California

Cases and hospitalizations in California down more than 60% from their previous highs

By Shelton Muro 3 weeks ago

California agencies reported 4,159 new cases and 80 new deaths of the coronavirus as of Saturday,  according to unofficial totals from public health websites.  The cumulative number of coronavirus cases is 805,133 and 15,556 deaths.

The seven-day average of 3,336 new cases from the coronavirus represents a 66% decline since its high of 9,935, July 23, while the seven-day average of 85 new deaths is a 44% drop from its Aug. 15 high of 150, according to an analysis of data from public health websites Saturday.

Hospitalizations statewide are down 62% from their July 21 high of 8,820.  According to health agencies, there were 3,307 people in the hospital for COVID-related reasons on Saturday, 177 fewer than reported the previous day.

All data on the state tracker is preliminary and subject to change.

 

According to the California Department of Public Health several counties were lowered to less restrictive levels of

… Read More

California encouraged by trends even as it passes 600,000 coronavirus cases, most in U.S.

By Shelton Muro 2 months ago

By Bill Tarrant

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – California became the first U.S. state to surpass 600,000 cases of COVID-19 on Friday and the Midwest saw several record one-day rises as some states struggled to contain the pandemic even as a few welcomed students back to school campuses.

California went over 603,000 novel coronavirus cases on Friday, according to a Reuters tally, although Governor Gavin Newsom said he was encouraged to see that hospitalizations have declined 20% over the past two weeks and admissions to ICU wards were down 14% in the same period.

“The number that really matters to us is that positivity rate,” he said when asked about the 600,000 case-milestone at a news conference on Friday. The positivity rate – the number of confirmed infections as a percentage of tests done – has declined from 7% to 6% statewide over the past 14 days, Newsom said.

“I’m not

… Read More

California processing backlog; deadly start to August in Sacramento

By Shelton Muro 2 months ago

The coronavirus is continuing its deadly impact in the Sacramento region, with August already off to a troubling start.

Public health officials, in a Monday update to Sacramento County’s COVID-19 data dashboard, confirmed several more July deaths for nearly 80 in the month, including the deadliest day of the pandemic, and have already confirmed well over a dozen resident deaths from the virus in the first six days of August.

In a breakdown of coronavirus deaths as they’ve occurred by day — as opposed to the dates on which cause of death is made official or is first disclosed publicly — the county now reports a stunning 79 fatalities for the month of July. That’s more than double the previous worst month of April, when 34 died, and over quadruple the 18 observed in each of May and June as the curve of the virus had appeared to be flattening

… Read More

California colleges can reopen with a ton of restrictions, limited dorms, online classes

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

USC and other California colleges and universities can reopen this fall with some in-person classes and limited dorm life, according to state guidance. <span class="copyright">(Perry C. Riddle / Los Angeles Times)</span>
USC and other California colleges and universities can reopen this fall with some in-person classes and limited dorm life, according to state guidance. (Perry C. Riddle / Los Angeles Times)

As California colleges and universities reopen this fall they must adhere to strict limits on in-person classes and greatly restrict dorm and campus life, state public health officials said Friday in long-awaited guidance for how campuses can operate amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.

The delay in state guidance had frustrated campuses, which have scrambled to create varying reopening plans without knowing what ultimately would be approved by county and state public health officials and how that would affect thousands of students just days from starting fall semester.

Most colleges, including the vast UC and Cal State systems, have already announced they were planning to start the fall with mostly online classes. The state’s strict rules prohibit indoor lectures for

… Read More

U.S. Cases Rise 1.1%; California Second-Worst Day: Virus Update

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

(Bloomberg) — California had its second-deadliest day in the pandemic and Florida’s case count topped 500,000. Texas’s test positivity rate reached a three-week high. New York City is setting up checkpoints at key entry areas to enforce state quarantine rules for travelers.

Joe Biden will accept the Democratic Party’s nomination from Delaware rather than risk traveling to Milwaukee. Chicago, the country’s third-largest school district, will have remote learning for public schools when classes resume next month.

Johnson & Johnson will supply 100 million doses of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine to the U.S. The U.K. agreed to invest $18 million in a Scottish vaccine-manufacturing plant, while Moderna Inc. said it has received $400 million of deposits for its potential Covid-19 shot.

