Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Orange County Struggles With Health Equity — And Battles State Restrictions
Disneyland can’t reopen until Orange County’s coronavirus infection rates improve — especially among its poorest and most vulnerable residents. Local officials are protesting the requirements, saying the economy will suffer, and residents’ health along with it. (Anna Almendrala, )
Celebrations Could Turn Into Superspreaders: The impromptu celebrations for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris after the marathon presidential election could very well have harmed the new president’s goal of taming the coronavirus pandemic, Bay Area epidemiologists said. “It’s going to be a concern,” said Robert Siegel, an infectious-disease specialist at Stanford University, referring to a tendency in crowds not to stay 6 feet apart or, in some cases, wear masks. “The virus doesn’t care what your political persuasion is.” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Also: Biden Campaign Urges Supporters To Follow COVID-19 Guidelines While Celebrating
Californians Could Be Major Force In New Administration: After almost four years of President Donald Trump's taunts as a state that's "going to hell,'' California is poised to be powerhouse with a Biden administration. California insiders say the home to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris should have a major footprint when Joe Biden and Harris begin filling thousands of posts to serve in a new administration. Read more from Politico.
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
CNN:
Biden Transition Team Announces Coronavirus Advisers, Including Whistleblower Rick Bright
President-elect Joe Biden's transition team announced the group of public health experts that will make up his coronavirus advisory board, which includes Rick Bright, a whistleblower from the Trump administration who alleged that his early warnings about the pandemic were ignored and ultimately led to his removal. The inclusion of Bright, who said that he was met with skepticism by Trump administration officials when he raised concerns in the early throes of the pandemic about critical supplies shortages, is a clear signal of the contrasted direction that Biden intends to take his administration when it comes to dealing with the pandemic. (Mucha, 11/9)
NPR:
Who Will Replace Kamala Harris In The Senate?
Speculation about who California Gov. Gavin Newsom would choose to fill out the rest of Kamala Harris's U.S. Senate term if she got elected vice president began almost the moment President-elect Joe Biden announced her as his running mate. Now that Harris is Vice President-elect, filling her Senate seat is not a matter of if, but who and when. And what are the qualities Newsom should consider as he makes his most important political decision yet as governor? Newsom's considerations include diversity, geography, electability and political compatibility. (Shafer, 11/9)
USA Today:
Joe Biden Will Walk Into The Oval Office Facing A Litany Of Weighty Issues. Here's What They Are.
Throughout the campaign, Biden has laid out some things he would do to combat COVID-19.He has said he would contact governors to help implement a mask mandate. If they refuse, the former vice president has said he would turn to local officials. Biden also said he would launch a national plan to expand testing for the virus, implement national guidelines for states to reopen at the guidance of scientists and said the coronavirus vaccine would be free once it’s available. (Morin, 11/8)
The Washington Post:
Biden Plans Immediate Flurry Of Executive Orders To Reverse Trump Policies
President-elect Joe Biden is planning to quickly sign a series of executive orders after being sworn into office on Jan. 20, immediately forecasting that the country’s politics have shifted and that his presidency will be guided by radically different priorities. He will rejoin the Paris climate accords, according to those close to his campaign and commitments he has made in recent months, and he will reverse President Trump’s withdrawal from the World Health Organization. He will repeal the ban on almost all travel from some Muslim-majority countries, and he will reinstate the program allowing “dreamers,” who were brought to the United States illegally as children, to remain in the country, according to people familiar with his plans. (Viser, Min Kim and Linskey, 11/7)
The Hill:
Democratic Hopes On Health Care Rest With Georgia Senate Races
Democrats are hinging their hopes of fulfilling Joe Biden's health care agenda on runoff elections in Georgia, where voters are expected to decide next month if they want to send two Democrats to the Senate and give the party unified control of the government. It's an uphill climb, as Democrats in both races will be seen as slight underdogs in the race, though the party’s hopes have been lifted by what they believe will be a win in the state for Biden's presidential campaign. (Hellmann, 11/8)
The New York Times:
What Are Joe Biden's Policies?
