hospital

UFC fighter Tommy McMillen is apparently ready to return to the octagon days after he was found unresponsive in an Arizona nightclub restroom as result of an overdose.

“Ready for a short notice call @ufc,” the undefeated featherweight wrote Thursday on Instagram.

At around 12:50 a.m. Sunday, according to a spokesperson for the Scottsdale Police Department, officers found “an adult man identified as “Thomas J. McMillen” on the bathroom floor of Cake Nightclub in the city’s Old Town neighborhood. A police report filed by the officers was titled “Overdose.”

“Responding officers pulled [McMillen] from bathroom and he was transported to the hospital,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “He was unresponsive, but still breathing when he arrived at the hospital. He was in stable condition and was not believed to have any life-threatening complications at the time officers checked on him at the hospital.”

TMZ reports that officers found a white, powdery substance on the ground near McMillen and administered the opioid antagonist Narcon before he was transported to the hospital.

Retired MMA fighter Tim Welch, who serves as a coach and mentor to McMillen, posted a photo of his 28-year-old protege on his Instagram Stories and wrote, “Tommy is completely ok and training yesterday.”

UFC did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this article.

McMillen has an overall record of 12-0 — with five knockouts, five wins by submission and nine first-round finishes — and is 3-0 since making his UFC debut in April. His most recent fight was a unanimous decision over Marwan Rahiki on Sept. 19. He doesn’t have any fights currently scheduled.

VETERAN actor Randall England, best known for his role as General Hospital villain Jack Slater, has died aged 75.

The star passed away peacefully, surrounded by family following a battle with oesophageal cancer, according to an obituary.

“Randall lived a life full of interesting people and stories. Of all his roles, being a father and “Pappaw” to his grandchildren meant the most to him,” the tribute continued.

“‘His legacy lives on in the people he loved, taught, and supported.”

The actor’s family requested that donations be made to the Esophageal Cancer Action Network in his memory.

England played Slater in 31 episodes of the hit soap opera General Hospital between 1984 and 1985.

He launched his decades-long career in 1978 with an uncredited role in the TV Movie Ruby and Oswalk.

Six years later, he landed an episode of the TV show This is the Life before being cast in General Hospital.

Breaking news… More to come…

It’s business as usual for President Trump’s deportation offensive despite the Republican wipeout in the midterm elections.

In Los Angeles, masked immigration officers in body armor blocked a hospital emergency room driveway in a heavily Latino neighborhood early Saturday. In central Alabama, twin 19-year-old brothers from Venezuela were arrested while driving back to college a day after the election.

Advocates reported arrests from California to Michigan to Massachusetts. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has not released numbers.

After Democrats trounced the GOP and won control of the next Congress, Trump said his immigration crackdown may have been “too tough” and suggested it was time to sit down with the rival party.

“I’d love to do something on immigration,” he said in an interview with CBS “60 Minutes” recorded Friday.

Hours later, he named Stephen Miller, the architect of his hard-line immigration agenda, as his new chief of staff. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, meanwhile, said his orders had not changed.

“Deportations will continue,” Mullin wrote in an online post the day after the election, warning that ICE takes no days off and that “this includes on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Election Day.”

María Bilbao, a campaign coordinator for the American Friends Service Committee in Miami, said she has received at least one call a day from someone detained in South Florida since the election.

“Everything remains exactly the same. The arrests have not ceased at all,” Bilbao said.

Florida Highway Patrol officers and ICE agents have detained people in their cars, as well as places including supermarkets, pharmacies and gas stations. Immigrants under supervision have also been arrested when they showed up at ICE’s Miami office for their appointments.

Officers assembled outside a Los Angeles hospital

Erick Gasca, 31, got home Friday night after an evening playing board games with friends. He lives near Adventist Health White Memorial Medical Center in Los Angeles.

An “unprecedented” number of vehicles with tinted windows and no license plates were parked near the hospital’s emergency room entrance, he said.

“I thought they were going to raid the hospital or something,” he recalled.

The Department of Homeland Security declined to explain the officers’ presence there, though Bill Essayli, the top Justice Department prosecutor in Los Angeles, said they were bringing a detainee for medical treatment. Essayli said two people were arrested for assaulting federal agents.

“ICE does not target hospitals, schools, or churches,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

The agents’ presence attracted some 30 residents and passersby. Footage shot by Gasca’s cousin, Michelle Rivera, shows protesters shouting and officers pinning someone down.

The hospital said it wasn’t involved.

“White Memorial does not participate in immigration enforcement,” hospital president Daniel Fontoura said in a statement, adding it would not let such activities “compromise our commitment to patient care and safety.”

A couple is arrested at the Phoenix airport

A married couple from Orlando, Fla., was arrested Saturday at the airport in Phoenix while traveling to a funeral.

Gustavo Romanello and Agustin Baccega, both from Argentina, have work permits while they seek asylum after entering the United States about six years ago, according to Jonathan Batchelor, a family friend.

Batchelor was on the phone with them at the time. A mutual friend died Friday and the couple was visiting for the funeral Saturday. As the couple left the airport, two casually dressed officers asked if one was Agustin Baccega. Batchelor heard the officer say, “Asylum seekers are not in the United States legally.”

