KQED: A New Dominant Omicron Strain In The US Is Driving Up Cases — And Reinfections
For much of the pandemic, the only silver lining to coming down with a case of COVID-19 was that you likely wouldn't catch it again for a while (though there isn't exactly a definitive answer on how long that period immunity typically lasts). Increasingly, however, more people appear to be contracting the virus multiple times in relatively quick succession, as another omicron subvariant sweeps through the U.S. (Treisman, 7/11)

Palm Springs Desert Sun: COVID-19: Cases, Hospitalizations Will Likely Continue To Grow In Riverside County, Coachella Valley
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to increase in Riverside County and the Coachella Valley as variants spread throughout the country, and numbers are likely to rise for the next few weeks. (Sasic, 7/11)

Los Angeles Daily News: LA County Reports 18,158 New COVID-19 Cases, 39 Deaths Since Saturday 
Los Angeles County confirmed more than 18,000 new COVID-19 cases since Saturday, the Department of Public Health reported on Monday, July 11, continuing the near-daily stark reminder of the virus’s transmissibility as the countywide indoor mask mandate gets closer to being reinstated. (Hutchings, 7/11)

Reuters: U.S. CDC Plans To Improve International Air Contact Tracing Data Collection 
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will take steps to improve collection of international air passenger contact information to better monitor public health risks after a report found the current data system "needs substantial improvement." ... The report said the CDC's current data management system developed in the mid-2000s "was not designed for rapid assessment or aggregation of public health data" and the CDC "is unable to quickly and accurately identify the number of passengers exposed to a specific infected passenger on a flight." (Shepardson, 7/11)

Bay Area News Group: VTA Driver Threatened "Some Shooting" Over Vaccine Mandate, Police Report Says
A newly obtained sheriff’s report indicates that a South Bay bus driver promised last month that there would be “some shooting” if he was fired for not meeting the Valley Transportation Authority’s vaccine mandate. (Kamisher and Greschler, (7/12)

Politico: Biden Administration Discussing Covid Boosters For Everyone 
Top Biden administration officials are weighing a plan to let all adults get a second round of coronavirus booster shots, two people with knowledge of the matter told POLITICO. The deliberations stem from growing concerns over the potential for a summer Covid surge driven by the more transmissible Omicron subvariant BA.5, as hospitalizations rise nationwide. ... Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only recommends that people over 50 and those who are immunocompromised get additional boosters. So far, fewer than 28 percent of Americans in that age group have received their second booster. (Cancryn, 7/11)

CIDRAP: US Buys 3.2 Million Doses Of Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine
The Biden administration announced this morning that it would buy 3.2 million doses of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected to soon receive authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, according to a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) news release. The protein-based vaccine would be offered as a primary series of two shots. If approved, it will be the fourth COVID-19 vaccine available to US adults. (7/11)

Sacramento Bee: Monkeypox Outbreak: Sacramento CA Reports 9th, 10th Cases
Local health officials have detected two more probable cases of monkeypox in Sacramento County, the ninth and 10th infections since the county’s outbreak began in late May. No additional information was immediately available regarding the two most recent cases. A data tracker from the county health on Monday showed the total increase from eight to 10. (McGough, 7/11)

The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat: Three Cases Of Monkeypox Detected In Sonoma County
Monkeypox, a rare, viral disease that occurs mostly in central and western Africa but is gaining ground in the United States and elsewhere, has finally reached Sonoma County. (Espinoza, 7/11)

USA Today: US Says Hospitals Must Provide Abortions In Cases Of Emergency
The Biden administration put health care providers on notice Monday that they must provide stabilizing care to pregnant patients and perform an abortion if the mother's life is at risk, even when the procedure is illegal in the state where they practice. The Department of Health and Human Services issued guidance to hospitals and doctors reminding them of their obligations to stabilize patients in emergency situations. (Collins, 7/11)

San Francisco Chronicle: It Was A Secret Road Map For Breaking The Law To Get An Abortion. Now, ‘The List’ And Its Tactics Are Resurfacing
She flew to San Francisco in June 1968 to meet a friend who knew someone who knew someone. Karen L. was 24 and eight weeks pregnant, arriving from Los Angeles. The woman picked her up at San Francisco International and carefully explained what to do next. There was a phone number; there was a code phrase. From the friend’s apartment, Karen dialed the number and spoke the phrase: “Patricia Maginnis sent me.” (Fagone and Bordas, 7/10)

Sacramento Bee: University Of California Nurses Get Big Raises In New Contract 
Roughly 17,000 registered nurses at University of California health systems, including those at UC Davis, voted to ratify a labor contract that provides wage increases of 16% across the board over three years, their union announced Monday. The California Nurses Association also secured additional wage increases for the nurses at UC San Diego and UC Irvine as part of a push to reduce regional wage disparities within the UC system. (Anderson, 7/11)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Vista Community Clinic Launches Mobile Wellness Vehicle 
The Vista Community Clinic is taking more health and wellness services on the road. The organization, which provides health care services in North County, is launching a new mobile wellness vehicle to broaden services and expand access. (Hicks, 7/11)

Palm Springs Desert Sun: Borrego Health Announces Rose MacIsaac As Interim CEO
The Borrego Community Health Foundation Board announced Monday that Rose MacIsaac will succeed Dr. Edgar Bulloch to serve as interim CEO. (Trombino, 7/11)

