Kqeds The California Report

the first doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine are going out to frontline healthcare workers across the state. We’ve tracked that story all this week and this morning we look at vaccinations in San Diego. Reporter: Matt Hoffman, KPBS The arrival of the Pfizer vaccine and the anticipated approval of Moderna's vaccine could mean people who are involved in clinical trials for other vaccines might drop out of those studies. Reporter: Tarryn Mento, KPBS A Sacramento disability rights advocate says it took him days to get a COVID-19 test because many of the county’s testing sites are not ADA accessible. Reporter: Sarah Mizes-Tan, CapRadio The University of California, Irvine just signed an agreement with the state prison system to create the first UC bachelor’s degree program behind bars. KQED’s Vanessa Rancaño reports. There are new faces joining Los Angeles’ City Council who have vowed to confront L.A.’s homelessness crisis. They are Mark Ridley-Thomas and Nithya Raman, along with California veteran politician

ICU bed capacity hit zero percent in the Central Valley over the weekend. Health officials are activating a COVID surge facility in the Tulare County town of Porterville to treat patients they don’t have room for at the local hospitals. Reporter: Alex Hall, KQED As coronavirus vaccinations begin in California many public health experts worry that people may start letting their guard down when it comes to social distancing and other safety measures.  Guest: Dr. Kirstin Bibbins Domingo, Epidemiologist, UCSF   Frontline health care workers are first in line for the coronavirus vaccine, but which essential workers should come next? Teachers? Delivery drivers? How about the farm workers who pick California’s food crops? The state of California is working with counties to figure it out, and they may not always see eye to eye.  Reporter: April Dembosky, KQED   After making progress last month, California's Unemployment Development Department is once again facing a big backlog of claims even after a new verificati

California Doctors Ready for Reluctant Patients as Vaccines ArriveAs people start getting vaccinated, California doctors are preparing to talk to patients about it, and the physicians are expecting some resistance. Reporter: Sammy Caiola, KQED That number of restaurants likely to close could be significantly higher in the Bay Area and Los Angeles County where immigrants make up a larger share of restaurant owners. Reporter: Benjamin Gottlieb, KCRW L.A County health officials are going to use the Moderna vaccine at nursing homes, and it’s training nursing home staff to administer it. Unlike the Pfizer vaccine, Moderna’s doesn’t require deep-freeze storage. Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC Early numbers show Sacramento City Unified enrolled about 600 fewer kindergartners this year, and Los Angeles Unified has thousands fewer. Reporter: Pauline Bartolone, KQED PG&E got out of bankruptcy protection almost six months ago. As part of that deal, the utility agreed to pay a billion dollars to California cities

The Federal Trade Commission and more than 40 states, including California, have accused Facebook of illegally squashing competition by operating as a social media monopoly.  Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED Latinos are almost 40% of California’s population but they make up nearly 60% of the state’s cases of COVID-19, and half of the deaths. A new survey shows Latinos are more concerned than any other group about how the pandemic is affecting them. Reporter: Katie Orr, KQED Nine months into the pandemic, COVID testing remains top of mind for Latino activists in the Bay Area. In July, we took you to a pop-up testing site set up by the Latino Task Force in San Francisco’s Mission District. Since then, they've been able to expand testing, but outcomes are still frustrating. Guest: Jon Jacobo, Health Chair, Latino Task Force It's December, but the 2020 Census isn’t over yet. The legal fight over the count continues to play out in court. The 34th congressional district in central L.A. had the state’s lowest respon

San Diego County Hospitals Grapple with Staffing Shortages Almost 900 COVID positive or suspected positive patients are hospitalized in San Diego County, more than double a month ago. Hospitals are struggling with shortages of staff, personal protective equipment, and testing supplies. Reporter: Tarryn Mento, KPBS Back in 2016, voters in Los Angeles approved Proposition HHH, a $1 billion measure to pay for thousands of new housing units for the homeless over 10 years. KCRW’s Anna Scott has been looking at one project funded with a small slice of those funds. Reporter: Anna Scott, KCRW 50 states have certified their election results, and Joe Biden has won the presidency. But Texas is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to invalidate the ballots of millions of voters in four swing states, and 106 House Republicans have signed onto an amicus brief to support this. Guest: Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) Officials in San Francisco and Los Angeles introduced resolutions last week asking for school workers to ge

