Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Hard Lives Made Harder by COVID: Homeless Endure a ‘Slow-Moving Train Wreck’
This was supposed to be the year California finally did something about its homelessness epidemic. COVID-19 upended that promise, along with the cobbled-together services many homeless people rely on for survival. Interviews across the state reveal a new magnitude of hardship and indignity for tens of thousands of people living on the streets. (Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Angela Hart, )
Distrusting Trump, States Plan to Vet COVID Vaccines Themselves. Bad Idea, Say Experts.
California and at least five other states have said they may independently vet any vaccines. Experts warn that could needlessly confuse the public. (JoNel Aleccia and Liz Szabo, )
UC Berkeley Biochemist Shares Nobel Prize For Developing Gene-Editing Tool: The Nobel Prize in chemistry was awarded Wednesday to UC Berkeley biochemist Jennifer A. Doudna and French scientist Emmanuelle Charpentier for their pioneering work on the CRISPR tool for gene editing. Doudna is a professor at UC Berkeley. “I’m in shock,” Doudna said. “My greatest hope is that it’s used … to benefit humankind.” Read more from the Los Angeles Times and Bay Area News Group.
What Is CRISPR Technology, Anyway? Here’s an explainer.
Rep. Salud Carbajal Tests Positive For COVID: U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal, a California Democrat, has contracted coronavirus, he announced on social media Tuesday evening. Carbajal, 55, said his positive result came after he interacted indoors with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). Lee had attended the Rose Garden event with President Donald Trump. Read more from CNN, Politico and the San Luis Obispo Tribune.
For the latest on President Trump’s condition and more national health news, read KHN’s Morning Briefing. Below, check out the roundup of California Healthline’s coverage.
More News From Across The State
Sacramento Bee:
Cal Fire Firefighter Has Possible Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
A Cal Fire firefighter helping about 2,700 others corral the Glass Fire was hospitalized Tuesday in the Santa Rosa area with symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, the state agency said. The firefighter was one of 16 Cal Fire firefighters who were examined late Tuesday morning at Base Camp at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, said Scott McLean, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, also known as Cal Fire. (Ahumada, 10/6)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
1 Firefighter Hospitalized, 15 Examined At Glass Fire Base Camp For Potential Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
One firefighter was hospitalized and 15 evaluated for carbon monoxide poisoning Tuesday when they were potentially exposed to the lethal gas while on a rest break during the massive battle against the Glass fire. (Benefield, 10/6)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat and CalMatters:
Unsafe To Drink: Wildfires Threaten Rural California Towns With Tainted Water
For more than a month after a wildfire raced through his lakeside community and destroyed his Napa County home, Kody Petrini couldn’t drink the water from the taps. He wasn’t even supposed to boil it. And, worried about harming his 16-month-old, Petrini wouldn’t wash his youngest son Levi with it. (Becker, 10/6)
Los Angeles Times:
2 Counties Move Backward On State COVID-19 Reopening Plan
Although a handful of counties advanced in the state’s COVID-19 reopening plan Tuesday, two moved backward — the first time since California launched its tiered system that parts of the state have regressed. Following an increase in cases, Tehama County moved back to Tier 1, the most restrictive category, and Shasta County moved back to Tier 2. The setbacks will affect business sectors that had been given the green light to reopen or expand capacity in those areas. (Shalby, 10/6)
Fresno Bee:
Fresno County May Need Return To Dining, Health Club Closures As COVID-19 Cases Rebound
An increase in the average number of new coronavirus cases threatens to send Fresno County back into a more restrictive tier of economic reopening as businesses and residents adjust to resuming indoor operations under the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy. (Sheehan, 10/6)
Southern California News Group:
Coronavirus Tracker: Here’s Where Every California County Stands In The State’s Tier System On Oct. 6
More California counties moved on Tuesday, Oct. 6, into less-restrictive tiers of the state’s coronavirus tracking system, opening the door for more business and public sectors to reopen or expand their indoor capacities. (Snibbe, 10/7)
Ventura County Star:
Ventura County Moves Into Red Tier In State's COVID-19 Reopening Plan
Ventura County is now in the red tier. Data released by the California Department of Public Health on Tuesday confirmed the region has moved in the state's four-level COVID-19 reopening plan from the lowest tier of purple to the less restrictive red level. (Kisken, 10/6)
LA Daily News:
LA County Eases Coronavirus Rules, Allows Breweries And Wineries To Open With Food
Los Angeles County has officially revised its coronavirus health order, authorizing breweries and wineries that don’t have their own food kitchens to reopen for outdoor sit-down service if they partner with a caterer or food truck. The revised language includes some peculiar requirements such as purchasing alcohol with food in the same transaction, and customers must make a “prior reservation for a table at least one day in advance.” (City News Service and Rosenfeld, 10/6)
Orange County Register:
County Health Agency Recommends Reopening Disneyland And Knott’s Berry Farm
Local health authorities have given the green light for Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm to reopen while California theme parks await reopening guidelines from Gov. Gavin Newsom after more than six months of coronavirus closures. The Orange County Health Care Agency has recommended the state allow Disneyland, Disney California Adventure and Knott’s Berry Farm to reopen once Orange County moves into the “moderate” tier of Newsom’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, according to county health officer and agency director Clayton Chau. (MacDonald, 10/6)
