Good morning. Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
- A Times investigation reveals troubling blind spots in California’s caregiving regulation.
- L.A. teachers union pursues a big salary hike and bold ideals in opposition to Trump agenda.
- The Cathedral, Pomona’s fourth venue, ushers in a new era for the music scene of the Inland Empire.
- And here’s today’s e-newspaper.
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Troubling blind spots in California’s caregiving regulation
We’re not getting any younger, California. In fact, the Golden State’s population is about to experience an unprecedented aging shift.
By 2040, it’s estimated that 22% of state residents will be 65 or older according to a recent report from the Public Policy Institute of California.
“Among adults over 80, one in three will have difficulties staying in their homes without assistance, and one in five will experience self-care limitations,” researchers wrote.
As the demand for caregiving increases, many families without the means or resources to have loved ones’ needs met in their home will turn to assisted living facilities and nursing homes.
But ensuring they will be cared for properly can be difficult — especially if operators and providers accused of neglect and abuse are able to fly under the radar.
That’s exactly what’s happened at some care facilities across the state, a Times investigation detailed this week.
My colleagues Emily Alpert Reyes and Ben Poston combed through databases and records, which revealed that some people banned by state regulators from operating assisted living homes were able to remain involved with other types of care facilities.
“The phenomenon is a result of the fragmented system that regulates California facilities that care for elderly, disabled or ailing people: Different agencies in Sacramento are charged with overseeing different kinds of caregiving facilities,” they reported in a Times subscriber exclusive (Emily left her position at The Times earlier this month).
Those regulatory blind spots make it hard for Californians to check whether a provider at a health facility or home health agency was previously banned from assisted living homes.
Ben and Emily highlighted a California couple, Tatyana and Edvard Krivitsky, who previously ran an assisted living facility in Van Nuys. State investigators found numerous violations there, including a rat infestation, medications not being properly administered, inoperable emergency pull cords in some bedrooms and neglected residents.
The company running the facility had its license revoked and the couple agreed to never oversee or work in such assisted living facilities again. But that did not stop the Krivitskys from getting involved in congregate living health facilities, which are home-like sites that are supposed to provide more specialized care.
Two such facilities connected to the couple were later faulted for serious violations that Public Health regulators alleged played a role in the deaths of residents.
At one site in Lancaster, a 69-year-old man being treated for gangrene died after a nurse gave him a four-drug cocktail that included the painkiller Norco and the sedative Ativan, state investigators reported. At another facility in Lancaster, a man diagnosed with developmental delay was supposed to get his meals pureed or finely chopped because he ate too quickly and had trouble swallowing. Investigators determined that staff did not follow procedure and the man choked to death.
Congregate facilities owned in part by companies led by the Krivitskys were also named in lawsuits filed by residents or family members alleging abuse and neglect.
Advocates worry the lack of transparency will allow bad actors to continue running care facilities and putting elderly, disabled and ailing residents at risk.
“There’s no reason why you should all of a sudden become competent or qualified or compassionate just because you switch from one category to another,” Eric Carlson of Justice in Aging, told Emily and Ben.
They found other examples, but it wasn’t easy, in part because the Department of Social Services doesn’t publicly post the names of people banned from assisted care facilities.
“The Times obtained their names through a public records request and checked licensing databases for other kinds of facilities to find matches,” Ben and Emily explained. “But California agencies wouldn’t verify whether people with the same names were the banned individuals, saying that they were prohibited by state law from confirming such personal information.”
Verifying individuals required some good old-fashioned reporting as they dug up other records, knocked on doors, and matched addresses, business names and signatures.
“Experts said it is unrealistic to expect Californians to do that kind of legwork as they search for care for themselves or family members,” they noted.
You can read more from their multiyear reporting project in this Times subscriber exclusive.
Today’s top stories
L.A. teachers union pursues a big salary hike and bold ideals in opposition to Trump’s agenda
- The L.A. teachers union is pushing a platform heavy on progressive priorities while seeking a big pay raise.
