Eden Health District COVID-19 Bulletin
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"It’s as if Russia had invaded the U.S. and the federal government said, ‘Every county should fend for itself.’"
Lisa Pivec, senior director of public health for Cherokee Nation Health Services, 11/17/20, on the continued lack of a national response to the pandemic.
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Blk Girls Green House cultivates community activism and lifts spirits during Covid-19 |
Amid multiple pandemics, two lifestyle enthusiasts and proud plant parents cultivated a community oasis to lift spirits, inspire conscious shopping, and promote peace. Friends Kalu Gebreyohannes and J'Maica Roxanne sowed the seeds to grow Blk Girls Green House, a Black women-owned open-air plant and specialty home goods shop located at 3261 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way in Oakland.
"Our very first customer that actually came in sort of set the tone, I feel, for what's been pretty consistent since we've been open," said Roxanne, "And on her way out of the door she said, 'This is revolutionary, what you guys are doing.'
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Upon entering, customers are whisked into the ethereal outdoor locale with a greenhouse taking root in the center of the space. |
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The store is filled with lush plants, thoughtfully curated home goods, and locally produced apparel.
"We support Black makers, we've been buying Black, J'Maica and I are committed to having a space that doesn't force them to fight to get their merchandise in or to fight to justify their pricing, or that they're deserving to be on shelf space," said Gebreyohannes.
For Gebreyohannes and Roxanne, Blk Girls Green House serves as a form of activism.
"We are prioritizing our community, and we are prioritizing the celebration and reflection, the joy and the professionalism that is behind an array of Black women and Black makers and artists," said Gebreyohannes.
With each visit, Gebreyohannes and Roxanne hope that visitors can escape the stress of unprecedented times while expanding their mind, body, and soul. In their words, "It's a beautiful time to grow."
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Alameda County: 26,655
Contra Costa County: 21,758
Bay Area: 134,044
California: 1,056,820
U.S.: 11,441,946
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Alameda County: 494
Contra Costa County: 255
Bay Area: 1,891
California: 18,380
U.S.: 249,733
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Purple (Widespread) Tier Restrictions Summarized |
All Bay Area counties are in the state's Purple (Widespread) Tier for activity and business reopening, with the exceptions of Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo Counties that are in the Red (Substantial) Tier.
For East Bay specific reopening guidance, see
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Gatherings
Outdoor playgrounds
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Hair salons & Barbarshops
All Retail
Shopping Centers
Museums, Zoos & Aquariums
Places of Worship
Movie Theaters
Hotels & Lodging
Gyms & Fitness Centers
Restaurants
Wineries
Bars & Breweries (where no meal provided)
Offices
Professional Sports
Amusement Parks
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Outdoor only with modifications, maximum 3 households |
Open with modifications
Open indoors with modifications
Open indoors with modifications, maximum 25% capacity
Open indoors with modifications, maximum 25% capacity, common areas and food courts closed
Outdoor only with modifications
Outdoor only with modifications
Outdoor only with modifications
Open with modifications
Outdoor only with modifications
Outdoor only with modifications
Outdoor only with modifications
Closed
Remote
Open without live audiences
Closed
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New California Mask Order Summarized |
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East Bay Times, November 18, 2020
There are more cases of Covid-19 currently in the Bay Area than at almost any other point of the pandemic. The region is averaging nearly double the new cases it was two weeks ago, up 91% in that time. In Alameda County, there were more cases reported in the past 24 hours than any other in the past three months, 413. An additional 20 people were hospitalized in the county in the past 48 hours.
The sharpest uptick in cases in the region has come in Contra Costa County, where the daily average is nearly 2.5 times higher than it was two weeks ago, about 195 new cases per day.
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County Covid-19 Dashboard, November 18, 2020
As of November 16, 2020, 117 patients with confirmed or suspected cases of Covid-19 are hospitalized in Alameda County, including 24 patients in ICU. On October 24, 2020, there were 81 patients hospitalized with confirmed or suspected Covid-19 in Alameda County, with 14 patients in ICU. In August, 260 was the peak number of confirmed and suspected Covid-19 patients hospitalized in Alameda County.
Berkeleyside, November 17, 2020
After three short weeks, indoor dining is once again closed in Alameda County as the state grapples with a surge of Covid-19 cases and the county and neighboring regions return to the most restrictive stage of state reopening guidelines. Other services that the city reopened indoors in September while Berkeley was in the purple and red tiers, like hair and nail salons, will remain open, as well as small cohort groups at Berkeley schools. The city and the county health officers could decide to once again be stricter than state guidelines if they choose.