Batchelor said he could hear Romanello walking alongside his husband during the arrest and asking the officers how to collect his things. Batchelor said they then asked what his name was, “and then the guard said, ‘Oh, do you have another set of handcuffs? This is another one.’”

The voices grew distant, and the call then ended.

Both men remain in detention centers. They worked as acrobats in Florida and had no criminal record, Batchelor said.

“This is just taking good people who have been following the rules out of their lives and out of the lives of those who rely upon them and care about them,” Batchelor said.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the arrests.

Twin brothers seized while driving back to college

The brothers were headed back to college after visiting their parents when they were stopped in a small city in central Alabama.

Luis and Carlos Orta-Santoro, 19-year-olds born in Venezuela and living in the U.S. for four years, are soccer players at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Ala.

Relatives say they have pending asylum applications, valid work permits, and no criminal records. Both are now in an immigration detention facility.

“Our family is devastated,” said their aunt, Carolina Orta.

Homeland Security said that while they had entered the country legally, they had “overstayed in defiance of our laws,” and their case would be heard by an immigration judge. It said pending asylum applications do not confer legal status in the U.S.

The school said in a statement, “Both young men are valued members of the Wallace State community, and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time. We sincerely hope for a positive resolution to their situation.”

A Haitian boy is taken into custody, drawing protests in San Diego

An 8-year-old Haitian boy had been living with his uncle in San Diego since his father was deported last year. The uncle, who is not a legal guardian, took him to an ICE office when the boy was summoned Nov. 4 and taken into custody.

That left the boy “without the support of their family, community and their school,” according to a letter to top administration officials from San Diego Unified School District Superintendent Fabi Bagula and school board members.

“Children should not lose access to education simply because of circumstances unfolding around them,” they wrote.

ICE has defended its actions.

Johny Oxeda, pastor of the Fairmount Haitian Community Church, which helped get legal representation for the boy, said he’ll ultimately benefit by going through legal channels.

Activists, though, were furious.

“This is not child protection,” said Guerline Jozef of Haitian Bridge Alliance, adding, “this is state-inflicted trauma.”

Gonzalez and Sullivan write for the Associated Press. AP reporters Gisela Salomon in Miami and Elliot Spagat in San Diego contributed to this report.

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

The assailant was shot by police officers and arrested minutes ‌after he ​opened fire at people in central Krakow.

The gunman who killed six people in central Krakow last week has died in hospital, police have said.

Police announced early Monday morning that the 24-year-old attacker had died.

The assailant was shot by police officers and arrested minutes ‌after he opened fire at people at Krakow’s historic main square from his car on Saturday.

The government said the attacker may ⁠have been inspired by far-right ideology, without providing further details.

This is a developing story.

WASHINGTON — Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said on Friday that he has been discharged from the hospital after suffering a stroke last weekend and will miss “several weeks” of votes in the Senate as he recovers in a rehabilitation facility.

Murphy, 53, said in a statement that doctors are “very encouraged by the progress I’ve made so far” and that the stay at the rehabilitation center will get him back to work on the quickest timeline possible.

Murphy said doctors diagnosed him with a small hemorrhagic stroke, which is a bleed in the brain. He said he called 911 on Oct. 31 out of an abundance of caution after feeling that “something was not right” with his body.

“This has been a scary experience for me and my family, and I appreciate the continued respect for our privacy,” he said.

The press release updating Murphy’s condition included a statement from Dr. Jose Suarez, chief of neurosciences critical care at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Suarez said the senator has shown tremendous progress and “we expect that he will make a full recovery following rehabilitation.”

In the Senate, Murphy serves on the Appropriations Committee and is a leading voice on immigration and gun policy. He is considered a contender for more senior leadership positions in the Senate and among the many Democrats seen as potential 2028 candidates for the White House.

Murphy said he has been staying engaged with his team and colleagues remotely and that his staff ensures the work of his office continues uninterrupted.

“I want to extend my deepest thanks to the excellent doctors and staff at Johns Hopkins who have treated me and cared for my family,” Murphy said.

Murphy had been traveling the country in support of House and Senate candidates as his party raced for majority control, which it secured in Tuesday’s midterm elections. A day before the stroke, he posted that he had been campaigning in his home state for Gov. Ned Lamont. The week before, he posted from Minnesota campaigning with Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, the Democratic nominee for the Senate.

Lamont won reelection Tuesday, and Flanagan won her race, becoming the first Native American female U.S. senator.

The final sprint before election day capped Murphy’s whirlwind trip to the Middle East at the start of October for meetings with several leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In early September, Murphy completed his annual “walk across Connecticut,” covering about 70 miles over four days, talking with residents about their concerns along the way.

Three other Senate Democrats had strokes in recent years. Sens. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland had strokes in 2022 and have recovered. Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman had a stroke while campaigning for his seat that year and now uses adaptive technology in the Senate, including live captioning on a phone or tablet that transcribes words as people speak to him and helps him process the conversation.

Fetterman said on social media the day after Murphy’s stroke that his family was “rooting for Chris and his family for a full and speedy recovery.”

Freking writes for the Associated Press.

