Latest From California Healthline:
KFF Health News Original Stories
Young People Weigh Pain Of Job Loss Against Risks Of Virus
Young adults are being hit hard in the COVID-19 economy, but many have mixed feelings about losing jobs that might otherwise put them in harm’s way in the midst of the pandemic. (Anna Almendrala, 4/6)
Nursing Homes Have Thousands Of Ventilators That Hospitals Desperately Need
The prospect raises a grim dilemma: Should doctors take people off life support in order to save COVID-19 patients who might recover? (Joanne Faryon, 4/7)
Newsom Confident State Has Enough Ventilators, ICU Beds And Health Workers To Meet Expected Surge: Gov. Gavin Newsom is so confident in the state’s preparedness that he announced California was donating 500 ventilators to the Strategic National Stockpile to deploy in states that need them more, like New York, which has already received ventilators from Oregon, Washington and from China. “We feel confident in our capacity to meet our needs as we support the needs of others,” Newsom said, adding that the ventilators are being “lent” and could be recalled if necessary down the road. The generosity comes in the weeks after California — and other states — launched massive efforts to stockpile medical supplies and personal protective equipment to prepare before a surge of coronavirus patients overwhelmed the Golden State’s hospitals. Read more from Maggie Angst and Emily DeRuy of the Bay Area News Group.
LA Residents Told To Stay Home, Delay Grocery Shopping As County’s Confirmed Cases Climbs Past 6,000: “If you have enough supplies in your home, this would be the week to skip shopping altogether,” said L.A. County Department of Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer. “We cannot underestimate COVID-19, a virus that knows no boundaries, infects people of all ages, and can cause significant illness and death, particularly among people who are elderly or who have underlying serious health conditions.” Statewide, coronavirus cases have surpassed 16,000 with more than 385 dead. But those numbers are a fraction of the toll in New York, the national epicenter of the outbreak, and California is seeing less alarming numbers than some states. Read more from Colleen Shalby, Phil Willon, Hannah Fry and Jacyln Cosgrove of the Los Angeles Times.
In related news:
Los Angeles Times: Southern California Outpacing Bay Area In New Coronavirus Cases. So Where’s The Peak?
Los Angeles Times: All L.A. Residents With Symptoms Can Now Get Coronavirus Tests As Restrictions Are Lifted, Garcetti Says
A Rare Look Inside The Hospital That’s Been Transformed Into A Coronavirus-Only Facility: Because St. Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco had extra space — a well-equipped overflow unit for when patient numbers are high — the decision was made to transform the area into a coronavirus-only location, said Dr. David Klein, the hospital’s president. The hospital offered The San Francisco Chronicle a rare look inside a medical facility treating coronavirus patients. So a reporter and photographer donned protective gear and had a look, though were barred from entering patient rooms. Read more from Mallory Moench.
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
Sacramento Bee:
Who Can Take The Sacramento CA Drive-Thru Coronavirus Test?
Sacramento County’s main drive-through coronavirus testing site has widened its reach to allow anyone with mild symptoms to qualify for free testing - and health officials are encouraging more residents to go online to determine whether they are eligible. The testing has been run by a private clinical research company called Verily - a sister company of Google - at Cal Expo since late March. To date, though, the testing has focused on people at high risk for COVID-19, with an emphasis on healthcare workers and first responders. (Bizjak, 4/6)
Sacramento Bee:
Will COVID-19 Patients Be Treated At Sleep Train Arena?
Sacramento’s shuttered Sleep Train Arena will reopen in two weeks as an emergency field hospital, the latest in a series of coronavirus crisis care centers under construction around California, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Monday. Standing at a podium on the arena floor, Newsom said a 400-bed alternative care center at the former home of the Sacramento Kings will be among a dozen-plus such sites to handle overflow patients in late April and in May when the virus spread is expected to hit its surge moment. (Bollag and Bizjak, 4/6)
Sacramento Bee:
Yuba City CA High School Gyms Will Be Coronavirus Hospitals
Authorities are turning two Yuba City high school gyms into makeshift hospitals as they prepare for the worst-case scenario: a surge of coronavirus patients seeking medical treatment exceeding the capacity of this rural area’s only hospital. The gymnasiums at Yuba City and River Valley high schools were selected as the alternate medical sites, according to a news release from emergency services officials representing Sutter and Yuba counties. (Ahumada, 4/6)
Sacramento Bee:
CA Map Showing How COVID-19 Cases Are Filling Up ICU Beds
California’s intensive care hospital beds are filling up with COVID-19 cases. About 1,085 confirmed and 575 suspected COVID-19 patients were under treatment in California’s ICUs on Sunday, according to the latest figures from the California Department of Public Health. That’s the equivalent of roughly 22 percent of the state’s licensed hospital ICU beds, excluding ICU beds for newborn children. (Reese, 4/6)
CNN:
Los Angeles Crime Plunges During The Coronavirus Stay At Home Order
Los Angeles has seen a 23% drop in crime in the past month as California has been under a stay at home order to fight the spread of coronavirus, the city's police chief said. "People staying home in their neighborhoods, watching out for each other, and exercising social distancing is allowing us to have a safer city," Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore said. (Holcombe, 4/7)
The Associated Press:
U.S. Judge Won't Block Gun Store Closures In Los Angeles
