Monkeypox Spreads Across California: The number of confirmed and suspected monkeypox cases in California climbed to six on Monday as officials in L.A. County and San Francisco said they were prepared to see more cases. Officials said it was crucial that people become aware of the symptoms and health care providers be on alert for new cases. Read more from the Los Angeles Times, The Sacramento Bee, and CapRadio. Keep scrolling for more on the global monkeypox outbreak.
Cannabis Industry Is Booming In Sacramento: The cannabis industry in the city of Sacramento has become the ninth largest employer with nearly 8,000 workers four years after recreational marijuana was legalized, shows a report commissioned by city officials. “It’s a remarkable turn of events,” said David Zehnder, the study’s lead researcher. Read more from The Sacramento Bee.
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
Los Angeles Times:
California's Latest COVID Surge May Be Slowing, Data Suggest
There are initial signs that California’s latest wave of coronavirus cases may be slowing, although it’ll take more time to be certain. California reported an average of 13,800 new coronavirus cases a day over the past week, according to data released Friday, down 12% from the previous week. That’s 247 cases a week for every 100,000 residents. A rate of 100 cases a week for every 100,000 residents is considered a high rate of viral transmission. (Lin II, 6/6)
inewsource:
Latest COVID Surge Worries San Diego Experts
A surge in COVID cases hitting San Diego County has public health experts worried that a rise in hospitalizations and deaths could be on the way. The Omicron variants BA.2 and BA.2.12.1, which are even more contagious than the variant that caused a winter surge in the U.S., are responsible for the recent increase in cases across the county — rivaling numbers seen in the Delta wave late last summer. For example, confirmed cases surpassed 1,500 per day for three days straight in late May. (Harper, 6/6)
Sacramento Bee:
California’s Top Judge Has COVID, Isolates With Mild Symptoms
California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye has tested positive for COVID-19 and has mild symptoms, her office announced Monday evening. Cantil-Sakauye will work in isolation in accordance with state and local guidelines, California State Supreme Court Clerk Jorge Navarrete said in a statement. She will not, however, participate in remote oral argument on Tuesday. (Smith, 6/6)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
How Long COVID Could Change The Way We Think About Disability
Mallory Stanislawczyk was hesitant to make the call. She hadn't spoken to her friend for years. But the friend, who gets around in a wheelchair, was the only person the 34-year-old nurse practitioner could think of who would understand her questions. About being ready to accept help. About using a wheelchair. And about the new identity her battle with long COVID had thrust on her. "I think she is the first person I said to, 'I'm disabled now'," Stanislawczyk recalled telling the friend. "'And I'm working on accepting that'." (Sellers, 6/6)
Palm Spring Desert Sun:
Local Experts, Students Shed Light On Pandemic's Effects On Mental Health
For more than an hour, four Thomas Jefferson Middle School students, slightly tired from an early wakeup call and recent standardized testing, said they felt fine after everything they experienced over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. They were looking forward to the end of the school year, they liked being back in school with friends, and while they may have been a little stressed with distance learning, they said they hadn't experienced depression or anxiety during the last two years. (Sasic and Horwitz, 6/5)
Bay Area News Group:
Can New Novavax COVID Vaccine Win Over The Anti-Vaxxers?
With three COVID vaccines already authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Americans have easy access to plenty of shots. But a fourth one, under review Tuesday, is entirely different — and uses a traditional vaccine design that more people may be inclined to trust. (Krieger, 6/6)
The New York Times:
F.D.A. Advisers Will Weigh In On Covid Shots By Novavax, A Latecomer In The Vaccine Race
A federal advisory committee on Tuesday will vote on whether regulators should authorize a Covid-19 vaccine made by Novavax, an early beneficiary of the government’s Operation Warp Speed program. The experts to the Food and Drug Administration, whose meeting is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, will base their recommendation on the company’s clinical trial data, which is strong. But before the agency could authorize the shots, the F.D.A. would also need to sign off on Novavax’s manufacturing process, which has stumbled again and again over the course of two years. (Zimmer and Robbins, 6/7)
USA Today:
Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine To Be Considered By FDA Panel As 4th In US
"There's a lot of reasons that are not scientifically based for not having taken the vaccine (yet)," said Vivian Riefberg, a professor at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia. "This may convince some people because it's traditional technology." The Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech shots, which have been given to three-quarters of the American population, are based on mRNA technology, which teaches the body to make the spike protein found on the surface of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Once the immune system recognizes the spike protein, it will attack the viral cells. (Weintraub, 6/7)
Stat:
'Testing Bottleneck' For Monkeypox Puts Control At Risk, Experts Warn
Infectious disease specialists are growing increasingly concerned by the U.S. strategy for testing for monkeypox, warning that it’s creating a bottleneck and squandering the limited time the country may have to get the outbreak under control. Under the current system, specimens must be sent to one of 74 laboratories across the country before being sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts who spoke with STAT argue the United States should be testing more broadly for monkeypox, allowing more labs to become part of the process. (Branswell and Joseph, 6/7)
CNBC:
CDC Raises Monkeypox Alert As Global Cases Surpass 1,000
