Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'We Decided Enough’s Enough': California Secures 200M Masks A Month At Cost Of $1B
Los Angeles Times: Amid Coronavirus, California To Get 200 Million Masks A Month
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday that California has secured a monthly supply of 200 million N95 respiratory and surgical masks to help protect healthcare workers and other essential personnel at the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state. “We decided enough’s enough. Let’s use the power, the purchasing power of the state of California, as a nation-state,” Newsom told MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. “We did just that. And in the next few weeks, we’re going to see supplies, at that level, into the state of California and potentially the opportunity to export some of those supplies to states in need.” (Willon, 4/7)
Politico: California To Spend Nearly $1B For 200 Million Masks Per Month
Newsom said that in the last 48 hours, “We just inked a number of contracts in the last few days that gives me confidence to say that … we have secured through a consortium of nonprofits — and a manufacturer here in the state of California — upwards of 200 million masks on a monthly basis. … We're confident we can supply the needs of the state of California, and potentially the needs of other Western states.’’The names of the specific suppliers have not been released. It is unclear how California's massive purchase may affect the ability of other states and nations to obtain protective equipment that remains in high demand across the world. (Marinucci, 4/8)
Los Angeles Times: Newsom Says California Coronavirus Curve Is 'Bending'
Nearly three weeks after ordering Californians to stay home, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday that the state’s efforts are slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus and “bending the curve.” “Let me give you a sense of optimism, in terms of the curve in California bending: It is bending, but it’s also stretching,” Newsom said at a news conference. (Luna, 4/7)
Los Angeles Times: Coronavirus: L.A. Mayor Orders Wide Use Of Face Coverings
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced an order Tuesday evening requiring all residents to wear a face covering when visiting the majority of essential businesses, in hopes that it will protect workers and slow the spread of the coronavirus. Effective Friday, residents must wear a mask, bandanna or other type of covering over their noses and mouths when in grocery stores, pharmacies, hardware stores, coin-operated laundry services, restaurants, hotels, taxis, ride-hail vehicles and several other essential businesses. (Reyes, Parvini and Cosgrove, 4/7)
NBC News: Los Angeles Mandates Face Coverings
Residents of the city of Los Angeles will have to wear face coverings if they venture out to grocery stores, pharmacies or other essential businesses allowed to serve the public amid a statewide stay-at-home order. "Every Angeleno will share this responsibility with employers: to keep workers and everybody else safe, which is why we are requiring customers to wear face coverings to enter those businesses," Mayor Eric Garcetti said Tuesday in issuing the facial covering mandate, which takes effect Friday. (Douglas and Romero, 4/7)
Politico: Shopping In LA? Cover Your Face Or Get Tossed, Garcetti Orders
In the city of 4 million residents, essential business employees will also be required to wear face coverings, and employers must cover the costs of purchasing such items. Included in the order was a call for businesses to ensure that every worker has access to a clean restroom and offer them the opportunity to wash their hands every 30 minutes. “We need to protect every worker on the front lines of this crisis,” Garcetti said. “Each one of us is a first responder in this emergency. Every employer should keep employees safe, and so should Angelenos patronizing these businesses." (Nieves, 4/7)
San Francisco Chronicle: SF Finally Shares Crucial Data On Coronavirus Hospitalizations, Demographics
San Francisco released a torrent of demographic data and other details about the city’s coronavirus outbreak on Tuesday, after repeated requests from residents and health care leaders for more complete information about who is being hit hardest by the disease. Every county health department in the Bay Area except Alameda now publishes similar information, although only San Francisco breaks down cases by race and ethnicity. Alameda County public health officials said they planned to release more data on Wednesday. (Thadani, Palomino and Allday, 4/7)
San Francisco Chronicle: UCSF Lab Accelerates Processing Of Coronavirus Tests In Bay Area, All For No Cost
UCSF has opened a lab in San Francisco that can process thousands of coronavirus diagnostic tests from all nine Bay Area counties’ public health departments for free — significantly increasing the Bay Area’s testing capacity at a time the state is working aggressively to get more residents tested and obtain test results faster. UCSF created the lab in Mission Bay over eight days in March, after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order March 12 that loosened restrictions on clinical labs. (Ho, 4/7)
KQED: Student, Parent And Now Homeschool Teacher: UC Students Say They Need Relief
Since the coronavirus pandemic shut down education as we know it, parents are adjusting to educating kids at home and students are adjusting to remote learning. Parents like Paredes, who are themselves students, are doing both.“I'm taking care of my kids full-time, I'm still trying to do classes on Zoom while preparing three meals a day for a house of four,” he said. “It's a lot to manage.” According to the most recent U.S. Department of Education data available, more than one in five undergrads across the country was raising kids in 2015-2016, half of which were single parents. (Rancaño, 4/7)
Kaiser Health News: Postcard From The Edge: L.A. Street Vendors Who Can’t Stop Working
One day last week, on a sunny, beautiful Los Angeles afternoon, 23-year-old Alex Salvador Morales set up shop on a sidewalk near downtown, selling freshly cut pineapple, mango and watermelon in quart-sized plastic cups for $5. Before the pandemic, fruit stands like his dotted streets on days like this, one every few blocks on the busy stretches. With millions of people staying home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, however, business was so bad that many of Salvador Morales’ fellow fruit vendors hadn’t bothered to show up. (Almendrala, 4/8)