An L.A. County judge overturned a ban on outdoor dining Tuesday. In a tentative ruling, the judge called the ban an arbitrary way to control the coronavirus, adding that L.A. County public health officials failed to balance health risks with potential harm to the economy. Reporter: Kevin Stark, KQED To find out more about the controversy over outdoor dining, and the people on both sides of that debate, The California Report's Mary Franklin Harvin spoke to a journalist who's been following the issue closely.  Guest: Farley Elliot, Senior Editor, Eater LA New research that estimates the comprehensive cost of wildfires, found that the 2018 California wildfires led to thousands of deaths, far more than the official count. That larger number factors in the harm of air pollution. Reporter: Danielle Venton, KQED  Four men who were set to be released from California prisons earlier this year, were instead handed over to federal immigration authorities. Now they are seeking thousands of dollars in damages from the

State lawmakers are introducing a bill that would give public schools a deadline for reopening campuses. The effort comes amid rising concern about the effects of distance learning on children. Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQED California is launching a new smartphone app to let people know when they’ve been in close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19. Governor Gavin Newsom says the app is voluntary and anonymous.  Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED Three Foster Farms facilities in the Central Valley are seeing several cases of COVID-19. They include the site of a major COVID-19 outbreak this summer that resulted in nine deaths nearly 400 infections and. Reporter: Alex Hall, KQED Uber has struck a deal that hands the keys of its self-driving car division over to startup Aurora Innovation. The deal involves Uber making a $400 million investment in Aurora.  Guest: Chris Urmson, CEO, Aurora Innovation Bank of America told California lawmakers as much as $2 billion in unemployment benefits may have

California Legislature to Introduce Pair of Eviction Protection Bills The proposals would get relief into the hands of renters and landlords facing mounting debt and extend eviction protections adopted during the pandemic. Tenants who have been struggling to keep up with rent say the measures can’t come soon enough. Molly Solomon, KQED San Bernardino County now has the second highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the state. Instead of paramedics answering every emergency call in an ambulance, healthcare workers will do more symptom assessments over the phone. Reporter: Benjamin Purper, KVCR Positive COVID tests and hospitalizations are both at record highs in California. Doctors and nurses are particularly vulnerable. Medical staffers in the Bay Area, Orange County, and the Central Valley weigh in as they watch cases mount. Reporter: Lesley McClurg, KQED President-elect Joe Biden has chosen California’s Attorney General as his nominee for secretary of Health and Human Services. Xavier Becerra would

As a new wave of coronavirus cases engulf California, Governor Gavin Newsom has announced a new regional stay at home order. Areas of the state where ICU capacity dips below 15 percent will have to shut down bars, hair salons, and in person dining both indoor and outdoor. Reporter: April Dembosky, KQED The survey from Blue Shield of California was conducted in early October and found that when it came to education, nearly half of the parents were most concerned about COVID-19 health risks, followed by helping their child with remote learning, and their childs’ mental health. Reporter: Alice Woelfle, KQED The National Labor Relations Board complaint names two employees, both of whom Google fired just before Thanksgiving last year. One of them was organizing against Google's decision to work with a corporate consultant known for helping firms fend off unionization efforts. Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED In a letter to Governor Newsom this week, the prosecutors say it was only the results of a federal subpo

