Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
A Recipe for Trouble? Reversal of California Outdoor Dining Ban Has Heads Spinning
Who knows whether banning outdoor dining was a good idea in the first place. But even the experts aren’t sure it was smart to bring it back. (Anna Almendrala, )
A Big Win For Nurses: Nurses are cheering California’s decision to end emergency waivers to hospitals and nursing homes, which have allowed the institutions to require nurses to care for more patients than state law allows at any one time. Now, state public health officials say the nursing shortage is over, and the emergency waivers are no longer needed. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle and Modern Healthcare.
Be Vigilant Against A Second Covid Surge, Californians Told: California health secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said Tuesday that the state is seeing the rapid spread of two homegrown variants of covid-19. The state warned residents to keep their guard up as the Lunar New Year and Super Bowl approach. “The chance for another surge in California is real,” Ghaly said. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
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
Bay Area News Group:
Biden Steps Up Vaccine Supply To States, Pharmacies
The Biden administration announced plans Tuesday to speed the nation’s roll-out of coronavirus vaccine by increasing the supply of shots to states, while sending another 1 million doses directly to thousands of pharmacies across the country. As a result, the nation’s largest pharmacy chain, CVS, said it would distribute doses at 100 of its California stores starting on Feb. 11, including at locations in Sunnyvale, San Francisco and Sonoma. Meanwhile California officials said the state has stepped up distribution efforts that had ranked among the slowest in the country. (Savidge and Krieger, 2/2)
The Bakersfield Californian:
CVS To Begin Administering COVID-19 Vaccine
CVS Health announced Tuesday it will begin offering COVID-19 vaccines to eligible people, including in Bakersfield, as soon as Feb. 11, with appointments available for booking as soon as Feb. 9. The vaccine will be offered at 100 CVS Pharmacy locations in California, but the company did not specify which locations in Bakersfield will have it. (2/2)
Los Angeles Times:
California Needs More COVID-19 Vaccine, But Some Areas Get Less
As California looks to ramp up efforts to immunize its millions of residents against COVID-19, health officials say they continue to run into a stubborn hurdle: the inability to secure a sufficient and reliable stream of vaccine doses. The problem is twofold, officials say. First, there’s a limited supply to begin with, and some areas of the state, including Los Angeles County, have actually seen their shipments shrink over the last few weeks. Second, both of the currently available vaccines require two doses taken weeks apart. So, the more initial doses that are doled out, the bigger the need will be for follow-up shots down the line — creating a chokepoint that constrains how many new people can begin the vaccine regimen. (Money, Dolan, Smith and Shalby, 2/2)
Modesto Bee:
State Plan Will Change COVID Vaccinations In Stanislaus County
Stanislaus County officials are wary of a new state strategy for COVID-19 vaccine distribution in California and how it could change deployment of vaccines needed to battle the pandemic. State officials have an agreement with Blue Shield of California to manage the vaccine distribution network, which will focus more on an age-based priority for vaccinations and distribute more vaccine to health care providers and pharmacies. It will also supply more vaccine to counties trying to get people vaccinated in hard-to-reach underserved communities. In Stanislaus County, that could possibly mean more people getting shots from their physician’s office or drugstore rather than standing in line at county vaccination clinics. (Carlson, 2/2)
Ventura County Star:
COVID-19 Vaccine Could Reach Seniors With Health Issues Soon
Ventura County residents 65 and older with certain health conditions could possibly become eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations by mid-February depending on supplies, health officials said Tuesday. The county is still limiting its vaccines to a group that includes health care workers and people 75 and older. County vaccine task force leader Barry Zimmerman said planning on the next phase of the rollout continues and nothing is guaranteed. (Kisken, 2/2)
Sacramento Bee:
COVID Vaccine: Where Placer County Teachers Can Get The Shot
Last week, Dr. Rob Oldham, the county’s director of health and human services and interim health officer, told the Board of Supervisors that Placer County has the capability to ramp up vaccinations by 20,000 to 25,000 people per week, but can’t make that a reality without increased vaccine shipments. As of last week, the county received an average of 4,300 doses per week. “So for Placer, the biggest challenge with this move, again, has been that it has expanded the pool of eligible resident to over 80,000 people even though the weekly dose allocation Placer has received from the state have remained flat or even dropped,” Oldham said at a Board of Supervisors meeting last week. “So at this rate, we will have nowhere near enough vaccine to finish this priority group anytime soon.” (Sullivan, 2/3)