A federal judge on Monday refused to block Los Angeles officials from shutting down gun stores as nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. It’s at least the second time federal judges in California have declined to intervene in shutdown orders even as similar orders are being challenged nationwide. “The closure of nonessential businesses, including firearms and ammunition retailers, reasonably fits the city’s and county’s stated objectives of reducing the spread of this disease,” U.S. District Judge Andre Birotte Jr. wrote in refusing to issue a temporary restraining order. (4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
A Glimmer Of Hope In The Bay Area: New Coronavirus Cases Slowing
Three weeks of sheltering in place have noticeably lessened the impact of the coronavirus in the Bay Area, where the number of new infections is already slowing down even as federal officials warn that other parts of the country may be facing their worst weeks. In other words: That dreaded curve is starting to flatten out, just a little. (Allday, 4/6)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: Apple To Make Millions Of Face Shields For Hospitals
Apple will make millions of face shields and distribute them to hospitals scrambling to find protective gear for doctors and nurses amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a tweeted video, CEO Tim Cook said the tech giant would make a million shields, which provide an extra barrier between health care workers and the droplets that spread the deadly disease, per week and ship them to hospitals around the U.S. and potentially beyond. (Deruy, 4/6)
Sacramento Bee:
Coronavirus: Sacramento Will Produce COVID-19 Ventilators
With the coronavirus pandemic worsening, a little-known Sacramento manufacturer announced a deal Monday to dramatically ramp up production of inexpensive ventilators that could help overwhelmed health care workers treat COVID-19 patients. Vortran Medical Technology of Sacramento said it has licensed its ventilator design to tech giant Xerox Holdings Corp. (Kasler, 4/6)
Los Angeles Times:
L.A. Is Missing Racial Data For Many Coronavirus Deaths
As cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia report stark racial disparities in coronavirus patients and fatalities, Los Angeles County officials say they are scrambling to collect missing data on the race or ethnicity of local victims. The county’s public health director said Monday she was worried by reports from other states that suggested black patients were being infected and dying of COVID-19 in disproportionate numbers, but that missing data prevented her staff from determining if that was happening locally. (Barboza and Serna, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Blood Tests Will Determine Who Has Had Coronavirus — And May Be Immune
Blood tests that determine who’s had the coronavirus — and may have developed immunity to it — could help decide who’s ready to return to work. One being developed at Stanford University may be released as soon as this week, Gov. Gavin Newsom said. (Cabanatuan, 4/6)
Los Angeles Times:
Antibodies From Coronavirus Survivors May Help Current Patients
For 10 patients severely ill with the new coronavirus, a single dose of antibodies drawn from the blood of people who had recovered from COVID-19 appeared to save lives, shorten the duration of symptoms, improve oxygen levels and speed up viral clearance, newly published research reports. (Healy, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Bay Area Coronavirus: How Life Has Changed After 20 Days Of Shelter-In-Place Order
Counties across the Bay Area have ordered residents to shelter in place until at least May 3 as health officials struggle to keep the coronavirus from spreading across the region. Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered all Californians on March 19 to stay home and leave only for essential trips, mirroring the directives that local health officials already had in place. The state order does not supersede the local directives. (Fracassa, 4/6)
KQED:
Bay Area COVID-19 Outbreaks Worsen, Spread In Long-Term Care Homes
In Contra Costa County, the Orinda Care Center now counts at least 51 cases of coronavirus, including a death. Outbreaks have been reported in San Francisco and South Bay county senior care homes, too. Local health departments always advise these facilities about controlling infections; infectious disease like influenza is common. Now coronavirus is forcing them to adapt and challenging response. Contra Costa Deputy Health Officer Dr. Louise McNitt says last year they followed 20 such flu outbreaks, with an 'outbreak' defined by the California Department of Public Health as one confirmed case with the identification of a second confirmed case within 72 hours. (Peterson, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Bay Area Restaurants Pivot To Feed The Homeless During Coronavirus Pandemic
When the Bay Area’s shelter-in-place order came down on March 16, Luka’s Taproom & Lounge owner Rick Mitchell watched his business drop 90% overnight, with a small boost when they created a takeout menu. But the Uptown Oakland restaurant and pub was bustling again Monday with a second name — Luka’s Community Kitchen — and a new mission, working under the umbrella of a nonprofit to feed the unsheltered and vulnerable. (Hartlaub, 4/7)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: Milpitas Opposing County Homeless Shelter Plans
The need to slow the spread of COVID-19 has Santa Clara County Supervisors once again eyeing a plot of vacant land in Milpitas as a possible spot for a temporary homeless shelter, but city officials and some residents are opposing the plans for the second time in less than two years. The Board of Supervisors at its meeting Tuesday morning will consider asking county staff to put together options for opening a temporary shelter at the nearly 6.5-acre county-owned site, and report back to the board on April 21. (Geha, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Two More Homeless People Test Positive, This Time At SF’s Biggest Shelter