A SOCIAL media influencer shared a health update revealing she was rushed to hospital after going BLIND.

Abbi Ratcliffe is a SEN (special education needs) mum influencer, with her son Mason being autistic.

The content creator, who has over 100,000 followers, shares updates with fans on her TikTok account Abbi’s Chaotic Life.

Taking to the online platform, Abbi – who also has daughter Ellie – opened up to her followers about a recent health worry.

She penned: “Hey everyone. “I can now confirm I’ve had a mini stroke (TIA).

“It’s been an absolutely terrifying evening, but thankfully I’m back home and my eyesight has returned to normal.”

Read more on social media

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According to the NHS, a transient ischaemic attack (TIA) occurs during a temporary disruption in blood supply to part of the brain.

Resulting symptoms are said to be similar to a stroke, including visual and speech disturbance, as well as numbness in face, legs and arms.

Abbi added: “I’m waiting to speak to the stroke team tomorrow morning.

“I’m going to take some time to rest and process everything that’s happened.

“Thank you for all the love and support. Love, Abbi xxx.”

One person commented: “Bless you. Get well soon xx.”

Another added: “Lots of love coming your way, hope you recover and feel stronger soon.”

A third wrote: “Lots of love coming your way, hope you recover and feel stronger soon.”

A fourth penned: “Lots of love coming your way, hope you recover and feel stronger soon.”

WASHINGTON — Sen. Chris Murphy is in the hospital after having a stroke, according to the Connecticut Democrat’s office.

In a statement Sunday, Murphy’s chief of staff, Allison Herwitt, said the senator “started experiencing numbness in his arm while at his son’s hockey game” on Saturday.

“He was taken to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had experienced a stroke,” she said. “He was transferred to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring and is responding well to treatment. The doctors are encouraged by his progress, he is awake and alert, and we are optimistic he will make a full recovery.”

The 53-year-old Murphy was elected to the House in 2006 and the Senate in 2012. He is not on the ballot Tuesday.

In the Senate, he serves on the Appropriations Committee and is a leading voice on immigration and restrictions on guns. He’s considered a contender for more senior leadership positions in the Senate and is also a potential 2028 presidential candidate.

Three other Senate Democrats have had strokes in recent years.

Sens. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland had strokes in 2022 and have since recovered. Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman had a stroke while campaigning for his seat that year and now uses adaptive technology in the Senate, including live captioning on a phone or tablet that transcribes words as people speak to him and helps him process the conversation.

Fetterman said on social media Sunday that his family “is rooting for Chris and his family for a full and speedy recovery.”

Several Republican senators, including Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, also offered prayers for Murphy.

Sloan writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

Missouri officials have determined the official cause of death for “Days of Our Lives” actor Robert Kelker-Kelly, who died this month at age 62.

Kelker-Kelly died of arteriosclerotic heart disease, the St. Charles county regional medical examiner of Missouri confirmed to The Times. The actor’s death was deemed natural. Arteriosclerosis occurs when blood vessels carrying oxygen and nutrients from the heart to the body become thick and stiff, according to the Mayo Clinic. The coroner’s report confirms details previously disclosed by law enforcement and emergency personnel.

The actor, who worked as a pilot later in life, died Oct. 3 after he complained of chest pain and became unresponsive, police confirmed earlier this month. Officers reported with paramedics to the actor’s home for a report of an unconscious man who was not breathing.

“Life-saving measures were administered but were unsuccessful,” police said.

Kelker-Kelly’s wife, Allison Kelly, informed authorities the actor complained of pain in his left arm and chest while on the drive home from Spirit Airport, People reported. The actor asked his wife to pull the car over to vomit and said he did not need to go to the hospital. He reportedly continued experiencing pain at home. Kelly found her husband unresponsive, alerted authorities and administered CPR.

Kelker-Kelly was best known for his work in long-running daytime dramas “Another World” and “Days of Our Lives,” where he portrayed the rebellious heartthrob Beauregard “Bo” Brady from 1992 to 1995. He began his turn as Bo, which lasted for more than 586 episodes, following the departure of original actor Peter Reckell, who would return to the show off and on in the following decades.

He debuted in “Another World” in 1987 and appeared in more than 400 episodes in a handful of roles until 1998, according to the actor’s IMDb page. He was also known for his work as Stavros Cassadine in “General Hospital” and its spinoff series “Port Charles.” Kelker-Kelly’s “General Hospital” tenure lasted from 2001 to 2014 and was his final TV role. His television credits also include “Jack’s Place,” “Touched by an Angel” and “Rescue 77.”

NICKI Chapman has revealed she’s had a FOURTH operation on her foot as she shared a snap from her hospital bed.

The TV host, 59, best known for presenting Escape to The Countryside, Pop Idol and Wanted Down Under, took to Instagram to post a health update with her 160k followers.

In one picture she put her thumb up as she pointed at her boot while in hospital, followed by another of her out and about in London with a walking stick for support.

She captioned the post: “Every little step.

“Slowly getting there & managed to walk to the end of the road. Result! Note snazzy stick mainly to keep people away from my foot!

“Fourth op over the years – never gonna make Strictly Come Dancing nor run a marathon but grateful for each tweak keeping me mobile & pain free.