Progressives think President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s policies do not go far enough. President Trump and his administration have called Mr. Biden a Trojan horse for the radical left. Since the primary, Mr. Biden has shifted leftward on issues including health care, climate change and education. But even then, he has hardly embraced the bold agenda of progressives like Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Here is where Mr. Biden actually stands on several key issues: the coronavirus, health care, the economy, taxes and climate change. (Ember, 11/8)
Politico:
Meet The Contenders For Biden’s Cabinet
The Biden transition team has been vetting potential candidates for months and will present the president-elect with potential choices in the coming days. Biden is expected to focus first on posts involving public health and the economy, including the secretaries of the Treasury and Health and Human Services, along with West Wing personnel. The former vice president intends to be deliberative and is not likely to announce Cabinet nominations in the first week, according to an official close to the Biden team. The president-elect will face incoming on several fronts, including from Democrats who expect him to nominate the most diverse Cabinet in history. That goal is not always compatible with the push from the party's vocal left wing to nominate the most progressive Cabinet since Franklin D. Roosevelt. (11/7)
Politico:
Missouri Senator Says ‘Normal Inauguration’ Planned Despite Coronavirus Spikes
Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said Sunday morning that the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies is planning for a normal inauguration ceremony, despite the spikes in coronavirus cases across the country in the past week. “The six-person committee — three senators, three House members — that I chair, we're moving forward anticipating an outside full-scale inauguration,” Blunt told George Stephanoplous on ABC’s “This Week.” (Bice, 11/8)
Poynter:
Obamacare Will Be In Front Of The Supreme Court Tomorrow. What You Need To Know.
The Supreme Court will make a decision on the future of Obamacare on Tuesday. The justices will begin hearing arguments and later decide the case, likely in the spring of 2021. With Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the White House, the outcome might be less consequential than it might have been with Donald Trump in the White House, given his long opposition to the Affordable Care Act.At the center of the case before the court — California v. Texas (known as Texas v. U.S. in the lower courts) — is whether if one section of the Affordable Care Act is deemed unconstitutional, can the rest of it stand? (Tompkins, 11/9)
The Washington Post:
The Affordable Care Act Returns To The Supreme Court In The Shadow Of A Pandemic
When the Supreme Court hears a case Tuesday that could abolish the Affordable Care Act, the stakes will be higher than ever, coming amid a historic health and economic crisis that has deprived millions of Americans of insurance and cast a neon light on health care’s importance. A decision this term to strike down the entire ACA — unlike when justices upheld the law on different grounds in 2012 and 2015 — would upend the health-care system in ways that touch most people in the United States. (Goldstein, 11/7)
AP:
Medicare's 'Part B' Outpatient Premium To Rise By $3.90
Medicare’s ‘Part B’ monthly premium for outpatient care will go up by $3.90 next year to $148.50, officials announced late Friday afternoon. For most retirees, the health care cost increase will claim a significant slice of their Social Security cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA. It works out to nearly 20% of the average retired worker’s COLA of $20 a month next year. (11/7)
Modern Healthcare:
Medicare Premiums To Rise Slightly In 2021
Seniors with traditional Medicare plans will see a slight increase in their 2021 monthly premiums, CMS said Friday. Monthly premiums for Medicare Part B will rise 2.7% to $148.50 in 2021 from $144.60 in 2020. Those fees cover doctors' appointments, and outpatient hospital care as well as other services. Deductibles will see a similar 2.5% rise, from $198 to $203. (11/6)
AP:
Pfizer Says Early Data Signals COVID-19 Vaccine Is Effective
Monday’s announcement doesn’t mean a vaccine is imminent: This interim analysis, from an independent data monitoring board, looked at 94 infections recorded so far in a study that has enrolled nearly 44,000 people in the U.S. and five other countries. Pfizer Inc. did not provide any more details about those cases, and cautioned the initial protection rate might change by the time the study ends. Even revealing such early data is highly unusual. (Johnson and Neergaard, 11/9)
