LA Schools Voting Today On Vaccine Requirement For Students: All Los Angeles public school children 12 and older would have to be fully vaccinated by January to enter campus — sooner for students involved in many extracurricular activities — under a proposal to be voted on Thursday by the Board of Education. Read more from the Los Angeles Times, LA Daily News, The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Lawmakers Miss Deadline For New Vaccine Mandates: California’s progressive state Legislature has shelved bills aimed at requiring workers to either be vaccinated or get weekly coronavirus testing to keep their jobs. “We unfortunately ran out of time,” Assemblyman Evan Low said. Bills had to be introduced by Wednesday for lawmakers to vote on them this year. Read more from AP and 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
CapRadio:
Butte County Residents May See A Return To Indoor Mask Mandates
Butte County residents could see the return of an indoor mask mandate as local coronavirus cases continue to surge. Public Health Director Danette York said the county’s health officer has the authority to issue mask mandates but said health officials have chosen to discuss the matter with the Board of Supervisors and health care providers before deciding. (9/8)
Daily Breeze:
OC Sheriff Reminds Jail Workers Of Vaccine Mandate As Union Opposes
Orange County Sheriff’s Department employees who work in jails where health care is provided must be fully vaccinated or submit a form requesting exemption due to religious or medical reasons by Oct. 14, according to a statewide health order released last month. In a memo sent to all employees Tuesday, Sept. 7, Sheriff Don Barnes reiterated the Aug. 19 order, which he said applies to all deputies and their supervisors who work in the Men’s and Women’s Central Jails, the Inmate Reception Center and the Theo Lacy Facility. He also stressed the importance of adhering to the order. (Percy, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
When Will COVID Restrictions Be Lifted In The Bay Area? Not Anytime Soon, Experts Say
With coronavirus cases showing early signs of tapering down in much of the Bay Area and companies moving ahead on plans to get workers back in the office, a big question remains: When will the latest set of pandemic restrictions be lifted? The answer is vague regionwide, but San Francisco health officer Dr. Susan Philip on Wednesday said that officials are assessing ways to eventually ease some rules, such as mask mandates for places of business, and are encouraged by the “really high rates of vaccination” in the city. (Vaziri, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
California Could Restrict Protests Outside Vaccination Sites
While hundreds protested at the state Capitol against coronavirus vaccine mandates, lawmakers voted Wednesday to make it a crime to obstruct vaccination sites. Unrelated to the rally happening outside, SB742 would make it illegal to approach anyone within 100 feet of entering or exiting a vaccination site with the purpose of harassing, intimidating or preventing them from obtaining medical services. (Koseff, 9/8)
Sacramento Bee:
NFL Fans Who Regularly Go To Games Want COVID Vaccine Mandate
This week marks the return of regular-season football, and NFL team owners are itching to get fans back in stadium seats to recover from the financial beating the league took last year thanks to COVID-19. But how do fans feel? In a new poll conducted by Morning Consult, 54% of those who commonly attend games “would be more interested in going to a game this season if all fans were required to present proof of vaccination against COVID-19.” (Macias, 9/8)
Modesto Bee:
COVID Cases For Children At Highest Number Since Pandemic Began
Children now make up over a quarter of the country’s weekly COVID-19 cases, according to data released this week by the American Academy of Pediatrics. As of Sept. 2, over 5 million children had tested positive for COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic, representing 15.1% of all cases, the AAP said. About 252,000 new cases were added last week, marking the largest number of child cases since the pandemic began. (Ravikumar, 9/8)
Bay Area News Group:
Contra Costa County Official: COVID Could Last '5 To 10 Years'
Noting that 20 people died from COVID-19 in Contra Costa County during the past week, a health official has warned that the virus’ deadly toll could continue over the “next 5 to 10 years” if more people don’t get fully vaccinated. “We expect that there will be additional surges and variants,” Randy Sawyer, deputy director at Contra Costa Health Services, told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. (Mukherjee, 9/8)