Voice Of San Diego: Young Men In Military Almost Twice As Likely To Die By Suicide As Civilian Peers 
Historically, military suicide rates have been much lower than the general population. But the rate has been rising in recent years – especially among young men. In its 2019 Annual Suicide Report, the Department of Defense acknowledged that young military members are at “higher risk for suicide.” But the annual reports do not provide age and gender specific breakdowns in a way that allow for age-specific comparisons like Voice performed. (Huntsberry, 7/11)

The Wall Street Journal: One In Six Calls To National Suicide Prevention Lifeline End Without Reaching A Counselor
Health officials preparing to broaden the reach of a national mental-health crisis line are working to strengthen an overstretched network of call centers that didn’t connect with about one in six callers in recent years, a Wall Street Journal data review showed. (Abbott, Martinez and Tracy, 7/11)

NPR: Many States Aren't Ready For Calls To Their Mental Health Crisis Lines
Across the state, Illinois-based call centers answered just 1 in 5 in-state calls to the lifeline in the first three months of 2022. The other 80% were redirected to other states. Illinois has the lowest in-state answer rate in the nation, lagging far behind others. The state with the second-lowest rate, Texas, answered 40% of its calls during that same time period. (Barrett, 7/11)

WUSF Public Media: Advocates Call For More Autism Training For Suicide Hotlines Ahead Of 988 Launch
National suicide prevention hotlines are bracing for an influx of calls when the new, shorter number – 988 – launches Saturday. Proponents are hopeful it will ease access to services, decrease unnecessary interactions with the police and save lives. But some advocates are asking whether it will be ready to serve people with autism. (Hyson, 7/11)

USA Today: Annual Ranking Of Fittest U.S. Cities Finds Worsening Mental Health
Even cities that provide parks and trails for people to exercise and stay fit suffered worsening mental health during the pandemic. The annual ranking of the nation's fittest cities for the first time included data on the pandemic’s toll on mental health. With social isolation, job losses and supply chain challenges stressing Americans, nearly 40% of adults in the nation's 100 largest cities reported poor mental health. (Alltucker, 7/12)

San Francisco Chronicle: Grand Jury: Mental Health Failures Are Making Alameda County’s Homeless Crisis Worse
A “fragmented and unresponsive” Alameda County mental health system is fueling the area’s worsening homeless crisis, according to a grand jury report. Among the symptoms:• Sick East Bay residents sent to jail instead of psychiatric treatment.• Crisis phone lines “not staffed by a live person” during nighttime and weekend hours when mental health crises are more likely to occur. (Hepler, 7/11)

Los Angeles Times: Homes For People With Severe Mental Illness Are Rapidly Closing. Will Help Come Fast Enough?
Mark Samuel has calculated how long his willpower will last before he closes a home for people suffering from mental illness who have little money to their name. Thirty-six months. (Seidman, 7/12)

Modesto Bee: Stanislaus Leaders Are Poised To Put Cannabis Tax On Ballot
Stanislaus County leaders could vote Tuesday to put a cannabis tax on the November ballot to replace development agreements with licensed cannabis businesses. After California voters approved marijuana legalization in 2016, development agreements were touted as a way for the county to take in revenue from approved cannabis businesses and use the funding to shut down illegal marijuana grows. (Carlson, 7/11)

Bay Area News Group: Man Died At Santa Rita Jail After Being Denied Medications
The family of a man who died last year at the Santa Rita jail filed a lawsuit against Alameda County Monday, blaming his death on jail staff who they said failed to give him prescriptions he needed for a diagnosed mental illness. (Rodgers, 7/11)

San Francisco Chronicle: Pittsburg Air Quality ‘Unhealthy And At Times Hazardous’; Residents Urged To Stay Indoors
The Marsh Fire caused “unhealthy and at times hazardous air” in Pittsburg on Monday, according to Contra Costa County health authorities, who urged residents to stay inside with their windows and doors closed. “People in affected areas should avoid contact with smoke and minimize any time spent outdoors, especially older adults, pregnant women and people who have asthma, lung or heart disease. People in the area should avoid going in and out of their homes in order to prevent bad air from getting indoors,” the county said, adding that mask use is “not an effective substitute for staying indoors in a space with filtered air.” (Galbraith, 7/11)

San Gabriel Valley Tribune: Somber Artwork Unveiled At LAC + USC Medical Center, An Apology For Coerced Sterilization In 1968-1974 
Black cloths were pulled away, uncovering the steel and concrete artwork beneath, and revealing the words from some of the 240 mostly Latina mothers forcibly sterilized at LAC + USC Medical Center more than 50 years ago: “If you speak English, they treat you one way. If you don’t speak English, they treat you another way.” (Scauzillo, 7/11)

The Wall Street Journal: Starbucks Closing Some Stores, Citing Safety Concerns In Certain Cafes 
Starbucks said it would permanently close six stores each in the Seattle and Los Angeles areas, two in Portland, Ore., and single locations in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. by the end of the month. The company said it received reports from workers about incidents that they said involved drug use by some customers and in some cases, members of the public, in certain locations. Starbucks said it would transfer employees to other locations when it permanently closes the stores. (Haddon, 7/11)