Fresno Bee:
Foster Farms In Fresno Begins COVID-19 Vaccinations
While partnering with Vons and the Fresno County Health Department, Foster Farms in Fresno is making coronavirus vaccines available for all of its 1,000 employees. This week the company began first does of the vaccine. (Kohlruss, 2/2)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Hopkins Says Sonoma County Should Take Control Of Coronavirus Vaccination Appointments
Sonoma County should take control over the fragmented campaign to administer coronavirus vaccinations to its half-million residents, Board of Supervisors Chair Lynda Hopkins declared Tuesday, proposing an executive order that would allow the county to direct immunizations underway at private medical providers like Kaiser Permanente, Sutter Health and St. Joseph Health. (Barber, 2/2)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
UC San Diego Will Open A COVID-19 Vaccination Superstation On Campus Next Monday
UC San Diego will open a COVID-19 vaccine superstation on its main campus next Monday, where it will immunize 5,000 people a day if it can obtain enough vaccine, which is in tight supply throughout the country. The walk-through center will operate out of Rimac Arena and could nearly double the number of vaccinations the university is already giving each day at the superstation its runs with the county outside Petco Park in downtown San Diego. (Robbins, 2/2)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Looking For A COVID-19 Vaccine? County Mega Clinics Aren't Your Only Option
San Diego County is leaning heavily on mega sites for its COVID-19 vaccine rollout — but these are far from the only places you can get a shot. Your neighborhood pharmacy could soon be an option (if it isn’t already). And local health care systems are offering shots to those who are eligible but still unable to get their vaccine. (Wosen, 2/2)
LA Daily News:
CSULB First Cal State Campus To Establish Vaccination Clinic For Staff, Faculty And Students
Cal State Long Beach became the first CSU campus with its own coronavirus vaccination clinic and began inoculating staff and faculty on Tuesday, Feb. 2. The university, which has nearly 6,400 full- and part-time employees, expects to administer around 1,170 doses this week at its drive-thru clinic — on the second floor of the Walter Pyramid parking structure — and at a second station for walk-ups, said CSULB spokesman Gregory Woods. The university received about 2,400 doses from Long Beach, which has its own health department. (Lee, 2/2)
LA Daily News:
LAFD Has Enough COVID Vaccine For All Firefighters, But Only 54% Have Opted For Shot
Though the Los Angeles Fire Department procured enough COVID-19 vaccines for nearly all its personnel, only about 54% have been inoculated, officials said. Of the department’s approximately 3,400 firefighters, 1,842 have received the voluntary vaccine, according to the department. (2/2)
Southern California News Group:
Anti-Vaccine Protesters At Dodger Stadium Could Face Arrest If They Interrupt Lines Again, LAPD Chief Says
The next time anyone attempts to disrupt the queue of people in their cars seeking coronavirus vaccinations at Dodger Stadium, they could be met with arrests, the chief of the Los Angeles Police Department said Tuesday. Saturday’s protest with between 25 and 50 sign-waving people who marched up Vin Scully Avenue from Sunset Boulevard led firefighters on scene to temporarily close Gate C – the entrance to the vaccination site at Dodger Stadium. Speaking to police commissioners in a virtual meeting, Chief Michel Moore disputed that it was LAPD that closed the gate. He said anyone who was waiting after the fire department closed off the entrance was still able to get their vaccines that day. (Cain, 2/3)
Los Angeles Times:
LAPD Vows Arrests If Protesters Again Disrupt Dodger Stadium Vaccine Site
Days after anti-vaccination and far-right protesters disrupted operations at one of the nation’s largest COVID-19 vaccination sites at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore on Tuesday said any such protests in the future would be met with quick arrests. “Our action is to be immediate and swift in the sense of holding them accountable for that unlawful activity,” Moore said during a virtual meeting of the Police Commission in the morning. (Rector, 2/2)
Orange County Register:
Orange County Has Cut Its Coronavirus Case Rate In Half Since Mid-January
Orange County has continued to rappel down the pandemic’s new year peak as three critical metrics used to track the speed and spread of COVID-19 fell for a third straight week, according to California Department of Public Health data released Tuesday, Feb. 2. The rate of new coronavirus cases has halved since Jan. 12, and in the last week dropped to 39 cases per day per 100,000 residents from a rate of 46.6 cases. Testing positivity – the share of nasal swab and saliva tests coming back positive – fell to 10.9% from 12.9% last week. (Wheeler, 2/2)
KQED:
These Sites Offer Free COVID-19 Tests For The Uninsured. So Why Are So Many Insured Kaiser Patients Using Them?
