MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – District 1 Supervisor Moke Simon said he plans to seek a second term on the Lake County Board of Supervisors.
Last week, the Lake County Registrar of Voters Office reported that Simon’s name was on the list of those who had filed to run for local offices, as Lake County News has reported.
Simon is being challenged by Julia Mary Bono, a businesswoman, minister and scientist.
“It has been a privilege to serve my first term as District 1 supervisor, and thanks to the work of so many, our efforts have brought us to a pivotal point in fire recovery, protection of Clear Lake and our remarkable environment, supporting and expanding housing opportunities, and partnering with communities, agriculture and the private sector to determine the economic direction and future of our region,” Simon said.
“In addition to acting on my pledge to be accessible to the people of District 1 by creating regular local office hours, attending community meetings and events, and coaching high school football, I am proud to be the governor’s appointee to the State Board of Fire Services – the only county supervisor out of California’s 58 counties to serve on the board. I also now advocate for District 1 and county interests as a member of numerous state and regional commissions and organizations,” he said.
Simon added, “As supervisor, my focus will always be on serving local interests and strengthening our sense of community. It is our common welfare that energizes and motivates me to seek re-election – and to pledge a lifetime of service to the people of District 1 and the county. I ask for your support as we work together to realize our enormous potential.
Simon can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-272-3368.
A type of Martian aurora first identified by NASA's MAVEN spacecraft in 2016 is actually the most common form of aurora occurring on the Red Planet, according to new results from the mission.
The aurora is known as a proton aurora and can help scientists track water loss from Mars' atmosphere.
At Earth, aurora are commonly seen as colorful displays of light in the night sky near the polar regions, where they are also known as the northern and southern lights.
However, the proton aurora on Mars happens during the day and gives off ultraviolet light, so it is invisible to the human eye but detectable to the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph (IUVS) instrument on the MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) spacecraft.
MAVEN's mission is to investigate how the Red Planet lost much of its atmosphere and water, transforming its climate from one that might have supported life to one that is cold, dry, and inhospitable.
Since the proton aurora is generated indirectly by hydrogen derived from Martian water that's in the process of being lost to space, this aurora could be used to help track ongoing Martian water loss.
"In this new study using MAVEN/IUVS data from multiple Mars years, the team has found that periods of increased atmospheric escape correspond with increases in proton aurora occurrence and intensity," said Andréa Hughes of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. Hughes is lead author of a paper on this research published December 12 in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Space Physics.
"Perhaps one day, when interplanetary travel becomes commonplace, travelers arriving at Mars during southern summer will have front-row seats to observe Martian proton aurora majestically dancing across the dayside of the planet (while wearing ultraviolet-sensitive goggles, of course). These travelers will witness firsthand the final stages of Mars losing the remainder of its water to space,” Hughes said.
Hughes presented the research on Dec. 12 at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco.
Different phenomena produce different kinds of aurora. However, all aurora at Earth and Mars are powered by solar activity, whether it be explosions of high-speed particles known as solar storms, eruptions of gas and magnetic fields known as coronal mass ejections, or gusts in the solar wind, a stream of electrically conducting gas that blows continuously into space at around a million miles per hour.
For example, the northern and southern lights at Earth happen when violent solar activity disturbs Earth's magnetosphere, causing high velocity electrons to slam into gas particles in Earth's nightside upper atmosphere and make them glow.
Similar processes generate Mars' discrete and diffuse aurora – two types of aurora that were previously observed on the Martian nightside.
Proton aurora form when solar wind protons (which are hydrogen atoms stripped of their lone electrons by intense heat) interact with the upper atmosphere on the dayside of Mars.
As they approach Mars, the protons coming in with the solar wind transform into neutral atoms by stealing electrons from hydrogen atoms in the outer edge of the Martian hydrogen corona, a huge cloud of hydrogen surrounding the planet.
When those high-speed incoming atoms hit the atmosphere, some of their energy is emitted as ultraviolet light.
When the MAVEN team first observed the proton aurora, they thought it was a relatively unusual occurrence.
"At first, we believed that these events were rather rare because we weren't looking at the right times and places," said Mike Chaffin, research scientist at the University of Colorado Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, or LASP, and second author of the study. "But after a closer look, we found that proton aurora are occurring far more often in dayside southern summer observations than we initially expected."
The team has found proton aurora in about 14 percent of their dayside observations, which increases to more than 80 percent of the time when only dayside southern summer observations are considered.
"By comparison, IUVS has detected diffuse aurora on Mars in a few percent of orbits with favorable geometry, and discrete aurora detections are rarer still in the dataset," said Nick Schneider, coauthor and lead of the IUVS team at LASP.
The correlation with the southern summer gave a clue as to why proton aurora are so common and how they could be used to track water loss. During southern summer on Mars, the planet is also near its closest distance to the Sun in its orbit and huge dust storms can occur.
Summer warming and dust activity appear to cause proton auroras by forcing water vapor high in the atmosphere. Solar extreme ultraviolet light breaks the water into its components, hydrogen and oxygen.
The light hydrogen is weakly bound by Mars' gravity and enhances the hydrogen corona surrounding Mars, increasing hydrogen loss to space. More hydrogen in the corona makes interactions with solar-wind protons more common, making proton aurora more frequent and brighter.
