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Dr. Anna Konopka  told Merrimack Superior Court Judge John Kissinger on Friday that  her  inability to practice is putting  her  patients at risk  because they are having a hard time finding another physician and fill their prescriptions.
But Assistant Attorney General Lyn Cusack says  Konopka 's request should be denied  arguing the doctor has been given plenty of time to close her practice and help patients find other doctors. If she wants to get her license back  Cusack says  Konopka  could file for reconsideration with the Board of Medicine.
Kissinger says he will take  Konopka 's request under advisement.
 Dr. Anna Konopka  voluntary gave up  her  license in October after the state Board of Medicine challenged  her  record keeping  drug prescribing practices and medical decision making. Part of the problem is that the New London doctor doesn't use a computer and therefore doesn't participate in the state's mandatory drug monitoring program.
 Konopka  has been granted an emergency court hearing on Friday to try to convince a judge that  she  deserves to get  her  license back. Though  she  insists  her  paper record keeping system works fine   she  says  she  would be willing to learn to use a computer.
Anna Konopka

in restaurants to offer customers plastic straws without first being asked . Since introducing his bill last week    Democratic Assemblyman Ian Calderon  has been the target of scorn from critics who call  his  proposal " absurd " and an overreach of government . " It really is a reasonable measured approach that I think will make a difference  "  Calderon  told ABC News on Monday about  his  proposed bill . California State Asssembly  He  explained that when  he  sent the proposal to the state legislative rules committee   health and safety code penalties were automatically tacked on   making it a misdemeanor punishable by six months in jail and a $ 1   000 fine for dine - in restaurants caught offering plastic straws without being requested . " I didn ' t actually ask for penalties  " Calderon said . " They were more or less prescribed to my bill by the code section ." But critics immediately jumped on him . Assemblyman Travis Allen   a Republican candidate for governor of California   asked people on his campaign Facebook page to protest the bill by flooding Calderon ' s office with plastic straws . California State Assembly " Instead of tackling the real issues   today ' s California Democrats are more interested in giving jail time to waiters offering their customers the convenience of having a straw  " Allen told ABC News on Monday . " This is one absurd bill   but it highlights how ridiculous the California Democrats have gotten . This is clearly the last straw ." Paul Preston said such laws are the reason he co - founded a movement to break up the state and form a New California   where regulations aren ' t overbearing and discouraging to businesses . " It ' s absolute lunacy  " Preston told ABC News of  Calderon  ' s bill . " They are criminalizing everything we do . It ' s over the top ."  Calderon  brushed off the bashing   saying an estimated 500 million plastic straws are used every day in the United States and most are just used once and discarded .  He  said plastic straws and stirrers were the sixth most common items collected during California Coastal Cleanup Days between 1989 and 2014 . " We need to create awareness around the issue of one - time use of plastic straws and its detrimental effects on our landfills   waterways and oceans  " Calderon said . STOCK PHOTO / Getty Images He said he ' ll work to get the bill ' s language rewritten so that no one fears going to jail or paying hefty fines for handing out plastic straws . He said he expects the bill to reach Gov . Jerry Brown ' s desk for approval in about two months . " Nobody is going to jail   nobody is going to be getting a $ 1   000 fine  " said Calderon   adding that the bill does not affect fast - food restaurants or grocery stores . He said critics like Allen are " grasping at straws " by saying such legislation is hurting businesses in California . " It ' s a ridiculous argument  " he said . Sharokina Shams -- a spokeswoman for the California Restaurant Association   which represents more than 20   000 restaurants in the state -- told ABC News her group is taking a wait - and - see approach on  Calderon  ' s bill . " The association will study the bill ' s potential impacts and consult with its membership before taking an officials stance on the bill  " said Shams   adding that  Calderon  ' s proposal " is preferable to an outright ban on straws ." Matt Davis   a spokesman for the national environmental group Clean Water Action   said Calderon ' s proposal makes sense . " It ' s great he ' s doing it  " Davis told ABC News . " It does reduce the amount of straws that restaurants are giving out and that ' s a good thing ." He said cities such as Alameda   California   have passed local straws - on - request ordinances and that many restaurants have saved money by not having to provide so many straws . He compared it to the plastic shopping bag ban passed by California voters in 2016 or water - on - request ordinances used to combat the state ' s drought   saying people got used to it . In New Jersey   too   local businesses have been participating in an initiative to reduce plastic straw use . And it has dramatically reduced the number of straws the companies are giving out   according to the Montclair Local . A local eatery said it was using about a tenth of the straws it had previously used on a monthly basis   from 6   800 straws to 650   the paper reported . Back in California   Davis said Calderon ' s concerns that plastic straws are fouling up the ocean are real . " There is going to be more plastic in the ocean than there are fish by 2050  " Davis said   citing a study by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation that was presented to the World Economic Forum in 2016 . He said that plastic breaks down into minute particles that fish mistake for food . " I don ' t want plastic in my sushi  " he said .
Ian Calderon

