August 11, 2017
OCEA's Column in the OC Register
Beuthin: Reining in predatory pharmaceutical drug prices
A 2016 Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that nearly 9 in 10 Americans support greater transparency in prescription drug pricing. Still, pharmaceutical companies are funneling millions of dollars into lobbying efforts to kill this much-needed reform. They mustn’t succeed.
Labor
St. Louis Public Radio: Unions plan to turn in 300K signatures, likely putting Missouri’s ‘right-to-work’ law in limbo
It appears that Missouri labor groups will be able to block the state’s new right-to-work law from taking effect Aug. 28.
Orange County
Voice of OC: Judge set to rule on whether Seal Beach mass murderer faces death penalty
Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals will rule Aug. 18 whether to block mass murderer Scott Dekraai from receiving the death penalty and determine if the Sheriff’s Department can be trusted to turn over all records ordered by the court.
OC Register: Inmate in Santa Ana Jail dies in hospital after being found unresponsive in cell
Santa Ana police and Orange County District Attorney’s officials are investigating the death of a man found unresponsive in his cell at the Santa Ana Jail, police said Friday, Aug. 11.
Region
LA Times: More than half of L.A.'s 1 million poor households live in unaffordable or substandard rentals, study says
Rising rents have been linked to Los Angeles’ explosive homelessness problem, which grew 23% last year, to 58,000 people countywide, officials reported based on a January street and shelter count.
California
OC Register: State Senate bills aim to make homes more affordable, but they won't spur nearly enough construction.
The measures now contemplated to alleviate the state’s affordability crisis will not make much of a dent in California’s housing needs, according to analyses from state officials and housing groups
Publication Date: August 11, 2017