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Medi-Cal reform causing worry in Santa Clara County as Momentum for Health shutters programs

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

David Mineta chokes up when talking about the roughly 1,500 individuals Momentum for Health — the nonprofit he runs — won’t be able to help this coming year.Momentum is one of the largest nonprofit behavioral health service providers in Santa Clara County, serving more than 4,000 adults and children annually. But because of ripple effects from CalAIM — a multi-year plan to overhaul California’s Medi-Cal system — the nonprofit said it closed six of its programs and laid off 85 staff members at the end of December.“It just breaks me,” said Mineta, the president and CEO of Momentum.California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal, or CalAIM for short, was touted by Gov. Gavin Newsom as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to transform the state’s Medicaid system, which covers more than one-third of Californians. Launched in 2022, CalAIM will refocus Medi-Cal over the course of five years to more of what’s called a R...

Cursive writing was so yesterday in California, but in 2024 it’s back in class

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

Sierra Rivera and her older sister, Dahlia, were thrilled at the idea of baking up a batch of their grandmother’s pumpkin cookies last month for Thanksgiving, but when their dad gave them the handwritten recipe, they froze.Letters of each word gracefully flowed from one to the next in a style familiar to those of a certain age. But to to the Rivera sisters, it might as well have been Latin.“I didn’t know how to read it,” said Sierra, 8, a third-grader at Dublin Elementary School. “I thought it was like a different language.”Sierra Rivera, 8, a Dublin Elementary third-grader, holds a copy of her grandmotherÕs handwritten pumpkin cookie recipe that she and her sister, Dahlia, 13, couldnÕt read because it was in cursive, which they hadnÕt been taught at school. She looks forward to learning it at school under a new state law taking effect in 2024. (Photo by Steve Wynn) The girls’ father, Steve Wynn, translated Grandma’s cursive handw...

Bird flu infects Petaluma’s historic poultry region, putting small farmers in peril

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

The Reichardt family has devoted the last 30 years to perfecting a line of ducks famed for succulent pink meat and well suited to the slower, less stressful husbandry of a small Petaluma farm.Now their prized poultry is being delivered, not to the Bay Area’s finest Michelin-starred restaurants, but to the county dump.Avian influenza has barreled through Sonoma County’s historic poultry region, forcing the slaughter of 1.1 million birds and inflicting heartbreak and economic disaster on the Reichardts and other small family farmers in the once-famed “Egg Capital of the World.”“We’re still in the midst of wrapping our heads around it all,” said Jennifer Reichardt, 34, a fifth-generation farmer who was required by law to euthanize 4,900 of their beloved “Liberty Ducks” after the virus was detected Dec. 7. “There was never going to be a good time for this to hit, but during the holidays it is especially hard.”Siblings Eric and Jennifer Reichardt talk with Javier Reyes at a S...

Lowriders, as well as those with expired registration tags, get a break — 2024 rings in new California traffic laws

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

Cities and counties can’t outlaw cruising anymore.Cops can’t pull you over just because your registration tag is past due.Officers now have more legal means to go after thieves who crawl under cars to steal catalytic converters and peddle them.“Thieves continue to steal catalytic converters, while victims foot the bill and must wait for months on end for repairs,” said Assemblymember Vince Fong, (R-Central Valley), in a statement. He introduced one of the bills that becomes law to thwart such crime. “Law enforcement needs more tools to hold thieves accountable and protect California motorists.”Now, beginning with the new year, officers have a little more help to stop this crime.Below are some of the new traffic-related laws that 2024 is bringing:License plates’ registration tagsHaving an expired registration tag on the rear license plate no longer can be the sole reason a police officer pulls you over, if before the second month after the expiration.The new law aims to limit officer...

Rose Bowl: No. 1 Michigan football puts unbeaten record on the line against No. 4 Alabama

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

The No. 1 Michigan and No. 4 Alabama football teams have been in Los Angeles for more than half a week now, occupying the same spaces but never truly coming face to face. Monday afternoon will bring them together on the same field in a College Football Playoff semifinal at the Rose Bowl.Michigan (13-0) holds an unbeaten record heading into the game, which is slated for 2 p.m. on New Year’s Day. It’s the Wolverines’ third straight appearance in the College Football Playoff and 21st overall appearance in the Rose Bowl.RELATED: Rose Parade 2024: Your ultimate guide for watching from home“The hay is never in the barn for us,” said Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, who served a pair of three-game suspensions this season. “We never think of it that way. Things to clean up, polishing the diamond as we like to say, make the most of this day.”It will be the sixth time overall that Michigan and Alabama meet in a game. Alabama last beat Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, 35-16, in 2019.The Crimson Tide (...