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“Thanks for your lovely get well messages. N x.”

Her fans rushed to the comments section to share the love.

One said: “Hope you recover quickly and back on your feet very soon xx.”

Another wrote: “Wishing you a speedy recovery.”

“Get well soon Nicki,” a third chimed in.

A fourth added: Slowly, slowly… You’ll be there in no time xx.”

Nicki has gone through a number of health battles over the years, including a brain tumour diagnosis in 2019.

She’s also had problems with her ankle since she was 15 and was diagnosed with ankle spurs.

The NHS website describes it as: “Osteophytes (bone spurs) are bony lumps that grow on the bones in the spine or around joints. They form when a joint or bone has been damaged by arthritis, but do not always cause problems.”

Nicki previously recalled: “I started getting pains that felt like I’d twisted it – I couldn’t work out what I’d done.

“It was so sore I went to my doctor and was referred to a consultant who diagnosed ankle spurs. Bone spurs are tiny pointed outgrowths of bone which occur where the normal bone keeps growing.

“They were causing a restriction within my ankle, which became inflamed and excruciatingly painful.

“I had an operation to remove them, and remember my consultant warning me against pursuing any career involving standing up – otherwise I’d have serious problems by the time I was 30.

“I’d always wanted to be a theatrical make-up artist, which involves lots of standing, so my career dreams were shattered. But I followed his advice because looking after my wellbeing was paramount.”

20 years later Nicki had to have a second operation, and underwent surgery for a third time in 2015.

JESSIE J has opened up about ‘healing’ as she shared a selection of snaps following on from her recent surgery and cancer battle.

The Price Tag singer, 38 – who revealed she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2025 – told fans that she was having second reconstruction surgery last month.

Jessie announced that she was free of breast cancer in May after having a mastectomy and breast reconstruction in June 2025.

In a recent Instagram post, Jessie shared a mirror selfie of her in a hospital gown with her thumb up, while in another she posed for a picture in her hospital bed.

She also posted some sweet pictures with her son, as well as her signing her Who You Are record, which was released 15 years ago.

In the caption she described each picture, and for one description she wrote: “[thumbs up emoji] to healing.”

jessie’s journey

Jessie J gives health update after second reconstruction surgery

TIME OUT

Jessie J takes social media break to have second cancer reconstruction surgery

She added: “[thumbs up emoji] to healing (again).”

Late last month Jessie gave a health update after her second reconstruction surgery.

The Domino songstress took to her Instagram story to share an update after her second reconstruction.

“So I just got home from my second surgery,” Jessie told her 13.9m followers.

“And it all went well. I just wanted to tell you that it all went okay.”

She added: “Yeah man, life is good. Sending love. Good energy. See you soon.”

The NHS website states reconstruction is “where a new breast is made using a breast implant, or sometimes skin, fat or muscle from another part of your body”.

At the start of the month, Jessie said that the last couple of years had taken their toll and said she was taking a digital cleanse to focus on herself and life off-stage.

She wrote on Instagram: “I want to start this post off by saying I am ok. I am not at my best but very far from my worst. I know people can twist these kinds of posts.

“It’s no secret that the last 2 years have been magical, successful, life changing and extremely busy.

“I have loved the last 2 years mostly, hated it in moments and learnt the most I have ever learnt about myself and what I want from my life and mostly what I want it to FEEL like.”

She outlined all of the major life events she’d been through including moving from the US back to the UK and acting as her own social media manager and stylist.

“The past 2 years has taken a toll on parts of me that I haven’t had time to give space and grace to,” continued Jessie.“Now’s the time. Work has slowed down. So healing speeds up please.

“So I’m tapping out of this [world] for a while and into my real one. To give my mind, body and heart a well needed hug.

“To finally have my second cancer reconstruction surgery, to recharge, heal, to rest, to process, to love on myself and my boy, to water the next chapter of my life and most importantly be present and really live.”

Jessie went on to thank her fans for “holding me up” and said she might check in from time to time with work commitments.

On television, ads for UCLA Health show up behind the Dodgers’ home plate and in the background when Justin Herbert, the Chargers’ quarterback, speaks after a game.

At the Lakers’ training facility, the health system’s logo appears on the court and throughout the building, under a marketing partnership that cost the university tens of millions of dollars.

The ads are part of the public university health system’s strategy to increase the number of Southern Californians using its providers at its fast-growing number of clinics and hospitals.

University officials say its expansion to five hospitals and 300 clinics — up from 150 locations a decade ago — has given more Southern Californians access to its academic medicine.

Lakers championship banners hang from the rafters and trophies are on display in an office overlooking the news conference as Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, left, speaks while Lakers coach JJ Redick listens at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Last year, the system’s clinics and hospitals recorded 4.2 million outpatient visits — more than five times the number in 2015.

“As a public institution, we’re trying to make sure that patients within our community have access to care,” said Dr. Robert Cherry, UCLA Health’s chief medical and quality officer. “That’s the primary and overriding concern, because there’s an acute demand for our services.”

Yet healthcare economists point to repeated studies showing that hospital consolidation — where health systems expand, take over competitors and hire more of a region’s physicians — has become a leading driver of escalating health costs and insurance premiums, while doing little to raise the quality of care.