SF Chronicle, November 17, 2020
The team of Stanford researchers used cell phone mobility data from 10 major U.S cities, including San Francisco, to create a predictive model that analyzed how people from different neighborhoods moved around in cities in the early months of the pandemic.
They found that public venues like restaurants, gyms, cafes and other crowded indoor spaces were tied to the bulk of new infections. Among these “places of interest,” full-service restaurants were found riskiest because people tended to gather there in higher densities and stay longer. According to the analysis, they presented more than triple the infection danger of the next-highest category, fitness centers.
ABC 7 News, November 17, 2020
Once again, Bay Area stores are running out of items like toilet paper and paper towels, similar to what we saw early on during the pandemic. ABC 7 News talked with the head of the California's Grocers Association, who says there's no need to buy as much as you can, because the items will continue to be restocked.
Tuesday night there was no toilet paper and or paper towels at Target in Albany and at least one Walmart in San Leandro. The shelves were close to empty at a Safeway in San Leandro. The only paper product available at the San Francisco Costco was napkins.
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STAT, November 18, 2020
Pfizer and BioNTech announced Wednesday that the efficacy portion of their Covid-19 vaccine trial has been completed, showing the vaccine to prevent 95% of cases of the disease.
The companies said that they plan to submit to the Food and Drug Administration for an emergency use authorization “within days,” and will also submit to regulatory agencies around the globe.
The results come little more than a week after the companies said an earlier analysis from the study showed the vaccine reduced infections by more than 90%, and just days after another company, Moderna, said that a similar vaccine reduced infections by 94.5%.
NY Times, November 18, 2020
Even if the vaccines are authorized soon by federal regulators, only a sliver of the American public will be able to get one by the end of the year. The two companies, Pfizer and Moderna, have estimated they will have 45 million doses, or enough to vaccinate 22.5 million Americans, by January. Industry analysts are optimistic that hundreds of millions of doses will be made by next spring. But the companies will have to overcome hurdles they’ve encountered in the early days of making the new vaccines.
Pfizer and Moderna are using a technology involving genetic material known as messenger RNA, that allows scientists to quickly adapt the technique for new pathogens. But it has never been commercially manufactured.
STAT, November 18, 2020
U.S. regulators on Tuesday allowed emergency use of the first rapid coronavirus test that can be performed entirely at home and delivers results in 30 minutes.
The FDA granted emergency authorization to the single-use test kit from Lucira Health, a California manufacturer. The company’s test allows users to swab themselves to collect a nasal sample. The sample is then swirled in a vial of laboratory solution that plugs into a portable device. Results are displayed as lights labeled positive or negative.
Science, November 18, 2020
Scientists are keenly interested in coronavirus reinfection cases, which are still rare but on the rise.
Reinfections hint that immunity against Covid-19 may be fragile and wane relatively quickly, with implications not just for the risks facing recovered patients, but also for how long future vaccines might protect people. “The question everybody wants to answer is: Is that second one going to be less severe most of the time or not?” says Derek Cummings, who studies infectious disease dynamics at the University of Florida. “And what do reinfections teach us about SARS-CoV-2 immunity in general?”
LA Times, November 16, 2020
Desperately seeking to find a seemingly responsible way to hold dinner parties, some people have started to get tests for the coronavirus as a way to clear themselves to attend dinner parties without needing to wear masks or keep their distance. That’s absolutely the wrong thing to do, according to Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County’s director of public health.
Ferrer said on Monday that she has heard of groups of young adults going to get tested for the coronavirus on a Thursday in hopes of getting the negative results by Saturday morning, and then having a dinner party on Saturday night. But such tests provide a false sense of security, and engaging in this practice can still result in the dinner party becoming a super-spreading event that can transmit the highly contagious virus widely.
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US and California Data: Full Range
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East Bay Times, November 18, 2020
The short history of the coronavirus suggests that California will soon see a marked rise in Covid-19 deaths that traditionally follows a surge in cases — but when and how severe will it be this time? Experts, who now have a better understanding of the disease and the data, point to later this month or in early December. And some forecast the number of cases, hospitalizations and, ultimately, deaths is likely to continue to rise through the new year.
