San Francisco Chronicle: Report Shows California Lagging Most States In Vaccination Equity
California ranks among the five worst states in getting its poorest and most vulnerable residents vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to a report released Wednesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. California is one of 31 states falling short on equitable vaccine coverage, according to the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which analyzed vaccines administered during the first two-and-a-half months of the U.S. vaccination campaign, from Dec. 14 to March 1. It is the first report using national vaccination surveillance data focused on social vulnerability to look at equity, said the report’s lead author, CDC epidemiologist Michelle Hughes. (Ho, 3/17)

Fresno Bee: Central Valley Latinos Trail Whites In COVID-19 Vaccines 
Nearly two weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a plan to allocate 40% of California’s vaccine supply to people living in the state’s most vulnerable neighborhoods, some advocates worry the Central Valley’s communities of color hardest-hit by COVID-19 are still being left behind in the vaccine rollout. Across the region, Latinos make up a majority of the population and an even greater share of COVID-19 cases. But in most instances, vaccination rates are not proportionate. (Lopez, 3/18)

The Bakersfield Californian: More Than 200 Homeless Residents, Workers Vaccinated On Monday 
More than 200 individuals experiencing homelessness and service provider staff received COVID-19 vaccinations on Monday. According to a news release from the Bakersfield Regional Homeless Collaborative, the effort was put forth for those residing and/or working at the four congregate shelters and navigation centers in metro Bakersfield — the Mission at Kern County, Bakersfield Homeless Center, Brundage Lane Navigation Center and M Street Navigation Center. (3/17)

Bay Area News Group: Millions At Risk By Age, Work, Now Out Of California Vaccine Priority 
California made more than 4.4 million people with health risks newly eligible for the scarce COVID-19 vaccine this week, but the state also has quietly dropped millions who are vulnerable to the disease due to their age or occupation from any mention in its priority plan. And many of those 50-64-year-olds and other essential workers facing exposure on the job, are left wondering whether they’ll ever be prioritized, or left to join the mosh pit with everyone else when the U.S. opens the doors to anyone wanting a vaccine, perhaps as early as May. (Woolfolk, 3/18)

Los Angeles Times: New Facebook Tool Aims To Connect People To Vaccines — But Disinformation Is Rampant 
Facebook this week announced a new tool to help connect people to COVID-19 vaccines. Facebook users aren’t so sure. Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s founder and chief executive, said the feature will “help bring 50 million people a step closer to getting COVID-19 vaccines” by showing them when and where they can get vaccinated, and providing links to make appointments. The tool will be housed in a “COVID Information Center” in the news feed on Facebook, and will be featured prominently on Instagram as well. (Smith, 3/17)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Few San Diego County Teachers, Other School Staff Use Vaccine Appointments Reserved For Them 
Vaccinations have been a major sticking point for some schools in reopening. Some teachers unions, such as San Diego Unified’s, said educators would not go back to classrooms until they have the chance to get fully vaccinated. The county recently set aside vaccines and appointments for tens of thousands of school staff members, but less than a third are taking advantage of them — a phenomenon that is puzzling county school officials. (Taketa, 3/18)

Los Angeles Times: Coronavirus Strains From California, U.K. Battle For Dominance 
The grim horse race that is the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic has been reduced to a contest between two tenacious coronavirus strains: a variant native to California and an import from the United Kingdom. New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that the California strain accounted for 13% of all coronavirus samples that were genetically sequenced as part of a new federal program in late February. An additional 7% of the samples were the strain from the U.K. (Healy, 3/17)

Fresno Bee: Are Coronavirus Variants From California More Contagious? 
Two coronavirus variants first discovered in California have advanced to “variants of concern,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency updated its website Tuesday, adding that the new versions — called B.1.427 and B.1.429 — are more contagious, more capable of evading some COVID-19 therapies, and moderately more resistant to antibodies from both natural infection and vaccination than the original coronavirus strain. (Camero, 3/17)

Los Angeles Times: As L.A. Eyes Orange COVID Tier, Are More Reopenings Coming?
A wave of reopenings has recently washed over California. Could more be around the corner? In Los Angeles County, which only days ago moved into the red tier for the first time since the state unveiled its four-category color-coded coronavirus reopening blueprint, officials are already eyeing the possibility of further advancement. (Money, 3/17)

Fresno Bee: Fresno Health Inspectors Tipped Off Foster Farms About State COVID Inspection, Emails Show
Last December, during the biggest known COVID-19 workplace outbreak in Fresno County, public health officials said they were investigating Foster Farms’ chicken processing plant in southeast Fresno. But dozens of emails obtained by The Fresno Bee through a Public Records Act request show that during the outbreak at the South Cherry Avenue plant that infected hundreds, health officials tipped off company executives about a Cal/OSHA inspection, coordinated media talking points during the crisis, withheld information from the public and issued no COVID-related corrective actions. (Tobias, 3/17)

