New Mask Rules Begin In San Francisco And Marin County: Starting today, people fully vaccinated for covid-19 can ditch the mask in some indoor settings in San Francisco and Marin County where the same fully vaccinated group gathers. That includes offices, gyms and religious gatherings, although operators of such spaces can still impose their own restrictions, health officials say. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle and Bay Area News Group.
Most LA Teachers Have Received A Covid Shot: About 95% of Los Angeles teachers union members have met the school district’s Friday deadline to be vaccinated against covid, the union announced Thursday evening. The teachers union represents more than 30,000 teachers, nurses, counselors and librarians. It is unclear how many of the remaining 5%, about 1,500 school employees, have received exemptions. Read more from the Los Angeles Times.
Below, check out the roundup of California Healthline’s coverage. For today's national health news, read KHN's Morning Briefing.
More News From Across The State
San Francisco Chronicle:
Moderna Boosters Recommended By Influential FDA Panel For Seniors And Others At High Risk
While millions of Americans who got the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine have been able to start getting booster shots since federal regulators authorized them last month, millions more who got the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have been waiting to hear if and when they too can get boosters. Those who received Moderna got closer to an answer Thursday when an influential committee that advises the Food and Drug Administration voted unanimously to support authorizing a Moderna booster for people 65 and older, people 18 to 64 at high risk for severe disease, and people 18 to 64 who live or work in settings that put them at high risk of exposure. The same groups were authorized for Pfizer boosters last month. (Ho, 10/14)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
Sonoma County Prepares To Vaccinate Children Ages 5 To 11 Against COVID-19 Pending FDA Approval
Sonoma County health officials on Wednesday discussed steps now being taken to prepare for the vaccination of children ages 5 to 11 against COVID-19. Officials said federal emergency use authorization could be granted to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine later this month or early November. Preparations were discussed during a COVID-19 update broadcast on Facebook. (Espinoza, 10/14)
CapRadio:
Can You Handle The Truth: Fact-Checking False Claims About COVID-19 Vaccines And Children
The overwhelming evidence, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shows the COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, both for adults and children 12 and up. Also, the FDA is expected to authorize a COVID-19 vaccine for younger children in the coming weeks. But false claims are circulating on social media saying the COVID-19 vaccines are harmful to children and caused the death of a Sonoma County teenager. (Nichols and White, 10/14)
San Francisco Chronicle:
All BART Employees Must Get Vaccinated By Dec. 13 Under New Mandate
All BART employees will have to get vaccinated by Dec. 13 or risk being fired under a mandate approved by the agency’s Board of Directors. BART’s leadership will have to bargain over the mandate’s details with its labor unions, including what exemptions to include. But Thursday’s decision, passed on a 8-1 vote, was the result of an impasse for the Bay Area’s regional rail agency: Vaccination rates have stagnated since mid-September despite financial incentives and repeated efforts to encourage employees to get the shots. (Cano, 10/14)
Modesto Bee:
Biden Shields School Boards In COVID-19 Mask Mandate Fight
The Biden administration has thrust itself into the center of the heated debate over school mask mandates with actions aimed at shielding school boards from threats of violence and intimidation and state-level political pressure. The administration’s intervention in the issue has sparked an outcry from Republicans about parental rights and federal overreach. GOP lawmakers have condemned a Department of Justice memo on school-related threats as an effort to criminalize protests by parents. (Lowry, 10/15)
San Francisco Chronicle:
More Than 100 San Francisco First Responders Remain Unvaccinated And Could Lose Jobs
