This week, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. took a series of actions to support the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Below, we provide a brief summary of these actions: National Emergency Extended: President Biden on Wednesday issued a notice continuing the national emergency declared in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic beyond March 1,…
Read More »This week, the Department of Finance (DOF) notified legislative budget leaders of the Newsom Administration’s intent to extend use of the state’s Disaster Response-Emergency Operations Account (DREOA) for COVID-19-related emergency operations costs for an additional 120 days. In a memo to the legislature, the DOF highlights the Newsom Administration’s ongoing response efforts to the pandemic,…
Read More »Today, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued additional information on the statewide vaccine network to be operated by third-party administrator (TPA) Blue Shield of California. The announcement details the forthcoming changes that will occur as the TPA framework is gradually implemented over the month of March. According to the state, it remains on…
Read More »On Thursday, the Newsom Administration issued its plan to execute on the Governor’s recent commitment to provide 10 percent of the state’s COVID-19 vaccine supply to education personnel beginning Monday, March 1. The Administration plans to provide education personnel access to COVID-19 vaccines through existing county-led initiatives, dedicated access to MyTurn, and state-FEMA partnerships. As…
Read More »On Thursday, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued a Health Alert regarding the increasing identification of COVID-19 virus variants in California, in the U.S., and internationally. CDPH’s alert details the current virus variants of concern, consisting of the B.1.1.7, B.1.351, and P.1 variants, as well as current variants of interest, consisting of the…
Read More »The California Health and Human Services (CHHS) Agency this week released an announcement regarding the recent findings of the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Laboratory Field Services (LFS) Division revealing a number of significant deficiencies at the Valencia Branch Laboratory (VBL). CDPH, during an initial routine inspection of the laboratory, identified a series of…
Read More »This week, Governor Gavin Newsom, Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon announced an agreement on a package of immediate actions to provide relief to residents, families, and businesses experiencing hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic. The agreement reflects a compromise on initiatives proposed in the Governor’s January Budget to provide cash…
Read More »Today, Governor Gavin Newsom announced two significant COVID-19 developments related to vaccine prioritization for education workers and the release of updated youth sports guidance. Education Personnel to be Prioritized for Vaccine Under the Governor’s announcements today, staff working in-person in public schools or childcare settings must be prioritized for vaccines statewide beginning March 1, 2021….
Read More »This week, the Biden-Harris Administration detailed a series of actions intended to improve COVID-19 testing, support global COVID-19 vaccination efforts, and provide relief to impacted Americans. Below, these actions are summarized: Increased Weekly Supply: The Biden-Harris Administration announced it is increasing the weekly, minimum supply level of COVID-19 vaccines delivered to states, territories, and tribes…
Read More »The Senate Budget & Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 3 on Health and Human Services today convened a hearing to examine proposed budget investments under the jurisdiction of the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). Today’s hearing included presentations from DHCS Director Will Lightbourne and State Medicaid Director Jacey Cooper, representatives from the Department of…
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