Latest From California Healthline:
KFF Health News Original Stories
The Inside Story Of How The Bay Area Got Ahead Of The COVID-19 Crisis
An early morning text. A lawyer-filled meeting on a Sunday afternoon. Emotional journal entries. And, ultimately, action. In the 24 hours before San Francisco Bay Area public health officials issued the country’s first stay-at-home order, they debated how to tackle the alarming rise in COVID-19 infections. Their decision set the course for the nation. (Angela Hart and Anna Maria Barry-Jester, 4/21)
Newsom Stands Firm On Restrictions Amid Pressure From Local Leaders, Protesters: Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday acknowledged that pressure from Californians and local governments is building to modify the statewide stay-at-home order carried out to stem to spread of the coronavirus, but he said restrictions will remain in place until the threat to public health subsides and adequate testing and other safeguards are implemented. A bipartisan group of elected officials from San Luis Obispo County on Monday asked Newsom to grant them the “authority to implement a phased reopening of our local economy,” a request that comes just days after Ventura County officials modified a stay-at-home order to permit some businesses to reopen and some gatherings to take place.
Newsom said he “deeply understands people’s anxieties” but that the state must have a “health-first focus if we’re ultimately going to come back economically.”
Protesters, largely without masks, tightly converged on the steps of the state capitol on Monday with signs calling for Gov. Gavin Newsom to “End the Lockdown!! Stop the Tyranny!!” The protest in Sacramento followed similar rallies in San Diego and Huntington Beach and was one of a growing number of demonstrations that have cropped up in both red and blue states across the nation in recent days.
Read more from Phil Willon of the Los Angeles Times; Alexei Koseff of the San Francisco Chronicle; Maggie Angst of the Bay Area News Group; and Sam Stanton and Hannah Wiley of the Sacramento Bee.
In Los Angeles, Antibody Testing Suggests Coronavirus Cases Could Be 40 Times Higher Than Official Count: The initial results from the first large-scale study tracking the spread of the coronavirus in Los Angeles County found that 4.1% of adults have antibodies to the virus in their blood, an indication of past exposure. That translates to roughly 221,000 to 442,000 adults who have recovered from an infection, once margin of error is taken into account, according to the researchers conducting the study. The county had reported fewer than 8,000 cases at that time. The findings suggest the fatality rate may be much lower than previously thought. But although the virus may be more widespread, the infection rate still falls far short of herd immunity that, absent a vaccine, would be key to return to normal life. Read more from Melanie Mason of the Los Angeles Times.
Below, check out the full round-up of California Healthline original stories, state coverage and the best of the rest of the national news for the day.
More News From Across The State
Bay Area News Group:
Gov. Newsom: No 'Downward Trend,' Yet, Death Toll Hits 1,200
Gov. Gavin Newsom said more than 1,200 people in California who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus have died. During his Monday press briefing, Newsom said 42 more people died on Sunday, bringing the statewide death toll to 1,208 since California began tracking COVID-19 deaths. Following the state’s deadliest week since the pandemic began, Newsom said California’s curve is bending and “beginning to flatten, but it is still nonetheless rising.” (Crowley, 4/20)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Bay Area Coronavirus Hospital Cases Decline As California’s Slowly Rise
The number of people in Bay Area hospitals with COVID-19 or suspected of having the illness has declined over the past few weeks, a sign that early and aggressive social restrictions in the region may have calmed the spread of the virus, public health experts said. Throughout California, however, the number of people who have tested positive and are in hospitals has continued to climb. (Palomino, 4/20)
Los Angeles Times:
L.A. County Reports Huge Backlog Of Coronavirus Tests
Los Angeles County officials on Monday announced more than 1,400 additional cases of novel coronavirus, a huge number resulting from one laboratory’s backlog of nearly 1,200 positive test results that were conducted between April 7 and 14. “This is a tremendous lag in data reporting,” Barbara Ferrer, director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health, said in announcing the additional cases, which pushed the county’s total above 13,800. (Shalby, Zahniser, Smith and Wigglesworth, 4/20)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Antibody Tests Reveal Coronavirus Spread, But Not Yet Immunity
From Bolinas to Berkeley, Santa Clara County to Los Angeles, and starting next week in San Francisco’s Mission District, thousands of people are being tested for antibodies that will help scientists determine how far the coronavirus has spread across California. But as these tests become more widely used, and more easily accessible to the average consumer, it’s equally important to recognize what they can’t answer just yet: namely, who may be immune to the virus that has infected millions around the world. (Allday and Ravani, 4/21)
Los Angeles Times:
Coronavirus Antibody Blood Tests: States Bid Against Each Other
As debate intensifies about how and when the country can resume regular life, immunity testing widely seen as essential for that reopening is mired in the same competition and chaos that marred earlier diagnostic tests. “It’s already a case of the continuing wild, Wild West,” said David Relman, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Stanford who is on a White House advisory panel on testing. “The sequel is certainly live and in action.” Dozens of companies have rushed tests onto the market that promise to tell users whether they have been exposed to the virus, and therefore may have some kind of immunity. (Chabria, Baumgaertner and Mason, 4/21)
Fresno Bee:
ACLU Asks Gov Newsom For COVID-19 California Demographic Data
California had more than 30,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Monday. But understanding precisely who has been tested and treated remains shrouded in mystery — and is key to ensuring equal access, according to groups urging California for more transparency. (Tobias, 4/20)