Sacramento Bee:
Yolo County Sheriff Reports First COVID-19 Outbreak At Jail
The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday announced an outbreak of COVID-19 at its jail, the first time since the pandemic began last year that coronavirus has spread to the inmate population housed in Woodland. On Tuesday, an inmate became ill and tested positive for COVID-19, according to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office. All other inmates, except those who refused, were immediately tested. (Ahumada, 9/8)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Pandemic Shows Signs Of Slowing In San Diego
Amid fresh signs that the pandemic is slowing, the county health department confirmed that 43 infections related to the Mu coronavirus variant have been detected in the region, going all the way back to April. San Diego County posted its most positive coronavirus report in weeks Wednesday, reporting four straight days with new case totals under 1,000 and Monday’s total at 519, the lowest single-day number reported since July. (Sisson, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
These Numbers Show The Bay Area's Delta Surge May Be Waning - But It's Unclear If They Will Hold
The Bay Area may be seeing the first signs that the delta surge is finally waning after upending what was supposed to be a summer of relative pandemic freedom. But public health experts warn that this fourth wave is unlike any other the region has seen so far, and it’s too soon to say how fast it will ebb or whether the current downward trends will hold, with children back in school and holidays and other events on the horizon that could drive up cases once again. This winter could see another uptick, and vaccination rates may not reach high enough levels to substantially curb the pandemic until early next year, experts say. (Allday, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
What Iceland's Delta Surge Means For The COVID Outlook In San Francisco
San Francisco, which for more than a year had been relatively successful in curbing the pandemic compared to the rest of California and the U.S., struggled against the delta variant —with case rates at one point in early August surpassing the U.S. average and some other Bay Area counties. Iceland, which had been a global pandemic standout and a popular destination for travelers from the U.S., also saw a spike from delta. With the curve now declining again in both regions, experts see common threads in the way the delta variant took hold in San Francisco and Iceland — and say the comparison holds lessons for health officials, and indications of how the pandemic may be managed as more variants arise. (Hwang, 9/8)
City News Service:
Count It: 9 Days In A Row COVID-19 Hospitalizations Drop In Los Angeles County
Hospitalizations due to COVID-19 dropped for a ninth straight day Wednesday, Sept. 8 in Los Angeles County, while the number of virus outbreaks in non-school settings also dipped from last week, but another 49 COVID deaths were reported Wednesday. The new fatalities lifted the county’s overall death toll from the pandemic to 25,514. The county reported another 2,006 coronavirus infections, raising the overall pandemic total to 1,423,620. (9/8)
Orange County Register:
Cornavirus: Rate Of New Cases Continues To Decline, Orange County Reported 338 New Cases On Sept. 8
The OC Health Care Agency reported 338 new cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday, Sept. 8, increasing the cumulative total since tracking began in the county to 288,939. The seven-day average of 405 new daily cases is down 47.7% from an Aug. 11 high of 774 a day. (Goertzen, 9/8)
Modesto Bee:
COVID-19 Death Rate Slows In Stanislaus. Hospital Cases Drop
Reported deaths to COVID-19 slowed over the Labor Day weekend in Stanislaus County, which also saw a drop in hospital cases. Only five deaths were added in Tuesday’s update by the county Health Services Agency, which included the long weekend. The three previous days last week brought 26 deaths as the delta variant continued to rage. (Holland, 9/8)
Los Angeles Times:
California COVID Cases Surge In Central Valley Hospitals
The summer coronavirus surge caused by the highly contagious Delta variant is showing signs of slowing in some parts of California but worsening in others. The Central Valley is becoming California’s COVID-19 hot spot, with hospitals filling and health officials raising alarms, saying things could get worse before they get better. (Lin II and Money, 9/8)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Kern Public Health: 555 New COVID-19 Cases, 1 New Death Reported Wednesday