California reported more than 20,000 new coronavirus cases yesterday. In Los Angeles County, public health director Barbara Ferrer pleaded with people to wear masks when out of the house. Los Angeles County will begin mailing COVID-19 test kits to some people’s homes. This new effort is aimed at those with mobility issues. Reporter: Jackie Fortier KPCC Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones has tested positive for COVID-19. He has been vocal about his refusal to enforce public health mandates, including mask requirements. Reporter: Scott Rodd, CapRadio A red flag warning went into effect for most of Southern California last night as 70-80mph Santa Ana winds whipped through the region. The Bond Fire broke out in Orange County around 10pm and has burned thousands of acres.  High profile California politicians, including the Governor and San Francisco Mayor, have been called out recently for defying their own health advice by dining out in groups. Behavior like this can undermine public trust in coronavirus g

The California Department of Public Health is recommending weekly COVID testing for all health care workers at hospitals. Nurses have been calling for this for months.  Reporter: Polly Stryker, KQED As COVID-19 cases soar, communities of color are bearing much of the burden, including Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. These communities around Sacramento are utilizing several strategies to bring infection rates down. Reporter: Pauline Bartolone, CapRadio Government climatologists say two-thirds of California is in some state of drought. With little rain in the forecast, is this the beginning of another prolonged dry spell? Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQED One L.A. area restaurant is defying the ban on outdoor dining which went into effect Monday, and also poking fun at the politicians who didn’t follow their own advice about mask-wearing and social distancing. Reporter: Benjamin Gottlieb, KCRW California lawmakers are demanding accountability after it was revealed that a statewide unemployment scam

Governor Gavin Newsom says the state could see another stay-at-home order for regions where COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admission rates are surging. Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED Nearly a month after Election Day, the last of California’s close congressional races has been decided, and it brings good news for Republicans.  Reporter Guy Marzorati, KQED The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday over whether the Trump Administration can exclude immigrants without legal status from the census totals to determine Congressional seats for each state. The stakes are enormous for California. Reporter: Caroline Champlin, KPCC A group of families have filed a lawsuit against the State of California. The suit claims the state is denying underserved students the equal right to education during the pandemic.  Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQED The San Jose city council will vote today on a measure to ban natural gas in nearly all new buildings beginning next year. The city estimates the ban will prevent hundr

Record Number of Californians Hospitalized for COVID-19 There are now more than 7,400 people hospitalized in California because of the coronavirus. That’s more than triple the number who were hospitalized just a month ago. As coronavirus cases surge, a new stay at home order takes effect for Los Angeles County residents. Which Healthcare Workers Will Receive COVID-19 Vaccine First? Health care workers will be first in line to receive the coronavirus vaccine once it’s available, but that first shipment may not be enough to vaccinate all of them. California has 2.4 million health care workers, but the state expects to receive just 1 to 2 million vaccines in the first allocation from the federal government. Reporter: April Dembosky, KQED Tobacco Industry Coalition Looks to Referendum to Overturn Flavored Tobacco Ban California legislators passed a law this year banning the retail sale of flavored tobacco products in the state as a way to stop young people from getting hooked on the products. Now a coalition back

Young Queer Candidates of Color are Changing the Bay Area Political Scene KQED podcast 'The Bay' is kicking off a series about expanding concepts of democracy and increasing representation in government. In the first episode, The Bay’s host Devin Katayama talks to KQED reporter Adhiti Bandlamudi about LGBTQ candidates of color who've recently been elected in the Bay Area.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Food Banks Face Enormous Need This Thanksgiving Many Californians confront incredible hardships this Thanksgiving because of the pandemic. Food banks all over the state are stepping in to fill in the gaps, including distributing Thanksgiving meals. They expect the need this year to be enormous. Guest: Amanda Green, Director, Union Station Homeless Services Rare Rose Flourishes on Alcatraz After Decades of Neglect Many of Alcatraz Island’s indoor spaces are off-limits to visitors because of the pandemic. But The Rock’s craggy outdoor landscape is full of unexpected finds, like a rare rose once thought to be extinct.  Reporter: Chloe Veltman, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Incarcerated People Got Hundreds of Millions in California Unemployment Scam A group of California prosecutors says thousands of state prison inmates have scammed California's Employment Development Department out of hundreds of millions of dollars of unemployment benefits. Reporter: Mary Franklin Harvin, KQED Trump Gives Uber and Lyft Five Year Government Contract California-based ride hail companies Uber and Lyft have negotiated a big contract with the Trump Administration to provide transportation services to federal employees. Those who’ve traditionally provided those services are not happy. Reporter: Sam Harnett, KQED Elected Officials Weigh Public Health Against Economic Needs As many California counties and cities implement pandemic restrictions, elected officials confront the charged issue of how to balance public health and the needs of the economy. The mayor of Long Beach, felt the pain of the pandemic personally when his mother and stepfather died from the coronavirus. Guest: Robert Garcia, Mayor o