Glenn Melnick, a USC professor of healthcare finance, has documented how hospital consolidation in Northern California caused health costs to escalate. He said the mergers and acquisitions have continued, including with UCLA Health and other hospital systems in Southern California. UCI Health acquired four community hospitals in 2024.

One consequence, Melnick said, is surging insurance premiums for employers, which leave companies with little money for wage increases, while employees end up paying more for their health insurance and out-of-pocket medical costs.

“We’re now, I think, at a breaking point,” he said.

UCLA executives said the aim of the expansion was not to increase revenues the health system receives from commercial insurers. And they say they don’t believe UCLA Health is large enough to influence health costs.

“We actually represent only a small fraction of the inpatient capacity, physicians, clinics and resources available across the large and complex healthcare market in L.A.,” said Johnese Spisso, UCLA Health’s president, in an interview.

Nonetheless, the system’s expansion and its other recent financial decisions have led to protests by some of the university’s own staff and faculty, who point out the new clinics have been added mostly in wealthier neighborhoods, including Malibu and Montecito, where the majority of families have commercial insurance.

None of its clinics are in South or East Los Angeles, where more residents are covered by Medi-Cal, the state program for low-income people.

Cameron Carr during a news conference at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo.

(Arwen Clemans/Los Angeles Times)

University of California system officials say Medi-Cal’s reimbursements are so low that they don’t cover the cost of care at the state’s five UC medical centers. Those losses, they say, must be covered by charges to those with commercial insurance.

Last month, dozens of medical residents and interns protested outside a UC Regents board meeting after UCLA Health failed to renew a Medi-Cal contract that had covered thousands of low-income patients. The doctors waved signs with slogans “Corporate Greed” and “Keep UCLA Health public.”

Dr. David Schriger, UCLA professor emeritus of emergency medicine, said that given the mission of the state’s public university, he questioned why the expansion had not included neighborhoods such as South Central L.A.

“The public should be making these decisions,” Schriger said. “It should not be at the whim of some executives.”

Santiago Munoz, UCLA Health’s chief strategy officer, said officials don’t consider neighborhood income levels when deciding where to open clinics. Instead, he said, the system has been adding clinics along freeways running north and south.

“We’re staying close to the 405 and the 101 because driving to locations in Los Angeles is inevitable, and it’s very difficult to get to Westwood,” he said.

Munoz noted that UCLA had recently leased a 20,000-square-foot space for a clinic in Inglewood, has locations in downtown Los Angeles, and provides physician services at two of L.A. County’s public hospitals.

“We are trying to go to where patients are,” Munoz said.

Worries about crowding

Nurses at the university’s flagship hospital Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood say the expansion has created crowding that has caused what they describe as an ongoing, daily crisis in the emergency room.

Patients coming from the 300 clinics for hip replacements, heart surgeries and other procedures at Ronald Reagan often wait one or two days in the emergency department until beds become available upstairs in the hospital, according to UCLA officials.

To accommodate those patients who’ve been admitted but don’t have a room, the hospital has installed dozens of beds in what was once the emergency department’s waiting room and in adjacent spaces. That has forced people waiting for emergency care into a large white tent outside, which was put up during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“How do you do a good exam in a tent? It just doesn’t work,” said Dianne Sposito, a nurse who works in the emergency department. “I feel patients are in grave danger right now. Accidents are bound to happen.”

LeBron James has fun with his daughter, Zhuri, as son, Bronny, looks on during a G League game at UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo.

(Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)

A university spokesperson said the system has “extensive strategies to keep patients safe and decompress our emergency departments.”

At the September Regents committee meeting, Spisso, UCLA Health’s president, told board members that the system needs to add as many as another 400 hospital beds so that newly-admitted patients no longer have to wait.

For months, rumors have circulated that UCLA will soon buy Providence St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, which would make the university the only hospital operator in that city. UCLA bought the city’s other hospital in 1995.

UCLA officials declined to say whether they were talking about acquiring the hospital. “We’ve found it’s best not to talk about discussions we may or may not be having unless or until we have something to announce,” Phil Hampton, a university spokesperson, said in a statement.

Consolidation hikes costs

The California Health Care Foundation found in a 2021 study that hospital markets were reaching “monopoly levels” in many of the state’s counties. The consolidation was increasing prices with “little to no improvement in quality” of care, the report said.

The study also detailed how physicians often change their referral and prescribing patterns after their practices are acquired by hospitals, sometimes requesting imaging or other procedures that are not needed.

Melnick, the USC professor, noted that when UCLA acquires physician practices and “re-designates them as hospital-outpatient departments,” the clinics can begin billing insurers for an additional “hospital facility fee” for routine office visits, imaging and minor procedures.

He added that insurers often consider UCLA as a “must-have” network, allowing it to negotiate higher reimbursement rates. When the insurer folds UCLA’s new hospitals and clinics into their plan, he said, it often agrees to raise rates at the newly-acquired providers to match what UCLA is receiving as an academic system. Patients get the same care, he said, “but there is a new name on the door.”