The Washington Post:
Pfizer’s Coronavirus Vaccine Is More Than 90 Percent Effective In First Analysis, Company Reports
A front-runner coronavirus vaccine developed by drug giant Pfizer and German biotechnology firm BioNTech was more than 90 percent effective at protecting people compared with a placebo saline shot, according to an interim analysis by an independent data monitoring committee that met Sunday. The early look at the ongoing trial provides a decisive initial glimpse of the real-world performance of one of the four coronavirus vaccines in the last stages of testing in the United States. It is the strongest signal yet that the unprecedented quest to develop a vaccine that could help bring the pandemic to an end might succeed, breaking every scientific speed record. (Johnson, 11/9)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: California Records Most Cases Since August Amid Statewide, National Surge
The Bay Area and California reported the most new cases of coronavirus since late August on Saturday, an upward trend that experts say is another indicator of a possible third wave of infections happening across the country. The U.S. on Friday reported a record 132,797 new cases of the deadly virus; though California’s surge has been less dramatic, the seven-day average of new infections has been steadily rising since mid-October. On Saturday, California inched closer to recording one million cases of the virus as counties reported 5,323 new cases of coronavirus for a total of 969,270 cases across the state. (Toledo, 11/8)
LA Daily News:
LA County Reports 2,000-Plus New Coronavirus Cases For Fourth Straight Day
Recording its fourth straight day of more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases, Los Angeles County health officials continued to battle an outbreak that has returned to levels not seen since the pandemic’s summer peak, on Sunday, Nov. 8.Officials announced 2,238 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the county’s total to 322,207 confirmed cases since the pandemic began. Two new coronavirus-linked deaths were also reported, pushing the county’s death toll to 7,172. (11/8)
Los Angeles Times:
Coronavirus Continues To Spread In L.A. County At Summer Levels
Coronavirus infections continued to rise in Los Angeles County on Sunday at levels seen during the summer surge, and public health officials warned that the street celebrations that greeted the election news over the weekend could easily increase the spread. Officials on Sunday announced more than 2,200 new COVID-19 cases, marking the fourth consecutive day with more than 2,000 confirmed infections. Officials also confirmed two more deaths from the disease, a number that was probably lowered by weekend reporting delays. (Feldman, 11/8)
Sacramento Bee:
Placer County Residents Are ‘Letting Down Their Guard’ On COVID-19. Closures Might Be Coming
Placer County may be preparing for more closures in the coming weeks as a result of a surge in COVID-19 cases, according to new county data. The county’s case rate jumped to 5% in the second week of October, up from 3.9%, meaning it did not meet the criteria to move down in the state of California’s COVID-19 tier monitoring system and open more sectors of the economy. By the end of October, it got worse, jumping to 7.8%, a figure that is considered severe by state public health officials. (Sullivan, 11/7)
Modesto Bee:
Coronavirus Case Increase Could Push Stanislaus County Back To Purple Tier Tuesday
Stanislaus County may be running out of options in trying to prevent another state-ordered clampdown on businesses and activities due to the coronavirus outbreak. County leaders had talked this week about filing a claim asking for a careful review of data before a state decision Tuesday that could return Stanislaus to the most restrictive purple tier in California’s reopening plan. (Carlson, 11/7)
Modesto Bee:
Hospitalizations, COVID-19 Cases Spike In Stanislaus County
Hospitalizations of patients with confirmed cases of coronavirus grew by 10 to 63 on Saturday, according to data released by the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency. The total is the highest in at least a month as the county struggles to keep the number of infections down in hopes to avoid returning to the state’s most business-restrictive purple tier in its system to track COVID throughout California. Additionally, the county reported 82 positive tests results, more than double what officials feel is needed to remain in the red tier. Zero deaths were reported Saturday, keeping that total at 407. (Clark, 11/8)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Why Is County Facing COVID-19 Shutdown If Hospitalizations Remain Low?
