Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Cases Top 3 Million In California; Cremation Limits Lifted
AP: California Becomes First State To Top 3 Million Virus Cases
California on Monday became the first state to record more than 3 million known coronavirus infections. The grim milestone, as tallied by Johns Hopkins University, wasn’t entirely unexpected in a state with 40 million residents but its speed stunning. The state only reached 2 million reported cases on Dec. 24. The first coronavirus case in California was confirmed last Jan. 25. It took 292 days to get to 1 million infections on Nov. 11 and 44 days to top 2 million. (Jablon, 1/18)
CBS News: Backlog Of Bodies Caused By COVID-19 Forces California Air Quality Agency To Suspend Cremation Limits
The lack of storage space for those who have died of the coronavirus forced the agency which regulates air quality across the Southland to issue an emergency order Sunday night lifting the limit on the number of cremations allowed. The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued the emergency order temporarily suspending permit requirements for crematoriums. CBS Los Angeles reports the order was issued at the request of both the Los Angeles County coroner's office and the L.A. County Department of Public Health. (1/18)
CNN: Air Quality Regulator Temporarily Suspends Cremation Limits For LA County Amid 'Backlog' From Pandemic
As Los Angeles County battles against the unrelenting coronavirus, an air pollution control agency says it has temporarily suspended limits on cremations in order to assist crematoriums in the county with a "backlog" caused by the pandemic. The South Coast Air Quality Management District said in a news release Sunday that permits for crematoriums usually contain limits on the number of human remains that can be cremated each month, based on the potential impact they will have on air quality. (Humayun and Maxouris, 1/18)
Also —
Politico: Pandemic Reveals Tale Of 2 Californias Like Never Before
The tale of two Californias has never been clearer. As Bay Area tech workers set up home offices to avoid coronavirus exposure, grocers, farm workers and warehouse employees in the Central Valley never stopped reporting to job sites. Renters pleaded for eviction relief while urban professionals fled for suburbs and resort towns, taking advantage of record-low interest rates to buy bigger, better homes. Most of the state’s 6 million public school children are learning remotely, while affluent families opted for private classrooms that are up and running. California has long been a picture of inequality, but the pandemic has widened the gap in ways few could have imagined. (Mays, 1/17)
