The issue is that the state’s “Healthy Places Index” is calculated using census tracts — but the vaccine allocation is being done based on ZIP codes, which are much larger.
Mallory Pickett
Follow Mallory Pickett on: Twitter. Mallory brings deep expertise in environmental issues to Lookout, as well as national reporting experience that she will now apply in her hometown of Santa Cruz. She began her career as a chemist, studying ocean acidification at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, before being drawn to journalism.As a freelance journalist she’s written about science, the environment, and politics for a variety of publications including The New York Times Magazine, The Guardian, Wired, and Slate. Her work has been included in several anthologies, including “What Future,” in 2017, and “The Craft of Science Writing,” in 2020. Her investigation into gender discrimination at a research institute in San Diego was included as a notable work in the “Best Science and Nature Writing of 2019.”“I care passionately about the well-being of the people and the environment of Santa Cruz County,” she says. “I can think of no better way to contribute to my hometown than to provide rigorous coverage of the parks, ocean, and farmlands that make this place so special.”
Posted inCOVID 2022
One year after emergency declaration, Newel ‘contagiously optimistic’ COVID is ebbing, gives Sutter update
Santa Cruz County health officials updated the public on the latest COVID-19 developments Thursday, after state officials announced changes to reopening and vaccine guidelines. There’s also more on the Sutter/PAMF vaccine shortage.
Posted inCOVID 2022
Move to less restrictive red tier expected for Santa Cruz County next week
Santa Cruz County’s health metrics now meet the red tier requirements, and the county is expected to get a final OK next week to progress out of purple on March 10.
Posted inCOVID 2022
COVID-19 catchup: Dr. Gail Newel talks variants, double-masking, hugging mom and more
UCSC has just completed its first sequencing of 84 COVID-19 samples from Santa Cruz County. Similar to the rest of the…
Posted inCOVID Today
No ‘variants of concern’ in first Santa Cruz County tests, though bulk of samples show California strain
UCSC has just completed its first sequencing of 84 COVID-19 samples from Santa Cruz County. Similar to the rest of the state, 65% of them show the worrisome — but not alarm-worthy — California strain.
Posted inEnvironment
Water 101: With big changes afoot countywide, everything you need to know about what’s coming out of your tap
As climate change takes root, several water districts are taking steps to prepare for the future. And even without the added stressor of rainfall changes, maintaining a steady, clean, affordable supply of water to customers is a difficult feat.
Posted inCOVID 2022
Everything we learned from Thursday’s Santa Cruz County COVID-19 update
County health officials remain optimistic a return to normal in the next few months as COVID-19 vaccinations continue at a (relatively) brisk pace. But equitable distribution of vaccines remains a challenge.
Posted inEnvironment
New electric vehicle incentive offered to customers of 3CE in Santa Cruz County, elsewhere
Central Coast Community Energy is offering a new electric vehicle incentive program that will offer up to $5,000 for qualified customers.
Posted inVaccine Watch
Teachers, farmworkers now eligible for vaccines from county as 50% of older adults receive doses
After a rough start, vaccine distribution in Santa Cruz County has sped up, with more than 50% of all older adults in the county having received at least one dose. With this milestone reached, the county is now expanding vaccine eligibility to certain high-risk occupational groups.
Posted inVaccine Watch
Another vaccine scramble: Winter storms impact appointments for Santa Cruz County residents
Severe winter weather is disrupting the vaccine distribution chain across the country, but the CDC now says second doses can be administered up to six weeks after the first and still be effective.