More than 180 employees in the police, fire and sheriff’s departments remained unvaccinated as the deadline for these and some other city workers to get shots passed midnight Wednesday. The city will put these employees, who include firefighters, police officers and sheriff’s deputies, on paid leave and send them through a process that could result in termination. San Francisco leaders, standing by the need for a vaccine mandate to get out of the pandemic, have said they’re prepared to shift staffing and continue providing critical services. (Moench, 10/14)
City News Service:
LA County’s Ferrer ‘Pleased’ With Compliance On New Vaccine Requirements
Los Angeles County’s public health director said Thursday, Oct. 14, indoor bars and large event venues such as Dodger Stadium have been in generally good compliance with new COVID-19 vaccination requirements for patrons, acknowledging that the adjustment to enforcing the rules can take time. But overall, health inspectors have not reported any major issues, Barbara Ferrer said. (10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
Health Experts Question Coachella's New Vaccination Policy
Two months ago, concert promoter AEG Presents announced a mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policy for all its shows — including Goldenvoice’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Many fans of music’s marquee live event cheered the decision. “I appreciated them saying that they wanted the safest atmosphere possible for their attendees,” said Jason Feffer, a 35-year-old from L.A. who has attended the festival every year since 2012. He co-moderates the popular Coachella Reddit forum with a few other dedicated fans, and lauded AEG’s agenda-setting vaccination policy for concerts. (10/15)
Fox News:
US Navy Set To Boot Sailors Who Refuse COVID Vaccine
The U.S. Navy announced Thursday that it is preparing to discharge sailors who refuse vaccination for COVID-19 as mandated by the Pentagon, and the service members who get the boot over their noncompliance run the risk of losing some veterans benefits. The Navy sent out a press release noting that Nov. 14 is the deadline for active-duty sailors to get either their second shot of a two-dose vaccine or the single shot of a one-dose vaccine. Reservists have until Dec. 14. (Dumas, 10/14)
The Hill:
Navy Releases Guidance To Discharge Sailors Refusing COVID-19 Vaccine
All active-duty sailors who refuse to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Nov. 28 will face discharge, according to new Navy guidance released Thursday. The guidance, which also sets a deadline for all Navy Reserve sailors to be fully vaccinated by Dec. 28, outlines the consequences for those who fail to comply. “Sailors must be prepared to execute their mission at all times, in places through out the world, including where vaccination rates are low and disease transmission is high,” according to the notice. “Immunizations are of paramount importance to protecting the health of the force and the warfighting readiness of the Fleet.” (Mitchell, 10/14)
Southern California News Group:
LAUSD Sued Over Student Vaccination Mandate
The Los Angeles Unified School District has been slapped with a lawsuit over its mandate that students 12 and older get their COVID-19 shots, a requirement which attorneys for the plaintiff contend is unlawful because it does not allow for religious or personal belief exemptions. The lawsuit was filed last week on behalf of a parent of a 12-year-old student who claims that their child, along with other LAUSD students who do not comply with the mandate, would be discriminated against by being denied an in-person education and the opportunity to participate in extracurricular programs. (Tat, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
L.A., San Diego Schools Sued Over Student Vaccine Mandate
California’s two largest school districts — Los Angeles and San Diego — are targeted in lawsuits challenging their student COVID-19 vaccination mandates, alleging the vaccines are too new and that unvaccinated children face discrimination and the denial of their equal right to a public education. Both school systems were ahead of the state in requiring student vaccines as a measure to make campuses safer and to limit spread of the coronavirus in the community — and their mandates are more comprehensive than the state requirement, which has yet to be codified into law. (Blume and Taketa, 10/14)
EdSource:
Could New Covid Testing And Vaccine Mandates Make School Staffing Shortages In California Worse?
