All Entries in the "Staff" Category
New Staff Member Patty Ochoa
Patty comes to PSR-LA from environmental justice nonprofit, Pacoima Beautiful, where she coordinated and directed the “Safer Homes for a Healthier Community” program. She was instrumental in expanding the organization’s health promoter program to collaborate with local health clinics and address in-home health environmental hazards, as well as asthma triggers. Patricia has expertise in community [...]
Iran and the Bomb War is not the answer
In a region decimated by war and conflict, a U.S. led bombing campaign against Iran would make matters worse—especially for U.S. soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress must oppose U.S. bombing and instead work for a peaceful resolution to the nuclear issue by urging the administration to engage in talks with the Iranian government. [...]
655,000 Iraq War Deaths Watch Ideologues Slander Good Science
On October 10, 2006 the esteemed medical journal The Lancet released an epidemiological study concluding that 655,000 Iraqis died from war-related injury and disease from March 2003 to July 2006. This shockingly high figure has drawn attacks from the Bush administration and right-wing pundits. Speaking as a medical doctor, I wish to set the record [...]
Goings On Around the Office
Abuzz with activity, PSR-LA has recently hired two bright young people, said adieu to two great workers, and seen interns and volunteers come and go. First, we wish to welcome Margaret Wacker M.D. to the PSR-LA board of directors. Dr. Wacker, a neurosurgeon affiliated with Kaiser Permanente in San Bernardino, helped develop the recent conference [...]
2006 California Legislative Wrap-up
P SR-LA was at the forefront of a number of legislative battles in Sacramento this year. There were many victories and a few defeats. To follow is a snapshot of how our busy year in Sacramento went. Signed AB 32: A landmark global warming initiative that imposes the nation’s first cap on greenhouse gas emissions. [...]
PSR-Los Angeles Honors Activists at Annual Gala Dinner
PSR-LA’s 2004 Annual Gala Dinner was an unparalleled success. Featuring a most inspiring and accomplished set of honorees, nearly 500 people attended the September 7 dinner at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica. Producer Lawrence Bender ( Gov. Dean inspired the audience with poignant and often humorous reflections on his rise as a political contender, [...]
Twenty-Five Years Of Service
Twenty-five years of visionary activism—and still going strong. The Los Angeles office of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR-LA) started in 1980 out of a small shared office on Pico Boulevard near La Brea. Reagan had just been elected and talk of “winning a nuclear war” filled the news. “It’s remarkable how much we accomplished right [...]
Keep Radioactive Waste Out of Unlicensed Landfills
New State Water Board information has revealed approximately half of California’s landfills are contaminated to some degree with radioactivity. Such facilities are neither licensed nor designed to dispose of this type of waste. Hazardous waste landfills, which are lined to avoid the migration of contaminants into underlying groundwater or soil, have been proven to leach [...]
Elimination of a Developmental Toxin Found in Medical Devices; Clean Up Dry Cleaning
Two key bills have been introduced this year by Assemblymember Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach). The first, AB 1139, would rid California hospitals of a toxin known to cause reproductive damage. Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, or DEHP, is added to polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic medical devices such as IV bags, flexible tubing, blood bags, respiratory therapy equipment, and other [...]