While the latest dire prediction for the Golden State follows a rough pattern playing out across the U.S., the overall number of cases here relative to the population is much lower than in the Midwest and other parts of the country. And experts are optimistic that the death toll won’t be as severe this time around in California, as younger and healthier people make up a higher proportion of cases, and doctors and hospitals are better prepared to treat the virus.
LA Times, November 18, 2020
In an ominous sign of how rapidly Covid-19 is spreading across Los Angeles County, officials on Tuesday warned that a new stay-at-home order would be imposed if coronavirus cases and hospitalizations continue to spike over the next few weeks.
County leaders said they are desperately trying to avoid another shutdown, announcing that starting Friday they will begin ordering restaurants and nonessential stores to close at 10 p.m. and place a cap on the number of people allowed at outdoor gatherings — a maximum of 15 people from no more than three households — in hopes of slowing the infection rate.
CalMatters, November 17, 2020
On Monday, Gov. Newsom announced tough new restrictions as an “emergency brake” to slow a coming surge that could overwhelm hospitals during the holiday season.
Most nonessential businesses, restaurants, bars and places of worship have to close or severely restrict their operations as state officials either moved or kept 40 of California’s 58 counties in the most restrictive “purple” tier of the state’s reopening plan. The dramatic change will affect about 94% of Californians.
Newsom also announced a tougher – but simpler – mask mandate: Californians must wear a mask whenever they’re outside their homes, with a few exceptions. People don’t have to wear masks in their cars, working in an office or room alone, or when they’re outside and farther than six feet from other people. However, they need to carry a mask and put it on when they are closer than 6 feet to others.
CalMatters, November 17, 2020
As the coronavirus pandemic rages on, several California mayors described how the crisis has affected their cities, from an impending “homelessness Armageddon” to the success of pedestrian-oriented streets.
Along with the pandemic, California’s never-ending housing crisis was on the top of the mayors’ minds. “The homelessness crisis was at a crisis level before Covid and I think all of us are holding our breath,” Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said. “When this eviction moratorium is over, we could have homelessness Armageddon.”
Although rents are dropping in urban hubs like San Francisco, people are still struggling to pay rent. She said that California cities should seek creative solutions for renter relief. Housing is a priority for all parts of the state.
Orange County Register, November 17, 2020
Orange County leaders announced a new initiative to hand out do-it-yourself kits to test saliva for the coronavirus in a push to curb spread at inevitable holiday gatherings. Starting next week, the county, in partnership with Aliso Viejo-based testing lab Ambry Genetics, will make 11,000 spit testing kits available for Orange County residents to do themselves at home, which officials say are just as accurate as the ubiquitous nasal swab tests.
LA Times, November 17, 2020
In an effort to battle a dangerous surge in Covid-19 cases, Los Angeles County officials announced Tuesday evening new limits on hours of operation for some businesses, while also limiting the size of outdoor gatherings.
Starting Friday, restaurants, breweries, bars, wineries and nonessential retail establishments must close from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Additionally, outdoor social gatherings — the only type allowed — will be limited to three households, with a maximum of 15 people. Businesses currently allowed to operate indoors — including retail, offices and personal-care establishments — will be limited to 25% capacity.
LA Times, November 17, 2020
In a sign of the continued political polarization surrounding Covid-19, officials in Orange County are expressing frustration following Gov. Newsom’s decision to move the region into the most restrictive reopening tier amid a dangerous new surge in coronavirus infections statewide.
Orange County leaders on Tuesday argued the state has gone too far. To some in Orange County, the abrupt shift — aside from causing undue confusion and consternation for residents and businesses — is the latest example of a state pandemic response that too often has been top-down, uneven and overbroad.
Kaiser Health News, November 18, 2020
Experts say a crucial factor in being able to reopen safely is getting cases low enough that time-tested public health tools like quarantines and contact tracing can work. Most U.S. hot spots, including broad swaths of California, have never achieved those low levels.
In California, Gov. Newsom, like many other governors, is trying to thread the needle, to keep cases to a minimum while also allowing many businesses to remain open. The virus is too pervasive in its spread — and the public health infrastructure too enfeebled — to make the reopening of businesses and schools an easy proposition.