Non-profit clinics and coronavirus testing centers that don't require insurance are seeing large numbers of people with insurance seeking tests. People running these centers say that’s taking resources away from the low-income communities they’re meant to serve. And many of those insured patients are Kaiser Permanente members who already have access to testing through Kaiser, those running the free clinics say. (Chang, 2/2)
Fresno Bee:
CA Farmworkers Suffer COVID-19 Pandemic’s Financial, Emotional Toll
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated long-standing health disparities and financial insecurities, hindered economic mobility, and exposed vulnerabilities for the farmworker community across California, a new report released Tuesday shows. The report highlights “precarious conditions” facing farmworkers during the pandemic. (Lopez, 2/3)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
Wilma Wooten Leads San Diego's COVID-19 Response. Meet The Doctor For Whom 'Failure Is Not An Option'
Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten may be the most well-known doctor in San Diego County after 11 months of pandemic-related health orders, news conferences, public meetings and interviews where she has led — and tried over and over again to explain to anyone who will listen — the local response to a crisis unlike any other in a century. (Hamblin and Totten, 2/2)
Los Angeles Times:
Southern California Pediatricians Call For Schools To Reopen
Los Angeles County campuses that closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic should immediately reopen, according to a regional affiliate of the American Academy of Pediatrics, because the harms of keeping children out of school outweigh the risks of safely and carefully managed classrooms. “A large majority of the 1.5 million students in L.A. County has not been physically in a classroom in nearly a year,” said the statement from Southern California Chapter 2 of the academy. “This sad consequence of the pandemic should be addressed immediately with the reopening of schools.” (Blume, 2/3)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
SDSU Temporarily Closing Children's Center Due To Review COVID-19 Procedures
San Diego State University will close its Children’s Center for two to four weeks on Thursday to evaluate whether it is doing enough to protect its workers and users against the novel coronavirus. The center, which provides child care and education for the SDSU community, has not experienced any COVID-19 outbreaks. (Robbins, 2/2)
Orange County Register:
Heart Disease, Cancer And COVID-19: Orange County’s Leading Causes Of Death In 2020
For all the ways life in Orange County changed last year, many deaths were morbidly predictable: Heart disease and cancer, like years past, were the first and second leading killer diseases in 2020. In third was COVID-19, the contagious and unfamiliar newcomer. Overall, Orange County recorded 2,700 more deaths last year compared to averages over the previous three years. (Wheeler, 2/2)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Encompass Health To Hold Virtual Hiring Events For Registered Nurses
Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Bakersfield will be hosting two virtual hiring events in an attempt to find full-time and PRN Registered Nurses. According to a news release from Heise Media, the events will be held Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m. to noon. (2/2)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Public Health Promotes Two Following Appointment Of New Director
Kern County Public Health Services has appointed two new executives following Director Brynn Carrigan assuming her new role. On Twitter, the department said Amy Rutledge has been appointed to assistant director and Jeffrey Marshall had been appointed to director of the Environmental Health Division. (2/2)