Kern County Public Health reported 555 new coronavirus cases and one new death on Wednesday. Since the start of the pandemic, 129,325 Kern County residents have been infected with COVID-19 and 1,486 have died. As of Wednesday, 331 patients were hospitalized with coronavirus in Kern County, 2 more than the day before. A total of 68 patients were being treated in the ICU, three fewer than the prior day. (9/8)
Modesto Bee:
Yosemite To End Park Entrance Reservation Plan Despite COVID
Yosemite National Park is on track to end its day-use reservation system at the end of this month. Yosemite said the temporary system would only be in place through Sept. 30, “or until local public health conditions improve” due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, when it reinstated the reservation system earlier this year. Yosemite’s website still states the same. (Kohlruss, 9/8)
Capital & Main:
As COVID Assistance Ends, A Nightmare Scenario Unfolds For Many Californians
Federal unemployment assistance is grinding to a halt even as California’s unemployment figures remain well above the national average. The state’s own eviction moratorium nears its scheduled end, while hundreds of thousands of households behind on their rent struggle to access the relief they were initially promised. The pandemic’s first wave, 18 months ago, was foremost a health crisis. What California is experiencing now, with caseloads again on the rise but public assistance for those still dealing with COVID-related job loss coming to an end, is more a multidimensional problem — and the fraying of the state’s safety net is about to be put on full display. (Kreidler, 9/8)
Los Angeles Times:
COVID Vaccinations Lagging Despite Full Pfizer FDA Approval
Scientists and officials have long hoped full government approval of a COVID-19 vaccine would help allay stubborn concerns about the shots’ safety and perhaps trigger a new boost in inoculations among those who have been hesitant to roll up their sleeves. But so far, there hasn’t been an obvious uptick — nationally or in California — following the Food and Drug Administration’s full approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for people 16 and older, according to a Times analysis. (Lin II and Money, 9/8)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
A New San Diego Biotech Bets Big On RNA Medicines
Replicate Bioscience emerged from stealth mode on Wednesday with an ambitious vision for how RNA treatments can combat cancer, autoimmune disease and inflammatory disorders. It’s a goal that seems more attainable after the success of Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines, according to Nathaniel Wang, Replicate’s CEO. Both shots use RNA to teach the immune system to mount a response against the coronavirus and have been shown to be safe and effective in hundreds of millions of people. (Wosen, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Tracking Coronavirus Cases In San Francisco Public Schools
The Chronicle is tracking every reported coronavirus case in the San Francisco Unified School District, which reopened to more than 50,000 students on Aug. 16. The data is based on cases self-reported to the district by students and staff, as well as tests offered by SFUSD through Color Health. San Francisco reported no in-school transmission after some schools reopened in the spring, but whether that will hold with the delta variant isn't yet known. The limits of contract tracing mean district and health officials might not know for sure in some cases. (9/8)
CalMatters:
Independent Study Laws Poised For Makeover
State lawmakers are scrambling to craft a better solution for COVID-quarantined students — after schools and parents complained that recent changes to independent study laws were leaving them in the lurch. “Independent study has been a nightmare this year,” said Terri Rufert, superintendent at Sundale Union Elementary School District in Tulare. “This seems to help us a little bit.” (Hong, 9/8)
Bay Area News Group:
Distance Learning Was A Fail, But With COVID Up, These Bay Area Parents Want It Back
Even in the heart of Silicon Valley whose technological wonders made it possible, the online “distance learning” that substituted for sending kids to school during the pandemic proved so unpopular that Cupertino parents mounted a recall drive against their school board president. State officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is also facing a recall vote this month, got the message and canceled online K12 classes, leaving only an “independent study” home-school option for those who didn’t want to send their kids back to class. In many districts, those programs now have long waiting lists. (Woolfolk, 9/9)