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The Guardian, November 18, 2020
As the US death toll from Covid-19 closed in on 250,000 on Wednesday, with a caseload above 11.3 million and more than 161,000 new cases added the previous day, an internal White House task force report warned of “aggressive, unrelenting, broad community spread across the country, without evidence of improvement but, rather, further deterioration”.
The report, which leaked widely to the media, added: “Current mitigation efforts are inadequate and must be increased.” Speaking anonymously, one White House official said the task force had concluded that existing efforts to slow the spread “are inadequate and must be increased to flatten the curve” and that Thanksgiving travel and gatherings, around the US holiday next Thursday, could “amplify transmission considerably.”
Washington Post, November 18, 2020
More than 3 million people in the United States have active coronavirus infections and are potentially contagious, according to a new estimate from infectious-disease experts tracking the pandemic. That number is significantly larger than the official case count, which is based solely on those who have tested positive for the virus.
The vast — and rapidly growing — pool of coronavirus-infected people poses a daunting challenge to governors and mayors in hard-hit communities who are trying to arrest the surge in cases.
Traditional efforts such as testing, isolation of the sick and contact tracing can be overwhelmed when a virus spreads at an exponential rate, especially when large numbers of asymptomatic people may be walking around without even knowing they are infectious. To put the 3 million-plus figure in perspective: It is close to 1 percent of the population.
USA Today, November 18, 2020
A rash of recent cases has infected a handful of lawmakers and sent several others into quarantine all while the U.S. Capitol welcomed back more than 500 legislators in the House and Senate this week. Sen. Chuck Grassley, one of the oldest members of the Senate, became the latest senator to announce a positive test Tuesday night.
The batch of new infections on Capitol Hill and continued resistance to everyday changes to acknowledge the virus' deadly impacts have thrust the spotlight on Congress' efforts to curtail the pandemic both across the nation and inside its own walls.
Bloomberg, November 18, 2020
A whole range of pandemic aid programs are set to expire in the new year, leaving millions of Americans without the government support that’s helped keep them afloat -- and threatening to hold back a rebounding economy.
The biggest blow will likely come from the end of two federal unemployment-insurance programs, with roughly 12 million people facing a late-December cutoff, according to a study released Wednesday by The Century Foundation. Also, measures that froze student-loan payments, offered mortgage forbearance and halted evictions have a year-end deadline –- and so do Federal Reserve lending facilities for small businesses and local governments.
Some Covid-19 assistance could potentially be attached to a spending bill needed to avoid a federal government shutdown, but with Congress deadlocked and a White House transition looming, the outlook for another stimulus package this year is bleak.
Bloomberg, November 18, 2020
American workers and businesses face a months-long survival test until Covid-19 vaccines become widely available as spending plunges with record daily cases prompting a sudden return to lockdowns. A wide swath of businesses -- restaurants, hotels, retail shops, bowling alleys and theaters -- will confront a devastating winter, if they are able to remain open at all. Many workers face the holidays with food and shelter in doubt.
“The intensifying pandemic poses a serious threat to the fragile economic recovery, particularly given the fading prospects of any additional fiscal support,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. “Small businesses, who are already reeling, will have trouble surviving.”
Kaiser Health News, November 18, 2020
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum said last week that health care workers who test positive for the coronavirus but do not display symptoms could still report to work. The order, in line with CDC guidance for mitigating staff shortages, would allow asymptomatic health workers who test positive to work only in Covid units, and treat patients who already have the virus.
But many feel the idea endangers the workers and their colleagues. It comes as North Dakota faces one of the worst outbreaks of Covid-19 and grapples with health care staff shortages.
Politico, November 18, 2020
President Trump says tens of millions of doses of coronavirus vaccines, which hold the promise of blunting a pandemic that has killed nearly a quarter-million Americans, will be delivered to every state as soon as December.
But interviews with more than two dozen experts who work in pharmacies, rural clinics and public health, as well as state and local officials, reveal serious concerns that states may not be ready to distribute a vaccine by then. There are unresolved logistical challenges, little federal guidance over who should be prioritized for vaccination, ongoing technical spats between states and the Trump administration, critical funding shortages, and a growing vaccine hesitancy that states need help overcoming. The incoming Biden administration cannot talk to federal agencies and does not know what problems the current leadership is most concerned with, leading some expert advisers to openly worry about access and distribution.
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Mercury News, November 18, 2020
For public school parents anxious about their kids’ struggles with online distance learning at home, the recent coronavirus case surge is a dispiriting sign likely to further delay a return to the classroom.
