Why are women at a higher risk for Alzheimer’s?
Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Tuesday, May 20th.
How the city of San Diego plans to reign in police overtime.
More on that next. But first... the headlines….
SAN DIEGO COUNTY MEASURED A 7 PERCENT DROP IN HOMELESSNESS THIS YEAR.
THAT’S ACCORDING TO DATA RELEASED TODAY (TUESDAY) FROM THIS YEAR'S POINT-IN-TIME COUNT.
THE ANNUAL CENSUS OF PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS PROVIDES A SNAPSHOT OF THE REGION'S PROGRESS.
METRO REPORTER ANDREW BOWEN SAYS THE MOST ENCOURAGING DATA RELATES TO UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS.
The county saw a 72% drop among families with no access to shelter and a 25% decline among unsheltered veterans. That means even if families and vets can't find permanent housing, many more of them are at least finding temporary shelter.
OLDER ADULTS REMAIN ONE OF THE MOST AT-RISK POPULATIONS FOR HOMELESSNESS. THE COUNTY SAW A 5 PERCENT INCREASE IN SENIORS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS FOR THE FIRST TIME.
The family of San Diegan Ashli Babbitt settled its wrongful death lawsuit with the federal government
Babbitt was shot and killed by a Capitol Police officer during the January 6th insurrection in 2021.
The lawsuit brought by Babbitt’s family and the conservative group Judicial Watch claimed the police officer who shot Babbitt did so without warning.
The Department of Justice did not pursue criminal charges against Lt. Michael Byrd, the officer that killed Babbitt. Capitol police said Byrd would not face discipline.
Court filings indicate a settlement was reached but don’t reference the monetary value.
LEADERS OF SAN DIEGO'S BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH COMMUNITY ARE WARNING ABOUT RISKS TO PROPOSED CUTS TO THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH.
THE N-I-H FUNDS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AT UNIVERSITIES AND INSTITUTIONS, INCLUDING HERE IN SAN DIEGO.
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS THREATENING TO CUT THE N-I-H BUDGET BY ABOUT 40 PERCENT.
AT A NEWS CONFERENCE YESTERDAY (Monday), SAN DIEGO COUNTY SUPERVISOR TERRA LAWSON-REMER SAID SHE WOULD INTRODUCE A BOARD RESOLUTION ASKING CONGRESS TO RESTORE THE CUTS.
From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.
SAN DIEGO’S HIGHEST PAID CITY EMPLOYEES ARE COPS WHO WORK A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF OVERTIME. THAT’S ACCORDING TO A RECENT INVESTIGATION FROM KPBS. I SPOKE WITH INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER SCOTT RODD ABOUT HOW THE CITY AND THE POLICE CHIEF PLAN TO REIN IN OVERTIME HOURS AND SPENDING.
THAT WAS INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER SCOTT RODD. READ HIS INVESTIGATION AT KPBS.ORG.
NEARLY TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS WITH ALZHEIMER’S ARE WOMEN. HEALTH REPORTER HEIDI DE MARCO SAYS UC SAN DIEGO RESEARCHERS ARE TRYING TO FIND OUT WHY. AND WHETHER LIFESTYLE CHANGES COULD HELP PREVENT IT.
The Women, Inflammation and Tau study is tracking how lifestyle factors like sleep quality, diet, and activity might drive up inflammation. And how it may be linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Along with how maybe sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone might impact that too, we might be able to understand how best to intervene to improve things which will actually have a cognitive benefit to women. Sarah Banks is a neuropsychologist who is co-leading the study.
So far, their early data found that how women sleep may be a risk factor.
Sleep apnea is this under recognized, highly treatable, component that might be driving some of the sleep, some of the, memory problems in Alzheimer's disease.
A surprising 70 percent of women in the study had undiagnosed sleep apnea. Banks says sleep disruption can lead to higher levels of a protein called tau in the brain, especially in women with a genetic risk for Alzheimer’s. She says They are looking for 50 more women over 65 to join the study. Heidi de Marco, KPBS News
Although local Republican and Democratic parties usually look to national parties to set positions on issues, it IS local leaders who get to pick and choose which ones they like and which ones to toss. Public Matters reporter Amita Sharma spoke with Corey Gustafson and Kyle Krahel-Frolander of the San Diego Republican and Democratic parties respectively to get their take on President Trump’s first four months in office.