Fresno Bee:
COVID-19 Updates: Fresno County Doctors To Provide Tests, Business Reopenings At Risk
Primary care physicians will now begin offering COVID-19 testing, [the county's interim health director Dr. Rais] Vohra announced. The county planned to release the order Tuesday afternoon, he said. (Tobias, 10/6)
Sacramento Bee:
Schools Not Yet Tied To COVID Spread, CA Health Official Says
School re-openings have not yet contributed to a rise in COVID-19 cases, California’s top health official said in a press conference on Tuesday. Health and Human Services Secretary Mark Ghaly said that “we have not seen a connection between increased transmission and school reopening or in-person learning. (Sheeler, 10/6)
AP:
California Evangelical School Tied To Spike In Virus Cases
A Northern California county will face greater restrictions as it grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases, many of them tied to an evangelical college where more than 120 students and staff have tested positive in the last two weeks, health officials said Tuesday. Shasta County health officials say that an outbreak of cases among students and staff at the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry contributed to a recent spike in COVID-19 cases that bumped the county on Tuesday into a new level of regulations on restaurants, bars, theaters and businesses. (Gecker, 10/7)
Politico:
San Diego Schools Remove Trump Letter From Food Boxes Due To Mask Statements
The San Diego Unified School District is removing letters from President Donald Trump that his administration placed inside food boxes as part of a federal coronavirus relief program for families in need. Superintendent Cindy Marten, who oversees one of the nation's largest school districts, told POLITICO on Tuesday that she has directed her food and nutrition services department to remove all letters from food boxes that have not already been distributed "in order to protect local families from being misled on how to protect themselves from becoming infected." (Mays, 10/6)
The Bakersfield Californian:
KHSD Board Approves Creation Of Employee Medical Center With Purchase Of Stockdale Office
The Kern High School District board took a major step toward the creation of an employee medical center by approving the purchase of a medical facility on Stockdale Highway on Monday night. The board unanimously approved the purchase of a 2,346-square-foot, second-floor medical office condominium located at 9900 Stockdale Highway Suite 206 for $745,000. (Gallegos, 10/6)
Fresno Bee:
Will Fresno Unified Spend More On Mental Health, Less On Police?
California parents and activists want Fresno schools to cut funding for police on campus. They want the money to go toward mental health services for students. (Hodenfield 10/6)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
California Ranked 6th Happiest State In New WalletHub Study
California is the nation's sixth happiest state, according to one ranking. The data crunchers at WalletHub looked at various demographic, economic and health factors -- including some pandemic trends -- to create their list. California was No. 4 on this scorecard a year ago. (Lansner, 10/6)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Kern Public Health Reports First Human Case Of West Nile Virus This Year
The Kern County Public Health Services Department reported the first human case of West Nile virus in 2020 on Tuesday. According to the health department, West Nile virus is transmitted by mosquitoes and often spreads during the summer and early fall. (10/6)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Activists Gather In McFarland, Across State To Call Out COVID-19 Mitigation Efforts In ICE Facilities
Activists gathered outside of McFarland’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities on Tuesday as a part of a statewide action at 30 detention centers demanding the release of detainees, and stopping inter-prison transfers and transfers to ICE facilities to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Organized by The California Liberation Collective, activists placed banners outside many of the state’s detention facilities that included many California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation prisons as well as ICE detention centers. Outside of GEO’s Golden State Annex in McFarland, banners were dropped that read “Free them all” and “Newsom COVID death camp.” (Wilson, 10/6)
Bay Area News Group:
Nurses To Strike In San Leandro, Alameda And Oakland
Registered nurses at San Leandro Hospital, Alameda Hospital and at Highland Hospital in Oakland are striking for five days beginning Wednesday. The nurses at San Leandro and Alameda hospitals allege bad faith on the part of management in contract talks, along with what they call punitive actions and persistent short-staffing among their reasons for striking. (Hegarty, 10/6)
The Record:
Registered Nurses To Strike San Joaquin General Hospital, County Jail
Registered nurses who work at San Joaquin General Hospital, Public Health, county clinics and the County Jail will walk off the job at 7 a.m. Wednesday and stay out on strike for the next five days, according to the union that represents nearly 800 nurses in the county system. The California Nurses Association said in a statement that after nearly two years of negotiations, San Joaquin County administration “has demonstrated an overwhelming disrespect for nurses, at and away from the bargaining table. The San Joaquin Board of Supervisors has remained silent and has not offered any support to the nurses or the community that uses county health care services.” (Goldeen, 10/6)
LA Daily News:
Disruptive Patient Shot, Wounded By Deputy At Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
A man who was breaking medical equipment inside a room at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance was in critical condition Wednesday morning, Oct. 7, after being shot by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy. Deputies working a security detail at the hospital were alerted about 11:15 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7, that the patient was breaking equipment and tried to smash a window with a metal medical device, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. (10/7)