News

Excerpted from the OC WEEKLY

By Anthony Pignataro

Excerpted from The Orange County Register

By Teri Sforza

In that unwieldy stack of newly proposed laws atop Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk: Four bills that aim to require licensing, reduce fraud and false advertising and raise standards in California’s notoriously under-regulated addiction treatment industry.

Excerpted from mHealthIntelligence

By Eric Wicklund

A California lawmaker is hoping that replacing one word in the state’s telehealth law will enable residents to get birth control pills through an mHealth app or telehealth service.

AB 1264, submitted by State Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach) earlier this year, replaces the word “it” with “the licensee” in defining the Business and Professions Code regarding the use of telehealth or prescribe, dispense or furnish so-called “dangerous drugs.”

Excerpted from the Sacramento Bee

By Andrew Sheeler

It could soon be legal to access birth control through a smartphone app.

California lawmakers have sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom that “clarifies vague telehealth law related to safely prescribing prescriptions,” according to the office of bill sponsor Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, D-Laguna Beach.

Excerpted from Orange County Register

By Alicia Robinson

As the state-owned Fairview Developmental Center prepares to close in coming months, Costa Mesa officials are taking steps to ensure they’re involved in decisions on reuse of the center’s spacious campus in the heart of the city.

Excerpted from Los Angeles Times

By Bradley Zint

Local officials and activists gathered Saturday morning to unveil a new mural at a historic Costa Mesa church that aims to raise awareness for helping Orange County’s homeless population.

The artwork by Brian Peterson and Damin Lujan at First United Methodist Church was completed in three days on a small structure housing telecommunications equipment in the church’s parking lot.

Excerpted from Orange County Register

By Teri Sforza

His kids, ages 9 and 11, ran into the living room screaming. “There’s someone laying in front of our house in the middle of the street!”

Jeff Briney, a 20-year resident of Laguna Beach, ran to the window. Indeed, a young man was sprawled out, unconscious, on their narrow, winding South Laguna road.

Excerpted from Los Angeles Times

By Hillary Davis

A 5-mile stretch of the 55 Freeway running through Costa Mesa will be named in honor of a city fire captain who died last year after being struck by an allegedly impaired driver.

The newly designated “Costa Mesa Fire Captain Michael Kreza Memorial Highway” will run from 19th Street to MacArthur Boulevard, thanks to a resolution the state Senate and Assembly passed this month.

Excerpted from Los Angeles Times

By Daniel Langhorne

The Orange County Board of Supervisors accepted a $4.5-million state grant Tuesday that will fund a 150-day pilot program for a fixed-wing aircraft that will monitor area wildfires, providing incident commanders with real-time information on fire conditions.

The Orange County Fire Authority will oversee operation of the dual-prop plane, which will be flown by a contractor, Courtney Aviation.

Excerpted from Los Angeles Times

By Nina Agrawal

The Jewish experience in America, including teachings about anti-Semitism, must be included in California’s new ethnic studies curriculum, the state schools chief said Wednesday, following sharp criticism of the draft by many Jewish groups and an announcement by top education leaders that it “falls short” and will undergo substantial revisions.