More than six months after the federal government set them up, 202 cots continue to fill a vacant floor of Palomar Medical Center Escondido. Installed in late April to provide overflow capacity should COVID-19 patients swamp available capacity in permanent hospital units, the thin mattresses on light metal frames have never been needed. While individual medical facilities in the South Bay came close to filling up in June and July as infected U.S. citizens living in northern Baja California surged across the border for care, transfers to less-impacted facilities throughout the region spread out the load enough to avoid filling a single cot. (Sisson, 11,7)
Fresno Bee:
Now That Steve Brandau Has COVID-19, Will Fresno County Supervisor Stop Downplaying It?
Fresno County Supervisor Steve Brandau is under quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19, and the only surprise is that it took this long. By that, I don’t mean Brandau specifically. I mean the inevitable march of mathematics. There have been 32,278 positive cases in Fresno County since the start of the pandemic, and 120 or so more positives are being recorded every day. No sign of slowing down. So it was only a matter of time until a Fresno-area politician or some other government official contracted the coronavirus. (Warszawski, 11/9)
Los Angeles Times:
L.A. Pastor Mocks COVID-19 Rules As Church Members Fall Ill
“There is no pandemic.” The words from the white-haired pastor echoed inside the cavernous megachurch in Los Angeles. It was Aug. 30, only 18 days after L.A. County public health officials had demanded that Grace Community Church stop holding indoor services. But the pastor, 81-year-old John MacArthur, had kept the doors open, delivering defiance from his pulpit every Sunday. (Cosgrove, 11/8)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Local Tech Entrepreneur's Invention Takes Aim At Coronavirus
Science has known for a while that ultraviolet light can destroy viruses and bacteria, and so now the process is used to sanitize air conditioners and hospitals. But what about a portable breathing apparatus as protection against the novel coronavirus? Bakersfield technology entrepreneur Stan Ellis hopes to become the first to pull it off. He has a patent pending with more on the way and hopes to begin manufacturing the backpack-mounted device by the end of this year. Testing continues but he estimates the device he and his staff developed in a month's time along Norris Road destroys 99 percent of viruses, including the one that causes COVID-19. He sees airlines and the movie industry as logical first customers. (Cox, 11/8)
Los Angeles Times:
UC San Diego Deals With COVID-19 By Erecting Tents For Classes, Study Space
UC San Diego has erected four large, outdoor tents near the center of campus to give students a place to study and listen to lectures that would pose little risk of exposing people to the novel coronavirus. Health officials say that a combination of social distancing and the breezy outdoor air would make it hard for the virus to spread. (Robbins, 11/8)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Sonoma County Students Struggling To Connect With School, Teachers, Peers
At the start of the school year, the rules were firm for distance learning: As a way to encourage engagement, students attending class via Zoom were required to keep their cameras on and focused on their faces. Izabel Soto, a senior at Healdsburg High School who describes herself as longing to be (Benefield, 11/7)
The Bakersfield Californian:
'Now We're Here For Our Community': New Nurses On The Job After Hospitals Step Up With Clinical Experiences During COVID
Kayla Moore was ready to graduate from Bakersfield College's registered nursing program when the coronavirus pandemic hit. She and her classmates just needed crucial clinical hours with patients — just at the time when many hospitals weren't sure whether allowing students in was a good idea. "It was stressful for our entire class," she recalled. "And this is what we were training for." (Gallegos, 11/7)
The Washington Post:
Alex Trebek, Quintessential Quizmaster As ‘Jeopardy!’ Host For Three Decades, Dies At 80
Alex Trebek, who became known to generations of television viewers as the quintessential quizmaster, bringing an air of bookish politesse to the garish coliseum of game shows as the longtime host of “Jeopardy!,” died Nov. 8 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 80. The official “Jeopardy!” Twitter account announced the death without further details. Mr. Trebek had suffered a series of health reversals in recent years, including two heart attacks and brain surgery, and he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2019. He continued to host new episodes of his show until production was suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, and then filmed socially distanced episodes that began airing Sept. 14. (Langer, 11/8)