CalMatters:
What Coronavirus Pandemic Models Can And Can't Predict
California and the US are using conflicting coronavirus models to guide pandemic planning. Here's why their predictions differ — and why that's not necessarily a bad thing. (Ostrov, 4/20)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: Bay Area Deaths From COVID-19 Surpass 200
The Bay Area pushed past 200 deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic Monday after new deaths caused by the disease were tracked in the South and East bays. With two new deaths announced Monday in Contra Costa County and six more in Santa Clara County, the Bay Area death toll climbed to 207. None of the eight other Bay Area counties recorded additional coronavirus deaths Monday. (Webeck, Hurd and Crowley, 4/20)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Legislators To Gov. Newsom: Start Sharing Details Of Coronavirus Costs
California lawmakers of both political parties have a message for Gov. Gavin Newsom on the state’s coronavirus response: Start sharing full details about what you’re spending. Tensions between Newsom’s administration and lawmakers hung over a hearing at the Capitol in Sacramento on Monday, as Assembly members questioned why they haven’t received more information or been consulted on how the state is spending money to fight the virus. (Gardiner, 4/20)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Coronavirus Crisis: San Francisco Officials Scramble To Make Voting In November’s Election Pandemic-Proof
Covid-19 has changed just about every aspect of our life — and voting in November’s election is likely to look different, too. David Campos, chair of the San Francisco Democratic Party, on Tuesday will ask Mayor London Breed, the Board of Supervisors and elections chief John Arntz to remake the city’s election. (Knight, 4/21)
CalMatters:
Not Enough Patients: Health Clinics Struggle To Stay Open
Community health clinics that serve some of the region’s most vulnerable residents are struggling with how to keep their doors open while patient visits plummet during the coronavirus shelter-in-place mandate. Statewide, patient visits are down by roughly half across California’s network of community clinics and health centers, leading to tens of millions in lost revenue each week. (Hellerstein, 4/20)
Los Angeles Times:
California Unemployment Call Center Slow To Process Claims
California has expanded phone assistance to those filing unemployment insurance claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the state Employment Development Department continues to receive criticism from people who have not been able to get through on jammed lines despite making dozens of calls to the agency. California Labor Secretary Julie Su acknowledged Monday afternoon that jobless Californians were still having a difficult time reaching live representatives for help with their unemployment claims and said her office is working to resolve the issue. (McGreevy, 4/20)
Fresno Bee:
Fresno County Needs Six To 10 Times More COVID-19 Testing
Fresno County should be testing about 1,500 people a day for COVID-19, which is anywhere from six to 10 times more than the number of tests currently being conducted, said Dr. Rais Vohra, the county’s interim health officer. About 150 to 250 Fresno County residents currently are tested for coronavirus each day, Vohra said Monday. Experts recommend 152 people per 100,000 get tested, Vohra said. There are just under 1 million people living in Fresno County. (Calix, 4/20)
Fresno Bee:
Central Valley Coronavirus: Tulare County Confirms 18th Death
Another person has died in Tulare County of illness related to the coronavirus. This is the 18th related death in the county since the outbreak began last month. Tulare County Health and Human Services confirmed the death in its daily update on Monday. The person was over the age of 65. (Tehee, 4/20)
Fresno Bee:
Armed Bandits Steal Drugs From Northeast Fresno Pharmacy
Fresno police are investigating an armed robbery of a pharmacy just after noon Monday in northeast Fresno. Sgt. Eric Hodge said the robbery took place at the Care Pharmacy, just east of Highway 41 on East Bullard Avenue. The two men, at least one of them wielding a firearm, took narcotics and fled the business. No one was reported to have been injured. (Guy, 4/20)
Sacramento Bee:
CA Marijuana Companies Ask For Tax Break, Coronavirus Loans
Cannabis companies may be deemed essential business in California during the coronavirus emergency, but when it comes to support, some in the industry say the state and federal governments have left the them high and dry. The industry is “on the brink of collapsing,” said Jackie McGowan, a consultant who represents the cannabis companies. McGowan said that large, multi-state cannabis operators like Harvest Health and Acreage have begun shuttering their California acquisitions in response to the current crisis. (Sheeler, 4/20)
Sacramento Bee:
Oil Prices Plummeting. That’s Bad News For These CA Workers
One bright spot in the economic turmoil ripping through California has been cheaper gasoline, with pump prices plunging toward levels not seen in more than a decade. But even that consolation prize from the coronavirus pandemic is hurting a significant sector of the Central Valley’s jobs and livelihood. As oil prices sank to historic lows Monday, industry executives said the plunge is generating a wave of layoffs among the thousands of Californians who work in the state’s own oil patch, much of which is located in the San Joaquin Valley. (Kasler, 4/21)
Los Angeles Times:
Bats Linked To Coronavirus, But Can Bats Get It From Humans?
As forensic virologists search to uncover the origins of COVID-19, bats have been fingered as a likely source. Genetic analyses show the virus is very similar to one harbored by Chinese horseshoe bats, and researchers think it’s possible it jumped from those winged mammals to people. But some bat lovers and chiropterologists — scientists who study the flying mammals — are adamant there is no proof. Instead, they’re wringing their hands about the reverse: That people with COVID-19 could spread the disease to their furry, nocturnal housemates. They are particularly worried about already vulnerable North American bat populations, which are being wiped out by white-nose syndrome, a disease caused by a deadly fungus. (4/21)