Health Officials Urge Californians to Scale Back Holiday Plans as COVID-19 Cases Surge New COVID-19 cases in the state continue to increase rapidly, with well over a million cases so far. In Los Angeles County, supervisors are contemplating a strict stay-at-home order, similar to the one implemented in the early days of the pandemic. Judge Denies Reopen Request from San Diego Businesses A San Diego judge has denied a request from a group of local businesses demanding to be allowed to reopen indoor operations, despite record numbers of coronavirus cases in California. The judge found that the risk to public health outweighed the needs of the businesses. Reporter: Max Rivlin-Nadler, KPBS COVID -19 Vaccines Require Rigorous Safety Procedures Coronavirus vaccines may be available to the general public soon. That’s extraordinarily fast, but experts say the vaccines must still go through a rigorous safety process and California will have a role. Reporter: Laura Klivans, KQED Dianne Feinstein Resigns from Senate Jud

L.A County Suspends Outdoor Dining As the state and counties put in place new coronavirus restrictions, California businesses try to survive. Guelaguetza is a well known restaurant here in L.A. known for its Oaxacan dishes from Mexico. Guest: Bricia Lopez, the co-owner of Guelaguetza, a restaurant in L.A Hospitals Brace for COVID-19 Surge California hospitals are seeing an increase in COVID-19 patients, which they expect will only increase. Hospitals are applying lessons learned at the beginning of the pandemic to deal with the surge. Sammy Caiola, CapRadio Kaiser Enrolls Youth in Sacramento and Santa Clara for Vaccine Study Kaiser Permanente says it’s enrolling 12 to 15 year olds in Sacramento and Santa Clara in an expanded late-stage study of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine. Pfizer has said the vaccine is safe and 95 percent effective in adults. Now researchers want to determine how well it will work in adolescents and teenagers.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How Police and the Public Are Likely to Respond to Newsom's Curfew Order Governor Gavin Newsom is imposing an overnight curfew as California tries to head off a surge in coronavirus cases. California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly says the limited stay-at-home order is being implemented in 41 counties. Guest: Scott Rodd, CapRadio New Report Shows State Employment Agency Left People Vulnerable to Identity Theft The report says E.D.D. has sent at least 38 million pieces of mail containing Social Security numbers since the start of the pandemic. The problem persists even though the state auditor asked the agency to remove this information from many of these documents a year and a half ago. Reporter: Mary Franklin Harvin, The California Report New Rules Aim to Protect California Workers from COVID-19 The emergency standard approved unanimously by the board that oversees Cal OSHA standards requires employers to implement cleaning protocols, investigate and respond to positive COVID cases in t

Stockton's Mayor Lost Reelection. Will His Initiatives Continue? Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs has lost reelection to his challenger, Republican pastor and veteran Kevin Lincoln. Tubbs conceded the race on Tuesday. Tubbs launched initiatives that generated national attention. When he leaves office, the resilience of those programs will be tested.  Reporter: Alex Hall, KQED California's Economic Outlook is Better than Expected Budget projections released yesterday show the state’s finances are in a better position than many expected this far into the pandemic. The number of people signing up for assistance programs has been below expectations, and tax revenue is higher. Reporter: Katie Orr, KQED Apple to Pay $113 Million Over Battery Lawsuits California and 33 other states have announced a $113 million settlement against Apple. It accounts for false claims made by the company about battery performance and processing power in some iPhones.  Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED Nurses Grapple With Pandemic Fatigue and F