Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/11422
Wednesday, June 2, 2010 – Daily News – 7A MAN Continued from page 1A from the Sheriff’s Depart- ment. Cal OSHA officials are investigating the condi- tions at the Sobarea Ranch outside of Corning, spokeswoman Krisann Chasarik said. A full investigation is expected to take at least three months and could be as long as six, but as of GUNS Continued from page 1A even acute way, of implementing gun control,’’ said Assemblyman Jim Nielsen, R-Biggs. ‘‘I assure you that criminals don’t worry about this. They have the guns, and they know how to conceal them, how to use them.’’ ‘‘You are making it official that gang members can carry weapons,’’ Assemblyman Kevin De Leon, D-Los Angeles said to colleagues who would vote against the measure. Similar open-carry bans exist in Florida, Illinois, Texas and Washington, D.C., according to the Legal Community Against Violence, a public interest law center based in San Francisco. State moves to implement health care reform SACRAMENTO, (AP) — The California Assem- bly has passed a key com- ponent of health care reform that would make changes prescribed by the federal government. The bill introduced by Democratic Assembly Speaker John Perez would create an exchange in which individuals could compare and buy health insurance plans. The legislation also would prohibit lifetime lim- its on health care coverage and raise the age to 26 for children to stay on their par- ents’ insurance policies. AB1602 passed Tues- day on a 42-21 vote and now moves to the Senate. Perez said approving the bill would enable California to receive federal money to create the exchange. Republicans opposed the bill, citing concerns over cost. ‘‘I’ve got real concerns about ’Obama-care’ in gen- eral, in terms of how we are going to afford it as a nation,’’ said Assemblyman Ted Gaines, R-Roseville. The Assembly also passed a bill that would prohibit health insurers from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions. The measure by Assem- blyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, passed with a 41- 24 vote. Klamath man to face charges in torture slaying CRESCENT CITY (AP) — A Klamath man is set to be charged with the torture slaying of a friend in which authorities say the victim’s heart was cut from his chest. Jarrod Wyatt is scheduled to be arraigned Friday on charges of murder, aggravated mayhem and torture in the killing of 21-year-old Taylor Powell. Del Norte County Sheriff’s Deputy Elwood Lee tes- tified last week that he arrived at the scene in March to find the 26-year-old Wyatt naked and covered head to toe in dried blood. Lee said the body on the couch next to Wyatt had an 18-inch incision in the chest and most of its face removed. Defense attorney James Fallman said his client had a psychotic break after taking psychedelic mushrooms and believed that Powell was possessed by the devil. Calif. tries again for federal ed money SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Cali- fornia education leaders submitted an application Tuesday for the second round of a federal school- funding competition, hop- ing to capture as much as $700 million for the state’s troubled public school sys- tem. California was among dozens of states that lost out in the initial round of com- petition for $4.3 billion in federal stimulus money being made available through the ‘‘Race to the Top’’ initiative. So far, Delaware and Tennessee have been the only states approved for money designed to reward states that make education reforms being promoted by the Obama administration. Under California’s latest application, teachers and principals would be evaluat- ed in part based on student performance. The state also would try to place effective teachers in low-performing schools and make better use of student data to measure progress. Schwarzenegger said the state plan meets every goal set forth in the federal pro- gram. California’s public schools rank near the bot- tom in most achievement categories and have faced budget problems that have forced them lay off thou- sands of teachers. The governor signed California’s second ‘‘Race to the Top’’ application dur- ing an event in Long Beach. He was accompanied by state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell and Ted Mitchell, president of the state school board. California’s initial appli- cation was for the entire state. It was filed after state lawmakers wrangled for weeks before passing a package of school reform measures in January that contained changes opposed by the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union. The new application was developed by a group of seven superintendents from San Francisco, Sacramento, Clovis, Fresno, Sanger, Tuesday afternoon offi- cials found no violations or immediate hazards that would stop operations at the ranch. “You don’t hear about (incidents like this) too often, fortunately,” Chasarik said. ——— Geoff Johnson can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or gjohnson@redbluffdailyn ews.com. ADULT Continued from page 1A Education created the GOAL award, which is named after Hollywood producer Brian Grazer, in 2005-2006. Grazer donated $100,000 over a 10-year period towards programs designed to recognize exemplary practices in special education and to celebrate the California youth with disabilities and the professionals who provide the services. For more information on the California Adviso- ry Commission on Special Education visit www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/as/ acse.asp. For information on the Barkery, visit www.tehamaschools.org/ department/special-edu- cation/barkery. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews. com. FLORALS Continued from page 1A Being surrounded by the flowers reminded Alma Simpkins of her home. She misses her two magnolia trees and big yard full of flowers, but the students have really wowed her with what they can do, she said. “I just love this,” she said. “It really makes it feel more like home now that there’s all these flowers around me.” The students visited the facility thanks to a grant teacher Bonnie McKee received from the Tehama County Arts Council. The council gives the grant as a way for people to share art with HEALTH Continued from page 1A providers face is a shift in payer with Medicare reim- bursement dropping 42.9 percent while use of Medi- Cal, which pays signifi- cantly less, is up 24.1 per- cent, he said. “We continue to look at the horizon and we’re not sure where we’re at yet,” said Kris Behrens, St. Elizabeth’s marketing and community relations man- ager. Adding to the financial strain is the 35 percent of people coming through the doors and not paying, which means the cost is shifted to everyone else, Halfhide said. While use of the Med- icaid program is