"All the conditions necessary to create Martian proton aurora (e.g., solar wind protons, an extended hydrogen atmosphere, and the absence of a global dipole magnetic field) are more commonly available at Mars than those needed to create other types of aurora," said Hughes. "Also, the connection between MAVEN's observations of increased atmospheric escape and increases in proton aurora frequency and intensity means that proton aurora can actually be used as a proxy for what's happening in the hydrogen corona surrounding Mars, and therefore, a proxy for times of increased atmospheric escape and water loss."
This research was funded by the MAVEN mission. MAVEN's principal investigator is based at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics in Boulder, Colorado, and NASA Goddard manages the MAVEN project. NASA is exploring our Solar System and beyond, uncovering worlds, stars, and cosmic mysteries near and far with our powerful fleet of space and ground-based missions.
PG&E Corp. and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. on Thursday filed an amended plan of reorganization with the bankruptcy court in its Chapter 11 cases.
The plan reflects PG&E’s settlements with all major groups of wildfire claimants and keeps PG&E on track to achieve regulatory approval and bankruptcy court confirmation in advance of the June 30, 2020, statutory deadline for participation in the state’s new wildfire fund.
The company said it believes its plan is confirmable, satisfies all requirements of Assembly Bill 1054 (AB 1054) and complies with the bankruptcy code.
“It is the product of extensive negotiations, treats all victims fairly, protects customers and employees, and will enable PG&E to emerge from Chapter 11 as a financially sound utility positioned to serve California for the long term,” the company said of the plan.
"Today’s filing brings us one step closer to successfully concluding PG&E’s Chapter 11 cases so that the wildfire victims can be compensated as quickly as possible. We appreciate the extensive work by many stakeholders that went into this plan, in particular the efforts of our state leaders to encourage all parties to work quickly to find common ground,” said CEO and President of PG&E Corp. Bill Johnson.
“We believe our plan is the best solution for all constituencies, and we look forward to bringing these complex proceedings to their conclusion. In the meantime, we continue to make meaningful changes and additional investments throughout the company to reduce the risk of wildfire and help us continue to deliver safe, reliable energy to our customers,” Johnson said.
The company is committed to working with all stakeholders to confirm support for the plan, to obtaining regulatory approval from the California Public Utilities Commission consistent with AB 1054, and to achieving confirmation of the plan by the bankruptcy court in advance of June 30, 2020.
PG&E said its plan prioritizes getting wildfire victims paid soonest by resolving outstanding litigation and eliminating the need for a Tubbs fire trial “and a costly and uncertain estimation process.” PG&E assumes its obligations to its employees and creditors without impairments, making sure all parties are treated fairly.
In its Thursday statement, PG&E said, “The plan put forward by the Ad Hoc Bondholders group (the Elliott plan) is a last-ditch effort to derail the wildfire victims’ settlements, and force costly, uncertain and protracted litigation. That plan would enrich those firms backing it by charging interest rates on debt that are both above market rate and higher than required by law, rather than putting those ratepayer dollars toward safety, reliability and clean energy investments.”
Last week, PG&E reached a settlement valued at approximately $13.5 billion to resolve all remaining wildfire claims, including individual claims, relating to the 2015 Butte fire, 2016 Ghost Ship fire, 2017 Northern California Wildfires (including the 2017 Tubbs fire), and the 2018 Camp fire pursuant to the terms of PG&E’s Plan.
PG&E’s said its plan has the support of the Official Committee of Tort Claimants and firms representing approximately 70 percent of wildfire victims.
PG&E previously reached settlements with two major groups of wildfire claim holders, including a $1 billion settlement with cities, counties, and other public entities – including the city of Clearlake and county of Lake – and an $11 billion agreement with insurance companies and other entities that have already paid insurance coverage for claims relating to the 2017 and 2018 wildfires.
On Thursday PG&E also resolved the disputed release provisions between the wildfire victims and insurance companies, which was a condition to the settlement with the wildfire victims.
PG&E’s said its plan would accomplish the following:
– Satisfy the requirements of AB 1054 and put PG&E on a path to help the state meet its clean energy goals and become the company that customers and communities expect and deserve; – Compensate wildfire victims and certain limited public entities from a trust funded for their benefit in the amount of approximately $13.5 billion in accordance with the terms of the Tort Claimants Restructuring Support Agreement, which is subject to the approval of the bankruptcy court and other conditions; – Compensate insurance subrogation claimants from a trust funded for their benefit in the amount of $11 billion in accordance with the terms of the subrogation claims settlement and restructuring support agreement, which is subject to the approval of the bankruptcy court and other conditions; – Pay $1 billion in full settlement of the claims of certain public entities like cities and counties relating to the wildfires, as previously announced; – Pay in full, with interest at the legal rate, all prepetition funded debt obligations, all prepetition trade claims and all prepetition employee-related claims; – Assume all power purchase agreements and community choice aggregation servicing agreements; – Assume all pension obligations, other employee obligations, and collective bargaining agreements with labor; and – Provide for PG&E’s future participation in the state wildfire fund established by Assembly Bill 1054.
