By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

August 18, 2021 (San Diego) - Your state’s drought really is a state of emergency, says Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna. Let’s start with the obvious: wildfires. There are close to 10,000 personnel, hundreds of fixed wing & rotary aircraft, hand-crews, dozers and water tenders battling multiple wildfires that have burned over 941,003 acres in California alone and not much end in sight. We still have another month or so before the real height of fire season kicks in with our Santa Ana and Diablo winds. Start preparing now!

By County News Center, County of San Diego Communications Office

East County Magazine file photo

August 13, 2021 (San Diego) - The County will begin notifying restaurants today of $4.5 million in permit fee refunds for the period of March 16, 2020 through June 15, 2021. The amount, which is the result of a recent settlement in a lawsuit brought by a local restaurant group, is in addition to $118.9 million already provided to restaurants by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors to help offset the impact of California’s stay-at-home and local public health orders.

More information on the 640 Tenth LP v. County of San Diego, et al. case and settlement can be found here.

No appointments necessary for birth, death & marriage certificates to meet pent-up pandemic & back-to-school demand, and for customers without internet access and/or credit/debit cards

By: Jonathan Goetz

Photo: Grand Opening of Santee location, March 12, 2020 (Photo Credit: Michael Uyeda)

August 10, 2021 (San Diego) - San Diego County Recorder's offices will be offering expanded office hours with a Saturday “no appointment necessary” walk-in day on August 14, 2021, to meet pent-up pandemic period demand for birth, death, and marriage certificates (all vital records). Currently, Ernie Dronenburg requires appointments during the week, but this event will not require appointments for what he has dubbed “Vital Records Day.” The special Saturday walk-in services are offered at the County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk's Chula Vista, San Marcos, and Santee locations.

East County News Service

August 9, 2021 (Sacramento) -- On Wednesday, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and a lineup of public health experts, legendary guests and youth leaders will promote vaccine effectiveness in a Virtual Vaccine Town Hall. The event is designed to capture the interest and engagement of individuals of all ages and across demographic, geographic, and social groups and inform the important conversations around a safe return to in-person learning. The goal of the event is to reach at least one million Californians and have an impact on boosting vaccination rates for the benefit of schools and communities. The Virtual Vaccine Town Hall will include Spanish language and American Sign Language interpretation service and be accessible by teleconference and viewable by Zoom webinar and on the California Department of Education (CDE) Facebook Live.

By Suzanne Potter, California News Service

August 9, 2021 (Sacramento) -- Hundreds of thousands of Medi-Cal recipients who experienced financial hardship during the pandemic are paying monthly premiums when they don't have to - presumably unaware that the state is waiving the monthly payments during the pandemic.

By José A. Álvarez, County of San Diego Communications Office

San Diegans have largely turned to traditional vaccination clinics to get immunized against COVID-19

August 1, 2021 (San Diego) - Retail pharmacies are now the primary provider of vaccines, administering over 100,000 doses from July 1 through July 28. They were followed, in order, by community clinics (nearly 20,000 doses), private medical providers (almost 17,000 doses), County sites (about 13,000 doses) and hospitals (just under 9,000 doses) during the same time frame.

“I want to thank every San Diegan who has been vaccinated and the many partners working daily with the County to ensure vaccines are readily available in every part of our region,” said Wilma J. Wooten (photo, right), M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “Masking and other public health guidance are additional measures to help us safely navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccinations are our key for getting out of it.”

The County has been working with its vaccination partners to get the word out to San Diegans who are hesitant about getting immunized.

East County News Service

July 27, 2021 (San DIego) --  With cases of the Delta variant of COVID-19 surging, San Diego County today announced its recommendations for everyone to wear masks in indoor public places. The recommendation is in line with the latest Centers for Disease Control federal guidelines.

Below is the full County statement:

ly 23, 2021 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Persistent vaccine myths (KFF)
• The New COVID Panic(Slate)
• Guillain-Barré and Vaccines: What You Need to Know (New York Times)
• The U.S. Surgeon General Is Calling COVID-19 Misinformation An 'Urgent Threat' (NPR)
• Virus Cases Start To Rise Again, Especially Where Vaccination Rates Lag (NPR) 

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Google Maps accused of offering 'potentially fatal' hiking routes (CNN)
• Hacking group behind widespread ransomware attacks disappears online (Washington Post)
• The USPS' Semi-Secret Internet Surveillance Apparatus (Reason)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

Source:  Representative Darrell Issa

July 21, 2021 (Washington, D.C.) - Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-50) announced today that he is now an original cosponsor of legislation to reauthorize “Johanna’s Law,” which supports federal campaigns to raise knowledge and awareness among women and health care providers about gynecologic cancers. 

Source: San Diego District Attorney’s office

Photo: Screenshot from  DA’s video

July 18, 2021 (San Diego) -- As we return to pre-pandemic normalcy, consumers still need to be cautious about COVID-19 related scams and other fraudulent activity  

The government issued COVID-19 Vaccination Record Cards are now the official method of vaccine verification in California, which has created a market for fraudulent and stolen vaccination cards nationwide, District Attorney Summer Stephan warns.

Source: County News Service

July 16, 2021 (San Diego) -- The County Board of Supervisors received the results of a new local survey on July 13 with details about why some are still hesitant to get vaccinated. Supervisors also approved an investment of $24 million in federal funds to support COVID-19 response in high-risk communities.

First, the Board received an update on COVID-19 rates in San Diego County.

The number of local COVID-19 cases has been rising the past few weeks, increasing the case rate from 1.9 cases per 100,000 residents on June 15 to 3.7 cases per 100,000 residents now. The daily case count increased to 355 on July 12 and has been at or above 200 for the last seven days.

“We are now seeing about double the number of cases that were being reported a month ago,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “This has led to a 46% increase in hospitalizations and 10% uptake in intensive care unit admissions in the past few weeks. We expect further increases in ICU admissions since they lag behind the trend in cases and hospitalizations.”

July 9, 2021 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Pfizer Says It Is Developing a Covid Booster Shot to Target the Highly Transmissible Delta Variant (NBC San Diego)
• Vaccine Side Effects vs. COVID-19 Damage? There’s No Comparison (Healthline)
• Pfizer vaccine protection takes a hit as Delta variant spreads, Israeli government says (CNN)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• A ‘Colossal’ Ransomware Attack Hits Hundreds Of U.S. Companies (NPR)
• Not even the government knows the full extent of how government is using facial recognition (Marketplace)
• Bitcoin miners break new ground in Texas, a state hailed as the new cryptocurrency capital (Washington Post)
• Don’t be that employee: How to avoid ransomware attacks at work (Washington Post)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

July 7, 2021 (San Diego) – San Diego County today released data revealing that San Diegans who are not fully vaccinated account for 99.8% of all deaths and hospitalizations, as well as 99.1% of all cases countywide since January 1st.  

By Miriam Raftery

July 3, 2021 (Washington D.C.) – If you’re planning to travel internationally, be aware that many nations are requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination and/or other vaccines to enter. The internationally recognized proof of your vaccination status is the Yellow Card, also known as the CDC 731 form or PHS-731 form. 

How to get a Yellow Card?

Approved by the World Health Organization, the Yellow Card can be purchased for $25 through the U.S. Government publishing office bookstore at this link.

Need to find required vaccinations for each country/region you plan to visit? 

Visit the CDC Vaccinations page at http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/vaccinations.htm. To avoid being quarantined or denied entry, a traveler can also check the entry requirements for the country in question by contacting its embassy or consulate.