When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published new guidelines 18 months ago regarding the radiation risk from cellphones, it used unusually bold language on the topic for the American health agency: “We recommend caution in cellphone use.” The agency’s website previously had said that any risks “likely are comparable to other lifestyle choices we make every day.”

But, according to the story in the New York Times, within weeks the C.D.C. reversed course. It no longer recommended caution, and deleted a passage specifically addressing potential risks for children.

Mainstream scientific consensus holds that there is little to no evidence that cellphone signals raise the risk of brain cancer or other health problems. Nevertheless, more than 500 pages of internal records obtained by The New York Times, along with interviews with former agency officials, reveal a debate and some disagreement among scientists and health agencies about what guidance to give as the use of mobile devices skyrockets.

Bernadette Burden, a C.D.C. spokeswoman, said in a statement that the original changes made in June 2014 stemmed from “a C.D.C.-wide effort to make health information for the public easier to understand” but led to confusion that the agency was making a new policy statement. “To correct that misperception and to confirm that C.D.C. had not changed its policy or recommendations, C.D.C. posted a clarification statement,” she said, adding that the cellphone industry did not weigh in before changes were made.

Christopher J. Portier, former director of the National Center for Environmental Health, the C.D.C. division that made the changes, disagreed with the decision to pull back the revised version. “I would not have removed it,” he said in an interview. “I would have been in support of a recommendation that parents look carefully at whether their children need cellphones or not.”

Mr. Portier also served on the International Agency for Research of Cancer, a branch of the World Health Organization that in May 2011 called low-frequency radiation from cellphones and other devices a possible carcinogen. Mr. Portier’s view is not shared by many other experts. While sporadic claims about cellphones and cancer go back several decades, most American organizations echo the Federal Communications Commission, which says radio-frequency energy is not “effectively linked” with “any known health problems.”

John D. Boice Jr., president of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, said his own research had found “no evidence for associations with brain tumors or any other cancers.”

The European Environment Agency, like some others in Europe, strikes a more cautious tone than American agencies. “Scientific opinion is split on the issue – many different studies have reached different conclusions based on the same evidence,” the European agency says. It advocates “a precautionary approach to policy making in this area.”

The study cited most often is Interphone, a multination review published by the I.A.R.C. in 2010. CTIA, in a statement, noted that Interphone found “over all, no increase in risk.” But Interphone did find “some indications of an increased risk of glioma,” a type of brain tumor, among the heaviest 10 percent of cellphone users, though “the researchers concluded that biases and errors limit the strength of these conclusions and prevent a causal interpretation.”

California workers’ compensation is a liberal system. It will only take time for a few test cases to reach claim departments.

A father and son were convicted of embezzling over $300,000 from employee wages on public works jobs. Daniel Jacob Siapin, 60, and his son Gabriel Daniel Siapin, 37, both of La Habra Heights, pleaded guilty to a court offer of 28 felony counts of taking and receiving a portion of worker’s wage on public works, and 32 felony counts of recording a false and forged instrument with a sentencing enhancement for property loss over $200,000.

At the time of the crime, Daniel Siapin owned Siapin Horticulture, a landscaping, irrigation, and maintenance company, which he ran with his son Gabriel Siapin.

Daniel Siapin’s California state contractor’s license was revoked by the court. Daniel Siapin and Gabriel Siapin are each expected to sentenced to 90 days in jail, three years formal probation, ordered to pay over $227,000 in restitution, and are prohibited from working on any other public works contracts at their sentencing on April 11, 2016, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-57, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.

The defendants violated the law on a public works job, which requires a minimum “prevailing wage” be paid to workers. Prevailing wage consists of a base salary and “fringe benefits,” or benefits in addition to base pay such as vacation pay and pension money. Fringe benefits must be paid directly to the worker or may be put into a fund for later withdrawal by the worker if they do not work a full 40 hours a week.

In June 2010, both Daniel and Gabriel Siapin met with employees and offered to contract with a third party administrator to hold the employees’ fringe benefits in a savings account. However they failed to deposit over $300,000 in employee fringe benefits into the savings account from work performed in Orange County and other Southern California counties. The defendants instead embezzled the money meant for employee fringe benefits.

“Prevailing wage laws ensure that workers on public works projects are paid a just day’s pay for a hard day’s work, and those who violate those laws engage in wage theft,” said Labor Commissioner Julie A. Su. “Wage theft is a crime and my office is working with District Attorneys across the State to investigate and prosecute these cases. I am proud of and grateful for our collaboration with the Orange County District Attorney to bring scofflaw employers to justice.”