Munoz said that UCLA Health was adding facility fees to some bills, including for imaging, but not for physician care. “We’re running a fairly lean operation in the community when it comes to physician services and not collecting the facility fees that others are,” he said.

More income from patient charges

UCLA is not the only hospital system expanding in the L.A. region. For example, Cedars Sinai has also been adding clinics and buying hospitals.

Price data shows that insurers and patients often pay more for care at UCLA Health and Cedars.

Anthem, Southern California’s largest commercial insurer, this year is paying $20,265 to UCLA for a total knee replacement at Ronald Reagan, according to data gathered by Serif Health, a San Francisco firm that collects data from hospitals and insurers. That price is 9% higher than last year and doesn’t include physician fees, the implanted device or anesthesia.

Anthem pays Cedars more than twice as much for a knee replacement, according to Serif’s data, while it pays Providence St. John’s 22% less. Cedars’ current negotiated reimbursement is $42,559 — an increase of almost 17% over last year.

University executives said that because UCLA Health is an academic health system it provides a high volume of complex care that is more costly than care at non-academic hospitals.

UCLA’s expansion strategy has been financially successful, according to the health system’s annual report.

Last year, UCLA Health operating revenues grew by nearly 20% to more than $5 billion. After paying for expenses, its operating income was $793 million, a margin of almost 16%. That compares to the median operating margin of 1.5% for 45 academic medical centers across the country, according to a 2024 study by McKinsey & Company.

UCLA officials said the operating margin was not a good comparative measure because it doesn’t include a $496-million transfer to the university’s medical school to cover other operations including the training of physicians.

“Education, research, and clinical care are all part of our mission and our responsibilities to really train that next generation of healthcare professionals,” Spisso said.

Expansion continues

The university is now spending nearly $300 million to renovate a 170,000-square-foot building that sits on nine acres near Los Angeles International Airport. Purchased in 2024, the campus’ many offerings will include a sports medicine institute with physical therapy and advanced imaging, as well as an ambulatory surgery center with 10 operating rooms.

The university also plans to soon open a new 119-bed psychiatric hospital in L.A.’s Mid-Wilshire neighborhood. The facility was once the 204-bed Olympia Medical Center, where most patients were Black, Latino and underinsured. Olympia shut down after the university purchased it in December 2020.

The renovated hospital allows UCLA to relocate and expand the 74-bed Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital, which is currently on the fourth floor of Ronald Reagan Medical Center.

“We have patients waiting for mental healthcare so we made a $650-million investment in this new facility,” Spisso said. “We will probably lose around $50 million a year just operating it, but we saw it as one of the most underserved areas.”

UCLA then plans to add 103 beds to Ronald Reagan by renovating its fourth floor, increasing the medical center’s capacity by 23% to ease the overcrowding.

In 2024, the university bought the 260-bed West Hills Hospital and Medical Center in the San Fernando Valley from HCA Healthcare.

Last month, Spisso told the Regents committee that the hospital, now known as UCLA West Valley Medical Center, and its surrounding clinics, were making more money than officials had expected.

Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany collapsed during training on Friday but is said to be ‘stable’ in hospital.

Bayern Munich expect coach Vincent Kompany to miss an extended period as he continues his hospital treatment for a virus after collapsing on the training pitch.

Speaking at a news conference on Saturday, a day after the collapse, Bayern Director of Sport Max Eberl confirmed Kompany was still hospitalised in a “stable” condition.

Kompany’s English assistant coach Aaron Danks will replace the 40-year-old for Sunday’s Bundesliga match at Freiburg.

Eberl told reporters “examinations were continuing” to determine the nature of the former Manchester City and Belgium captain’s condition with a recovery timeframe yet to be determined.

“Vinnie will be given all the time he needs. We’re not starting to put together any timeframes.

“We need to firstly figure out what it is, and then we’ll discuss calmly what the recovery time is to be. We won’t be talking about days but weeks. We need to all be clear on that.”

Taking Saturday’s news conference in Kompany’s absence, Danks said he had spoken with the former centre back briefly on Friday but only to wish him well.

“I explained to him that we wouldn’t be having no football conversations. It was just checking in on his health and making sure he’s OK.

“All the football operations are in our hands, and we’ll work together as a team to keep the club moving forward.”

Bayern’s second team’s game was postponed on Friday after Kompany’s collapse, but Eberl said the club did not consider trying to postpone Sunday’s Bundesliga game.

“I think the greatest joy for Vinnie would be for us to play well tomorrow and, ideally, get a positive result,” Eberl said.

“That would probably be one of the best things we could do to help him recover.”

Danks confirmed Germany captain Joshua Kimmich, who has been on bereavement leave since Tuesday, would also miss Sunday’s game.

Kompany returned to the dugout for Wednesday’s home clash against Arsenal despite missing the pre-match news conference due to the virus.

Speaking after the Arsenal game, Kompany said his body reacted after he tried to push through the illness.

“I caught a pretty nasty virus last week, and of course, I didn’t listen to my body, and then at some point, my body just said, ‘Enough is enough!’”

The defending champions sit on top of the Bundesliga table before Sunday’s game, one point above Freiburg.

Their next Champions League match is on November 3 in Madrid against Atletico.