Los Angeles Times:
Alex Trebek Dies: Why The 'Jeopardy!' Host Is Irreplaceable
Alex Trebek, the host of “Jeopardy!” for more than 35 years, died Sunday at age 80 from pancreatic cancer. That is a contest many of us were following and hoped somehow he would never lose. Nineteen months after making his diagnosis public — months through which he continued to host the show, published a book, “The Answer Is… Reflections on My Life,” and kept the public abreast of his progress in a way that was informative and forthcoming without breaching the modesty he wore like a bespoke suit — the clock has run out. Merv Griffin’s “Final Jeopardy” theme winds down to silence. The answer and the question are one. (Lloyd, 11/8)
Yahoo Entertainment:
Al Roker Has Been Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer, Says ‘It’s A Little Aggressive’
Al Roker has revealed he has prostate cancer. The Today show weatherman, 66, made the announcement Friday on the morning show. He said he will be undergoing surgery next week to have his prostate removed. “After a routine checkup in September, turns out I have prostate cancer,” Roker shared. “It’s a good news, bad news kind of thing. Good news is, we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little aggressive.” (Byrne, 11/6)
Bay Area News Group:
COVID-19: How To Celebrate Thanksgiving Safely, And Still Have A Good Time
The Thanksgiving table at Dr. Anthony Fauci’s home is going to feel a lot emptier this year, with his three adult children skipping the trip to Washington D.C. for the holiday. For UCSF’s Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, it will be a Zoom holiday, with extended family dining together while apart. Dr. George Rutherford, also of UCSF, is inviting the kids to make brief “cameo appearances” — and plans to order food online for delivery, dodging germs in the cranberry aisle. Welcome to The Great Thanksgiving Opt-Out. Enlisting strategies unimaginable to the Pilgrims, the nation’s public health experts are reinventing the quintessential American holiday. (Krieger, 11/8)
Capital Public Radio/KXJZ:
Sacramento County Considers Alternatives To Police For Mental Health Crisis Calls
Sacramento County wants to hear from the public about non-police responses to mental health crisis calls. It’s an issue that activists have been pushing for years. They say when someone is behaving erratically due to a mental illness, the sight of uniformed and armed officers can escalate the situation to a dangerous degree. “You can’t send people in with weapons, who have a lot of preconceived notions about people with mental health, people of color, people who may be poor or unhoused,” said Faye Wilson Kennedy, who works with a Sacramento advocacy group called the Poor People’s Campaign. “It’s like you’re asking for trouble.” (Caiola, 11/6)
Los Angeles Times:
New L.A. City Council Members Prioritize Homelessness
For years, homelessness has loomed over the civic culture of Los Angeles as its most intractable problem, one that defined the city and its government in the eyes of many people. Now change may be in the air, with the election of three new members to the City Council, relentless pressure from a federal judge and the potential for a new administration in Washington. The council’s three newest members rode a wave of discontent over the government’s failure to help the 40,000 Angelenos who have no home amid a pandemic. For some voters, it came down to the city’s inability to keep streets clean and rights-of-way clear. For others, it was about the plight of the most vulnerable citizens — and how the city has essentially criminalized their existence. (Oreskes, 11/8)
Bay Area News Group:
California Veterinary Medical Association’s Top Vet Talks About How The Industry Is Surviving COVID-19
When the coronavirus pandemic struck, Redondo Beach veterinarian Dirk Yelinek suddenly found himself with a lot of lives to be concerned with. Yelinek, a vet with more than 30 years experience, assumed the presidency of the Sacramento-based California Veterinary Medical Association just as the shelter-in-place order went into effect. In the past several months, he’s been juggling the needs of his own family, his employees, his clients and patients and the well-being of more than 7,000 veterinarians in California. (Morris, 11/8)