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc âs Waymo  sought at least $1 billion in damages and a public apology from Uber Technologies Inc as conditions for settling  its  high-profile trade secret lawsuit against the ride-services company  sources familiar with the proposal told Reuters.
The Waymo self-driving car unit also asked that an independent monitor be appointed to ensure Uber does not use  Waymo  technology in the future  the sources said.
Uber rejected those terms as non-starters  said the sources  who were not authorized to publicly discuss settlement talks. The precise dollar amount requested by  Waymo  and the exact time the offer was made could not be learned.
 Waymoâs  tough negotiating stance  which has not been previously reported  reflects the company âs  confidence in  its  legal position after months of pretrial victories in a case which may help to determine who emerges in the forefront of the fast-growing field of self-driving cars.
The aggressive settlement demands also suggest that  Waymo  is not in a hurry to resolve the lawsuit  in part because of  its  value as a distraction for Uber leadership  said Elizabeth Rowe  a trade secret expert at the University of Florida Levin College of Law.
 Waymo  recently persuaded a San Francisco federal judge to delay a trial to decide the dispute from October to early December  citing the need to investigate evidence Uber had not disclosed earlier.
Amy Candido  a  Waymo  attorney  declined to comment on any settlement talks  but said the companyâs reasons for suing Uber are âpretty clear.â
â Waymo  had one goal: to stop Uber from using  its  trade secrets â  she  said. âThat remains  its  goal.â
 Waymo  sued Uber in February  claiming that former engineer Anthony Levandowski downloaded more than 14 000 confidential files before leaving to set up a self-driving truck company  called Otto  which Uber acquired soon after.
Uber denied using any of Waymoâs trade secrets.
FILE PHOTO: The  Waymo  logo is displayed during the company's unveil of a self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivan during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit  Michigan  U.S.  January 8  2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
 Waymoâs  lawsuit has been disruptive for Uber. U.S. District Judge William Alsup granted  Waymoâs  request for a pretrial injunction in May  which prohibited Levandowski from working on Lidar  a key sensor technology for self-driving cars that is the crux of the current litigation.
Uber later fired Levandowski  regarded as a visionary in autonomous technology  after he refused to return Waymo documents at the heart of the case. Levandowski has asserted his constitutional right against self-incrimination and declined to answer questions from  Waymo  lawyers.
Benchmark cited  Waymo âs allegations of trade secret theft in separate litigation aimed at forcing Kalanick off Uberâs board. A Delaware judge put that lawsuit on hold and sent it to private arbitration.
On Sunday Oct. 1  the day before Kalanick was scheduled to give a deposition in the Waymo case  Kalanickâs lawyers called  Waymo  and asked to postpone the deposition  lawyers for both companies said in court last week.
Kalanickâs lawyers said he was in the middle of a fight to appoint new board members and was therefore too busy   Waymo  attorneys said in court.  Waymo  refused the request  forcing Kalanick to attend the deposition.

Waymo