EdSource:
How California’s State Universities Are Tracking Campus Covid-19 Cases
All across the state, the University of California and California State University campuses have created Covid-19 data dashboards that include details about case rates among students, staff and faculty. However, dashboard details vary from campus to campus. In some cases, the dashboards include data on vaccination rates and the number of students who are in isolation and quarantine. But others may only have one sentence or a data point showing the number of confirmed Covid cases on their campuses. (Smith and Burke, 9/8)
Voice of OC:
A Return To Campus For Orange County College Students Filled With Outbreaks, Hard Lessons
Orange County’s college and K-12 school students have largely come back to campus over the last two weeks while educators make in-person learning the norm again — and in many cases, an unwavering requirement. At major local colleges like Chapman University, Cal State Fullerton (CSUF) and the University of California, Irvine (UCI), which has yet to start classes, students numbering in the tens of thousands are being told to come into class physically — with some varying remote learning accommodations — while differing Covid-19 data from each university gives differing pictures of student safety. (Pho, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Flex Alert Extended To Thursday, With Heat Wave Expected To Pressure California's Power Grid
California’s electric grid operator extended a statewide Flex Alert from Wednesday to Thursday from 4 to 9 p.m. on each day, calling for people to conserve energy during an expected heat wave. The California Independent System Operator has predicted that consumers will strain the state’s power grid by using air conditioning systems to cool down from triple-digit temperatures across much of the state. (Shaikh Rashad, 9/8)
KQED:
Feeling The Heat: How Outdoor Workers Can Advocate For Safer Conditions On The Job
In California, employers are legally required to provide all outdoor workers with four things to prevent heat-related illness: access to fresh water, shade, breaks and an emergency response plan. But Ignacio says his employer, who supplies the cart, does not provide him with these protections. Bringing this up isn’t so easy either, Ignacio points out. He works informally — he doesn't have a contract and is not on any official payroll — and has previously avoided these types of conversations with his boss. (Cabrera-Lomelí, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
How One Foil-Wrapped Home Survived The Caldor Fire As Everything Around It Burned
When the voracious Caldor Fire raced through the forested Phillips Tract near Sierra-at-Tahoe, it destroyed dozens of cabins but spared a couple. One was wrapped in what looks like aluminum foil, prompting some to describe it as a giant baked potato or an oversized plate of leftovers. However odd that may sound, wrapping buildings with what are known as fire blankets or aluminized structure wrap can foil the flames of a wildfire. (Cabanatuan, 9/8)
Bay Area News Group:
Alameda County Faces Court Decree To Improve Jail’s Treatment Of Inmates With Mental Health Issues
Almost three years after a federal class-action lawsuit alleged Santa Rita Jail conditions were so terrible that suicidal people were stripped naked and stuffed in solitary cells with only a toilet hole, the plaintiffs’ attorneys say a settlement has been reached that would put the jail under a microscope. If the court approves the settlement later this year, it would issue a consent decree forcing Alameda County to make significant changes to Santa Rita Jail over the next two years. (Sciacca, 9/8)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
San Diego Sheriff, County Health Department Will Coordinate Care In Jails
The Sheriff’s Department struck an agreement with the San Diego Health and Human Services Agency to work together to improve healthcare for people incarcerated in the county’s seven jails, officials announced Wednesday. Under a memorandum of understanding the agencies aim to meet or exceed national standards for physical and behavioral health services, which include mental health and substance abuse treatment. They also will help people receive community care once they leave jail, which could reduce their risk of returning, officials said. (Brennan, 9/8)
Orange County Register:
Why Is Human DNA Seeping Into The Sea Near The San Clemente Pier?
