White House considers welcoming some Palestinians from war-torn Gaza as refugees

 The Biden administration is considering bringing certain Palestinians to the U.S. as refugees, a move that would offer a permanent safe haven to some of those fleeing war-torn Gaza, according to internal federal government documents obtained by CBS News.

In recent weeks, the documents show, senior officials across several federal U.S. agencies have discussed the practicality of different options to resettle Palestinians from Gaza who have immediate family members who are American citizens or permanent residents.

One of those proposals involves using the decades-old United States Refugee Admissions Program to welcome Palestinians with U.S. ties who have managed to escape Gaza and enter neighboring Egypt, according to the inter-agency planning documents.

Top U.S. officials have also discussed getting additional Palestinians out of Gaza and processing them as refugees if they have American relatives, the documents show. The plans would require coordination with Egypt, which has so far refused to welcome large numbers of people from Gaza.

Those who pass a series of eligibility, medical and security screenings would qualify to fly to the U.S. with refugee status, which offers beneficiaries permanent residency, resettlement benefits like housing assistance and a path to American citizenship.

While the eligible population is expected to be relatively small, the plans being discussed by U.S. officials could offer a lifeline to some Palestinians fleeing the Israel-Hamas war, which local public health authorities say has claimed the lives of more than 34,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza.

Displaced Palestinians sit outside to escape the searing heat in their camp tents in Deir El-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, on April 28, 2024.MAJDI FATHI/NURPHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES

The Israeli government launched a military offensive and aerial bombardment of Gaza after Hamas staged an unprecedented attack across Israel on Oct. 7, killing roughly 1,200 people, most of them civilians. Hamas militants also abducted more than 200 people, many of whom continue to be in captivity.

CBS News has reached out to the White House, Department of Homeland Security and State Department for comment.

The proposals to resettle certain Palestinians as refugees would mark a shift in longstanding U.S. government policy and practice. Since its inception in 1980, the U.S. refugee program has not resettled Palestinians in large numbers.

Over the past decade, the U.S. has resettled more than 400,000 refugees fleeing violence and war across the globe. Fewer than 600 were Palestinian. In fiscal year 2023, the U.S. welcomed 56 Palestinian refugees, or 0.09% of the more than 60,000 refugees resettled during those 12 months, State Department statistics show.

While many Democrats would likely support the move, admitting Palestinians as refugees could spur even more political challenges for the Biden administration related to the Israel-Hamas war. The conflict has already exposed rifts within the Democratic Party, triggered massive protests on college campuses and divided communities across America.

To qualify to enter the U.S. as a refugee, applicants have to prove they are fleeing persecution based on certain factors, such as their nationality, religion or political views. While some Palestinians could say they are fleeing repression by Hamas, others could identify the military and government of Israel, a top U.S. ally and recipient of American aid, as a persecutor. 

The resettlement of Palestinian refugees, even if small in scale, could also garner criticism from Republicans, who have sought to make concerns about immigration and illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border defining issues in November's elections.  

Soon after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas and the start of Israel's offensive in Gaza, leading Republicans, including presidential candidates, said the U.S. should not welcome Palestinian refugees, claiming that they are antisemitic and potential national security risks.

In recent years, the Biden administration has dramatically increased refugee resettlement, which was slashed to record lows by former President Donald Trump. U.S. officials have set a goal of admitting up to 125,000 refugees in fiscal year 2024, which ends at the end of September.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/palestinian-refugees-us-gaza-white-house/

Employers Must Honor Preferred Pronouns, Bathrooms For Employees Identifying As Trans: Feds

 by Bill Pan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Biden administration has rolled out a set of new guidelines, under which an employer would be deemed liable for harassment for referring to a worker by an unwanted pronoun or requiring the worker to use a restroom that aligns with his or her biological sex.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published the new workplace harassment guidelines on Monday after approving them in a party-line 3–2 vote on Friday. The new document enshrines gender identity as a category protected against harassment, just like sex, race, religion, or disability.

“Harassing conduct based on sexual orientation or gender identity includes ... repeated and intentional use of a name or pronoun inconsistent with the individual’s known gender identity (misgendering) or the denial of access to a bathroom or other sex-segregated facility consistent with the individual’s gender identity,” the new guidelines state.

Joining Chairwoman Charlotte Burrows to vote in favor of the updated harassment guidance were two other Democrat commissioners, Jocelyn Samuels and Kalpana Kotagal. The two Republican members, Keith Sonderling and Andrea Lucas, voted against the changes.