Key Developments

Global Tracker: Global cases top 18.6 million; deaths pass 702,000Fauci says testing too slow while Trump says it’s ‘best ever’CDC warns against drinking sanitizer after reports of deathsJapan’s

… Read More

California passes 500,000 cases; 97% of residents on watchlist

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

California officially surpassed 500,000 total lab-confirmed coronavirus infections and set a new daily high for reported COVID-19 deaths over the weekend, while Sacramento County reached the 10,000-case mark.

The state reported 219 new deaths from the respiratory disease Saturday, another 132 Sunday and 32 Monday to bring the pandemic’s official statewide death toll to 9,388, according to data from the California Department of Public Health.

Sacramento County health officials as of Monday morning had confirmed 145 resident deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the highly contagious coronavirus, including 94 residing in the city of Sacramento. Nearly 70 other deaths have been reported in the rest of the greater Sacramento area.

The county suffered at least 65 COVID-19 deaths in July, making it by far the deadliest month of the health crisis. Sacramento County had 34 deaths from the virus occur in April, followed by 18 in each of May

… Read More

More of you are helping us reimagine California after the pandemic. Keep the suggestions coming

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

Southbound lanes of the 110 Freeway heading into downtown Los Angeles are empty in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. <span class="copyright">(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)</span>
Southbound lanes of the 110 Freeway heading into downtown Los Angeles are empty in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

Last week, we published an update of the Opinion section’s “Reimagine California” project — in which we are asking readers to help guide our thinking on what California ought to look like after the COVID-19 pandemic — noting that more than 3,700 of you have sent us responses. We asked for more readers participation in the project; a few dozen of you obliged.

Your suggestions include, on one end, the granular, ground-level changes readers want to see — everything from increasing controlled burns in wilfire-prone areas to using germ-resistant grocery bags — and on the other, reforming entire segments of society such as healthcare and education. Sprinkled among those were calls for racial justice and, yes, partisan digs.

Similar to the 3,700 responses

… Read More

You still have to get your kids vaccinated even if their California school goes online

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

Most California kids will kick off the 2020-2021 academic year with distance learning due to the coronavirus, but the state’s strict vaccination laws still require students be up-to-date on their shots before starting class.

The California Legislature in recent years has passed some of the tightest vaccine mandates in the country to increase the immunization rates in schools. In 2015, lawmakers approved Senate Bill 277 to exclude personal beliefs from the list of reasons parents can skip vaccinating their children.

Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed follow-up measure Senate Bill 276 to increase oversight of doctors who issue five or more medical exemptions in a single year after clusters of unvaccinated children in certain schools were tied to a handful of physicians.

Before students are granted admission, schools are required to review incoming childcare, transitional kindergarten, kindergarten and 7th grade vaccine records.

Despite the pandemic forcing California kids behind a

… Read More

GOP senators consider $600 extension; US orders 100 million vaccine doses from Pfizer; California cases top NY

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

The U.S. government has placed an initial order for 100 million doses of a vaccine candidate being developed by Pfizer and a German firm, BioNTech, for $1.95 billion, the companies announced Wednesday.

The U.S. can acquire up to 500 million additional doses, the statement said.

Meanwhile, federal unemployment benefits are taking a hit at a time when more states are abruptly pausing their reopening plans. The $600 weekly jobless benefits bonus, approved in March, is about to expire and likely won’t be extended or replaced before next month.

The U.S. has been averaging more than 60,000 new cases daily for multiple weeks, and hospitalizations have climbed to totals not seen in three months. A USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data through late Tuesday shows 10 states set seven-day records for new cases while five states had a record number of deaths over the period.

📈 Today’s stats: The U.S.

… Read More

GOP senators consider $600 extension; Pfizer hopes for October vaccine OK; California cases top NY

By Shelton Muro 3 months ago

The U.S. government has placed an initial order for 100 million doses of a vaccine candidate being developed by Pfizer and a German firm, BioNTech, for $1.95 billion, the companies announced Wednesday.

The U.S. can acquire up to 500 million additional doses, the statement said.

Meanwhile, federal unemployment benefits are taking a hit at a time when more states are abruptly pausing their reopening plans. The $600 weekly jobless benefits bonus, approved in March, is about to expire and likely won’t be extended or replaced before next month.

The U.S. has been averaging more than 60,000 new cases daily for multiple weeks, and hospitalizations have climbed to totals not seen in three months. A USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data through late Tuesday shows 10 states set seven-day records for new cases while five states had a record number of deaths over the period.

📈 Today’s stats: The U.S.

… Read More