Compton Herald: July 19, 2018
The Comptonn Herald writes - The LA County Board of Supervisors approved adding a parcel tax to the November 2018 ballot to fund clean water infrastructure projects that would most benefit vulnerable communities. The piece cites PI's latest report on water, and Manal Aboelata's testimony in favor of the measure.
KPCC: July 17, 2018
Sharon McNary of KPCC covers the LA County Board of Supervisors' vote on Tuesday for a land tax to fund projects that catch, clean, and reuse stormwater. If the LA County Flood Control District agrees, property owners would be taxed 2.5 cents for every square foot of land shedding water. In the audio, McNary features PI's Manal Aboelata, who explains how the proceeds from the tax would benefit the most vulnerable communities in LA.
Davis Enterprise: July 6, 2018
In the Davis Enterprise, PI's Juliet Sims covers the recent soda tax ban, and details how it threatens Californians' health and jeopardizes the policy making process more generally. "Assembly Bill 1838, which was foisted on lawmakers by the American Beverage Association, is a terrible blow to our state’s public health. There’s something very wrong when multinational corporations working behind closed doors can stop California communities from protecting the health of their own residents."
New York Magazine: July 2, 2018
Ed Kilgore covers the recent soda tax ban that will be in effect in California until 2018. He cite's Larry Cohen's op-ed in The Hill as a piece that acknowledges the dangers of preemption, and the possibility that the beverage industry will now use similar tactics nationally to reduce local soda taxes. Kilgore further extrapolates about the likelihood of other industries taking inspiration from the soda industry to use preemption to their benefit.
The Hill: July 1, 2018
Last week, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill that would block California cities and counties from passing new taxes on soda and other sugary drinks until the end of 2030. In an op-ed in The Hill that ran on Sunday, PI Founder Larry Cohen wrote an Op-Ed in the hill using parallels between big soda and big tobacco's legislative tactics to stymie local control to illustrate how this act of preemption is corrosive for communities trying to enact soda taxes, and for public health gains at large,
Cleveland.com: June 29, 2018
Ginger Christ covers the MetroHealth System in Cleveland, OH, a hospital system that has developed a trauma-informed training center. He quotes PI's Ruben Cantu, who defines trauma as " 'the way chronic adversity manifests in a community.' Adversity might be poverty, lack of investment, high rates of violence, etc. 'By changing the environment and factors that impact health and safety, we can start to build resilience. Healing is really important and strategies must begin with healing to move a community that's been harmed to a place where they can address broader, harmful systemic issues...
SLATE: June 28, 2018
Gary Barker examines the CDC’s analysis of factors contributing to the high suicide rate among men, who make up 77% of the 45,000 people who kill themselves every year in the U.S. On the list of factors are mental health issues, alcohol or drug use, social problems, and access to firearms- stressors compounded by restrictive understandings of masculinity, and the stigma attached to men seeking help for pain. Barker cites mental health and suicide-prevention efforts like PI's Making Connections Initiative as key to helping men gain access to mental health services and redefining masculinity...
California Healthline: June 28, 2018
In her piece for California Healthline, Samantha Young writes about the last-minute deal between one of the state’s largest labor unions and the American Beverage Association which restricts California from implementing any future local soda taxes until Jan. 1, 2031. This budget trailer was part of a back-room deal where the beverage industry promised to remove a ballot initiative that would have required a 2/3rds majority to raise any local taxes or levies, including school and park bonds. She quote's PI's Juliet Sims: Soda taxes “are one of the most effective tools communities have to...
Capital Public Radio: June 27, 2018
PI's Juliet Sims is quoted in Ben Adler's piece on SB 872, which would block California cities and counties from passing new taxes on soda and other sugary drinks. “There’s something very wrong when the soda industry is able to stop California cities and counties from protecting their own community members’ health,” the institute’s Juliet Sims said in a statement. “Local residents are the ones who should decide what’s best for the health and safety of their own communities.”
Houston Chronicle: May 16, 2018
In her blog in the Houston Chronicle, Valerie Borum Smith explains why social determinants of health should be addressed in medical settings. She discusses how she has drawn inspiration from Prevention Institute’s Community Centered Health Homes model, which calls for community health clinics to expand prevention, change social norms, and promote community-level policies that support health.
