
Here’s how much rain and snow California received in the past week
The Chronicle, ANTHONY EDWARDS: "A stubborn storm well off the California coast brought rain showers to the state throughout the week before finally moving across Northern California on Saturday. It was the first region-wide moderate rainfall of the season for the Bay Area, while the Sierra Nevada saw some light snowfall.
The North Bay and Central Coast saw the highest precipitation totals in the past seven days, with 1.5 to 4 inches of rain in Big Sur and the Marin Headlands."
READ MORE -- Wind advisory issued for the Sacramento region. Here’s where and when it starts -- Sacramento Bee, BRIANNA TAYLOR
Flooded California towns secured millions in aid. Who gets the money?
CALMatters, NICOLE FOY: "Merced and Monterey counties got $20 million each from the state in October to help the residents of Planada and Pajaro recover from January floods.
But local officials want to spend at least some of the money on infrastructure, while residents want all of the money to help relieve debt they’ve incurred from the natural disaster. That is, after all, what state lawmakers ostensibly sent the money for."
California workers died of a preventable disease. The threat was known years earlier
LA Times, EMILY ALPERT REYES, CINDY CARCAMO: "When Wendy Solano first heard the word “silicosis,” her husband Jose Raul Garcia Leon was already suffering from the incurable disease that would kill him.
After immigrating from Mexico, the father of three had provided for his family by cutting countertops. His illness began as a dry cough — something the couple had chalked up to allergies or the changing weather — and rapidly became so debilitating that he grew exhausted trying to speak, Solano said."
Grief, fear, and hopes for peace: California college students describe campus climates during Israel-Palestine conflict
CALMatters, STAFF: "Over the past five weeks, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has sparked vigils, sit-ins, walkouts, protests and counter-protests at college campuses throughout California. At some campuses, emotions are high and students are divided — some even experiencing violence, hate speech and fear. Meanwhile, at other campuses, students are gathering to grieve and learn in more peaceful ways.
At CalMatters, student reporters in the College Journalism Network fellowship program have filed the following dispatches about the climates at their campuses."
How a Stanford professor is organizing the hunt for alien life
BANG*Mercury News, LISA M. KRIEGER: "On a cold December night in 1977 in Council Bluffs, Iowa, a mysterious hovering object was reported to be flying overhead. Then a luminous hot molten rock fell to earth.
What was it? Where did it come from? No one knows."
Immigrant parents report faulty, slow translation of special education documents
EdSource, ZAIDEE STAVELY: "When Los Angeles mother Tania Rivera signed a crucial document for her son Luis’ special education program in 2022, she was hoping he would be able to return to in-person classes after two years of distance learning.
But the individualized education program, or IEP, required for all children who need special education, was available only in English. Rivera’s first language is Spanish."
Cruise co-founder and CEO Kyle Vogt resigns following suspension of operations in S.F.
The Chronicle, NORA MISHANEC: "The CEO of Cruise resigned Sunday as the backlash continued over the driverless taxi company’s response to an October crash that led to its suspension in California.
Kyle Vogt announced his resignation Sunday evening on X, formerly known as Twitter, writing that he planned “to spend time with my family and explore some new ideas.” Vogt did not give a reason for his departure or address the controversies surrounding the company he co-founded with Dan Kan in San Francisco in 2013. Cruise is now a subsidiary of General Motors."
OpenAI stands by firing of Sam Altman, names new interim CEO, according to reports
The Chronicle, NORA MISHANEC: "OpenAI named Emmett Shear, a former executive at Twitch, as the new interim chief executive of the multibillion-dollar software startup after Sam Altman's abrupt ouster on Friday and his efforts over the weekend to return, several news outlets reported Sunday evening.
Altman, long the face of the artificial intelligence boom in San Francisco and around the world, was pushed out by the company’s board of directors on Friday. In a statement, the company had said “The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI.”"
Demolition of burned Tustin hangar underway; asbestos levels ‘below any level of concern’
LA Times, ROGER VINCENT: "The scorched remains of a World War II blimp hangar in Tustin are being razed as air quality officials call nearby asbestos levels “below any level of concern” while continuing to urge neighbors to take safety precautions.
The enormous wooden military relic went up in flames Nov. 7, showering ash and debris — later found to contain asbestos — on nearby residential neighborhoods."
Home values are rising in every major California city except this one
The Chronicle, CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "When Daniel Winkler organized an open house for a home in Albany on a recent Sunday, more than 80 people came to see the property, the East Bay broker said.
That same day, his company held four open houses in Oakland. They got a total of just 11 visitors. One of the homes didn’t get any."
10 Freeway reopens in downtown L.A. after weeklong closure
LA Times, JULIA WICK: "A crucial tranche of the 10 Freeway south of downtown L.A. reopened Sunday night, earlier than previously expected and weeks ahead of original projections.
Traffic started flowing on the freeway at around 7 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol."
Rosalynn Carter, former first lady who pushed for mental health reform, dies at 96
LA Times, VALERIE J. NELSON, BEVERLY BEYETTE: "Rosalynn Carter, the formidable first lady who helped modernize and expand the role of a U.S. president’s wife as she sat in on White House Cabinet meetings, spoke freely and pushed for mental health reform, has died.
Carter, who with her husband, Jimmy, remained steadfastly committed to public service after returning to private life, died peacefully at home Sunday in Plains, Ga., with family by her side, the Carter Center said in a statement. The nation’s oldest living first lady was 96."
