On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 disease in individuals 16 years of age and older. The vaccine became the first in the nation to receive full FDA approval. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine continues to be available under emergency use authorization (EUA), including for…
Read More »On Thursday, California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Aragón issued a public health order amending his August 5 order that requires visitors to general acute care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and intermediate care facilities, when making indoor visits, to verify their full vaccination status or provide proof…
Read More »On Wednesday, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) issued a notice to all employers and workers in California encouraging workplaces to follow the recent update from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) recommending that all individuals wear face coverings while indoors regardless of vaccination status. The notice from Cal/OSHA comes after…
Read More »Late last week, California State Auditor Elaine Howle issued an update to Governor Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders on statewide issues and state agencies that represent a high risk to California or its residents. By way of background, the State Auditor’s Office maintains a “High Risk Government Agency Audit Program” that enables the auditor to…
Read More »On Tuesday, State Auditor Elaine Howle issued a report, “California Department of Housing and Community Development: It Failed to Expedite Access to Federal Funding to Address the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on California’s Homeless Population.” The auditor’s report comes as part of her office’s classification of the state’s management of certain federal funds related…
Read More »Given recent wildfires throughout the state, California this week secured federal resources and support to support the state’s ongoing response and recovery efforts. Earlier in the week, California requested and successfully received from President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for the Dixie and River fires in Lassen, Nevada, Placer, and Plumas…
Read More »On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated the nationwide emergency moratorium on residential evictions issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Recall, Congress established a temporary moratorium on evictions at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon Congress’ moratorium expiration in July 2020, the CDC issued an order halting evictions throughout…
Read More »The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week announced it had issued the first marketing denial orders (MDOs) for electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products after determining the applications for approximately 55,000 flavored electronic cigarette products lacked sufficient evidence that they have a benefit to adult smokers to overcome the public health threat posed…
Read More »U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday this week launched the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Southeast Asia Regional Office in Hanoi, Vietnam, during a ceremony that featured the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. CDC Director, and Deputy Prime Ministers and Health Ministers from 11 countries. According to…
Read More »This week, the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) launched a new series of case studies examining efforts by states and localities in conceptualizing and implementing climate change adaptation programs that are focused on equity. The case series follows a December 2020 TFAH and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Report, “Climate Change & Health:…
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