PG&E said its plan is fully financeable throughout the capital structure. This includes the over $12 billion of equity backstop commitments that the company received last week to support its plan.
PG&E's plan is subject to confirmation by the bankruptcy court in accordance with the provisions of the bankruptcy code.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The majority of county of Lake offices will be closed to the public Monday, Dec. 23, through Friday, Dec. 27, in observance of the holidays.
In previous years, the county observed a three-day closure surrounding Christmas day.
Beginning in July of this year, the Board of Supervisors took action to provide employees in all represented and unrepresented groups five days off in consideration of the winter holidays.
The Lake County Library’s branches will also be closed Saturday, Dec. 28, and Lake County Animal Care and Control will be closed to the general public that day as well, as Lake County News has reported.
“Historically, demand for most County services has lulled around the holidays,” said County Administrative Officer, Carol J. Huchingson. “Our board saw this norm as an opportunity to partner with labor representatives to provide employees a meaningful benefit, without prohibitive additional cost to the county’s general fund. Employees have in recent years been provided two annual personal days, and those were exchanged by our employee groups for more time off around the holidays.”
Huchingson said that while county offices will generally be closed to the public, county officials and select staff will work behind closed doors to fulfill mandates and support critical functions.
“Behavioral Health Crisis services, jail staff, sheriff patrol and Central Dispatch, for example, will remain available 24/7. Some departments have made additional accommodations for local independent Special Districts, and our Auditor-Controller anticipates issuing payroll checks for the local entities their office supports,” Huchingson said.
Concern has been expressed regarding late-December real estate transactions, and County Assessor-Recorder Richard Ford reported that he will open the office on Friday, Dec. 20, to compensate for the added year-end volume.”
“We evaluate the calendar and adjust accordingly, every year,” Ford said.
“Road crews will be on-call and available to respond to road hazards, as required,” said County Public Works Director Scott De Leon.
Any hazards should first be reported to the California Highway Patrol, which will appropriately route the inquiry.
Public Services Director Lars Ewing reported the Eastlake Landfill will be closed to the public Dec. 24 to 26, but otherwise open daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Outdoor county park facilities will be available during their customary hours.
The Lower Lake Historic Schoolhouse Museum and the Historic Courthouse Museum in Lakeport will be open Friday, Dec. 27, and Saturday, Dec. 28, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Courthouse Museum will likewise maintain its customary Sunday hours – noon to 4 p.m. – on Dec. 29. Gibson Museum and Cultural Center in Middletown is closed for a building remodel through Jan. 2.
The Lake County Superior Court will be open the week of Dec. 23, with the exception of Christmas Day.
All county offices with responsibilities to support court-related matters and proceedings have planned to provide appropriate coverage.
The Sheriff’s Records Bureau and Civil Division will be open 8 a.m. to noon, with the exception of Christmas Day.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors heard an update from the organizers of Lake County’s annual Point in Time count, which is meant to gauge the number of homeless members of the community.
Jordan O’Halloran, chair of the Point in Time Count Committee, and Chris Taliaferro, chair of the Lake County Continuum of Care, spoke to the board about the count, set to take place on Jan. 27 around Lake County.
The Lake County Continuum of Care is a coalition of organizations working to end homelessness.
Taliaferro said the Continuum of Care has a new website where people can find out about the count and how to help.
On Jan. 24, volunteers will pack bags with donated items to hand out to those counted, Taliaferro said.
“The reason why the Point in Time count is important in this county is for affordable housing,” he said, explaining that the local homeless numbers don’t support a lot of the housing projects the group has been looking at doing.
As a result, they have focused on beefing up the count. This week, fliers will be going out to recruit volunteers. Taliaferro said he’ll also be coordinating with volunteers for count locations, with each location to have a person designated to answer questions.
In the next two weeks, the general fliers will be going out about the Point in Time count, with information on where the count will take place.
He said the next Point in Time count meeting will take place at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, at Redwood Coast Services in Lakeport.
Taliaferro said there will be count locations in Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Kelseyville, Lakeport, Lucerne and Middletown.
He raised issues with law enforcement, explaining that a lot of people who are homeless get arrested. Before the last count, Taliaferro said law enforcement busted up some of the homeless camps, which made it harder to count the homeless.
The Continuum of Care is trying to do strategic planning so people can have a point of contact if they are in need, Taliaferro said.
Board of Supervisors Chair Tina Scott asked Taliaferro if the organization had reached out to law enforcement. He said they had.
Taliaferro also explained that the Continuum of Care is getting a system up and running for data collection, with that data expected to qualify them for more federal funding.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier noted that the most recent Point in Time count was about 50 percent of the previous count. He asked if Taliaferro could explain that change.
Taliaferro said that during the last count, in addition to issues with law enforcement, it had been raining for the entire week leading up to the count. As a result, many homeless were leaving Lake County.
This will be the sixth Point in Time count done locally. Taliaferro said the numbers two years ago were inflated hugely because the Continuum of Care at that time had a new chair who wanted to do things differently, and counted people as homeless but didn’t have the necessary accompanying data.
Before that, the counts had been averaging 200 to 350 homeless per count. Two years ago, it jumped to 600. But in January, Taliaferro said the numbers were back down and in line with the past years. That required them to justify the change and, in the end, the larger number hurt them in their federal funding efforts.
