Masks Urged As Covid Cases Surge In Bay Area: In San Francisco, the coronavirus test positivity rate has reached 9.4% — more than twice California’s overall rate of 4.1%. “We’re not out of it yet,” said Dr. Sara Cody, the health officer in Santa Clara County. “It is time to break out your masks and break out your tests, and just be a bit more cautious than you were a month ago.” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle and Bay Area News Group.
LA School Board Delays Student Vax Mandate: The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday unanimously approved a delay of a student vaccine mandate for covid-19 that had been scheduled to take effect next fall, under a recommendation from Supt. Alberto Carvalho. The vote at the conclusion of a nearly 12-hour board meeting took place without comment from either Carvalho or board members. It was a striking anticlimax after board members had determinedly adopted the vaccine requirement last year. Read more from the Los Angeles Times.
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:
'Significant Uptick' In California Coronavirus Outbreaks
Coronavirus conditions are likely to worsen, with case rates continuing to rise and hospitalizations starting to increase, according to the top health official in the San Francisco Bay Area’s most populous county. “We are also seeing a pretty significant uptick in reports of outbreaks, from schools, work sites and other congregate facilities,” Dr. Sara Cody, the Santa Clara County public health director and health officer, said at a news conference Tuesday. “Many of them are related to social gatherings. It’s spring — school is ending and people are gathering, and COVID is spreading.” (Lin II, 5/10)
KQED:
A New Wave Of COVID Is Hitting The Bay. How’s It Different?
Currently, the Bay Area is California’s COVID hot spot. The good news? Fewer people are being hospitalized or dying from COVID, thanks to the vaccine and the increased availability of treatments. This wave could also give us a window into what life could look like going forward, without the public health mandates we saw at the pandemic’s peak. (Guevarra, McClurg, Montecillo and Esquinca, 5/11)
Orange County Register:
Orange County Reported 1,728 New Cases And Eight More Deaths, May 10
The OC Health Care Agency reported 1,728 more cases of the coronavirus between Friday, May 6, and Tuesday, May 10, increasing the cumulative total since tracking began in the county to 557,338. There were 8,620 new cases reported in the last two-week period as of Tuesday, May 10. The county is averaging 7.5 new cases a day per every 100,000 residents. (Goertzen, 5/10)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
Santa Rosa’s St. Rose Catholic School Cancels Classes In Midst Of COVID Outbreak
St. Rose Catholic School in Santa Rosa has closed its campus at least through Wednesday because of a growing outbreak of coronavirus cases, Principal Kathleen Aymar informed parents in an email Sunday. “We now have a legitimate COVID outbreak in 8th, 7th, 5th, 6th, 4th and 3rd grade classes,” Aymar wrote. “This has now become a serious issue with so many cases popping up in multiple classes and COVID is now affecting school staff, and our ability to hold classes with appropriate staffing.” (Barber, 5/10)
AP:
Pandemic Gets Tougher To Track As COVID Testing Plunges
Testing for COVID-19 has plummeted across the globe, making it much tougher for scientists to track the course of the pandemic and spot new, worrisome viral mutants as they emerge and spread. Experts say testing has dropped by 70 to 90% worldwide from the first to the second quarter of this year — the opposite of what they say should be happening with new omicron variants on the rise in places such as the United States and South Africa. (Ungar, 5/10)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
San Diego School Board Passes Resolution In Support Of Reproductive Rights
The San Diego Unified School Board unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday in support of reproductive rights, including a right to abortion. “The decision to end a pregnancy is a private medical decision,” said school board Vice President Sabrina Bazzo, who co-introduced the resolution, at Tuesday’s school board meeting. “Everyone should have access to safe, legal and accessible abortion. Prohibitions on the right to freely exercise reproductive freedoms are harmful to public health and safety.” (Taketa, 5/10)
Sacramento Bee:
CA Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, AG Bonta Share Abortion Story
California’s efforts to become an abortion care sanctuary is personal for some leaders — one of whom shared her story as part of a statewide push to strengthen access to reproductive healthcare. Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, D-Oakland, revealed at a news conference Tuesday that she had an abortion at age 21, as she was finishing her degree at Yale University and starting her first job. (Holden, 5/11)
NBC News:
Senate To Vote On Nationwide Abortion Bill Ahead Of Roe Decision
The Senate is set to vote Wednesday on advancing a Democratic-led bill that would enshrine broad protections for legal abortion nationwide, a move triggered by a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that indicates Roe v. Wade will likely be overturned. The vote on the Women's Health Protection Act, which has passed the House, is all but certain to fail, with just 49 senators expected to support the measure, below the 60-vote requirement to defeat a Republican filibuster. (Kapur, 5/11)