And some school officials are starting to fear that an ongoing winter outbreak could keep kids from coming back until next school year. At least one large Bay Area district, Palo Alto Unified School District, even suggested that if they are unable to bring older students back to classrooms in January, they may have to wait until next summer or fall.
SF Chronicle, November 17, 2020
San Francisco’s public school students would start returning to classrooms by Jan. 25 under a timeline approved unanimously by the school board Tuesday night.
But the date is not a given. County health officials would have to authorize the reopening, ensuring the district has met health and safety requirements, including ventilation, social distancing protocols and well stocked pandemic supplies. And with rising coronavirus case rates, the future is all but uncertain in terms of what can be open two months from now.
ABC 7 News, November 16, 2020
After Gov. Newsom announced that 28 California counties would be going back into the purple tier, the questions started coming in about what's next for school kids.
Schools that are already open for in person learning in these counties can stay open, but no school can open if they are located in a purple tier county.
School districts around the Bay Area are in that predicament. Santa Rosa Unified School District members met Monday night, but with Sonoma County staying in the purple tier they won't be able to open. Employees there say it might be able to open for in-person learning as early as late January.
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USA Today, November 18, 2020
Young people have turned to digital devices to fill holes left by the Covid-19 pandemic, a practice that elevates depression, anxiety and hopelessness, explains a study released Wednesday.
"Our kids weren't built to live their lives chained to supercomputers," said Jennifer Siebel Newsom, founder of the California Partners Project, which authored the study alongside the Child Mind Institute. "Covid has really shown us how damaging this new normal is to our kids' mental health," she said.
This problem is not a new one. Even before Covid-19, 95% of teens could access a smartphone and spent multiple hours a day on a screen, according to the Pew Research Center in 2019.
EdSource, November 18, 2020
Families dissatisfied with distance learning and being cooped up in their homes during a pandemic are loading up RVs and buses with textbooks and computers and heading out to see the country.
“Roadschooling,” a mobile version of homeschooling, has been a full-time lifestyle for many families prior to the coronavirus pandemic. But since Covid-19 concerns sent students and employees home to work remotely it has become an option for a new group of families who have found themselves untethered by an office or school.
NY Times, November 18, 2020
New York City’s entire public school system will shutter on Thursday, the schools chancellor Richard A. Carranza wrote in an email to principals, in a worrisome signal that a second wave of the coronavirus has arrived. Schools have been open for in-person instruction for just under eight weeks.
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After long recovery, Covid-19 survivor starting to feel like himself again 6 months later |
Bobby Green knows what life is like afterward for those who get the most sick. The 55-year-old Lee’s Summit, Montana, man spent 3 weeks on a respirator and a month in intensive care fighting Covid.
Six months after returning home, he said he’s only now starting to feel like himself again.
Green came home to a parade of well-wishers in May after spending several days at a progressive care rehab facility.
Green, an avid golfer who had never been hospitalized before being infected by the coronavirus, said he felt lucky to be alive. But he wondered if he’d be able to walk without a cane or enjoy the life he had again.
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Green said at first he couldn’t cook for himself and needed assistance to use the restroom.
“His daughters and myself we kept saying, ‘You’re doing good. You’re doing good,’ even though he may not have thought he was. It’s a long process,” his wife Wanda Green said. After months of building up strength to walk easily and be on his feet, he returned to work in October.
Green notes, “I was really shocked and surprised how long it’s taken me to get to where I was before and still not to where I want to be for a complete recovery. But just to be able to do the things I am now, (I can) enjoy life again.”
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Wall Street Journal, November 18, 2020
While the U.S. and Europe struggle to contain an autumn surge in coronavirus infections, two small nations are bucking the trend, keeping cases under control without stringent restrictions. Their recipe: a brief, targeted lockdown in March, followed by tight border controls with mandatory testing and quarantine for all travelers.
Finland and Norway follow a similar playbook of strict border controls, mandatory quarantines and detailed contact-tracing focused on preventing superspreading events when infections do occur. Travelers to Norway must produce a negative test to enter the country and must stay confined for 10 days in a certified hotel after arriving. Violators are subject to high fines or deportation.
The Nordic policy mix could offer lessons for Western governments that are scrambling to bridge the gap until vaccines become widely available and whose latest lockdowns are causing public frustration and exacting a rising economic toll.
