By Miriam Raftery

March 27, 2020 (San Diego) – As of March 26th, San Diego County health officials report 341 confirmed cases of COVID-19 coronavirus among county residents. Three area residents have died, all elderly individuals.

East County News Service

March 27, 2020 (Sacramento) – If you lack health insurance or lost it due to the COVID-19 crisis, Covered California has extended the enrollment deadline to June 30^th.  If you already have a Covered California plan, you may be eligible for a reduction in premiums if your income has gone down substantially, such as due to a business shut-down or job loss To apply or learn more visit www.CoveredCA.com or call 1-800-300-1506.

From now until June 30, anyone who meets Covered California’s eligibility requirements can enroll in health care coverage, similar to the rules in place during the annual open-enrollment period.  There are also recently added changes so that some who would not have applied for subsidies in the past can now qualify.

By Mike Allen

March 26, 2020 (Santee) -- Responding to a still-evolving global pandemic crisis, the Santee City Council has approved a 60-day temporary suspension on evictions of tenants in the city who prove their financial situation has been damaged by the coronavirus.

The Council approved a temporary moratorium on evictions at its March 25 meeting by a 4-1 vote, with Councilman Rob McNelis opposed. It was the first ever gathering that was done using teleconferencing technology allowing the five elected members and other staffers to “meet” from remote locations.

East County News Service

March 26, 2020 (San Diego) -- Jewish Family Service of San Diego (JFS) has expanded its most vital programs to serve families and individuals of all faiths, background and ages, impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and wants San Diegans to know: Food, meals and transportation are available for those in critical need.

East County News Service

March 25, 2020 (San Diego) – With COVID-19 testing availability limited and 297 local cases confirmed, County Public Health Officer Dr. Wilma Wooten is advising people who experience mild to moderate symptoms of possible COVID-19 to stay at home for at least seven days after symptoms appear and three days after respiratory symptoms have improved (such as cough and shortness of breath) and fever is completely gone, without the use of fever-reducing medications

Cases expand countywide including more East County communities

By Miriam Raftery

March 24, 2020 (San Diego) – The number of COVID-19 cases in our region continues to grow at a steep pace.  San Diego County now has 242 confirmed cases, of whom 226 are county residents. Two of the new cases are in infants. Heath experts warn the actual number of cases could be ten times higher, since not enough tests are available and thus testing is being done primarily on those hospitalized with respiratory distress.

Some of history’s greatest works were created during past epidemics

By Miriam Raftery

Photos: Playwright William Shakespeare and physicist Isaac Newton are among those inspired to creative endeavors while in quarantine (public domain images via Wikipedia)

March 24, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) – Creativity can blossom out of hardship. As you’re hunkered down at home due to the COVID-19 epidemic, consider this: during historic epidemic eras, some of the world’s most famous writers, artists and scientists drew inspiration for their greatest works. We've provided a few of their stories, along with some links to free online classes in writing, art, science and music to spark your own creative impulses.

By Miriam Raftery

March 24, 2020 (San Diego) – Students who want to take the Advanced Placement (AP) exams and be prepared, despite school closures, can now take free AP review classes online.  The AP College Board is giving students free live and on-demand.  They are also developing a new at-home testing option.

AP  tests are college-level exams on specific subjects and are normally administered in May upon completion of an AP course at a student's high school. At many colleges and universities, a high enough score will earn the student college credit. In some instances, earning college credit can mean an overall lower college tuition bill.

You can learn more or sign up at https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/coronavirus-updates.

A message on the AP College Board website states, “We surveyed 18,000 AP students to see if they still wanted the opportunity to test this year. Their answer: a resounding yes.”

By Miriam Raftery

View video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjF2UYCYNcw&feature=youtu.be . Warning: video contains graphic images and language, viewer discretion advised.  