Around 52.5 million adults in the US have been diagnosed with some form of arthritis, and this number is expected to grow in coming years, emphasizing the need for new treatments. Arthritis is the most common cause of disability in the US, affecting around 1 in 5 adults. There is no cure for the condition, but there are medications and non-pharmacologic treatments available to help manage symptoms caused by the condition. Now, a new study may have paved the way for just that, revealing how patients with arthritis could be treated using their own “microvesicles.”

Researchers say a patient’s own microvesicles – small particles released by cells – could help treat arthritis.Microvesicles are tiny, fluid-filled particles – around 0.5-1 micrometer in diameter – that are released by cells in large numbers. While it is known these particles transfer lipids and proteins to other cell types, their role in disease remains unclear.

According to the research team microvesicles released from some white blood cells, such as neutrophils, tend to accrue in the joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. But what do these microvesicles do once they reach the joints? This is what the team decided to investigate by analyzing genetically modified mouse models of arthritis and human cartilage cells from patients with the disease.

It is widely believed that cells and other small particles are unable to penetrate cartilage, making delivering therapies to the joints of patients with arthritis very challenging. From their research, however, Prof. Perretti and colleagues found that microvesicles released from neutrophils have the ability to enter cartilage – a discovery that could open the door to novel treatment strategies for arthritis. Their findings are published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The team says further studies are needed to determine the potential of translating their findings into a new therapeutic approach for arthritis. “Our study indicates that these vesicles could be a novel form of therapeutic strategy for patients suffering from cartilage damage due to a range of diseases, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and trauma. Treating patients with their own vesicles may only require a day in hospital, and the vesicles could even be ‘fortified’ with other therapeutic agents, for example, omega-3 fatty acids or other small molecules.”

Mia Chang, 51, former insurance broker and owner of Lotte Insurance Services, collected full payment for an annual workers’ compensation insurance policy and pocketed a majority of the victim’s premium, forwarding only a small amount to the insurer and leaving the business owner without coverage and at considerable financial risk. Lotte Insurance Services was located at Wilshire Center at 3470 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, 90010.

After receiving a letter from a collection agency for nonpayment of premium, the victim contacted Chang who assured him there had been an error, that he was still insured and issued him a bogus insurance certificate.

The victim remained suspicious, contacted the insurance company and discovered he had been uninsured for several months. The victim contacted Chang and asked her to return the money, but she ignored his request and shortly after, closed her business and disappeared.

Unaware of the resources available to help him, the victim did not file a complaint with the California Department of Insurance until two years after the premium theft was discovered. By the time the victim requested help, the department had already revoked Chang’s license and she was convicted of grand theft for stealing premiums from five businesses and one individual. The department launched a new investigation and a warrant for Chang’s arrest was issued, which she evaded for over three years until investigators located and arrested her in La Quinta in June 2015.

Chang pleaded no contest and was sentenced to three years formal probation and 200 hours of community service.Just moments after being sentenced Chang returned $19,218 in stolen premiums with interest to the owner of a sizable construction company. This case was prosecuted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

Cal/OSHA has cited Dignity Health, operator of Northridge Hospital Medical Center, for safety and health violations that exposed the hospital’s 1,700 employees to hazards . These include failure to record information in 18 cases where hospital workers were stuck with needles, and failure to provide closable containers in emergency rooms that would keep biohazard waste from spilling.

Cal/OSHA ’s Van Nuys office opened an investigation in June after receiving a complaint. Investigators aided by Cal/OSHA’s medical unit found 13 health code violations.

There were four serious violations of the bloodborne pathogens standard, which requires employers to protect workers from coming into contact with blood or other disease carrying body fluids. A serious violation is cited when there is a realistic possibility that death or serious harm could result from the actual hazardous condition. In this case, the serious violations included :

1) Failure to gather information required by the Sharps injury log, such as type and brand of needles involved in the 18 injury cases. The employer had no procedure in place to review the log, or to solicit required input from employees about factors contributing to contaminated needle injuries. Well kept injury logs, and their regular review, help to identify the causes of injuries and prevent future occurrences.
2) Failure to provide containers that would prevent spillage or protrusion of contaminated needles in emergency treatment and trauma rooms. Additionally, the employer did not provide readily accessible hand washing facilities for emergency room employees.
3) Failure to provide appropriate sizes of gloves for employees using the medication cart in the trauma room and the after-hours intake area.

Cal/OSHA also issued eight general and regulatory violations because Dignity Health kept broken gurneys in the working area, skipped essential elements of training employees in safe patient handling, and failed to take corrective action after accidents occurred. Fines for all violations total $44,125.