SACRAMENTO, Calif. - More patients with terminal illnesses in California are making their decisions to end their suffering using the state's aid-in-dying law.

The number last year was 405, compared to 337 people the year before, according to a new report from the California Department of Public Health.

Samantha Trad, California state director of the nonprofit Compassion & Choices says the law is working as intended. But she believes it would be even more effective if California doctors were allowed to make exceptions to the waiting period, like they can in Oregon.

"The main doctor who ends up writing the prescription can actually waive the mandatory minimum 15 day waiting period in Oregon," says Trad, "if the patient is unlikely to survive the waiting process."

A study done by Kaiser Permanente of Southern California showed that one third of patients who request the medication die before completing the lengthy application process.

The new report from the state also found big disparities in who actually uses the law. The patients are 87% white.

Just over 1% are Black. Four percent are Hispanic. And 6.4% percent are Asian American.

Patricia González-Portillo, national Latino communications and constituency director with Compassion & Choices, says the low number of Latino patients may be the result of this group, in particular, ending up in religious hospitals that don't allow their doctors to participate in medical aid-in-dying.

"There are some Latinos that don't want to suffer at the end of life," says González-Portillo. "They want that option to be able to take a medication, surrounded by their loved ones, and die peacefully. Not be forced to suffer at the end of life. We want those options."

She says Compassion & Choices is currently running a series of public service announcements on TV and social media across the state, to raise awareness in communities of color of the option of medical aid-in-dying. These are also posted on the organization's YouTube channel.

Diabetes diagnoses are climbing, with about 37,000 adults diagnosed in Indiana every year, and doctors caution they are seeing more cases in younger patients.

Diabetes means the body is unable to maintain a healthy blood glucose or blood sugar level. Type 1 is caused by an autoimmune process affecting the pancreatic cells which make insulin. Type 2 diabetes means the body has reduced sensitivity to the insulin it naturally produces.

Dr. Tamara Hannon, pediatric endocrinologist at Indiana University's Riley Hospital for Children, explained why the body's response function changes.

"The pancreas can stop making enough insulin for a number of reasons," Hannon noted. "Could be genetic, the cells get damaged over time by having to work too hard, an infection, high blood fat levels, or just getting exhausted over time."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts if the rate of new diagnoses in kids and teens continues to climb, Type 1 diabetes cases would increase by about 65 % and Type 2 by about 700% by the year 2060.

There is no cure for Type 1 diabetes but its progression can be delayed with medication. For the more common Type 2, cell damage can be delayed or even reversed through weight loss, exercise, lifestyle changes and medication.

Hannon pointed out with the epidemic of childhood obesity, younger people are developing diseases traditionally diagnosed in adults, in part because of their food and beverage choices and other environmental factors. She added research shows sugary drinks in particular increase the risk for not only Type 2 diabetes, but liver disease and cardiovascular disorders.

"If you think about when you drink sugar versus when you eat foods that contain sugar, there's a different way that is absorbed and metabolized," Hannon observed. "If you drink something that's sugary, the sugar goes into your bloodstream quite quickly."

Hannon stressed the body has to mount a quick metabolic response to a rapid sugar download but the natural sugars in whole foods, like fresh produce and certain vegetables, are not absorbed by the body as quickly. According to the American Diabetes Association, 12%, or about 666,000 Hoosiers, are diabetic.


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The Missouri Foundation for Health has named the first five winners of its new "Spark Prize," an award backing Missourians who are working to promote health equity.

Each winner gets $200,000 in no-strings-attached funding to fuel their vision. Awardees were chosen for their potential to create meaningful, lasting change in the Show-Me State.

Evonnia Woods, a community organizer and movement builder, was one recipient, chosen for her progress and vision to advance racial, reproductive and economic justice across Missouri. She shared why the award from the foundation is unique.

"A lot of foundations, they want to see evidence that you're already doing what you're asking for funds to continue doing," Woods explained. "In this regard, it's like, 'Oh, you believe in me. This is good because I believe in me.'"

Unlike traditional grants, the Spark Prize is flexible and trust-based, given directly to individuals and not organizations. The recipients were selected from more than 170 nominations from diverse backgrounds, regions and sectors across Missouri.

Ciearra "CJ" Walker, founder and CEO of the Community Health Worker Coalition, which has trained more than 300 community health workers in St. Louis and supported more than 600 statewide, was a recipient. Walker, a Detroit transplant, shared the motivation behind starting her organization and her vision for the future.

"What we are hoping to do is to replicate across the country what's possible when we position ourselves," Walker noted. "Not just to extract from our community leaders, but to truly allow them to be architects of the system that they participate in and benefit from them accordingly."

Walker added her coalition also reinvested $30,000 dollars into its members through pay, training and growth support.

More St. Louis County libraries are teaming up with the American Heart Association to offer blood pressure cuffs for checkout, to help people take charge of their health.

Library branches have 100 "Libraries at Heart" kits available to check out. They include a blood pressure cuff, instructions, a tracking sheet, and information on how to manage blood pressure.

Cidney Grimes, community impact manager for the Missouri Chapter of the American Heart Association, explained why they chose libraries for this potentially life-saving initiative.

"The library is a great place to meet people where they are," said Grimes. "The libraries already have the trust of the communities. They're already doing so much community-focused work, and people are already going to be there."

Grimes said the kits can be used at the library kiosk or checked out for home use. The program is supported by a corporate sponsor, Edward Jones.

According to the American Heart Association, nearly half of U.S. adults have high blood pressure, and many either don't know it or have it under control.

The Heart Association also warns that unmanaged high blood pressure puts extra strain on the heart, arteries, and organs - raising the risk for health problems like heart attacks, strokes, and kidney disease.

Grimes emphasized that people monitoring their own blood pressure should take two readings, at least one minute apart, and ensure their posture is correct.

"Make sure you're sitting straight up in the chair," said Grimes. "Your feet are touching the ground and you're just calm. You haven't drunk any alcohol or any beverages, anything like that, within 30 minutes of you taking the measurement."

High blood pressure doesn't affect everyone equally. About 56% of Black adults have it, compared to 48% of white adults and 39% of Hispanic adults.

The numbers are even higher for Black women, at around 58%.