By Miriam Raftery

October 27, 2021 (San Diego) – Republican Congressman Darrell Issa has introduced a bill that would exempt people who test positive for antibodies against COVID-19 from the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for federal workers and large employers.

The measure, H.R. 5642, is titled the Follow Accepted Science Together (FAST) Act.

“The demand by this Administration for vaccine mandates is a mistake,’ said Rep. Issa, whose district includes much of East County. “The FAST Act follows the science and exempts Americans with COVID-19 antibodies from this unfair White House edit.”

By Miriam Raftery

October 24, 2021 (San Diego) – “Just a couple of weeks ago, a quarter of a million kids were getting COVID,” says Dr. William Tseng, area assistant medical director of Kaiser Permanente and Kaiser’s vaccine expert. That’s according to the American Academy of Pediatrics' new site tracking COVID cases in U.S. children. Deaths of children due to COVID have occurred in 48 of 50 states.

In an exclusive interview via Zoom on October, the day the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) broadly expanded eligibility of COVID-19 booster shots, East County Magazine interviewed Dr. Tseng on who should get boosters and what parents should know about COVID vaccines for children ages 5-11, which are likely to be approved in early November.  The answers may surprise you!

Click the image at left to view the full interview (which will also air on KNSJ radio) or click "read more' and scroll down to read highlights.

By Chris Jennewein, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  Hospital staffers and union organizers waved signs and banners in protest over staffing shortages at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Roseville. Photo by Fred Greaves for CalMatters

October 21, 2021 (San Diego) - The union representing pharmacy and laboratory workers at Kaiser Permanente locations throughout Southern California said Wednesday members voted overwhelmingly to reject the company’s offer and authorize a strike if a new deal can’t be reached.

476 of 605 officer deaths in 2020 and 2021 in the U.S. were due to COVID-19

By Miriam Raftery

October 17, 2021 (San Diego) – Law enforcement officers risk their lives daily to protect the public. Yet many have voiced fear over COVID-19 vaccines as their unions push back against mandates.

The irony is that according to the “Officer Down Memorial Page,” the greatest risk by far to the lives of police and other law enforcement officers isn’t an armed criminal. In 2020 and 2021, COVID-19 killed by far more law enforcement officers nationally and statewide than anything else. In California last year, COVID took the lives of more officers than all other causes of death combined.

By Miriam Raftery

October 20, 2021 (San Diego) – East County Magazine interviewed Dr. Mark Sawyer, infectious disease specialist at Rady Children’s Hospital and an advisor to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on COVID-19 vaccines for children and booster shots.  He also serves on an advisory commission for the Governor and advised County Supervisors on COVID-19 issues. 

We asked him to address concerns raised by parents and others over vaccine mandates, to assess the safety of COVID vaccines compared to risks of COVID-19 for children and teens, and discuss the likely timetable for approvals of vaccines for young children and boosters for adults.

Dr. Sawyer revealed that hundreds of children have been treated at Rady Children’s Hospital for COVID-19, including 75 treated in the intensive care unit and another 75 diagnosed with multi-system inflammatory disease, a rare but serious complication of COVID-19 in children.  “To say that COVID is not serious in children is underestimating the virus,” he said.

Source: County of San Diego

October 19, 2021 (San Diego) -- The County of San Diego today announced 11 new shigella cases associated with an ongoing outbreak, bringing the total to 15 confirmed and three probable. The cases are all among individuals experiencing homelessness who resided at multiple locations in central San Diego; none have been identified in East County.

No source of the outbreak has currently been identified, says County spokesman Jose A. Alvarez. The continuing investigation shows onset of illness dates between Aug. 16 and Oct. 14. The 18 cases in this outbreak represent 6.8 percent of the 266 total cases reported to date in San Diego County.

The County is working closely with the City of San Diego to:

October 10, 2021 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• A ‘Historical Event’: First Malaria Vaccine Approved by W.H.O. (New York Times)
• COVID-19 is linked to new diabetes cases—but long-term problems could be more severe (National Geographic)
• Tylenol could be risky for pregnant women – a new review finds acetaminophen may contribute to ADHD, other developmental disorders in children (Richmond.com)
• Hospital system says it will deny transplants to the unvaccinated in ‘almost all situations’ (Washington Post)
• How does COVID-19 affect the brain? A troubling picture emerges. (National Geographic)
• Tennessee doctors who spread COVID-19 vaccine misinformation could lose their licenses (NBC-WBIR)
• Study saying COVID-19 vaccines cause heart inflammation that was hyped by anti-vaxxers, withdrawn due to miscalculation (Business Insider)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Whistleblower: Facebook is misleading the public on progress against hate speech, violence, misinformation (CBS 60 Minutes)
• QR codes are a privacy problem — but not for the reasons you’ve heard (Washington Post)
• Facebook is drawing a bipartisan backlash from Congress, but the SEC could deliver a tougher blow (Washington Post)
• William Shatner's Blue Origin space trip delayed by weather (NBC)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