Just three days after the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in a homeless person in San Francisco, two more tested positive for the disease Sunday night — this time in the city’s biggest shelter, sending city health officials into a rush to clean the place and determine who else was exposed and needs to be isolated. Residents of the 340-bed Multi-Service Center South shelter were told Sunday night at around 10:30 p.m. about the coronavirus cases. (Fagan, 4/6)
Los Angeles Times:
Coronavirus: L.A. Could Lose 50 Hand-Washing Stations
It was meant to be a simple plan to stave off a coronavirus outbreak among homeless people: install dozens more hand-washing stations and portable toilets on the streets of Los Angeles. Then one day last week, the plan got complicated. An employee of Andy Gump Inc. — a family-owned portable restroom rental company — was doing his job, emptying the wastewater from a hand-washing station in Historic Filipinotown near a needle exchange. (Oreskes, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
SF Downsizes Moscone Shelter’s Coronavirus Mission
Just days after it debuted as a large-scale homeless shelter, San Francisco’s Moscone West will now serve as a smaller operation focused on homeless people who have been tested for the coronavirus. The announcement was made Monday by city officials at a wide-ranging news briefing that captured how the city is scrambling on multiple fronts: to respond to the pressures already unleashed by COVID-19, and to keep the number of cases from surging out of control. (King, 4/6)
Fresno Bee:
CA Coronavirus Stimulus Checks: Who Gets Money, Who Doesn’t?
While about 85 percent of all California tax filers — a total of 14 million households — should see federal stimulus benefits starting later this week, a lot of people won’t get the instant cash right away. That could include people with newborn babies, certain college students and immigrants, divorced parents and others who in some cases will eventually get the cash and others who will not. They need to check with their tax preparers or the Internal Revenue Service. (Lightman, 4/7)
Fresno Bee:
Fresno-Area Mayor Warns Of Coronavirus Exposure At Party
A wedding party last week in a small Fresno County farming town set off a public health investigation after reports surfaced that guests may have been exposed to a person who tested positive for the coronavirus. According to Huron Mayor Rey Leon, the wedding party was held March 28 at an apartment complex in the city, despite the state ban on large gatherings to slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. (Rodriguez-Delgado, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Six Bay Area Counties Ban Use Of Reusable Bags At Grocery Stores
Six Bay Area counties are requiring grocery stores to ban reusable bags, pausing the environment-friendly policy that did away with single-use plastic bags, as pressing health concerns arise amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, San Francisco and Santa Clara counties tightened and extended their shelter-in-place orders until May 3. (Narayan, 4/7)
Fresno Bee:
Fresno Reports Second Coronavirus Death. Valley Has 11
The second Fresno County death related to coronavirus was reported by health officials Monday, in addition to 16 new infections. Eleven people total have died from the respiratory illness COVID-19 in the central San Joaquin Valley’s five counties: Fresno, Kings, Madera, Merced and Tulare. Fresno County’s new cases push the total to 124 positive patients, according to Dr. Rais Vohra, the interim health officer for Fresno County Department of Public Health. (Miller, 4/6)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: San Mateo County Nears 600 COVID-19 Cases
San Mateo County reported 24 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 579. For the second consecutive day, county officials did not report any new fatalities from COVID-19, leaving the total at 13. Eight of the 13 people in San Mateo County who have died after contracting the novel coronavirus were at least 80 years old. The county’s deaths skew toward the oldest generations, but people aged 49 or younger have accounted for more than 50 percent of the confirmed cases in the county. (Crowley and Kelliher, 4/6)
Bay Area News Group:
Coronavirus: Santa Clara County COVID-19 Death Toll Hits 42
Santa Clara County public health officials are reporting 1,224 people have now tested positive for the novel coronavirus as new data released by the Public Health Department on Monday confirmed 17 new cases and three additional COVID-19-related deaths. The countywide COVID-19 death toll has reached 42. More than 50 percent of the deaths (22 of 42) have occurred in the last 10 days. (Crowley, 4/6)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Coronavirus: Patient Dies At Orinda Nursing Home As Cases Grow To 49
Forty-nine people at an Orinda nursing facility, including 27 patients, have tested positive for the coronavirus, and one resident in hospice who had previously tested positive has died, officials said Monday. The number of cases Monday at the Orinda Care Center was nearly double the 27 positive tests reported Friday. The 22 new positive cases were among staff members, prompting concern among some about the facility’s ability to provide adequate care. (Serrano and Bauman, 4/6)
The Associated Press:
PG&E's $13.5-Billion Deal With Wildfire Victims Is In Jeopardy
Lawyers who negotiated a crucial $13.5-billion deal for the victims of deadly wildfires caused by PG&E Corp. equipment are expressing serious doubts about whether the nation’s largest utility will be able to pay the full amount now that a recession is expected to hit the economy. The red flag raised in court documents filed Monday threatens to derail PG&E’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy this summer before Northern California’s wildfire season enters its most dangerous period. (4/6)