Washington Post, November 17, 2020
Even Sweden appears to be abandoning the Swedish model. On Monday, authorities banned gatherings of more than eight people as they grappled with the second coronavirus wave surging through much of Europe. The new restrictions followed other protocols coming into effect this week, including protective measures around nursing homes and bans on alcohol sales at restaurants and bars after 10 p.m.
The shift in tone is noteworthy given Sweden’s notorious light-touch approach to the pandemic. “It is a clear and sharp signal to every person in our country as to what applies in the future,” Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said during a news conference Monday. “Don’t go to the gym, don’t go the library, don’t have dinner out, don’t have parties — cancel!”
Associated Press, November 18, 2020
The pandemic, which has killed more than 46,000 people in Italy, has heightened the urgency of the plight of those seeking medical care in public hospitals in the country’s economically underdeveloped south. But these glimpsed moments of drama, while shocking, are nothing new to people here who depend on such care.
Many in the Naples area resign themselves to what the La Repubblica newspaper denounced as hellish, “Dantesque” waits to receive treatment for Covid-19. Others bundle up their loved ones and head north, where Italian health care enjoys a better reputation — but many hospitals there are also overwhelmed.
Associated Press, November 18, 2020
As Africa is poised to surpass 2 million confirmed virus cases as early as Wednesday, it is Kenya’s turn to worry the continent with a second surge in infections well under way.
The death of four doctors from Covid-19 over the weekend, due to neglect and hospital congestion, has sparked anger and pushed the medical fraternity to the edge. The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union is calling for a strike starting next month for its 7,200 members, who represent the majority of the country’s doctors. For many Kenyans, the strike notice is the latest warning that they are largely on their own in this pandemic.
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Axios, November 18, 2020
Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations are at new peaks, cities and states are weighing second lockdowns, and flu season is upon us — but we're all looking the other way. Pandemic fatigue has set in and the nation has collectively stopped caring just in time for the holiday season. "The incoming holidays have the potential to be a real, serious problem in terms of facilitating transmission," says William Hanage, associate professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Student cross-country travel also has the potential to drive up cases. Of the students who are going home for Thanksgiving, 49% plan to socially distance but not quarantine at home, and 24% plan to take no measures at all, according to new polling from Generation Lab.
STAT, November 17, 2020
With a mask mandate in place since spring, free drive-through testing, hospitals well-stocked with PPE, and a small army of public health officers fully supported by their chief, the Cherokee Nation has been able to curtail its Covid-19 case and death rates even as those numbers surge in surrounding Oklahoma, where the White House coronavirus task force says spread is unyielding.
The Cherokee Nation has seen no cases of workplace transmission; Sequoyah High School, with rapid testing and masks, reopened for in-person learning this fall; and elective medical and dental procedures have been widely restored. The tribe’s Covid response meets the approval of global health leaders.
Alexis C. Madrigal, The Atlantic, November 17, 2020
The reports have come in from all across the country: Hospitals are filling up, especially in the Midwest, and they are running out of the staff they need to take care of patients. Even if a state has open hospital beds, it may not have the workers to put patients in them. “We are short of staff all times, either because they have Covid or they have some other illness, and we need to rule out Covid before we bring them back to work,” University of Wisconsin Health CEO Alan Kaplan told CNBC last week.
Dr. James Hamblin, The Atlantic, November 18, 2020
Many people have tested positive for antibodies, to their surprise, without having had symptoms or known contact with an infected person. It seems clear that you don’t even need repeated low-dose exposures to the coronavirus to develop antibodies. A single exposure could do it.
Unfortunately, immunity is rarely so simple. The dream scenario probably does occur occasionally. But although many people have tested positive for antibodies without getting sick (or, at least, without getting seriously sick), that doesn’t mean they’re immune.
NY Times, November 12, 2020
The social isolation of the pandemic has taken a toll on the mental health of many Americans. But the impact has been especially severe on teenagers, who rely on their friends to navigate the maze and pressures of high school life.
Research shows that adolescents depend on their friendships to maintain a sense of self-worth and to manage anxiety and depression. A recent study of 3,300 high school students found that nearly one-third reported feeling unhappy or depressed in recent months.