8 treated after chemical sprayed inside restroom at California Target

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

Eight people suffered minor injuries after someone sprayed a chemical inside a Target restroom in Azusa on Sunday, Dec. 31.Firefighters treated eight people for minor coughing because of possible pepper spray, Los Angeles Fire Capt. Brad Salmo said. However, he added that the chemical has not yet been determined.No one was taken to a hospital, Azusa Police Lt. Jake Bushey said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Man found fatally shot on Hayward street Crime and Public Safety | 14-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of killing parents and injuring sister Crime and Public Safety | Tesla Cybertruck involved in Bay Area collision Crime and Public Safety | One dead, two injured in head-on collision in eastern Contra Costa County Crime and Public Safety | More rain for Bay Area set to arrive as waves continue to thrash the coast Firefighters went to the store at 809 N. Azusa Ave. about noon. Police were ...

California man shot to death by neighbor after setting fire to grandparents’ home, police say

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

A man who apparently set fire to his grandparents’ Menifee home and resisted officers’ calls to surrender was killed Saturday, Dec. 30, when he slipped out of the residence, broke into a neighbor’s home and was shot by that resident, the Menifee Police Department said.The 40-year-old man was reported by his mother to be armed with a gun, under the influence and suicidal, said Lt. Paul Barbieri, a police spokesperson. He said police believe the man did not live at his grandparents’ home in the 27000 block of Early Dawn Road but that they allowed him to stay there occasionally.Barbieri declined Sunday, Dec. 31, to describe the confrontation between the man and the neighbor as that continues to be investigated. The resident was cooperating with police, Barbieri said. No arrests have been announced.The man’s mother called police with her concerns about 3:30 p.m. The family safely evacuated the house, leaving the man alone inside. Police called on him to surrender, but just after 5 p.m.,...

Employees pepper-sprayed during robbery at California jewelry store

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

Robbers pepper-sprayed employees at Daniel’s Jewelers at the Riverside Plaza and made away with jewelry on Sunday, Dec. 31, the Riverside Police Department said.Two or three men entered the store about 2:20 p.m., said Officer Ryan Railsback, a Police Department spokesman. They fled in a car that was later found abandoned. Police were searching for the robbers Sunday.Store employees declined medical attention, the Riverside Fire Department said.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | ‘Smash-and-grab’ robberies fuel new laws, but critics question the need Crime and Public Safety | S.F. police arrest 18 people in anti-shoplifting operations in Stonestown, Mission District Crime and Public Safety | $1 million in goods recovered from California retail theft crew, authorities say Crime and Public Safety | Rite Aid’s ‘reckless’ use of facial recognition got it banned from using the technology in stores for 5 years Crime and ...

'STFU Musk': Projector signs seen at SF NYE fireworks show takes aim at Mayor Breed, Elon Musk

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Thousands of people watched the KRON4 New Year's Live fireworks show in San Francisco. They were anticipating seeing an exhilarating fireworks show with a breathtaking view of the Bay Bridge in the background.However, a few large signs were projected onto the Ferry Building that may have caught some by surprise. The messages, which took aim at Mayor London Breed and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, came from an unknown projector that was planted somewhere nearby.The messages from the projector showed up shortly before the clock struck midnight. Photos of the signs were captured by KRON4 cameras (see below). SF business owner claims NAACP leader made threats after music video critical of mayor KRON4 reached out to Breed's office, the Ferry Building and the San Francisco Police Department to comment on the signs projected on the building. We are waiting to hear back.

Person killed by fireworks in SF's Treasure Island neighborhood

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:36:54 GMT

(BCN) -- A person died after suffering firework-related injuries in San Francisco, barely an hour after the New Year arrived, police said.The San Francisco Police Department said that at approximately 12:40 a.m. Monday, officers responded to a report of someone injured by fireworks in the 1200 block of Exposition Drive in Treasure Island neighborhood.Upon arrival, they found a person suffering life-threatening injuries, police said.The victim was given first aid, but when paramedics arrived, the person was pronounced dead.San Francisco police ask anyone with relevant information to contact them at (415) 575-4444 or text TIP411.Copyright © 2024 Bay City News, Inc.