expand- ing, it has little benefit to providers, since at best it barely covers costs, he said. Halfhide and Behrens Courtesy photo The Barkery, a part of the Tehama Adult Learning Program, received the 2010 Grazer Outstanding Achievement In Learning Award. Pictured, from left, are Heidi Schueller, assistant superintendent, Special Schools and Services; Jaime Cendejas, student; Gavin Payne, chief deputy superintendent of Public Instruction; Genevieve Gonzalez, student; Ryan Adams, student; Holly Allison, teacher; Julie Howard, assistant SELPA director; Kristen Wright, chairwoman, Special Education Advisory Commission. each other in the community, McKee said. Part of the grant required the floral design class to donate arrangements, so this was its way of giving back. Lassen House’s Activity Coordi- nator Linda Huckabay organized the visit because she thought it would be a good experience for the resi- dents. Anytime they have visitors, especially young ones, the residents have a good time, she said. The interaction is good for both groups. “This is something that all our ladies love,” Huckabay said. “I mean, who doesn’t love flowers? This is just something different for our ladies to enjoy, and on a larger scale it’s also good for the students.” Jessica Medina explained to her partner what she was doing as she spoke of the challenges recruiting physicians to a rural area. Physicians have a strong desire to care for their patients without interference of hospital administration, but many physicians can no longer afford to be independent providers, who face monthly overhead expens- es of $30,000 or more and receive dwindling reim- bursement for services, Behrens said. “For this reason, more and more physicians are considering moving to an employment model, whereby they receive a salary for services ren- dered and the hospital or foundation picks up the overhead cost and admin- istrative role,” Behrens said. The employment model is especially important for hospitals recruiting spe- cialists to a rural area, she said. Long Beach and Los Ange- les. If approved, it would apply only to certain school districts and charter schools representing about 27 per- cent of California’s 6.3 mil- lion public school students. The U.S. Education Department is expected to announce the winners of the second phase in September. Poll shows California voters favor legalizing pot LOS ANGELES (AP) — A new poll shows Cali- fornia voters narrowly favor legalization of marijuana. The Los Angeles Times- University of Southern Cal- ifornia poll shows 49 per- cent support a November ballot measure that would allow the growing and con- sumption of pot. Forty-one percent oppose the measure and 10 percent are undecid- ed. Nationally, an Associat- ed Press-CNBC poll released in April showed 55 percent of Americans oppose legalizing marijua- na. The statewide survey of about 1,500 registered vot- ers was conducted May 19- 26. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 2.6 percentage points. Bills would mandate ski helmets for minors SACRAMENTO (AP) — Minors hitting the slopes in California would be required to wear helmets under two measures approved by state lawmak- ers. The bills, SB880 and AB1652, would mandate helmets for skiers and snowboarders under the age of 18. If either passes, Cali- fornia’s helmet law would be the nation’s most restric- tive. AB1652 also would require ski resorts to file annual safety plans and issue monthly reports about injuries and deaths. The Senate version includes no such requirements for resorts but says helmet-law violators would face a $25 fine. Supporters call the bills an important public safety worked on an arrangement. Work- ing with seniors is something she has not done before, but she sees the value and fun in interacting with someone of a different generation, she said. She has learned a lot about flowers and foliage and was happy to pass that knowledge on to other people. “This makes me feel really good about myself,” she said. “I’m proud of myself for doing this.” In all, 12 floral arrangements were made. Six were raffled off to the residents while the others will be showcased in the common areas of the home. ——— Tang Lor can be reached at 527- 2153, Ext. 110 or by e-mail at tlor@redbluffdailynews.com. Halfhide looked at the treatment of and readmis- sion rates for chronic con- ditions, such as diabetes. “If patients are back through our doors within 30 days for the same con- dition, we haven’t done our job,” Halfhide said. Halfhide said there is a need to figure out how to help people manage chronic conditions so peo- ple aren’t ending up in the emergency room. “The future of the health care reform pay- ment system indicates that hospitals will no longer be paid based on quantity of care and procedures, but rather quality of care,” Behrens said. “As an accountable care organiza- tion, we will be paid for keeping people healthy and the payment structure is reduced if we see those same patients for specific chronic diseases on multi- ple occasions within a given time period.” STATE BRIEFING measure akin to the state’s bicycle helmet law. SB880 passed with a 21- 13 vote Tuesday and now moves to the Assembly. AB1652 was approved 41- 28 and goes to the Senate. Bill would create organ- donor list SACRAMENTO (AP) — California would be the first state to create a registry of living organ donors under a measure that has passed the state Senate. The bill that was approved Tuesday would create a central database of people willing to donate a kidney to one of thousands of Californians awaiting transplants. SB1395 also would make it easier for individu- als to register as organ donors by requiring them to check a box when they fill out a driver’s license appli- cation. More than 21,000 Cali- fornians need new organs, primarily kidneys, accord- ing to state figures. A third of them will die before receiving a transplant. Emergency Preparedness Fair For Persons with Developmental Disabilities, Care Providers, & Community Members Saturday, June 5th, 2010 Red Bluff Community Center 10am to 2pm. Low Cost Lunch available FREE Event BE PREPARED Call 528-2829 or 528-2130 x 0 Halfhide spoke to the need of integrating sys- tems of different hospitals and care providers. Plans to integrate sys- tems are already in the works for St. Elizabeth, and the other Catholic Healthcare West North State hospitals, to go live Feb. 28, 2011 with Medi- tech, an electronic system that allows hospitals to share information, such as lab notes and physicians notes and patient history, he said. The project will protect patient privacy while increasing quality of care by reducing errors, streamlining provider processes and transferring to multiple providers in the more complex cases, Behrens said. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews. com.