Some California school district superintendents, especially those in rural areas of the state, fear that teachers and other staff members will quit rather than be vaccinated or take weekly Covid tests — a state requirement that began Friday. Many California districts are already struggling to staff schools, and even a moderate number of resignations would mean not only fewer teachers but fewer bus drivers, instructional aides and substitute teachers to keep schools running. (Lambert, 10/15)
Modesto Bee:
Vote Set On Requiring Vaccine Or Weekly Testing At Modesto JC
The Yosemite Community College District board will vote next week on requiring students, staff and faculty who use campus facilities to be vaccinated for COVID-19 or test weekly. The district includes Modesto Junior College and Columbia College. The vote on the mandate is set for Oct. 20, according to a draft resolution. (Isaacman, 10/14)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Antibody Therapy Site For Treatment Of COVID-19 Opens On Columbus Street
A monoclonal infusion site offering COVID-19 antibody therapy has opened at 1111 Columbus St., Suite 5000, with the support of the state, the Kern County Public Health Services Department and Kern Medical. The therapy is intended to help reduce symptoms of COVID-19 and keep people out of the hospital if they have recently tested positive for the disease. (10/14)
CapRadio:
Can We Gather This Winter? COVID-19 Is Slowing In California, But Experts Still Say To Be Careful
Last November, as the weather grew colder and people began gathering indoors, California’s COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations ramped up with concerning speed. By January, hospitals were overwhelmed and more than 700 people were dying of the disease per day. Those numbers gradually declined during the spring as vaccines became more available. Now, nearly 68% of Californians are fully or partially vaccinated, and experts say this will help protect us from another winter surge. (Caiola, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
California COVID Timeline Around Cases, Deaths, And Vaccines
With coronavirus case rates on the downswing nationally — and especially in California — there’s growing optimism that the highly infectious Delta variant may finally be starting to lose its months-old grip. Still, COVID-19’s presence, while not as potent as earlier in the year, looms large, especially heading into the fall and winter. (Lin II and Money, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
Biohackers Tackle COVID Testing And Variants With Robots
In an old bank building in Brooklyn, N.Y., amateur microbiologists were tinkering with DNA when the anarchist appeared. Then came a robotics expert, coders and other industry revolutionaries. Before long, this collection of inventive, if wildly independent, experimenters would reimagine COVID-19 testing in the fight against a globe-crippling pandemic. That moment in the spring of 2020 was emblematic of how disrupters upend the status quo to advance science and technology. Will Canine, a biohacker and former Occupy Wall Street organizer, and his team of idealists and iconoclasts launched a Kickstarter campaign to build a robot that they hoped would bypass elite labs and corporate monopolies to change the world. They succeeded. (Baumgaertner, 10/15)
Bay Area News Group:
East Bay Nursing Home, Parent Company Must Pay Almost $20 Million For Neglecting Patients, Jury Says
A Hayward nursing home will have to pay almost $20 million in damages and court costs after a jury found it responsible for the death of some residents and significant neglect of others. At the end of a four-month trial, the Alameda County jury on Thursday found that Parkview Healthcare Center committed “fraud in the commission of neglect,” according to Susan Kang Gordon, one of the attorney for the 10 plaintiffs — nursing home residents and the families of dead patients — who were awarded $9.6 million in punitive damages from the center and its parent company, Mariner Healthcare. The other attorneys were Jennifer Fiore and Jody Moore. (Sciacca, 10/14)
Sacramento Bee:
SEIU-UHW Workers Will Rally At Kaiser Roseville Over Staffing
Health care workers at Kaiser Permanente’s Roseville Medical Center will protest outside the facility Thursday morning, calling for improvements in staffing and a reduction in outsourcing. “As healthcare workers, we chose this line of work because of our passion to care for patients, but without enough staff, there’s only so much we can do,” said Olga Huizar, an emergency room technician at Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center. (Anderson, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
Democrats Might Finally Help Those Stuck In Medicaid Gap
Amy Bielawski, 56, is one of the people the 2010 Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, was supposed to help. But the Supreme Court in 2012 said the law’s Medicaid expansion provision had to be optional, and several Republican-led states refused to embrace it. That left about 2 million people, mostly in Southern states, caught without any access to health coverage because they are considered too wealthy to qualify for Medicaid, which targets lower-income people, and too poor to qualify for Obamacare subsidies. In states like California, which expanded Medicaid under ACA, the gap is not a problem. (Haberkorn, 10/15)
San Francisco Chronicle:
S.F. Mayor Breed Is Facing Pressure To Declare The Overdose Crisis A Health Emergency. Would It Help?
