Advocates for valley fever research give California Assemblyman Rudy Salas an “A” for effort for the "most robust" legislative effort to address the disease in state history. But public health officials and experts are split on whether the remedies proposed by Salas will bring improvements.
California Assemblyman Rudy Salas' introduced a new package of four bills on Monday that aim to boost valley fever awareness and treatment.
Native organizations and advocates across the United States are seeking to get young Native people to switch from drinking sugary beverages, such as soda and energy drinks, to water.
The California legislature approved a bill Wednesday that would require the state public health department to develop public outreach programs for valley fever, an insidious respiratory disease endemic to Kern County. It next heads to the governor.
State senators will vote this week on a bill that would enhance valley fever reporting guidelines and mandate public outreach. The aim: to raise public awareness of valley fever, an insidious respiratory disease endemic to the southwestern United States.
Valley fever infects more than 13,000 people a year in Arizona and California and kills more than 100. Yet they spend less annually on public awareness than one school district's monthly lunch milk budget and a parks and recreation department's yearly janitorial supplies.
Arizona tends to try out new approaches and programs, but rarely sticks with such efforts long enough to bring about change.
This story was reported as a project for USC Annenberg's Center for Health Journalism National Fellowship.
The funds came after an August 2015 series in The Arizona Republic showed that Latino and Native American children were being disproportionately killed and injured in vehicle accidents across Arizona.
The Arizona Republic highlights reporter Bob Ortega's investigation into car seat safety, which found a glaring need for more information, particularly in Spanish-speaking communities. But beyond merely reporting the issue, Ortega's series led to a widespread project to boost awareness.