“Women’s sex-based rights in the workplace are under attack—and from the EEOC, the very federal agency charged with protecting women from sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination at work,” Ms. Lucas said in a statement on Monday.

“The commission’s guidance effectively eliminates single-sex workplace facilities and impinges on women’s rights to freedom of speech and belief,” she added, accusing her Democrat colleagues of disregarding “biological realities, sex-based privacy and safety needs of women.”

Legal Implications

A guideline is not legally binding in the same way as laws passed by Congress or rules issued by government agencies. The EEOC website describes guidance as “official agency policy and explains how the laws and regulations apply to specific workplace situations.”

However, Monday’s guidance communicates the EEOC’s position on legal issues, meaning an employee could potentially refer to the new guidelines in the event of a restroom or pronoun dispute.

“Harassment, both in-person and online, remains a serious issue in America’s workplaces,” said Ms. Burrows in a statement Monday. “The EEOC’s updated guidance on harassment is a comprehensive resource that brings together best practices for preventing and remedying harassment and clarifies recent developments in the law.”

The new federal guidance comes about three years after the EEOC suffered a legal defeat in its attempt to create exceptions for employees identifying as LGBT from workplace policies on restrooms, locker rooms, and dress codes.

In August 2021, a coalition of attorneys general from 20 states sued to have the LGBT exception blocked, arguing that authority over such policies “properly belongs to Congress, the States, and the people.”

“The guidance purports to resolve highly controversial and localized issues such as whether employers ... may maintain sex-separated showers and locker rooms, ... and whether individuals may be compelled to use another person’s preferred pronouns,” the complaint read. “But the agencies have no authority to resolve those sensitive questions, let alone to do so by executive fiat without providing any opportunity for public participation.”

The lawsuit was led by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery. He was joined by attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and West Virginia.

In July 2022, a federal judge in Tennessee ruled in favor of the coalition to enjoin the EEOC guidance from going forward. Later that year, a separate federal court in Texas vacated and set aside the proposed guidance, determining that the EEOC misinterpreted the scope of the U.S. Supreme Court landmark 2020 ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County, which concluded that it is unconstitutional for sexual orientation and gender identity to be considered as factors in employment decisions.

The EEOC did not appeal those rulings.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/employers-must-honor-preferred-pronouns-bathrooms-employees-identifying-transgender-feds

'Over 50 overdoses, 8 killed, Texas capital seeing ‘unusually deadly’ string of opioid incidents'

[Emphasis ours]

 Austin, Texas, saw an "unusually deadly" surge of more than 50 opioid overdoses between Monday and Tuesday, resulting in eight people dying and several others being rescued with Narcan, according to officials.

At about 9 a.m. on Monday, Austin-Travis County EMS personnel began responding to a sudden surge in opioid-related overdose calls.

Dispatchers received a series of calls in the downtown area, resulting in a rapid response team that included the Austin-Travis County EMS team and others, being deployed to downtown Austin.

When the team arrived, they distributed over 200 Narcan rescue kits throughout the area to counteract the effects of opioid overdoses, while also providing lifesaving intervention to anyone overdosing on opioids.

Austin police responded to a surge of overdoses on Monday and Tuesday. (FOX 7 in Austin)

"The trend that we’re seeing in this group of overdoses is that it is unusually deadly," Austin Chief Deputy Medical Director Dr. Heidi Abraham said during a press conference Monday. "There have been four deaths, so far, that we suspect are related to the overdoses. We’ve not experienced overdoses of this volume in several years."

Significant surge

Abraham said on a typical day, emergency personnel could respond to between two and three overdose calls. But with the surge in overdoses being reported Monday, crews have responded to more than 30 calls, Abraham explained. And the numbers keep going up, and the situation continues to evolve.

While the numbers are high, Abraham said the overdose patients have responded to Narcan. In fact, officers with the Austin Police Department were first on the scene for many of the overdoses, and administered Narcan, saving the patients’ lives.

Packs of Narcan. (FOX News)

Abraham could not say what type of drugs the overdoses are primarily associated with, though she explained the patients reported using various different drugs before overdosing.

Overdoses throughout the city

Officials also said the overdoses are not just limited to one section of Austin. They said the first few calls started downtown and expanded from there.

Not only are the overdoses occurring in public spaces, but they are also happening at residences and businesses, officials added.

EMS officials said anyone using drugs purchased on the streets should assume the narcotics are contaminated. (iStock)

‘New batch’

Although none of the officials would speak about the investigation, they said when outbreaks like this happen, the suspicion is that a "new batch" arrived in town, which is believed to be from the same drug sources.

