Late last week, California Department of Public Health Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Aragón issued an order requiring all COVID-19 vaccination providers to request patients’ mobile phone numbers and email addresses for entry into the California Immunization Registry (CAIR), including the San Diego Immunization Registry (SDIR) and the Healthy Futures/Regional Immunization Data…
Read More »This week, Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-16-21 to extend the provisions of a prior executive order that facilitates telehealth services by enabling medical providers to conduct routine and non-emergency medical appointments through telehealth without the risk of being penalized. The order extends the relaxation of certain state privacy and security laws for medical…
Read More »Registration for the 2021 CHEAC Annual Meeting will be closing soon! This year’s conference theme is “Revitalizing Public Health: Leveraging Lessons Learned from COVID-19.” The conference will be held in an entirely virtual format from October 6 through October 8. This year’s meeting will feature the following plenary sessions: Exploring Opportunities in Public Health Infrastructure…
Read More »Following last week’s recommendation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) to recommend COVID-19 vaccine boosters for older adults and high-risk groups, the FDA and the CDC took similar steps this week to authorize and recommend the boosters for certain populations. On Wednesday, the FDA amended…
Read More »On Thursday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced the issuance of the COVID-19 Vaccine Action Plan that outlines how the state will immediately begin administering COVID-19 vaccine doses to eligible residents, continue the state’s equity focus on eligible but unvaccinated individuals, and expand operations once more residents become eligible. The move follows Wednesday’s authorization by the U.S….
Read More »On Monday, Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-15-21 waiving the application of AB 361 until October 1, 2021, when the provisions of a prior executive order that established specified requirements for public agencies to meet remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic will expire. AB 361, which was signed into law by Governor Newsom last week,…
Read More »The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) this week awarded $73 million in cooperative agreements as part of its Public Health Informatics & Technology Workforce Development Program (PHIT Workforce Program). The program, announced earlier this year and funded through the American Rescue Plan…
Read More »Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced California has secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help ensure the availability of resources needed to contain the Fawn Fire burning in Shasta County. The FMAG will enable local, state, and tribal agencies responding to the fire to apply for…
Read More »CHEAC this week published its first edition of the #WeArePublicHealth newsletter. The newsletter highlights some of the many activities and services delivered by California’s 61 local health departments. Our first edition features the role of local health departments in COVID-19 pandemic response, school reopening efforts, and wildfire response activities, among others. The first edition of…
Read More »The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) this week announced a partnership with actor Tyler Perry to continue educating California residents about the safety and importance of COVID-19 vaccines. The partnership is part of the state’s “Let’s Get to ImmUnity” public education campaign designed to inform Californians about COVID-19 vaccines. CDPH will distribute a series…
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