Amid a dramatic increase in fatal drug overdoses, several supervisors and advocates are pressuring Mayor London Breed to replicate the city’s urgency around the pandemic and declare the drug crisis a local health emergency — just as she did for the coronavirus. The motivation behind the declaration would be twofold. The supervisors and advocates believe it would increase attention paid to the crisis and also create more incentive for the mayor to flout federal and state laws to open a site where people can use drugs in a supervised setting. (Thadani, 10/14)
CapRadio:
Sacramento County Could Ban Flavored E-Cigarettes, Menthol Under Proposed Ordinance
Sacramento County supervisors could be discussing a ban on flavored tobacco products, including e-cigarette juice and menthol cigarettes, by the end of this year. Supervisor Patrick Kennedy joined health advocates and physicians Thursday to introduce the proposal. “Ending the sale of all candy-flavored tobacco products, including minty menthol, will save lives,” he said. “And that’s why we will push hard to pass the ordinance I am proposing to the county supervisors with a sense of urgency.” (Caiola, 10/14)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Possible Breakthrough Emerges In Talks On Continuing Transportation For Elderly, Disabled
A potential solution surfaced Thursday in a long-running quandary over how to sustain a door-to-door transportation service for local elderly residents and people with disabilities. People familiar with the proposal said it calls for the Golden Empire Transit District, better known as GET, to take over operation of the so-called CTSA service run for the last 23 years by the North of the River Recreation and Park District. Negotiations continue, and boards of both organizations would have to approve the arrangement, which tentatively would have GET taking over operation of the service on July 1. (Cox, 10/14)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
Santa Rosa Approves Contracts For Mental Health Emergency Response Program
Santa Rosa’s City Council Tuesday night unveiled the name and logo for its highly anticipated mental health emergency response team and approved contracts with two local nonprofits, some of its final steps toward soft-launching the program in December. Called in, the program was first introduced a year ago. It will be modeled after the Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets unit, or CAHOOTS, in Eugene, Oregon. (Wilder, 10/14)
City News Service:
Food Insecurity Hits Nearly 1 Million LA County Households During COVID, Says Report
Nearly 1 million Los Angeles County households reported being food insecure during the pandemic, and among the most impacted residents were single parents, particularly women of color, according to a report released Thursday by Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin for World Food Day. “It is unacceptable for any child in Los Angeles to go to bed hungry and for families to lack easy access to quality, healthy food,” Galperin said. (10/14)
CNN:
Former President Bill Clinton Hospitalized In California For Infection But ‘On The Mend’
Former President Bill Clinton was admitted to the University of California Irvine Medical Center’s intensive care unit for a urinary tract infection that spread to his bloodstream, his doctors told CNN on Thursday. “He was admitted to the ICU for close monitoring and administered IV antibiotics and fluids. He remains at the hospital for continuous monitoring,” according to a joint statement Thursday evening from Dr. Alpesh Amin, chair of medicine at UC Irvine Medical Center, and Dr. Lisa Bardack, Clinton’s personal primary physician. They said that Clinton was in the ICU for privacy and safety, not because he needs intensive care. (10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
Alisal Fire Smoke Triggers Air Quality Advisory In L.A.
Heavy smoke billowing from the Alisal fire near Santa Barbara prompted an air quality advisory for Los Angeles and several other counties, as flames from the blaze surrounded the former vacation home of President Reagan. Toxic plumes from the blaze — which has now burned roughly 16,800 acres — were expected to push southeast, elevating air pollution in L.A., Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties through at least Thursday afternoon, according to a special advisory issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management District. (Seidman and Smith, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
Health Questions Linger In Wake Of Aliso Canyon Leak
Six years after the largest methane leak in U.S. history occurred in Aliso Canyon, Porter Ranch residents continue to feel the effects and want answers to their unresolved questions. L.A. Times environmental reporter Tony Barboza joined us to shed light on where we are today. (10/14)
Bay Area News Group:
Elizabeth Holmes Trial: Theranos Put Patients In ‘Immediate Jeopardy,’ Regulator Warned