Pregnant women with COVID have a 70% higher risk of death than people who are not pregnant, according to the CDC

By José A. Álvarez, County of San Diego Communications Office

October  8, 2021 (San Diego) - An unvaccinated woman is the first pregnant San Diego woman to die from COVID-19, the County Health and Human Services Agency announced today.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: CC by SA-NC via Bing

October 6, 2021 (Atlanta) – If you’re pregnant, you are at higher risk for severe COVID-19. Not only can expectant mothers suffer more serious complications, but so can their unborn children. COVID-19 can increase the risk of bleeding disorders, high blood pressure, maternal death and stillbirth, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control warns.

Source: County of San Diego

October 5, 2021 (San Diego) -- The San Diego County Department of Environmental Health and Quality (DEHQ) has issued a General Rain Advisory to avoid water contact at all coastal beaches and bays due to recent rainfall. Swimmers, surfers and other water users are warned that rain brings urban runoff, which can cause bacteria levels to rise significantly in ocean and bay waters, especially near storm drains, creeks, rivers, and lagoon outlets. Urban runoff may contain large amounts of bacteria from a variety of sources such as animal waste, soil, and decomposing vegetation. Bacteria levels can remain elevated after a rainstorm depending upon the intensity of the storm, volume of runoff and ocean conditions.

Source: County News Service

October 4, 2021 (Ramona) -- The County of San Diego, Department of Environmental Health and Quality has issued a Boil Water Order for the Ramona Oaks RV Park water system located at 24340 Hwy 78, Ramona, effective immediately. All affected customers are advised to not drink the water without boiling it first:

By Joe Hong, CalMatters

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters

October 3, 2021 (San Diego) - In another aggressive effort to stop the spread of COVID-19 and ensure schools remain open, Gov. Gavin Newsom today announced a vaccine mandate for students ages 12 and older, making California the first state in the nation to require students to be fully vaccinated for in-person instruction.

By Miriam Raftery

October 1, 2021 (San Diego) – In the wake of restrictive laws and fears that the Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade, a March for Reproductive Rights is slated to be held Saturday, October 2 at 10 a.m. at San Diego’s Waterfront Park. The march is one of 500 marches planned nationwide in the wake of restrictive laws in several states and fears that the Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade. Details are available on the event’s Facebook page.

Numerous other states have enacted abortion restrictions and Missippi is reportedly preparing to ask the conservative majority on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe vs. Wade. These actions have galvanized both anti-abortion activists and abortion rights supporters.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has passed legislation that aims to protect most abortion access. Among San Diego’s Congressional delegation, Democrats Sra Jacobs, Mike Levin, Scott Peters, and Juan Vargas voted in favor, while Congressman Darrell Issa voted against.

By Kristen Hwang, CalMatters

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters

Photo:  Maria Jimenez swabs her daughter, Glendy Perez, 7, for a COVID-19 test at Canal Alliance in San Rafael on Sept. 25, 2021.

September 27, 2021 (San Diego) - Sarah Voit likes to keep 10 to 15 rapid test kits on hand in case any of the residents of the Family Emergency Shelter Coalition in Hayward need to be tested for COVID-19. They’ve had some infection scares, and the antigen tests — which return results in minutes — have been crucial to curbing the virus in the family shelter.

National survey by ResumeBuilder finds 63% of hiring managers prefer candidates who list vaccine status—and many reject unvaccinated applicants

Source:  ResumeBuilder.com

September 22, 2021 (Seattle, Wash.) – If you’re looking for a job, you may want to roll up your sleeve and get the “jab” first.  A nationwide survey of 1,250 conducted by  ResumeBuilder.com, a resource for professional resume templates, found that one-third of hiring manages will ignore resumes without a COVID-19 vaccine status – and 63% say they prefer candidates who list vaccine status on their resumes.  A growing number of companies are now requiring vaccines and/or giving first preference in hiring to those job-seekers who are fully vaccinated.