Sabatier asked about count methodology. Taliaferro said they count everyone, including those at risk of homelessness, because different grants have different definitions for homelessness.
O’Halloran said that next month’s count will take place all day long, rather than just part of the day.
Supervisor Rob Brown said that he found out at a meeting last week that Caltrans is working to break up illegal encampments in its right of way and on adjacent properties, but is trying to carry out the process in a more compassionate way. He suggested the Continuum of Care should work with Caltrans and said he would get contact information for Caltrans.
Sabatier asked if the Point in Time count and the annual veterans stand down could be combined to help get more participation from homeless veterans.
Taliaferro said the Point in Time count is mandated to happen in January. They could look at moving the stand down, although that also is supposed to happen at certain times.
Scott asked about how many homeless veterans participated in the stand down this fall. Taliaferro said 52, down slightly from previous years when the fires led to more homeless veterans. Overall, 220 veterans attended the event.
Taliaferro told the board that items they will include in gift bags for people counted gift cards, hygiene items and clothing, as well as contact information for the Continuum of Care. However, on Tuesday he didn’t yet have central contact numbers for the organization, explaining that their strategic planning efforts for contact information are still under way.
He said he appreciated the Board of Supervisors wanting more information about the effort.
“Housing is one of the big things we’re working on and we have to make sure that this Point in Time count does better than it has in the past,” he said.
Scott thanked him for doing an amazing job running the Continuum of Care, noting that she’s seen an improvement over the past few years and she’s excited about the direction it’s going.
For more information about the Continuum of Care, including volunteering for the Point in Time count or donating for the gift bags, visit https://www.lakecoc.org or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Nearly a year after she retired as Lake County’s registrar of voters, Diane Fridley on Tuesday was appointed by the Board of Supervisors as interim registrar.
The board came out of closed session on Tuesday afternoon, at which time the supervisors voted to appoint Fridley, Deputy County Administrative Officer Matthew Rothstein said.
Rothstein said the appointment became effective Wednesday, with Fridley to be paid at salary step eight.
Supervisor Simon moved the appointment, which was seconded by Supervisor Bruno Sabatier and approved unanimously, Rothstein said.
Fridley retired last December after more than 40 year working for Lake County.
Two months later, her longtime deputy, Maria Valadez – who had been appointed interim registrar after Fridley’s retirement but not offered the job on a permanent basis – left to take a job in Mendocino County.
Valadez had been viewed by many as Fridley’s successor, as she had spent nearly 30 years working in the elections office.
However, Valadez’s promotion had encountered resistance from County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson, who last fall had attempted – unsuccessfully – to convince the board to change the educational requirements for the registrar to require a bachelor’s degree rather than experience, which would have disqualified Valadez and the rest of the registrar’s staff.
At that time, Huchingson also had proposed consolidating the elections office with the Auditor-Controller/County Clerk’s Office, which the board also had declined to do, thanks in part to Fridley’s input.
After Valadez’s departure, the board appointed Huchingson as interim registrar. The county then undertook a recruitment for registrar, the first round of which failed to find a candidate. A second recruitment led to the hiring of Catherine McMullen, who came from Portland, Oregon to Lake County – where she was raised – to take the job.
McMullen, who began as registrar on June 24, submitted her resignation letter on Nov. 7, in the midst of the official canvass for Northshore Fire’s Measure N sales tax. Originally, she was to leave on Nov. 22 but stayed until Dec. 2 to certify the election results, which showed the measure falling several points short of the needed supermajority of 66.7 percent.
In posts on her LinkedIn account, McMullen said the job as Lake County’s registrar of voters was to have been her dream job, “but instead has been a nightmare from day one.”
In a separate post, she said she and others experienced bullying in the county workplace.
Since McMullen announced her intention to leave, Huchingson once again proposed to the board that the Registrar of Voters Office be consolidated with the Auditor-Controller/County Clerk’s Office.
However, the board had directed that a recruitment begin for a new registrar, temporarily appointing Auditor-Controller/County Clerk Cathy Saderlund to be interim registrar from Dec. 3 to 10, as Lake County News has reported.
Board holds brief discussion ahead of closed session
Fridley was in the board chambers for a brief discussion on Tuesday morning, ahead of the closed session, that the supervisors held on the Registrar of Voters Office.
While Huchingson has led many of the past discussions on the registrar, on Tuesday, when Board Chair Tina Scott asked if she was leading them this time, Huchingson replied, “I don't have anything particular to offer.”
“I have something to offer,” said Supervisor Rob Brown, adding that he wanted to “cut right to the chase.”
He said they’ve discussed it and looked at all of the options available to them when it comes to structuring the elections office.
“I think the best option at this point, clearly, is leaving it a standalone,” he said.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he concurred.
Supervisor Moke Simon said there could be another discussion down the road, but that they needed to get through the upcoming election, a reference to the California Super Tuesday presidential primary that will take place at the start of March.
“I agree with that,” said Scott.
During public comment, Michael Green, who has worked for the elections office, said there are a lot of balls in the air and time is of the essence. He said one possible issue is the possible consolidation of the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office with the Auditor-Controller’s Office.