Elizabeth Holmes’ blood-testing company Theranos put patients in “immediate jeopardy” and failed to resolve regulators’ concerns over its laboratory practices and staff training, according to a government report filed Wednesday in connection with her criminal fraud trial. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which regulates laboratories, noted in a 2016 letter to Holmes and her former Theranos president Sunny Balwani that it had found serious deficiencies in the firm’s Bay Area laboratory, and that the company’s responses to the alleged violations were not sufficient or credible. Patients using Theranos blood testing, the letter said, were still in “immediate jeopardy” in which serious harm or death may occur. (Baron, 10/14)
The Mercury News:
Newsom Must Stop COVID-19 Mixed Messages
It’s easy to think Gov. Gavin Newsom did the right thing Oct. 1 when he announced a statewide COVID-19 vaccination mandate for school students and staff members. Give the governor credit for getting the concept right. But closer scrutiny reveals a decidedly mixed message of the kind that Californians have come to expect from Newsom on matters dealing with the coronavirus. (10/13)
Sacramento Bee:
Newsom Leading California’s COVID Fight From Behind
Three weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom celebrated his resounding defeat of a recall attempt led by pandemic deniers, declaring that “science was on the ballot” and had emerged victorious, California got the sort of tough vaccine mandate the science recommends. Unfortunately for those of us who don’t live in Southern California, it came from the Los Angeles City Council. The city — and, a day later, Los Angeles County — joined San Francisco and other Bay Area jurisdictions last week in requiring proof of COVID vaccination for indoor places such as restaurants and salons. The local laws offered the latest reminder that if Newsom is leading a science-forward pandemic policy, he’s leading it from behind. (10/14)
Sacramento Bee:
A Sacramento Woman Suffers Loss Of Smell, Taste After COVID
Have you ever tried a food that looked great but tasted awful? A dish you thought would be delicious but turned out to be horrible — so bad, in fact, that you couldn’t wait to spit it out? Now imagine that taste occurring all the time, even when you drink coffee or eat basic foods like bread, meat and fruit. Reminiscent of compost, sludge or chemicals, sometimes with a sickly sweetness, this taste is everywhere, and it’s in everything, because it’s the only thing you smell and taste. Welcome to life post-COVID. (Hannah Brock, 10/14)
San Francisco Chronicle:
As A Doctor, I Tried To Keep My Kid Safe From COVID. But California Set Parents Up To Fail
It’s hard not to feel frustrated when your family does everything within its power to stay safe, while knowing that you’ve been set up to fail. The hard truth is that delta variant changed the game — but California failed to update its back-to-school playbook. Instead, state and local public health officials seemed to clock out the moment that COVID-19 vaccinations were authorized for children ages 12 and older. Those of us with younger children were left to fend for ourselves. (Jorge Caballero, 10/12)
Los Angeles Times:
State Law Neutralizes Gender Signals We Send Kids
A few days ago, California became the first state to require large retail stores to provide shoppers with “gender neutral” sections for some products aimed at children, such as toys and toothbrushes. “We need to stop stigmatizing what’s acceptable for certain genders and just let kids be kids,” said the bill’s author, Democratic Assemblyman Evan Low of San Jose. “My hope is this bill encourages more businesses across California and the U.S. to avoid reinforcing harmful and outdated stereotypes.” (Robin Abcarian, 10/13)
The Mercury News:
Foster Care Gaps Still Exist Despite Success Of AB 12
According to the California Youth Transitions to Adulthood (CalYOUTH) Study, Extended Foster Care has been beneficial in a range of ways, including positive outcomes in education, increased financial and food security, and decreased levels of homelessness. Notably, a significant number of youth are now enrolled in college by age 23, showing that a growing number of these young people now see continued education as a viable option — something that didn’t ring true a decade ago. The progress is promising, but we are not nearly where we need to be. Although there is an increase in youth enrolling in college and completing some level of coursework, the numbers of those attaining a degree are still far too low. The same study found that 64% of foster youth in California have enrolled or completed some college by age 23, but only 12.6% of females and 8% of males attain a degree. (Elise Cutini, 10/14)
Los Angeles Times:
An L.A. Ballot Measure That Will Not Help The Homeless
With homelessness the biggest issue in Los Angeles as a mayoral election season revs up, Councilman Joe Buscaino is pushing for a measure on the June 2022 ballot that would outlaw homeless people camping in public spaces. If the City Council approves, voters would see that measure on the same ballot that has Buscaino running for mayor. This is no coincidence. Buscaino gets to run for mayor claiming he has a faster way to get people off the streets than his colleagues in City Hall ever did. But his plan will not be faster, and we hope voters won’t get a chance to vote on it. The proposal has been sent to the council’s Rules Committee, and it should die there. (10/13)