Still, EMS officials said everyone using drugs purchased on the streets should suspect they are tainted.

Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services provided updated numbers on Tuesday, saying eight people were dead after a 27-hour-long opioid overdose outbreak consisting of a total of 51 overdose calls, FOX 7 Austin reported.

"You should never use an unknown substance, but if you choose to, we encourage people to start low, go slow, and never use alone," Abraham said. "You should always use with a friend nearby who has Narcan and is able to call 911."

https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-state-capital-seeing-unusually-deadly-string-suspected-overdoses-new-batch-drugs

Riverside County Sheriff's Deputy Caught Trafficking Fentanyl For Sinaloa Cartel

 A former Riverside County Sheriff’s deputy, who was apprehended last year as part of an investigation into the Sinaloa cartel, has been found to have been working for "El Chapo" himself. 

25 year old Jorge Oceguera-Rocha resigned from his position with the Sheriff after being caught with over 100 pounds of fentanyl pills and a firearm during a traffic stop in Calimesa, in September of last year, KTLA reports.

Authorities did not specify how they discovered his alleged involvement in drug trafficking, but he was identified as a “corrupt Riverside County Correctional Deputy” mentioned in a press release about Operation Hotline Bling.

Operation Hotline Bling "culminated last week with 15 arrests and significant drug seizures, including methamphetamine and quantities of fentanyl that potentially could produce 10 million lethal doses," according to the DEA:

In March 2023, the Drug Enforcement Administration Riverside District Office and the Riverside Police Department, with assistance from the United States Postal Inspection Service, initiated Operation “Hotline Bling.” During the investigation, agents seized a total of approximately 376 pounds of methamphetamine, 37.4 pounds of fentanyl, 600,000 fentanyl tablets, 1.4 kilograms of cocaine, and seven firearms. The drugs seized in this investigation have an estimated “street value” of $16 million.

This operation targeted Sinaloa cartel activities in the Inland Empire, resulting in 15 arrests and the seizure of $16 million worth of narcotics. The Sinaloa cartel, once led by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, is renowned for its influence akin to that of Pablo Escobar in the 1980s and early ’90s.

Oceguera-Rocha faces multiple local felony charges and the Sheriff’s Department confirmed his involvement in trafficking narcotics within Riverside County while off duty.

Although federal prosecutors didn't press charges, Riverside County officials charged him with possession and transportation of narcotics, with enhancements for the drug's weight, and possession of a firearm in connection with narcotics.

The initial report on the arrest noted he was being detained at the John Benoit Detention Center with a $5 million bail, justified by the drug's weight and potential flight risk. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in jail.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/riverside-county-sheriffs-deputy-caught-trafficking-fentanyl-sinaloa-cartel

First Cases Of HIV Transmitted Through Cosmetic Needles Identified: CDC

 by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Multiple people contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) through cosmetic needles after receiving facials at an unlicensed spa in New Mexico, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Three women who received platelet-rich plasma (PRP) microneedling facials, also known as vampire facials, at the spa contracted HIV and an investigation pointed to the facials as the method of transmission, a new paper from CDC scientists states.

The spa in question, the since-shuttered VIP Salon, was dubbed spa A in the paper.

“This investigation is the first to associate HIV transmission with nonsterile cosmetic injection services. A common exposure to spa A among clients without behaviors associated with HIV acquisition helped identify a possible cluster association, and analysis of additional data suggested that HIV transmission likely occurred via receipt of PRP with microneedling facial procedures,” said the scientists, who worked with New Mexico health officials.

The source of the contamination remains unknown, they said.

PRP microneedling facials involve taking blood from a person and separating out PRP. Then, a microneedle makes holes in the person’s skin, and the PRP is applied to the holes.

The procedure is said to help treat acne and have other health benefits.

New Mexico authorities announced in 2019 that they were investigating the VIP Spa after people contracted HIV following visits to the spa. Officials were providing free testing of any people who received treatments, including the microneedling facials, at the spa.

An inspection by authorities led to the closure of VIP Spa after the identification of unsafe practices.

Maria de Lourdes Ramos de Ruiz, former owner of the spa, was later hit with felony charges, including practicing medicine without a license. She pleaded guilty in 2022 to five counts.

“This is a warning to those who place profit over the health and safety of New Mexico consumers, and I remain highly concerned that these procedures are not being regulated at the state and federal level,” New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas said at the time.

Investigation

New Mexico officials described two HIV cases among spa visitors previously. A wider investigation identified additional patients, scientists with the state and the CDC said in the new paper.