Taiz, Yemen – It was approaching 10:30am in the dialysis centre of the Republican Hospital in Taiz when a machine began filtering excess fluids, toxins and salts from the blood of Omar Mukhtar Hammoud.

The 16-year-old suffers from kidney failure and is one of 270 patients who regularly receive dialysis at the centre in the government-held city in southwest Yemen. But with essential medical supplies and fuel running critically low under the renewed Houthi siege, doctors fear they may soon be unable to provide the treatment that keeps their patients alive.

Dr Essam Mahyoub Dahan, the centre’s director, warned that a complete shutdown could happen within days.

“Because of the siege and the shortage of diesel and medical solutions, we have recently been forced to reduce dialysis sessions from four hours to just two and a half,” Dahan told Al Jazeera. “We know this is not adequate, but we have no choice if we are to keep the centre operating for as long as possible before it shuts down completely.”

Dahan said the centre’s remaining stocks of specialised dialysis solutions were also close to running out.

The supplies, which are expensive, are normally provided by the Yemeni Ministry of Health every three months. But the latest delivery which was due earlier this month  failed to arrive because of the Houthi siege on Taiz city. It began in the first week of October after Houthi advances in the Taiz countryside.

The city was previously under complete Houthi siege between 2015 and 2016, in the early years of Yemen’s ongoing war.

Across Taiz governorate, where battles are raging between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces and Iranian-allied Houthi fighters, the number of patients at risk is far greater.

In an October 12 statement, the governorate’s health office warned that the continued siege and obstruction of essential supplies could endanger the lives of 1,110 patients with kidney failure. They depend on dialysis services in the governorate’s hospitals, which collectively provide about 210 dialysis sessions a day.

International humanitarian and health organisations have issued similar warnings about the impact of the siege on the already fragile healthcare system in Taiz.

On Thursday, Amnesty International called on the Houthis to immediately reopen vital roads into and around the city, warning that the closure of the main road between Taiz and the southern port city of Aden threatened hundreds of thousands of civilians with losing access to food, water and healthcare.

Fuel: A lifeline for hospitals

Taiz’s hospitals depend heavily on diesel-powered generators because much of the city’s electricity infrastructure was destroyed during the war that began 11 years ago and has not been restored.

The renewed Houthi siege has severely disrupted the entry of fuel, including the diesel needed to run hospital generators and lifesaving medical equipment.

Dr Shaheed al-Ameri, deputy director-general for technical affairs at the Republican Hospital, said the shortages have had a devastating impact on medical services.

“A very large part of this suffering is because of the shortage of diesel,” he told Al Jazeera. “We have no reserve diesel supplies. Our stocks ran out early in the siege and we are now buying it on the black market almost every day, at prices that have reached five times what they were before the siege.”

Al-Ameri warned that the longer the siege continues, the more prices will rise and the further medical services will deteriorate.

The hospital has already suspended operations in some departments, including essential units, he said.

“If this situation continues much longer, we fear we will reach a complete and comprehensive collapse of healthcare services,” he said.

The shortages are not confined to the Republican Hospital. On October 22, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that critical shortages of fuel, oxygen, medicines and medical supplies were threatening lifesaving healthcare throughout  Taiz governorate, with some hospital services already disrupted.

According to the WHO, 42 health facilities in Taiz city had reported severe shortages of essential supplies. Hospitals and ambulances require at least 156,000 litres of fuel a month to continue functioning.

The organisation also warned that diesel shortages threaten to disrupt oxygen production, water pumping, vaccine refrigeration and sanitation services, increasing the risks of disease outbreaks, particularly among displaced families and other vulnerable groups.

The United Nations has separately warned that the restrictions on supplies are bringing Taiz’s health system close to collapse and urged the Houthis to allow humanitarian assistance and essential goods to enter without obstruction.

Oxygen shortages deepen crisis

In its October 12 statement, Taiz’s health office warned that continued restrictions on fuel deliveries could lead to the shutdown of medical oxygen production plants, further endangering patients.

Taysir al-Samei, the health office’s media officer, said that would dramatically worsen the crisis.

“Many medical departments depend on oxygen, particularly operating theatres, inpatient wards, intensive care units and incubators for premature babies,” al-Samei said.

“Most hospitals have already suspended services in some units because of the shortage of diesel and the lack of necessary medical solutions, as well as shortages of medical staff who are struggling to get to work because of the lack of transport,” he added.

He warned that if conditions continued to deteriorate at the same pace, some hospitals could stop providing services in the coming days.

At the Republican Hospital, al-Ameri said that shortages were also affecting diagnostics and treatment. The availability of laboratory reagents had fallen to just 10 to 15 percent of previous levels, he said, while approximately half of the medicines normally available were now out of stock.

Prices for the remaining medicines had doubled, he said, placing them further out of reach for patients already struggling with Yemen’s worsening economic crisis.

The continued fighting and shelling around Taiz have increased the number of wounded people requiring emergency care – placing additional pressure on facilities already struggling with shortages of surgical supplies, anaesthetics and intravenous fluids.

Abdul Badi Abdulwuhab, 53, is another dialysis patient in the Republican Hospital, struggling to cope with the shorter dialysis sessions.