CalMatters: Safety Protocols Still Contested As Schools Plan To Reopen
A majority of California’s largest school districts plan on bringing students and teachers back on campuses by early April, even as local officials grapple with state social distancing requirements they say are unclear and limit kids’ in-person options. Rapidly declining case rates and teacher vaccinations have drastically changed California’s reopening landscape after a year of most K-12 campuses staying closed. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday that 9,000 of the state’s schools — an “overwhelming majority” — are either open for some in-person instruction or will be by next month. As of Tuesday, 88% of Californians lived in counties that now allow in-person instruction for middle and high school students. (Cano, 3/17)

San Francisco Chronicle: Defying Union Leaders, Oakland Teachers Group Protests April Schools Reopening
A group of Oakland teachers protested a plan to bring students back to classrooms starting at the end of the month, calling an agreement between the district and their union “reckless and foolish” unless staff, students and families are vaccinated. The organizers of the Wednesday protest, which included the union reps from individual schools, rather than Oakland Education Association leadership, urged district teachers to vote against the deal, which would have the first students — in preschool through second grade — back in classrooms on March 30, with older elementary students and high-needs students across all grades phased in over the following two weeks. (Bobrowsky and Tucker, 3/17)

CalMatters: California’s COVID Year In Nine Charts
On March 19, 2020 Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a statewide shelter-in-place order. In response to an unprecedented public health threat, it was an equally unprecedented shuttering of day-to-day life. “This is not a permanent state,” Newsom assured us at the time. “This is a moment in time. And we will meet this moment together.” On Friday, that moment will have stretched — and stretched and stretched — into a year.  (Kimelman and Christopher, 3/17)

LA Daily News: LA County Reports Sharp Fall In Coronavirus Among Healthcare Workers 
In another cautiously encouraging sign of the effectiveness of vaccinations and reduced spread of COVID-19, cases among Los Angeles County healthcare workers are at their lowest level of the pandemic, the county’s public health chief reported Wednesday, March 17. “Since late December, when healthcare workers began to be vaccinated, we have seen their cases plummet,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer during a briefing Wednesday. “These are the small numbers of weekly cases that we’ve seen among healthcare workers in the pandemic.” (Carter, 3/17)

The Bakersfield Californian: Heart Hospital To Hold COVID-19 Memorial On Thursday Evening 
Bakersfield Heart Hospital will host a COVID-19 Memorial today to recognize frontline caregivers, patients and those who have been lost during the past year’s pandemic. According to a news release from the hospital, the memorial will be held from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. at the hospital’s headquarters, 3001 Sillect Ave. The event will be a socially-distanced drive-in with guest speakers including Mayor Karen Goh, Director of Respiratory Therapy Brian Pasqua and Heart Hospital CEO Michelle Oxford. (3/13)

The Bakersfield Californian: Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital Offering Signing Bonuses For Nurses, Therapists 
Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital will hold a career fair from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at their facility located at 5201 White Lane. The company is hiring for the positions of floor RN, intake/admissions RN and Therapist III (LCSW) and sign-on bonuses will be offered to qualifying RNs hired for full-time work. (3/17)

LA Daily News: Heightened Focus On Health Departments Has Some LA County Cities Wanting To Create Their Own 
As the coronavirus transformed from nascent oddity to deadly pandemic early last year, a previously obscure government agency rose to newfound prominence: Local health departments. Thousands of frightened people tuned in regularly to hear public health officials discuss the latest developments of the virus and its spread. Those officials offered safety guidelines and blunt warnings. In turn, they became household names. (Munguia and Bermont, 3/18)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Healthcare District Will Award 44 Scholarships To High School Students 
Grossmont Healthcare District on Friday will award 44 scholarships to students from 22 East County high schools for the 2020-21 school year. The district is a public agency that supports health-related community programs and services in East County. Its five-member board of directors are set to approve more than $108,000 in scholarships at the March 19 Grossmont Healthcare District Board meeting. (Pearlman, 3/17)

San Diego Union-Tribune: 3 San Diego County Firms Named Winners In $6M XPRIZE Rapid COVID Testing Contest 
Well-known technology contest organizer XPRIZE named five winning teams in its $6 million Rapid COVID Testing competition on Tuesday — and three of them are from San Diego County. ChromaCode and Reliable-LFC, both of Carlsbad, joined the La Jolla Institute for Immunology as local winners in the challenge, which aimed to spark development of “radically affordable,” accurate COVID testing platforms with turnaround times of no more than 12 hours from sample to result. (Freeman, 3/17)

Los Angeles Times: Work From Home During COVID-19 Takes A Physical Toll 
Lindy Burns had every intention of getting a proper desk and chair after the pandemic forced her to start working from home. As a yoga therapy clinic owner, she understands the importance of posture more than most. A year later, “I tend to work a lot in the bed or on the floor using the bed as a desk,” Burns, 38, said. “I’m basically in a deep hip flexion all the time, and it’s really causing pain and strain at the hamstrings. ”For many who have been working remotely since March 2020, the home office never truly became one — just a makeshift setup meant to suffice for a few weeks or so. At which point life would surely be back to normal, right? (Chang, 3/18)