AP:
Democrats' Bill Would Make Roe V. Wade Law, And Expand It
The Democrats’ bill would also end certain state laws that they say have chipped away at the original Roe v. Wade decision, banning what they say are medically unnecessary restrictions that block access to safe and accessible abortions. The court has allowed states to regulate but not ban abortion before the point of viability, around 24 weeks, resulting in a variety of state laws and restrictions that abortion-rights supporters oppose. The bill would end bans earlier than 24 weeks, in addition to any restrictions that do not make exceptions for the patient’s health or life. It would also stop states from requiring providers share “medically inaccurate” information, or from requiring additional tests or waiting periods, aimed at dissuading a patient from having an abortion. (Jalonick, 5/11)
Politico:
Yellen: Banning Abortion Would Be ‘Very Damaging’ To U.S. Economy
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday argued that banning abortion would be “very damaging” for the economy by reducing women’s ability to balance their careers and their families. “I believe that eliminating the right of women to make decisions about when and whether to have children would have very damaging effects on the economy and would set women back decades,” she said in response to a question at a Senate Banking Committee hearing. (Guida, 5/10)
Axios:
Poll: Over Half Of Young Women Would Get An Abortion Even If It Was Illegal
Over half of young women aged 18-29 say they would get an abortion if they had an unwanted or unplanned pregnancy — even if it were illegal, according to a new Generation Lab flash poll first provided to Axios. Last week's news that the Supreme Court is prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade has raised questions on what access would look like without a federal right to an abortion. Even in states where they remain legal, abortions could be harder to access because those clinics could be flooded with patients from states that have cracked down. Women in their 20s accounted for the majority of abortions between 2010 and 2019. (Chen, 5/10)
The 19th:
Exclusive: New Poll Captures How People With Disabilities Feel About Abortion
Disability has been used as something of a political football in the abortion debate. For decades, fetal abnormality and disability have been part of abortion-rights advocates’ argument that people need access to the procedure. Anti-abortion advocates, meanwhile, argue that disability-motivated abortion is discriminatory and devalues disabled life. But people with disabilities themselves have been largely absent from the public debate on abortion rights. Now, new poll results, shared exclusively with The 19th, shed light for the first time on how people with disabilities view the issue. (Luterman, 5/10)
CalMatters:
Prosecutor Vows To Refile Murder Charge In Stillbirth Case
A Central Valley district attorney has vowed to refile a murder charge against a woman whose case drew national attention for its possible implications for abortion rights, but the woman’s advocates believe the charges will never actually materialize. Adora Perez was freed in March after nearly four years in prison on a guilty plea to manslaughter after she delivered a stillbirth while testing positive for methamphetamine. (Duara, 5/10)
KPCC:
IVF Is Expensive. Should Insurers Be Required To Cover Costs In California?
California legislators are debating whether health insurers should cover the costs of infertility treatments. This includes in vitro fertilization, a type of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) that can be incredibly expensive. According to CalMatters, 17 states already have laws that include in vitro treatments, but California is not one of them. AB 2029 from Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) would also expand the definition of infertility. That would allow more people to be diagnosed and treated. Dr. Richard Paulson, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and chief of the division of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at USC and Dr. Jessica Chan, assistant professor of OB GYN in the division of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Cedars-Sinai, join guest host Austin Cross to discuss the legislation and the broader impact of infertility on patients and families. (5/10)
San Francisco Chronicle:
California Medical Board To Investigate 2-Year-Old’s Death At John Muir Medical Center
The Medical Board of California has launched an investigation into whether doctors at John Muir Health failed to properly care for a 2-year-old girl with liver cancer who died on an operating table at the organization’s Walnut Creek hospital in 2019. The inquiry comes in response to a Chronicle investigation that found John Muir leaders had dismissed warnings from staff that the community hospital was not equipped to handle such a specialized operation, known as a liver resection, on a child as young as Ailee Jong. (Gafni and Dizikes, 5/10)
San Diego Union-Tribune:
This San Diego Startup Is Making It Easier To Compare Medical Costs
Turquoise Health, a San Diego startup that aims to enable price shopping for health care, has raised $20 million from marquee venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Ventures, Box Group and Tiger Global. (Freeman, 5/11)
The (Santa Rosa) Press Democrat:
A ‘New Reality’: Could Fentanyl’s Toxicity Kill A Child With Just A Touch?