On any given day, surfers are paddling out near the San Clemente Pier to catch waves, a popular seaside destination that also draws locals and tourists who splash around in the saltwater. But in those waters is something that’s not supposed to be there: human DNA, aka human waste. City officials are trying to solve the mystery of where it is coming from so they can prevent the contaminants from ever hitting the sea. (Connelly, 9/8)
Modesto Bee:
Algae Test Results Where CA Family Found Dead In Sierra
Few clues have been shared by investigators working to determine how a family and their dog died a little over three weeks ago while hiking in Sierra National Forest, in a remote section of Mariposa County southwest of Yosemite National Park. Known harmful algae blooms in the south fork of the Merced River, near where the family was mysteriously found dead along the Savage-Lundy Trail in Devil’s Gulch, are among the hazards being considered. (Kohlruss, 9/8)
Bay Area News Group:
Apple Homeless Camp: Neighbors Push Back Against San Jose RV Park
Some San Jose residents are up in arms over a new RV park intended to be a safe haven for homeless people displaced from an encampment on Apple’s property. The parking lot, San Jose’s first city-sponsored safe RV parking site, opened this week after the tech giant moved quickly to dismantle a large homeless camp on its vacant Component Drive property in North San Jose. But neighbors near the lot that is nestled between pricey apartments, attractive townhomes and a community park say they were blindsided by its arrival. (Kendall, 9/8)
Voice of OC:
Does OC’s Homelessness Commission Actually Do Anything? Activists Say It’s Hopelessly Conflicted
Community activists are criticizing Orange County’s homelessness commission for not suggesting any action — and instead talking largely about rescheduling meetings to be more convenient for themselves – while being made up of people who depend on the county for funding. The commission cancelled most of their meetings over the last year amid a majority of commissioners failing to show up, which happened again at their July meeting. (Gerda, 9/7)
Voice of OC:
Santa Ana Officials May Get Stricter With Affordable Housing Requirements On Developers
Santa Ana officials could be moving closer toward prioritizing affordable housing in the city over luxury development. A City Council majority under Mayor Vicente Sarmiento appears poised to reverse a prior relaxation of the Housing Opportunity Ordinance, a city law requiring certain housing projects to either create affordable units on site or pay into a fund reserved for building affordable housing elsewhere. (Pho, 9/8)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
San Diego County On Track To Build More Homes This Year
The pace of homebuilding in the county ticked up 25 percent in the first half of the year, putting it on track to build more housing than it has in 15 years. At the current pace, it is possible builders could exceed 10,000 homes this year — something that hasn’t happened since 2006. (Molnar, 9/8)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Prosecutors Say Theranos Founder Elizabeth Holmes Lied. Her Defense Claims Failures, Not Fraud
The trial of Elizabeth Holmes, founder and CEO of failed startup Theranos, began Wednesday at the Robert F. Peckham Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in San Jose in a rare legal reckoning for Silicon Valley’s growth-at-all costs culture. “This is a case about fraud, about lying and cheating to get money,” said Robert Leach, an assistant U.S. attorney, in the prosecution’s opening remarks. (Li, 9/8)
Bay Area News Group:
Theranos' Holmes' Trial Opens: Greedy Liar Or Naive Innovator?
As Elizabeth Holmes’ high-profile criminal fraud trial opened in San Jose on Wednesday, a federal prosecutor painted her as a greedy liar who sold investors and patients on technology she knew didn’t work, while a lawyer for Holmes described an innovator who devoted her life to revolutionizing health care but made some mistakes. During the next three months as testimony unfolds in U.S. District Court, jurors will have to decide whether Holmes, as prosecutor Robert Leach claimed, had been “lying and cheating to get money” or whether, as defense attorney Lance Wade argued, she “worked herself to the bone for 15 years trying to make lab testing cheaper and more accessible.” The trial, focusing on Silicon Valley’s most infamous failed startup, has drawn interest around the globe, with Holmes’ story generating two documentaries, a best-selling book and an upcoming movie starring Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence. (Baron, 9/8)
AP:
Elizabeth Holmes Drawn As Villain, Underdog As Trial Begins
Prosecutors and defense attorneys sketched dueling portraits of fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes as her trial got underway Wednesday, alternatively describing her as a greedy villain who faked her way to the top and as a passionate underdog whose spent years trying to shake up the health care industry. The two sides are now expected to spend the next three months trying to sway a 12-person jury impaneled to hearing the evidence in a case airing allegations that Holmes used her startup, Theranos, as a scheme to realize her dreams of becoming rich and as famous as one of her role models, late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. (Liedtke, 9/8)