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stepped up its monkeypox guidance, urging travelers to take extra precautions including wearing face masks as global cases of the virus surpass 1,000. The CDC ramped up its alert to a level 2 on Monday, encouraging people to “practice enhanced precautions” to stem the outbreak, which has spread to 29 non-endemic countries in the past month. The highest level alert — level 3 — would caution against non-essential travel. (Gilchrist, 6/7)
Reuters:
U.S. To Get 36,000 More Monkeypox Vaccine Doses This Week, HHS Says
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on Monday it had instructed monkeypox vaccine manufacturer Bavarian Nordic to deliver an additional 36,000 doses this week as part of a drawdown from a U.S. vaccine stockpile. In a statement, HHS said the doses will be added to the existing 36,000 in the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile. Bavarian Nordic's vaccine, called Jynneos, is approved to treat both monkeypox and smallpox. (Steenhuysen, 6/6)
CNN:
More Parents Could Have Access To Baby Formula From Abroad
The Biden administration is making it easier for low-income families to obtain baby formula being imported from abroad to alleviate the shortage plaguing parents from coast to coast. The US Department of Agriculture announced Monday that it is offering nationwide waivers so that families with federal WIC benefits can access formula that's not normally approved for use in the program. The products are coming from other countries as part of Operation Fly Formula, which the administration launched last month in the wake of a massive recall of Abbott Nutrition baby formula in February. (6/6)
The Hill:
Biden Announces Fifth Baby Formula Mission, Shipment To Come From Germany
President Biden on Monday announced a fifth mission to bring infant formula to the U.S. from overseas, with the most recent shipment arriving from Cologne, Germany. The shipment of Nestlé infant formulas will be transported to Fort Worth, Texas, on June 9. The products will be distributed through Nestlé and Gerber distribution channels, according to the White House, with additional deliveries expected to be announced in the coming days. (Choi, 6/6)
The 19th:
FEMA Clarifies Its Message On Breastfeeding Resources
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) updated its website last week to make clear that breastfeeding resources are eligible for financial assistance for families affected by disasters – a message that’s all the more crucial as parents contend with a nationwide formula shortage. The clarification comes during the formula crisis, the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season and as the Western United States faces historic wildfires. FEMA’s updated guidance follows a push by Illinois Democrats Rep. Lauren Underwood and Sen. Tammy Duckworth to make breastfeeding more accessible to vulnerable families. (Norwood and Kutz, 6/6)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
Much Still Uncertain As State Water Board Consider Historic Water Sharing Agreement For Russian River Watershed
The State Water Resources Control Board is poised to approve a historic agreement designed to allow Russian River water rights holders to share scarce supplies in the likely event regulators cut off withdrawals this summer because of the ongoing drought. If approved Tuesday, the Upper Russian River Voluntary Water Sharing Agreement would allow older “senior” water rights holders to give some of their share to junior claimants who might not otherwise have enough for irrigation and other needs. (Callahan, 6/6)
Voice of OC:
County Emergency Agencies Fail Residents When It Comes To Disaster Warnings, OC Cities Pick Up The Slack
Critical county emergency agencies keep struggling to warn residents effectively during fast moving disasters like wildfires, despite years of complaints from residents and a grand jury report telling them there’s room to improve. This month’s Coastal Fire was no different. Mike Selvidge was in Indianapolis when he got the text that a fire was burning in the Aliso and Woods Canyon Wilderness Park behind his house in Laguna Niguel, where his wife Annalisa and their daughters Lauren and Kate were at. (Biesiada, 6/6)
KQED:
As Nation Mourns Another Round Of Mass Shootings, San Mateo County Residents Turn In Their Guns
Bay Area law enforcement groups are working to get guns off the streets through gun buyback programs — events where people can anonymously turn in guns for cash. On Saturday in South San Francisco, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement agencies hosted the county's fifth gun buyback event, looking to expand on the collection of nearly 1,700 firearms from previous events going back to 2018. (Finney, 6/6)
The Bakersfield Californian:
'Courage, Love, Determination And Faith': CBCC Celebrates Cancer Survivors
After two battles with breast cancer, one might understand if Annette Lyday wanted to shy away from the topic. Just the opposite is true. Lyday, who was diagnosed in 2009 and then again 2016, really enjoys events that celebrate survival, like the one hosted Monday by Comprehensive Blood & Cancer Center. (Smith, 6/6)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
San Diego Mayor To Homeless People: Leave Encampments Or Face Consequences
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria on Monday pleaded with homeless people living in downtown roadside encampments to take offers for shelter, warning that there would be consequences for those who refuse help. As the city steps up enforcement of laws against encroaching on sidewalks, Gloria said those consequences could include arrests for people who continue to camp in downtown’s East Village. Three people have been arrested in the neighborhood since the city began escalating enforcement of the law last week. (Warth, 6/6)
Voice of San Diego:
Gloria Defends Bolstered Homeless Enforcement
Mayor Todd Gloria on Monday defended the city’s bolstered efforts to crack down on downtown homeless camps that had been growing for months. The Monday press conference was the latest marker of a major shift for the Democrat who as mayoral candidate criticized predecessor Kevin Faulconer’s policing of homelessness and pledged that on his watch the city would stop “criminalizing the existence of San Diego’s poorest and sickest residents.” (Halverstadt, 6/6)