A Santa Rosa police investigation into whether fentanyl caused a toddler’s death earlier this week reflects growing concern that opioid users could expose young children to the dangerous drug, experts say. They emphasize that fentanyl’s toxic potency is so dangerous that just touching a small amount of it — on a table or in a piece of clothing — could be lethal to a baby or a small child. (Pera and Atagi, 5/10)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Advocates Say California Isn’t Defending A Law Allowing Transgender Prison Transfers Strongly Enough, Ask Judge To Intervene
Advocates of transgender rights say California prison officials are hostile to a recent state law that allows inmates to transfer to a prison facility that matches their gender identity, and can’t be counted on to defend it in court. SB132 by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, which took effect last year, was challenged in federal court in November by an anti-transgender group that said it would subject female inmates to harassment and violence by allowing men to pose as women. In response, Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office, representing the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said in a legal filing that the courts have allowed prison officials to decide where inmates, including transgender inmates, should be housed. (Egelko, 5/10)
Axios:
FDA Says It Is "Doing Everything In Our Power" To Improve Baby Formula Supply
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Tuesday that it is "doing everything in our power" to improve the supply of baby formula. The nation's baby formula shortage has intensified in recent weeks due to supply chain issues and a recent recall of Abbott Nutrition products. “We recognize that many consumers have been unable to access infant formula and critical medical foods they are accustomed to using and are frustrated by their inability to do so," said FDA commissioner Robert Califf in a statement. (Scribner, 5/10)
NPR:
The Biden Administration Is Working To Ease The Ongoing Shortage Of Baby Formula
Stores across the U.S. are continuing to run low on baby formula, with the Biden administration saying it is working to ease the problem for American families and caregivers. During the first week of May, the average out-of-stock rate for baby formula at retailers across the country was 43%, according to data from the firm Datasembly, which collected information from more than 11,000 sellers. In late April, the rate was even higher in some states, with an out-of-stock rate over 50% in Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Missouri, Texas and Tennessee. "This issue has been compounded by supply chain challenges, product recalls and historic inflation," Datasembly CEO Ben Reich said in a statement. (Hernandez, 5/10)
CNN:
Formula Maker: "This Is A Crisis. We Can't Flip A Switch And Make A Lot More Formula"
Laura Modi is fielding dozens of emails, calls, and texts daily from anxious parents asking about how they can get baby formula. Modi is CEO and cofounder of Bobbie, a San Francisco-based direct-to-consumer seller and subscription service for organic milk-based baby formula that is produced in a Vermont facility and backed by $72 million in venture capital funding. She's acutely aware of the desperation in those outreaches, which have intensified in recent weeks amid an ongoing nationwide shortage of infant formula. A message at the top of the company's website says, "We're temporarily at capacity for new customers." Other manufacturers say they're producing at full capacity and making as much formula as they can. But demand is heavily outstripping supply. (Kavilanz, 5/10)
KQED:
Firearm-Related Homicide Rate Skyrockets Amid Stresses Of The Pandemic, The CDC Says
The rate at which Americans were killed in gun homicides leapt by nearly 35% in 2020 to the highest level in more than 25 years, according to new research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Amid the pandemic and recession that followed, gun homicide rates grew most among groups that were already at higher risk, researchers found — including people in poor areas, young men, and Black people. (Greenfieldboyce and Sullivan, 5/10)
Stat:
Firearm Deaths And Disparities Both Grew In Pandemic’s First Year
Guns were the weapons wielded in more than three-quarters of homicides in the U.S. during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, jumping 35% from 2019 to 2020 and marking the highest level since 1994, a new CDC analysis says. The suicide rate involving guns was stable at just over half of suicides, but there were increases in some groups of people. The most striking disparity came among young people. Guns killed Black children and young adults from 10 to 24 years old at a rate 21 times as high as among their white peers. “We’re losing too many of our nation’s children and young people, specifically Black boys and young Black men,” Debra Houry, acting principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in an interview with STAT. “The difference between Blacks and whites in that age group for firearm homicide is just devastating.” (Cooney, 5/10)
Roll Call:
CDC: 2020 Saw Most Firearm Deaths Since 1994
From 2019 to 2020, the firearm homicide rate for Black people between the ages of 10 and 24 was more than 21 times higher than for white people in the same age group. The overall firearm suicide rate remained relatively unchanged from 2019 to 2020 at 8.1 per 100,000 people, but there were increases among some groups of people, including American Indian/Alaska Native males. In total, there were 24,000 firearm suicide deaths in 2020. (Hellmann, 5/10)