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Widespread (Purple)
- 7.0 Adjusted case rate of new Covid-19 positive cases per day per 100,000 residents
- 2.5% Positivity rate
- 2.8% Health equity metric
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Widespread (Purple)
- 10.0 Adjusted case rate of new Covid-19 positive cases per day per 100,000 residents
- 3.7% Positivity rate
- 4.1% Healthy equity metric
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Over the last seven days, Alameda County officials have reported 1,350 new coronavirus cases, which amounts to 82 cases per 100,000 residents.
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Over the last seven days, Contra Costa County officials have reported 1362 new coronavirus cases, which amounts to 120 cases per 100,000 residents. |
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Top 10 Locations of Cases in Alameda County, as of 11/17/20. Alameda County does not publish cases per 100,000 in the last 14 days by city.
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Oakland: 9,982
Hayward: 3,989
Fremont: 1,967
Eden MAC: 1,724
San Leandro: 1,519
Livermore: 1,163
Union City: 1,051
Berkeley: 922
Newark: 733
Castro Valley: 716
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Top 10 Locations of Cases in Contra Costa County plus (in parentheses) cases per 100,000 in last 14 days, as of 11/18/20
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Richmond: 3,995 (236)
Concord: 2,786 (112)
Antioch: 2,898 (228)
Pittsburgh: 2,338 (180)
San Pablo: 1,838 (500)
Bay Point: 1,073 (278)
Brentwood: 899 (169)
Walnut Creek: 780 (96)
Oakley: 694 (120)
San Ramon: 544 (87)
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We are proud to partner with the East Bay Community Foundation in publishing this bulletin. Through donations to its Covid-19 Response Fund, the EBCF provides grants to East Bay nonprofit organizations delivering essential services to those most impacted by the economic fallout from the pandemic.
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Holiday Celebration Guidance |
CDC website, November 12, 2020
The safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving this year is to celebrate with people in your household. If you do plan to spend Thanksgiving with people outside your household, the CDC offers steps to make your celebration safer.
Contra Costa Health Services website
Embracing gratefulness, connection, resiliency and hope are more important than ever, as is protecting the ones you care about and are thankful for. As you plan for and enjoy the holidays, Contra Costa Health Services provides guidance on how to keep yourself and others safe while enjoying traditions.
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SF Chronicle, November 13, 2020
Oaklandside, November 13, 2020
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In the November 12, 2020, podcast, Dr. Michael Osterholm and host Chris Dall discuss the pandemic's growing strain on healthcare systems across the US, limitations of modeling, the concept of paying to prevail, encouraging news in the vaccine world, and the implications of infected mink in Denmark.
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Working in collaboration with the Alameda County Public Health Department, the Cities of Hayward and San Leandro, and the Castro Valley and Eden Area Municipal Advisory Councils, the District has printed “Mask On” posters for each city and community in the Eden Health District area. The posters are free and intended for businesses, health clinics, schools, churches, public agencies and nonprofit organizations to display in their entrances.
“Wearing masks in public or any gatherings, including events with friends and extended families, is essential for slowing the spread of the virus,” stated Eden Health District Director Pam Russo. “While we are seeing signs of progress in California, Alameda County remains a Covid-19 'hot spot' in the Bay Area. Please wear a mask to protect yourself while protecting others.”
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The public is welcome to download and print or share “Mask On” posters from the District’s website. Posters are available in English, Spanish and Chinese languages.
Posters may also be retrieved during business hours from the lobby of the Eden Health District office building located at 20400 Lake Chabot Road, Castro Valley. Posters for the City of Hayward are also available from the Hayward Chamber of Commerce located at 22561 Main Street, Hayward.
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Public Education Covid-19 Flyers |
Contra Costa County Health Services has recently published highly informative flyers addressing the risks of becoming infected in certain settings and activities. |
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We have posted information on food pantries and food services in the cities of Hayward and San Leandro and unincorporated Alameda County including Castro Valley and San Lorenzo. You can access the information here on our website. Alameda County has also released an interactive map listing food distributions and other social services.
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Your feedback is welcome. Please share the Bulletin. |
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The Eden Health District is committed to ensuring that policy makers and community members receive accurate and timely information to help make the best policy and personal choices to meet and overcome the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Each bulletin includes a summary of the top health, Bay Area, California, national, education and international news on the pandemic plus links to a diverse range of commentary and analysis. We publish the Bulletin on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, unless the day fall on a public holiday.
We welcome your feedback on our bulletin. Please contact editor Stephen Cassidy.
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