In that event, the County Clerk’s Office and the Registrar of Voters Office would need to be split off. Green said that’s an issue that can be taken up later, but for now more immediate needs include getting staff.
Green added that he supported keeping the elections office independent right now and having it report to the Board of Supervisors.
The supervisors asked if they needed to take any action, and County Counsel Anita Grant said that because the Registrar of Voters Office is now a standalone office, “You need do nothing except by consensus you’ve indicated you want to keep it that way.”
Sabatier, noting they had appointed Saderlund as interim registrar until Dec. 10, asked if they needed to take action. Grant said that was part of the item the board was to take up during closed session.
County officials so far haven’t reported on the anticipated timeline for recruiting a new registrar. The job isn’t currently listed on the web page for the county’s Human Resources Department, also headed by Huchingson.
CalPERS retirement rules allow for retirees like Fridley to work less than 960 hours on an annual basis without jeopardizing their retirement benefits.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
On Friday, California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly, along with Cal Hospital Compare, recognized hospitals across California for their high performance in maternity care, patient safety and commitment to safe opioid care.
Officials said 36 hospitals met performance standards in both maternity care and patient safety, 134 hospitals met performance standards in maternity care, 77 hospitals met performance standards in patient safety, and 60 hospitals are being recognized for participating in the pilot year of the opioid care honor roll program.
Lake County’s two hospitals, Adventist Health Clear Lake and Sutter Lakeside Hospital, are on the Maternity and Patient Safety Honor Roll, and also were listed among the hospitals that met the maternity care and patient safety standards, with Adventist Health Clear Lake also participating in the opioid care honor roll program pilot.
“Improving the quality of patient care in hospitals is critically important,” said Dr. Ghaly. “These annual measurements through Cal Hospital Compare allow us to acknowledge hospitals doing excellent work and also inform hospitals when improvement is needed.”
“Cal Hospital Compare is proud to contribute to the statewide effort to improve quality in the hospital setting by providing a roadmap and way to evaluate performance for hospitals in the important areas of maternity, patient safety, and opioid care – and show where improvement is needed,” said Bruce Spurlock, MD, the executive director of Cal Hospital Compare. “We invite all California hospitals to use these honor rolls as a tool to evaluate and benchmark performance against other hospitals.”
Cal Hospital Compare, a nonprofit organization, has been providing Californians with objective hospital performance ratings for more than a decade.
For the last four years, California has also recognized hospitals that meet or surpass a statewide target of C-section rates of 23.9 percent for low-risk, first-births.
For mothers, overuse of C-sections can result in higher rates of complications like hemorrhage, transfusions, infection, and blood clots. The surgery also brings risks for babies, including higher rates of infection, respiratory complications, neonatal intensive care unit stays, and lower breastfeeding rates.
The California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative collects the data and actively works with hospitals to safely reduce low-risk C-sections.
Between 2014 and 2018, the percentage of California hospitals meeting the target went from 40 percent to 57 percent, representing 134 hospitals statewide.
While there is still significant opportunity for improvement, the fact that so many hospitals have already reached or surpassed this target indicates that reducing unnecessary C-sections is a top priority for California hospitals providing maternity care.
Cal Hospital Compare is also releasing its first Patient Safety Honor Roll today, recognizing 77 hospitals with high safety profiles in comparison to other California hospitals. Cal Hospital Compare has rigorously evaluated a set of publicly available patient safety measures to evaluate hospitals across several areas in patient safety, including hospital acquired infections, adverse events, sepsis management, patient experience and more.
This year Cal Hospital Compare launched the Opioid Care Honor Roll to help address the ongoing opioid crisis.
According to state data, nearly 2,200 Californians died of an opioid-related overdose in 2017. Patients with opioid use disorder are frequently hospitalized or visit the emergency department due to complications of the condition without also receiving treatment for the underlying disease of opioid addiction. This is a missed opportunity and leaves patients untreated and at high risk of future overdose.
In this pilot year of the program, 60 hospitals voluntarily reported their progress on addressing the opioid crisis. While results show that all participating hospitals are making progress, it is clear more work is needed.
In 2020, Cal Hospital Compare will continue to offer learning opportunities to support the rapid spread of evidence-based practices among hospitals.
“I encourage all hospitals to participate in the Opioid Care Honor Roll program next year,” said Dr. Ghaly. “Participating in the Opioid Care Honor Roll demonstrates a hospital’s commitment to treating opioid use disorder and reducing deaths from addiction.”
The California Health and Human Services Agency and Cal Hospital Compare recognize the following 36 hospitals for achieving recognition on the Maternity and Patient Safety Honor Rolls.
For more information on individual honor rolls and recipients, please refer to the Cal Hospital Compare website here.