- At the center of the union platform is a push for automatic annual salary increases — meant to reward experience and additional education — at a proposed 3.25% a year for the first 10 years of an educator’s career.
D.A. Hochman officially brings the death penalty back to Los Angeles
- The move comes as little surprise: Hochman campaigned on the issue almost as soon as he announced his challenge to George Gascón in 2023.
- Under California law, the death penalty can be sought only in cases where a defendant is accused of murder with special circumstances.
- That can include multiple homicides or cases in which the victim is a law enforcement officer or witness to a crime.
What else is going on
- L.A. mayor’s text messages provide a vivid window into early fire response.
- First empty trailers appeared, then came squatters. The owner of an L.A. lot and neighbors are fed up.
- ‘Swatting’ calls spark panic, fear and massive police responses. Can California finally crack down?
- Highway 140 to Yosemite National Park is reopening after rockslide, Caltrans says.
- A deadly, drug-resistant fungus the CDC calls an ‘urgent threat’ is spreading in hospitals.
- U.S. officials used Signal to share war plans. What is the messaging app and is it safe?
- The Dodgers will visit President Trump and the White House to celebrate World Series title.
- Mega Millions lottery to improve the odds of winning and boost jackpot size.
- A hiker plummets 100 feet off the California coast and desperately clings to life above ocean rocks.
- Tom Girardi’s underling faces discipline charges over a $53-million payout kept secret from clients.
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Commentary and opinions
- Californians pay too much for electricity. Here are three bold solutions, writes columnist Sammy Roth.
- The Supreme Court says if you build it, it’s still a gun, writes columnist Anita Chabria.
- Dodgers legend Jaime Jarrin never misses a Dodgers game on TV and attends home games whenever possible. But his big project these days isn’t baseball, columnist Gustavo Arellano writes.
This morning’s must-reads
Convicting ‘gun moll’ Barbara Graham was a famous win for L.A. prosecutors. Did they cheat? A new book by former L.A. prosecutor Marcia Clark raises questions about the tactics used to convict Barbara Graham, the brassy “dice girl” who in 1955 was executed at San Quentin for the murder of a Burbank widow.
Other must-reads
- A wife vanished without a trace 10 months ago. How it became a homicide investigation.
- In L.A., you’ll see babies at Costco and Chi Spacca. How young is too young for crowds?
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected].
For your downtime
Going out
- 🎸🎤 The Cathedral, Pomona’s fourth venue, ushers in a new era for the music scene of the Inland Empire and Los Angeles County.
- 🌻🌷 Now’s the time to step inside the most beautiful private gardens in and around L.A.
- 🎭 All’s unfair in love and identity politics in Echo Theater Company’s ‘One Jewish Boy.’
Staying in
- 🎧 If you liked Chappell Roan’s ‘The Giver,’ expand your sapphic country taste with these 8 tracks.
- 🍸 Here’s a recipe for Bill Addison’s perfect martini.
- ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games.
A question for you: What’s your favorite April Fools’ Day joke?
April Fools’ Day is next week and we want to hear from you.
Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
And finally … from our archives
On March 27, 1973, Marlon Brando rejected the lead actor Oscar for his role in “The Godfather.” He sent Sacheen Littlefeather (Marie Louise Cruz) in his place to inform the audience that he would not accept the award because of the treatment of Native Americans in film and TV and the events in Wounded Knee, S.D., where federal agents clashed with hundreds of Native American protesters between February and May of 1973.
Littlefeather later faced claims, which she denied, that she was not Native American. After her death, her sisters echoed those claims.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Ryan Fonseca, reporter
Defne Karabatur, fellow
Andrew Campa, Sunday reporter
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Hunter Clauss, multiplatform editor
Christian Orozco, assistant editor
Stephanie Chavez, deputy metro editor
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
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