His voice was filled with desperation.

“Because of these measures, I suffer from weakness and I cannot bear the pain,” Abdul Badi told Al Jazeera. “Two and a half hours is not enough to remove all the fluids and toxins from my body.”

Dr Dahan said that the patient’s condition had deteriorated since his sessions were shortened.

“These measures are not effective for many patients,” Dahan said. “The only solution is to end the siege and return things to the way they were.”

Amanda Cannon was taken ill while on holiday with her daughter

A British nan is fighting for her life in Turkey after suffering a heart attack while on holiday as her family faces a £25,000 hospital bill.

Amanda Cannon, 58, was rushed to intensive care after collapsing during a trip with her daughter Marisa White on October 10. The grandmother-of-nine from Redhill, Surrey, reportedly went without oxygen for 10 minutes after suffering what doctors believe was an epileptic seizure and cardiac arrest.

She is currently on life support in a private hospital in Antalya, Turkey. Relatives say her treatment is costing around €3,500 (£3,000) a day, with the bill already reaching €30,000 (£25,000).

Hannah Cooper, the mum of Amanda’s grandchildren, flew to Turkey with her five-year-old daughter after receiving a distressing call from Marisa. She said Amanda suddenly “jolted backwards”, turned blue and stopped breathing. Marisa immediately began CPR before paramedics arrived and took over.

No travel insurance

But because she has no travel insurance, her former daughter-in-law Hannah said Turkish medics would not stop treatment for religious reasons. They fear the mounting costs could run into hundreds of thousands of pounds if her condition does not improve.

Hannah, 33, from Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, told Talk to the Press: “She’s now in a deep coma. She’s got kidney failure, liver failure. They said there’s a 20 per cent chance that she’ll wake up and if she does, she’ll be in a vegetative state.”

She added: “I got a phone call from her daughter saying that she just suddenly jolted backwards, went grey, purple, blue, started foaming from the mouth and stopped breathing. Her daughter gave her CPR. Then when the ambulance got there, they took over. She went without oxygen for about 10 minutes.”

Doctors later told the family Amanda had suffered what appeared to be a seizure as well as a heart attack. She was placed on life support and remains in coma.

Amanda travelled to Turkey with daughter Marisa, who Hannah said suffered from many severe physical and mental health conditions. Concerned she would struggle to deal with the crisis alone, Hannah booked flights and travelled out to support her.

She said: “She doesn’t have the mental capacity to cope with what’s going on. The language barrier is so hard. We have to keep going on Google Translate to speak to the doctor because he doesn’t understand us and we don’t understand him.”

Medical costs stacking up

As the family tried to come to terms with Amanda’s condition, they were shocked to learn of the mounting medical costs. Hannah said she received a phone call asking for £5,000 shortly after Amanda was admitted.

She said: “I said to them that I don’t have £5,000, but I’d be flying over to Turkey. Since then, I’ve had several emails asking for payment.”

Hannah later discovered Amanda’s stay in the private intensive care unit was costing around €3,500 every day. She also revealed that the hospital wouldn’t release her to a public one until they cleared half of the bill.

Hannah said: “I’ve asked for a transfer to a state hospital where it would still cost money, but not like this.”

The family launched a GoFundMe appeal with an initial target of £15,000, but now fear the total bill could be far higher. Despite no longer being with Amanda’s son, Hannah said the 58-year-old has remained a huge part of her life.

She said: “She’s been like a second mum to me for 17 years. She’s always been my biggest supporter.”

Toll on family

The ordeal has also taken a toll on Amanda’s grandchildren.

Hannah said: “My eldest is asking a lot of questions and is upset. My little girl just keeps saying she wants to see her nan.”

She said doctors would either wait until Amanda was biologically dead or keep her alive. Hannah and her daughter are set to return to the UK on Sunday, October 18, while Marisa plans to fly back to Turkey after collecting medication.

Hannah concluded: “We’re upset, shocked and confused. We just don’t know what’s going to happen next.”

The fundraiser can be found on GoFundMe.

TELLY host Eamonn Holmes’s ­girlfriend Katie Alexander says she’s had a “love” call from the star, who is still in hospital following a stroke.

It comes after we revealed she had moved out of his flat earlier this month.

Katie posted a video last week as she went for a stroll along a marina in a vest top, shades and headphones, adding a message: “When your man phones you to tell you he loves you.”

Tanned and relaxed Katie, 45, filming herself using a selfie stick, added the hashtags “you and me”, “meandE” — a ­reference to Eamonn — and “Lovewins”, with a heart emoji.

She also posted other selfie snaps from her sunshine break.

She wrote: “There is a quiet kind of strength in becoming comfortable with who you are.

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“No longer needing to prove, explain or seek validation — just choosing peace, protecting your energy and finding beauty in the life you’re creating.”

The £1.3million Surrey flat where they were living has now gone on the rental market.

The pair began dating in 2024 before Katie started staying at Eamonn’s home.

We revealed in April that Eamonn, 66, was found at his flat by a carer after a stroke.

He was previously wed to TV host Ruth Langsford, his former co-presenter on ITV1’s This Morning.