36 Hospitals with Maternity and Patient Safety Honor Roll Status
Adventist Health Bakersfield, Bakersfield Adventist Health Clear Lake, Clearlake Adventist Health Hanford, Hanford Barton Memorial Hospital, South Lake Tahoe Centinela Hospital Medical Center, Inglewood Community Memorial Hospital, Ventura Doctors Hospital of Manteca, Manteca Doctors Medical Center of Modesto, Modesto El Camino Hospital Los Gatos, Los Gatos French Hospital Medical Center, San Luis Obispo John Muir Medical Center - Walnut Creek Campus, Walnut Creek Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center, Downey Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center, Fontana Kaiser Permanente Fresno Medical Center, Fresno Kaiser Permanente Modesto Medical Center, Modesto Kaiser Permanente Orange County - Anaheim Medical Center, Anaheim Kaiser Permanente Panorama City Medical Center, Panorama City Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center, Redwood City Kaiser Permanente Riverside Medical Center, Riverside Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center, Roseville Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center, Santa Clara Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center, Sacramento Kaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center, Vallejo Memorial Hospital Los Banos, Los Banos PIH Health Hospital – Whittier, Whitter Redwood Memorial Hospital, Fortuna Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, Chula Vista St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Red Bluff St. Louise Regional Hospital, Gilroy Sutter Lakeside Hospital, Lakeport Sutter Roseville Medical Center, Roseville Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital, Santa Rosa Sutter Solano Medical Center, Vallejo UC Irvine Health, Orange UC San Diego Health - Hillcrest, UC San Diego Medical Center, La Jolla UCLA Medical Center - Santa Monica, Santa Monica
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Clearlake Animal Control has many dogs waiting for new homes this month.
The kennels also have many dogs that need to be reunited with their owners. To find the lost/found pet section, click here.
The following dogs are ready for adoption.
‘Blue’
“Blue” is a male Staffordshire Bull Terrier.
He has a short blue and white coat and has been neutered.
He is dog No. 2420.
‘Burke’
“Burke” is a male Labrador Retriever with a short black coat with white markings.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 2628.
‘Charlotte’
“Charlotte” is a female Akita mix.
She is dog No. 3040.
‘Cow’
“Cow” is a female terrier mix with a short black and white coat.
She has been spayed.
She is dog No. 1230.
‘Fable’
“Fable” is a female Alaskan Malamute mix with a brown and buff coat.
She is dog No. 3044.
‘King’
“King” is a male Staffordshire Bull Terrier with a short brindle coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 3034.
‘Linus’
“Linus” is a male Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix with a short gray and white coat.
He is dog No. 3255.
‘Precious’
“Precious” is a female Staffordshire Bull Terrier with a short black coat.
She is dog No. 3268.
‘Woodrow’
“Woodrow” is a male Staffordshire Bull Terrier with a black and white coat.
He is dog No. 3281.
Clearlake Animal Control’s shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53, off Airport Road.
Hours of operation area noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The shelter is closed Sundays, Mondays and major holidays; the shelter offers appointments on the days it’s closed to accommodate people.
Call the Clearlake Animal Control shelter at 707-273-9440, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to inquire about adoptions.
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or at the city’s Web site.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – As the Lake County Sheriff’s Office continues to follow up on leads in the murder last month of a Lucerne man, the two men charged with the homicide are scheduled to return to court next month to enter pleas in the case.
Daniel Wayne Ford, 49, of Lakeport, and Michael Sean Shaffer, 35, of Upper Lake, were in Lake County Superior Court on Tuesday to enter pleas, but didn’t do so, according to District Attorney Susan Krones.
The men were arrested on Nov. 23, the same day that authorities found the body of 70-year-old Nicky Dale Smith on the side of the road in the 4550 block of Scotts Valley Road near Lakeport, as Lake County News has reported.
Smith’s autopsy concluded that he died of blunt force trauma and gunshot wounds, according to Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
The charges so far filed against Ford and Shaffer indicate that it was Ford who used a flashlight to beat Smith and a handgun to shoot him.
Krones has charged both Ford and Shaffer with murder, attempted robbery, kidnapping, carjacking, assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury and a host of special allegations, including committing a murder during an attempted robbery, an attempted kidnapping and a carjacking, and inflicting great bodily injury on a person who was 70 years old.
Ford alone is charged with assault with a firearm, with a special allegation of using a handgun; assault with a deadly weapon, a flashlight; being a felon in possession of a firearm; and additional special allegations of discharging a firearm causing great bodily injury and death, and personally using and firing a handgun.
Both men have previous felony convictions, Ford for reckless evading in Mendocino County in 2007, possession of methamphetamine for sale in Mendocino County in 2011 and for criminal threats in 2015 in Del Norte County, and Shaffer for assault with a deadly weapon in 2012 and for reckless evading in 2017, with both convictions in Lake County.
In a court appearance last month, Ford and Shaffer indicated they planned to hire their own attorneys and didn’t enter pleas then, either.
At the Tuesday hearing, Krones said Mitchell Hauptman and Edward Savin made special appearances on behalf of Ford and Shaffer, respectively, with both attorneys in the process of being hired.
“So they have not made general appearances yet,” Krones said of Ford and Shaffer.
Krones said they will return to court at 8:15 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7, in Department 3 for entering of pleas and appearance of counsel.
Both men remain in custody at the Lake County Jail on no-bail holds.
Krones said the sheriff’s office is continuing its investigation into the homicide, noting it’s still early in the case’s development.
Krones said there could be another potential suspect who was involved in the murder.
However, Krones said that the possibility of another suspect hasn’t so far exonerated either Ford or Shaffer.