Through calls, surveys, and other methods, authorities found five people with HIV, four of whom received microneedling at the spa in 2018. The fifth was in a sexual relationship with a spa client. Analysis of the patients’ blood showed that their cases were all related to the facility.

The cases involving the man and woman in a sexual relationship were stage 3 or chronic HIV, which suggests “that their infections were likely attributed to exposures before receipt of cosmetic injection services,” according to the scientists.

But no alternative explanations for the infections among the other three female patients were discovered.

“The other three patients in this cluster had no known social contact with one another, and no specific mechanism for transmission among these patients was confirmed,” scientists said. “Evidence suggests that contamination from an undetermined source at the spa during spring and summer 2018 resulted in HIV-1 transmission to these three patients.”

HIV is a virus that attacks immune systems and can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) if not treated. Symptoms include sore throat, fatigue, and ulcers in the mouth. Most people who contract the illness are gay or bisexual. While there is no cure for HIV, it can be controlled through available treatments.

Nearly 200 other spa clients and their sexual partners were tested through 2023 as part of the investigation but none tested positive for HIV, hepatitis B, or hepatitis C, according to the paper.

The findings highlight the importance of looking at “novel sources of HIV transmission among persons with no known HIV risk factors,” the scientists said.

They also encouraged facilities to implement practices to control infections to try to prevent the transmission of bloodborne pathogens.

Inspection Results

When the spa was inspected in 2018, authorities saw troubling practices.

Lying on a kitchen counter, for instance, were a centrifuge, a heating dry bath, and a rack of unlabeled tubes containing blood.

In a refrigerator, stored with food, authorities found tubes of blood without labels, as well as medical injectables such as Botox.

Unwrapped syringes were located in multiple places, including in drawers.

No steam sterilizer was present and certain items designed to be disposable were cleaned and reused by staffers at the spa, authorities said.

The investigation was hindered by disorganized records, including the lack of a system for scheduling appointments, according to the paper. Such systems usually include contact information for clients. Investigators combed through handwritten records and other documents to identify people who may have undergone the microneedling procedure.

“Incomplete spa client records posed a substantial challenge during this investigation, necessitating a large-scale outreach approach to identify potential cases, as opposed to direct communication with all clients,” researchers said. “Requiring maintenance of sufficient client records to ensure adequate traceback by regulated businesses that provide injection services could ensure adequate capability to conduct traceback.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/first-cases-hiv-transmitted-through-cosmetic-needles-identified-cdc

Rhythm Published on Phase 2 Study of Setmelanotide for Treatment of Hypothalamic Obesity

 Publication highlights administration of setmelanotide therapy resulted in a mean percent reduction in BMI of 15% at 16 weeks and 26% at one year of treatment -

- Topline data from ongoing pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial in hypothalamic obesity on track for 2Q 2025 -

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/04/29/2871725/0/en/Rhythm-Pharmaceuticals-Announces-Publication-of-Results-from-Phase-2-Study-of-Setmelanotide-for-the-Treatment-of-Hypothalamic-Obesity-in-The-Lancet-Diabetes-Endocrinology.html

Quest Adds Blood Biomarker Test to Assess Risk and Help Aid Diagnosis of Alzheimer's

 Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), a leader in diagnostic information services, today announced the launch of a new blood biomarker test for phosphorylated tau 217, or p-tau217. P-tau217 is a biomarker associated with Alzheimer's Disease (AD), supported by research as useful for an early diagnosis of AD.

The test is the latest addition to the AD-Detect™ portfolio of blood tests for assessing the risk of Alzheimer's Disease, which also includes testing for an array of AD biomarkers, including p-tau181 and amyloid beta (AB) proteins, as well as Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) isoform and plasma testing, for patients with cognitive impairment. With a physician's test order, patients may provide a blood draw for testing from any of Quest's 2,000 patient service centers in the United States. The test is expected to be available for ordering on April 26, 2024.

Quest Diagnostics continually seeks to expand access for patients and providers to innovations in the field of dementia, including AD, through advanced diagnostic solutions. The addition of p-tau217 to Quest's existing portfolio of neurology testing supports a comprehensive offering, including not only the groundbreaking use of blood tests to evaluate risk of AD, but also cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tests to help providers assess amyloid beta 42, tau and ApoE genetic risk status.

https://newsroom.questdiagnostics.com/2024-04-22-Quest-Diagnostics-Adds-p-tau217-Blood-Biomarker-Testing-to-Suite-of-Services-Designed-to-Assess-Risk-and-Help-Aid-Diagnosis-of-Alzheimers-Disease