March 23, 2020 (El Cajon)—El Cajon Police have released body camera footage from multiple officers of the non-  lethal shooting of a car theft suspect, Keith Crenshaw, 21, on February 12^th. The videos confirm that after waking up the suspect sleeping in the vehicle, officers repeatedly warned him to put his hands up, even after the suspect repeatedly said, “Shoot me!”

The incident began after Phoenix Police called to request that ECPD recover a stolen car identified via an auto-license reader.  Officer Stanley and his trainee, Officer Jabrael, arrived at 544 South Johnson and Officer Sandoval along with a civilian approached from the rear.

After verifying the license, Officer Jabrael approached the driver’s side but the door handle was missing. When the suspect awoke, Officer Stanley repeatedly ordered him to put his hands up and not to reach into his shirt. At one point he asked for a less-lethal weapon. But before he could obtain one, the suspect repeatedly stated, “Shoot me! Shoot me! Shoot me!”

Officer Stanley and another officer can be hear continuing to try and convince the suspect to put up his hands.  Officer Stanley stated, “No, I do not want to kill you. Let me see your hands.”

By Miriam Raftery

March 23, 2020 (Sacramento)—The State Public Health Officer has listed a detailed 14-page list of “essential critical infrastructure workers” allowed to continue working under the Governor’s executive order, which mandates that most Californians stay home due to the COVID-19 emergency.  

View the full list:  https://covid19.ca.gov/img/EssentialCriticalInfrastructureWorkers.pdf

The list provides much more detail than the original executive order.  For example, appliance repair stores, mortuaries, mental health and substance abuse workers, cannabis clinics, veterinary and animal care facility workers, postal and shipping companies, plumbers, electricians, exterminators, auto repair shops, home improvement and appliance stores, attorneys and accountants helping to meet statutory requirements, farm workers, food suppliers and farmer’s markets, laundry services, IT professionals/computer repairs, construction workers, critical tribal positions, suppliers of critical industries and manufacturers of critically needed products such as hand sanitizers are among the many occupations added on the expanded list of businesses that can remain in operation.

Source: FEMA

March 22, 2020 (San Diego) The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced that federal emergency aid has been made available for the state of California to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic beginning on January 20, 2020, and continuing.

The President's action makes federal funding available for crisis counseling for affected individuals in all areas of the state of California.

Federal funding is also available to state, tribal, and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency protective measures (Category B), including direct federal assistance under Public Assistance, for all areas affected by COVID-19 in the state of California. The federal cost share is 75 percent.

By Miriam Raftery

March 22, 2020 (San Diego) – The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that hospitals countywide (not counting the military) have 826 respirators – and around 500 are now in use.  While some additional respirators may be available by tapping into our nation’s emergency strategic supplies, if the growth in severe COVID-19 cases continues to grow at the rate it has recently, supply could soon outstrip demand, meaning life-saving treatment would not be available to all who need it.

Fortunately, we may all be able to prevent that from happening. The UT reports, “Hospital impact models suggest that it’s quite possible to make it through the coming spread of disease across the region without outstripping ventilator and hospital bed capacity, but only if a significant percentage of the populace actually follows through with the social-distancing measures that have been ordered.”

Around 1% of COVID-19 patients need ventilators –but among those patients, severe respiratory symptoms tend to appear rapidly.  With immediate access to a ventilator, pressure can be applied to open up collapsed air sacs in the lungs before irreversible lung damage or death occurs. With this intervention, the patient can get enough oxygen for their own immune system to have time to kick in and start fighting off the virus.

By Miriam Raftery

March 22, 2020 (San Diego) – With people around the world sequestered at home due to the COVID-19 virus, factories shut down and freeway traffic jams virtually gone, satellite images and photos are revealing sharp drops in pollution across the globe.

In Los Angeles, early data from the European Space Agency (ESA) Sentinel-5P Satellite shows that levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air, mainly produced by vehicle emissions, dropped sharply in the first two weeks of March, the New York Times reports.