“The sheriff’s office is still investigating all leads,” Krones said.
She declined to discuss a possible motive, explaining that it’s too early to say what it might be.
However, Krones added that Ford and Shaffer didn’t randomly pick up Smith; she stated in a previous interview that the men had prior contacts.
She also said she wasn’t at liberty to discuss whether or not Smith’s pickup had yet been located, deferring comment at this time to the sheriff’s office.
Paulich wasn’t available on Wednesday to offer further comment on the case.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
If you are one of those people who will settle in this evening with a hot cup of apple cider to watch a holiday movie, you are not alone. Holiday movies have become firmly embedded in Americans’ winter celebrations.
The New York Times reports a massive increase in new holiday movies this year. Disney, Netflix, Lifetime and Hallmark are now in direct competition for viewers’ attention, with both new releases and reruns of the classics.
Holiday movies are so popular not simply because they are “escapes,” as my research on the relation between religion and cinema argues. Rather, these films offer viewers a glimpse into the world as it is could be.
Christmas movies as reflection
This is particularly true with Christmas movies.
In his 2016 book “Christmas as Religion,” the religious studies scholar Christopher Deacy states that Christmas movies act as a “barometer of how we might want to live and how we might see and measure ourselves.”
These movies offer a variety of portraits of everyday life while affirming ethical values and social mores along the way.
The 1946 classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” – about a man who longs to travel but remains stuck in his childhood town – represents visions of a community in which every citizen is a vital component.
Another movie commonly replayed this time of year is 2005’s “The Family Stone” which portrays the clashes of a mostly average family but shows viewers that quarrels can be worked through and harmony is possible.
The 2003 British holiday film “Love Actually,” which follows the lives of eight couples in London, brings to viewers the perennial theme of romance and the trials of relationships.
Movie watching as ritual practice
As holiday movies bring viewers into a fictional world, people are able to work through their own fears and desires about self-worth and relationships. Such movies can provide solace, reaffirmation and sometimes even courage to continue working through difficult situations. The movies offer hope in believing it all might turn out alright in the end.
When people see some part of their own lives unfold on screen, the act of viewing operates in a fashion that’s strikingly similar to how a religious ritual works.
As anthropologist Bobby Alexander explains, rituals are actions that transform people’s everyday lives. Rituals can open up “ordinary life to ultimate reality or some transcendent being or force,” he writes in the collection “Anthropology of Religion.”
For example, for Jews and Christians, ritually observing the Sabbath day by sharing meals with family and not working connects them with the creation of the world. Prayer rituals in the Muslim, Christian and Jewish traditions connect those praying with their God, as well as with their fellow believers.
Holiday movies do something similar, except that the “transcendent force” they make viewers feel is not about God or another supreme being. Instead, this force is more secular: It’s the power of family, true love, the meaning of home or the reconciliation of relationships.
Movies create an idealized world
Take the case of the 1942 musical “Holiday Inn.” It was one of the first movies – after the silent era’s various versions of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” – where the plot used Christmas as a backdrop, telling the story of a group of entertainers who have gathered at a country inn.
In reality, it was a deeply secular film about romantic interests, couched in a desire to sing and dance. When it was released, the United States had been fully involved in the World War II for a year and national spirits were not high.
The movie hasn’t endured as a classic. But Bing Crosby’s song “White Christmas,” which appeared in it, quickly became etched in the holiday consciousness of many Americans, and a 1954 film called “White Christmas” became better known.
As historian Penne Restad puts it in her 1995 book “Christmas in America,” Crosby’s crooning offers the “quintessential expression” of the holidays, a world which “has no dark side” – one in which “war is forgotten.”
In subsequent Christmas movies, the main plots have not been set in the context of war, yet there is nonetheless often a battle: that of overcoming a materialistic, gift-buying and gift-giving kind of holiday.
Dr. Seuss’s famously grouchy Grinch thinks he can ruin Christmas by taking all the gifts away. But as the people gather together, giftless, they join hands and sing while the narrator tells viewers, “Christmas came anyway.”
“All’s right with the world”
Though Christmas is a Christian holiday, most holiday films are not religious in the traditional sense. There is hardly ever a mention of Jesus or the biblical setting of his birth.
As media studies scholar John Mundy writes in a 2008 essay, “Christmas and the Movies,” “Hollywood movies continue to construct Christmas as an alternative reality.”
These movies create on-screen worlds that kindle positive emotions while offering a few laughs.
“A Christmas Story,” from 1983, waxes nostalgic for childhood holidays when life seemed simpler and the desire for a Red Ryder air rifle was the most important thing in the world. The plot of 2003’s “Elf” centers on the quest to reunite with a lost father.
In the end, as the narrator says late in “A Christmas Story” – after the family has overcome a serious of risible mishaps, the presents have been unwrapped and they’ve gathered for Christmas goose – these are times when “all’s right with the world.”
President Donald Trump and Democratic leaders agreed on a deal to pass a new trade agreement between the U.S., Mexico and Canada that will update NAFTA.
Passing the new trade accord, known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, would be a substantial win for both Trump – given it’s one of his campaign promises – and Democrats, who want to show they’re legislating even as they prepare to impeach the president.
So how is the USMCA different from the North American Free Trade Agreement, and why should you care?
