Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
California and Texas Took Different Routes to Vaccination. Who’s Ahead?
California stresses equity for minority groups. Texas is all about personal choice and liberty. Both are struggling to vaccinate Latinos and contending with vaccine hesitancy among conservative communities. (Anna Almendrala and Sandy West, )
California Covid Variants Are 20% More Contagious: Two California-bred coronavirus variants are about 20% more infectious than the original virus, according to a study published Tuesday by researchers at UCSF, UC Berkeley and the California Department of Public Health. The California variants, known as B.1.427 and B.1.429, are described as one strain in the paper because they are very similar and share at least one key mutation. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Theme Parks Will Allow Fully Vaccinated Out-Of-State Visitors: Disney, Universal and other theme parks in the state that had been forced to limit attendance to California residents can now allow out-of-state visitors under revised state guidelines — but not all parks are swinging open their gates to interstate travelers just yet. Read more from the Southern California News Group and Los Angeles Times. Continued coverage, below.
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
The Daily Breeze:
LA County Now About Halfway To Herd Immunity, Officials Declare
With more than 4 million Los Angeles County residents with at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, public health officials estimate they are about halfway to achieving herd immunity. What exactly constitutes herd immunity is somewhat unknown depending on how infectious certain variants might be, though most experts put the goal at around 80% of those eligible who need to be vaccinated, according to Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer. In L.A. County, 80% of those 16 and over adds up to about 8 million people. (Rosenfeld, 4/21)
Sacramento Bee:
COVID-19 Vaccine Updates: CA Supply Drops Slightly Next Week
As California enters its second week of broad eligibility for the COVID-19 vaccine, supply flow has remained flat for most of April. Health officials had expected it to be a month of supply ramping up, but allocations have stayed mostly steady week to week in large part due to manufacturing issues and a federally recommended pause on the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine. California, which on April 15 made doses available to all ages 16 and older, is set to receive about 1.9 million doses of the two-dose vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna next week, down from a little over 2 million delivered this week. (McGough, 4/21)
The Bakersfield Californian:
COVID-19 Vaccines To Be Offered In McFarland On Thursday
Adventist Health Delano and the Kern County Latino COVID-19 Task Force are teaming up to offer free COVID-19 vaccination in McFarland on Thursday. They will be given from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at McFarland Jr. High School Cafe, 405 Mast Ave. (4/21)
Voice of OC:
Two New Coronavirus Vaccination Clinics Come To Santa Ana And Irvine
A new clinic opened in Santa Ana today and another will open in Irvine on Monday to boost Orange County’s vaccination rates. It comes as the county’s Latino vaccination disparities have been bridging at a snail’s pace. Latinos account for nearly 47% of the county’s Covid-19 cases and 38% of deaths while only receiving about 15% of the 2 million vaccines distributed so far, according to the latest county Health Care Agency data. (Pho, 4/21)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Here's How Big The Vaccination Gap Is Between California's High And Low Income ZIP Codes
California has struggled to vaccinate its residents equitably throughout the pandemic — so much so that in March, the state began allocating 40% of its vaccine supply to residents in its 446 lowest-income ZIP codes (The state has a total of 1,746). Yet despite this and other local initiatives, California continues to vaccinate its population unequally, according to data from the California Department of Public Health. The gap in vaccination rates between people living in the state’s healthiest and wealthiest quartile of ZIP Codes and those living in the least healthy and poorest ZIP codes continues to grow, leading to a 21 percentage point difference as of late April. (Neilson and Sumida, 4/22)
Los Angeles Times:
How A Vaccine Clinic For Chinatown's Seniors Came Together
According to data released by the L.A. County Department of Public Health in early February, Black, Latino and Native American seniors in Los Angeles County were receiving COVID-19 vaccinations at a lower rate than white, Asian American and Pacific Islander seniors. As of April 4, the data showed that 22.7% of Black and Latino county residents age 16 and older had received at least one vaccine dose, compared with 40.4% of Asian residents, 38.1% of American Indian/Alaska native residents and 37.1% of white residents. But many Asian American community organizers and medical workers believe the data is not telling the full story. (Tseng, 4/21)
Los Angeles Times:
When Needles Strike Fear, Practice Comes Before The COVID-19 Vaccine
Margie Garcia, the mother of an 18-year-old with autism, desperately wants her son to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. But she fears that the sight of the syringe could trigger his anxiety, causing him to run away or tackle someone. So last week, her son, Niko, made a practice run at a mock clinic along with dozens of other young adults and children with developmental disabilities. He went through a registration process, then a nurse placed a syringe — needle-less — against his arm and stamped the spot with a bandage. Afterward, he sat in an observation area, wearing red headphones to block out any unexpected noise. All around him in the parking lot floated bubbles and balloons. (Shalby, 4/22)
Los Angeles Times:
California's Coronavirus Case Rate Among Nation's Lowest
California’s coronavirus case rate is now the lowest in the continental U.S., an achievement that reflects months of hard-won progress against the pandemic in the aftermath of the state’s devastating fall and winter surge. The state’s latest seven-day rate of new cases — 40.3 per 100,000 people — is dramatically lower than the nationwide rate of 135.3 and edged only by Hawaii, 39.1, over the same time period, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Money, 4/21)
Bay Area News Group:
California Coronavirus Case Rate Lowest In The Nation As Of April 21
California has the lowest coronavirus infection rate of any state in the U.S. with 40.3 new cases per 100,000 people, according to data released Wednesday, April 21, from the Centers for Disease Control. New Jersey has the highest infection rate, with 269.7 new cases per 100,000 people. According to end-of-day totals from California public health websites for Tuesday, April 20, there were 2,698 new cases of the coronavirus reported in the state, bringing the total number of cases so far to 3,697,721. (Goertzen, 4/22)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
County Detects Few COVID-19 Cases Among Fully Vaccinated Residents
On a day when California found itself with the lowest coronavirus case rates in the continental United States, San Diego County received a little extra good news Wednesday: The local vaccine supply increased significantly this week, and the number of fully-vaccinated people who are still becoming infected has been small. Dr. Eric McDonald, medical director of the county epidemiology department, said during a weekly coronavirus briefing that, as of Tuesday, 203 local residents among the 846,886 who are fully immunized have tested positive for COV2 infection. (Sisson, 4/21)
Southern California News Group:
Why 30+ Disneyland And DCA Rides, Attractions And Shows Will Remain Closed When The Parks Return
Disneyland and Disney California Adventure will return without three dozen of their 80+ rides, attractions and shows when the Anaheim theme parks reopen later this month after a yearlong coronavirus closure. Most of the shuttered Disneyland and DCA rides, attractions and shows will remain closed due to COVID-19 health and safety guidelines issued by the state. More than three-quarters of the closed attractions will be shuttered for five coronavirus-related reasons: High-touch environments, social distancing, large crowds, time constraints and a ban on live shows. The rest of closures are due to regular seasonal maintenance or ride renovations. (MacDonald, 4/20)
WDW News Today:
Guests Once Again Allowed To Fill Their Own Beverages At Self-Service Refill Stations At Walt Disney World
Another COVID-19 safety procedure has been updated. Disney changed their website to reflect the new protocol, allowing guests to use self-service stations to fill their refillable mugs and beverages. (Francis, 4/21)
Los Angeles Times:
Latinos With Chronic Diseases Fear COVID As Schools Reopen
They all say they suffer from several common concerns: They are Latino immigrant parents, live in working-class neighborhoods and fear for their lives as Los Angeles public schools reopen. Some are cancer survivors with weakened immune systems. Others have chronic illnesses or have children with chronic illnesses. Some are allergic to vaccines. They also have a question for school officials: If we get sick or die from COVID-19, who will take care of our children? (Rivera, 4/22)
Los Angeles Times:
O.C. Deputy Called Over Mask Rule At Grocery Calls It 'Stupid'
An Orange County sheriff’s deputy appeared to express sympathy for unmasked shoppers at a Gelson’s supermarket while also stating that the Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd was a “dummy,” not a murderer, according to a video livestreamed on Facebook. The deputy, who wore a name tag reading “P. Medeiros,” was maskless himself when he arrived at the supermarket in Dana Point on Tuesday in response to a call from employees about the unmasked group. (Seidman, 4/22)
Los Angeles Times:
Skid Row Is Skeptical Of Judge's Order To Sweep Homeless People Into Shelters
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter’s order to Los Angeles officials to sweep homeless people off skid row into shelters or housing is grounded in his conviction that a wrongheaded focus on creating permanent housing has perpetuated racism, spread encampments and caused the avoidable deaths of Black people. But the complexities of the lives of homeless people on skid row suggest that shelters may be, at best, an incomplete and unwelcome solution to the homelessness that has persisted in the 50-block district downtown for more than 50 years. (Holland, 4/22)
Orange County Register:
Unarmed Caseworkers And Clinicians Lead Anaheim Homelessness Initiative; Police Step Back
Lauren Justice could tell the 19-year-old man holding most of his belongings in a backpack slung over his shoulder was high as he approached her near the corner of Beach Boulevard and Ball Road in Anaheim. She revealed her own past experience dealing drugs while living in an encampment near the Santa Ana Civic Center as they chatted over the sound of passing traffic. “I was you,” the caseworker told him. (Licas, 4/21)
Modesto Bee:
Turlock Businesses Raise Concerns Over Homeless Sweeps
Before the city of Turlock began sweeping homeless encampments in March, LeRoy Walker and his staff cleaned human feces, urine and vomit outside Bistro 234 once or twice a month. Now, after about 20 people moved downtown, Walker said they find waste on the front door step and garbage area multiple times a week. Several downtown Turlock business owners say they are also dealing with an increase in trash, vandalism and people living on the streets acting aggressively in the wake of the sweeps. Some owners called on the city to change its approach to homelessness and others raised concerns over the issues deterring customers. (Lam, 4/22)