LOOKOUT PM: Variant, vaccine concerns put health officials on the offensive

By Mark Conley

Source: Lookout Santa Cruz

We’re over the hump, folks — and that is never a bad thing.

What is somewhat of a concerning thing: The growing two-pronged news about the Delta variant’s surge and the vaccination rate’s stagnancy. At least public health officials (as you’ll see below) are trying to get out in front of the issue.

To those headlines and others we go...

COVID-19

County & MAH make it easier to ‘Vax up Santa Cruz!’

As Delta concerns grow, effort mirrors pushes elsewhere: The MAH news comes as the county announced that SCCPH is partnering with the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County to provide funding and support to local businesses and organizations interested in providing COVID-19 vaccines and vaccine information to their staff and the community. More from Neil Strebig on that here.

What’s with the young adults? Meanwhile, a quarter of young adults in the United States ages 18 to 25, a group most likely to transmit the coronavirus, say they “probably” or “definitely” won’t get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a study released Wednesday. (LA Times)

Getting tougher: With coronavirus cases rising among the unvaccinated and efforts to get them shots lagging, there is growing belief in some public health circles that more aggressive tactics are needed to get more of the population inoculated. (LA Times)

➤ Young, unvaccinated people are being hospitalized with COVID-19 as delta variant spreads, officials warn (NBC News)

➤ Every single Covid patient in an L.A. County DHS hospital is not fully vaccinated (CNN)

LOCAL BUSINESS

Three key takeaways for California small business owners

What many are saying: Small business owners are still dealing with the consequences of the pandemic, with marginalized groups facing additional obstacles to loans. CalMatters dives deeper on that here.

EDUCATION

Educators grapple with how to enforce California school mask mandate in the fall

Small cohorts of students are already back on campus at Gault Elementary.

What does local enforcement look like? After initially mandating a ban on unmasked students on campus, the state is now leaving enforcement decisions up to local officials. More from the Times here.

Education under cyberattack

California schools face a growing ransomware threat: A ransomware attack — where cybercriminals hold online systems hostage until victims pay a ransom — can have devastating consequences for schools. Experts say the number of attacks against schools in California and across the country are rising as educators try to figure out whether cybersecurity should be a priority. More from CalMatters here.

CALIFORNIA

There’s a chlorine crisis?

Shortage cancels swim lessons for California kids who need them most: Many of those most in need of swim lessons this summer can’t get them because a nationwide chlorine shortage has made it difficult for public pools to stay open. More from the Times here.

See you tomorrow.

Mark Conley
mark@lookoutlocal.com