Although the final revised text of the USMCA has not yet been released, the deal as detailed in May contains numerous tweaks from its predecessor, both big and small. As an agriculture economist who studies trade, I believe three changes are especially noteworthy.
Please pass the butter
Since 1994, the U.S. and Canada have dropped tariffs and other trade restrictions on most agricultural products. But there were a few exceptions, most notably dairy.
Dairy was a particularly problematic sticking point in year-long negotiations between the three countries. The U.S. and Canada both have long histories of protectionist policies, such as subsidizing dairy farmers and setting import quotas on milk. Canadian tariffs on some products can be as high as 300%.
The new USMCA begins to change that, representing a small but important win for both countries, especially the U.S.
The new agreement also made big changes for auto manufacturers in hopes of ensuring more vehicles and parts are made in North America.
Starting as early as 2020, to qualify for zero tariffs when crossing borders, a car or truck must have 75% of its components manufactured in Canada, the U.S. or Mexico, up from 62.5% currently.
Even more noteworthy, negotiators agreed to a new requirement that 40% to 45% of a vehicle’s components must be made by workers earning at least US$16 per hour, which is about three times more than the average wage currently earned by Mexican auto workers.
This change is huge, particularly for low-paid workers in Mexico. But it may lead to challenges over the enforcement of labor laws and increase the cost of cars made in all three countries.
Keeping up with the times
Society has experienced significant technological changes since NAFTA was implemented in 1994. Back then, the internet was still in its infancy, while smartphones and self-driving cars were barely imaginable.
That’s why modernization – updating rules and standards to keep up with the times – is a critical and positive update to the trade deal tying the North American continent together.
While NAFTA was the first trade treaty to include intellectual property protections, the high pace of innovation has made modernization of its provisions imperative.
The new agreement includes stronger protections for patents and trademarks in areas such as biotech, financial services and domain names – all of which have advanced considerably over the past quarter-century. It also contains new provisions governing the expansion of digital trade and investment in innovative products and services.
Separately, negotiators agreed to update labor and environmental standards, which were not central to the 1994 accord and are now typical in modern trade agreements. Examples include enforcing a minimum wage for autoworkers, stricter environmental standards for Mexican trucks and new rules on fishing to protect marine life.
Apart from the changes, there is one important thing about the original NAFTA that will stay, thanks to the insistence of Canada. Chapter 19 is the dispute settlement mechanism that allows countries to seek remedies for breaking the rules. It’s like “trade court” and makes it much easier to challenge another country’s policies.
Although Mexico’s Senate ratified the USMCA earlier this year, the deal still needed approval from Canada and the U.S. Congress. Democrats and labor unions insisted on revisions to the text to address enforcement of labor and environmental provisions and intellectual property protection. The newly revised text agreed to by Trump and the Democrats addresses these issues and is now ready for approval by all three countries.
All in all, I believe the new NAFTA is definitely a modern and updated version of its important predecessor, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture characterized as one of the most successful trade agreements in history.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – Mendocino County’s popular longtime sheriff said he is stepping down.
In a post published on his Facebook page shortly after 12 a.m. Thursday, Tom Allman said he is retiring as sheriff effective Dec. 28.
“This is a decision that I have made based on many things, but one of the most important is the fact that we have a very good undersheriff, Matt Kendall, who is ready to take the helm,” said Allman.
Allman has worked in law enforcement for Mendocino County since 1985, and has been sheriff for 13 years.
He said “there are no words which would adequately describe how proud I am to have been Sheriff of the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office. As the transition takes place, I have to thank the men and women who work very hard to keep our county safe. I’m leaving at a time when things are very good and I’m not taking this for granted.”
Allman said he’s not moving from the North Coast and he intends to devote time to improving the mental health services throughout Mendocino County, an issue he’s been passionate about over the years.
“Together, we’ve accomplished a lot, yet the hardest work is still ahead of us. The current ambulance crisis is another project which I will be working on,” Allman wrote.
“I am very lucky to have so many people who have supported me in my time as your Sheriff and I will never forget how fortunate I have been,” Allman wrote. “Together, we have faced fires, floods, droughts, a tsunami and several other incidents which have gone down in our county history as major. In 2008, we had 134 lightning fires in one night and in 2011, we had the most expensive and extensive manhunt in our county history. In 2017, we experienced the most tragic disaster in our history, where 9 citizens perished. The sadness and pain of that tragedy which we all experienced will always linger. Throughout all of these disasters, we have had First Responders step up and do the necessary work which had to be done. Many of these first responders are volunteers and they have my heartfelt appreciation. Our volunteer firefighters and our search and rescue volunteers are citizens who strive to work very hard to make our county a better place, for little or no pay. Thank you very much.”
Allman offered his thanks and appreciation to the men and women of the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office. “You are appreciated for what you do and how you conduct yourself. I know each of you and I am very proud of you. Continue wearing your uniform with the rich pride that has been established by the past employees who have built our good reputation.”
He concluded, “I’m going to sum it up in very few words: Thank you for allowing me the privilege of being your Sheriff for the past 13 years. I have made many friends throughout my tenure as your Sheriff and will never forget the kindness which has been shown to me.”