Corey, the San Diego Chamber of Commerce says the Trump administration's tariffs on foreign goods and the promise of more have created uncertainty and could potentially devastate the local economy, creating empty shelves, supply chain issues, layoffs. How do you view these tariffs? Well, look, I think, number one, tariffs from the perspective of the Trump administration are about national security. We have a tremendous inflow of fentanyl coming in over our southern border. And what we've seen under the Trump administration already is a 97% reduction in illegal immigration. We've seen him take the first narco terrorism charges against drug cartels that was just issued in the San Diego courts last week because President Trump made the cartels into terrorist organizations. Kyle, the administration says the goal of these tariffs is to return manufacturing to the United States, a process that some economists say could take up to 15 years. What are the realities of the Trump administration's tariffs? These tariffs are only going to be a tax on the American people, increase prices yet again and squeeze us out even more. We have a bi-national economy here in San Diego, Tijuana and San Diego, and of course Mexico and the United States are two of the closest trading partners. And if you increase tariffs, you're only going to drive down business and reduce investment on both sides of the border and hurt working people. Kyle, I want to pivot very, very quickly to the local San Diego County Board of Supervisors. This is a race between Chula Vista Mayor John McCann and Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre. This is to fill the District 1 seat. How do you think what's happening in Washington D.C. right now affects this local race? We have an amazing candidate in Paloma Aguirre. She has been fighting very hard to address the most pressing issue in South Bay, which is the terrible cross border pollution crisis. She's been fighting for this for many years. This is not something new to her and that makes her unique in this. And I bring that up as part of the federal government because this solution that needs to take the federal government's role into account, it's not just going to be done locally, though we do need local work from the County Board and all other jurisdictions. We need the administration to work with Mexico, make sure that they fulfill their part of the bargain and also make sure that we continue our side to fix the problem on our end as well. Corey, if McCann wins, Republicans will once again have a majority on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors after a multiple year hiatus. What would be the priorities of a Republican-dominated Board of Supervisors in 2025? Well, number one, I would say homelessness. We have to get the problem under control. And Republicans around San Diego County, people like John Franklin, the mayor of Vista, Republican politicians and mayors are putting forward solutions on cutting homelessness and getting people off of the streets while providing them shelter. I think a Republican Board of Supervisors will really be able to attack the homelessness crisis and fix what we see going on. When you go to a Padres game, do you see homeless people everywhere? This is Democratic failed policies. Okay, back to what's going on in Washington, D.C. and the potential repercussions for San Diegans. Kyle, close to 1 million people are on Medicaid in San Diego County. The House GOP is proposing sweeping cuts to the program. Without Medicaid, what options do people here have for health care? Well, you know, we need Medicaid. It is foundational to our health care system, both in California and across the country. And it's a guarantee that people will not be left out without having health insurance, which is vital for the health of our economy, not just for those individuals. But it's also lost in this that these cuts, these terrible, extremist cuts, are meant to just be able to fund a tax bill that would be a huge giveaway to billionaires. We would see the shutdown of many, many of our local hospitals if these drastic, draconian, extremist cuts to Medicaid go into effect. Corey, Republican Senator Josh Hawley has said these cuts to Medicaid, if they go through, are morally wrong and politically suicidal. Do you agree? I don't agree with the question. These are not cuts. These are making sure that the folks who are eligible for Medicaid are eligible. These are just standards that Republicans are putting. And they're making sure there's not any waste, fraud and abuse, making sure that the people who are actually on the program are eligible. So I think this is fantastic. It's something that the Obama administration tried to do in 2008–2016, but they failed. Republicans are saving taxpayers money.
That was Corey Gustafson and Kyle Krahel-Frolander of the San Diego Republican and Democratic parties speaking with KPBS’s Amita Sharma.
AT LEAST 16 STUDENTS IN THE SAN DIEGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT HAVE DESTROYED THEIR SCHOOL-ISSUED LAPTOPS AS PART OF A TIKTOK CHALLENGE. EDUCATION REPORTER KATIE ANASTAS SAYS THE DISTRICT IS ASKING FAMILIES FOR HELP TO STOP WHAT IT CALLS A TROUBLING TREND.
It’s called the ChromeBook Challenge…and it involves sticking sharp objects like paper clips or pencil lead into the USB ports of Chromebooks. It can cause the laptops to spark or smoke. The district’s student school board members urged their classmates not to participate in a message to the district, calling it wasteful, dangerous and careless. San Diego Unified students are issued new Chromebooks in second, sixth and ninth grade. The district says at least 16 students from three different schools have destroyed their computers by participating in the challenge. The district says Chromebooks cost about $450 each to replace…and that discipline was handled by each school. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.
That’s it for the podcast today.
Check out KPBS Midday Edition this afternoon … An active duty sailor discusses Trump’s ban on trans servicemembers. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great day.
