Join anchor Kristen Sze for ABC7's daily interactive newscast about the novel coronavirus outbreak in the Bay Area and other hot topics. You can check here to stream the show Monday-Friday at 3 p.m.
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- GET HELP: Resources and information about COVID-19
- CA REOPENING TIERS: Map shows which counties can, can't reopen under Newsom's new 4-tier system
- COVID-19 VACCINE: Find out where you are in line
- LATEST LOCAL CASES: Updated number of COVID-19 cases, deaths in San Francisco Bay Area
Here are the latest developments on the respiratory illness in the U.S.:
Feb. 16, 2021
11 a.m.
Gov. Newsom joins leaders at LA mass vaccination site opening
Governor Gavin Newsom is joining federal, state and local leaders at the opening of a new community vaccination site in Los Angeles today. Last week, the Governor visited vaccination sites in Fresno, San Diego, San Francisco and Santa Clara to highlight the state's efforts to ramp up vaccinations, which have now topped 6 million doses administered.
7:45 a.m.
Oakland Coliseum vaccination site opens today
A major FEMA vaccination site opens today at the Oakland Coliseum. It's the first federally managed site in the Bay Area and only one of two in California -- the other one is in Los Angeles. The goal is to give out 6,000 vaccination doses each day. The Coliseum vaccination site is by appointment only. https://abc7news.com/health/how-to-make-vaccination-appointment-at-oakland-coliseum-site/10343542/
Feb. 15, 2021
8:15 a.m.
Oakland Coliseum vaccination site opens tomorrow
A mass vaccination site is opening tomorrow at the Oakland Coliseum. That site is jointly operated by state and federal agencies. They have access to a different supply pool. The goal is to administer 6,000 doses per day.
Feb. 14, 2021
11:45 a.m.
California's 7-day positivity rate at 3.7%, lowest since November of last year
California's 7-day COVID-19 positivity rate dropped to 3.7% Sunday, which is the lowest it's been since November. The total hospitalizations are now under 9,000 statewide.
New Cases: 8,842 (3,399,878 total)
7-day average: 9,136
14-day average: 11,181
Deaths: 408 (46,843 total)
7-day average: 414
14-day average: 439
7-day positivity rate: 3.7%
14-day positivity rate: 4.6%
Hospitalizations: 8,996
In ICU: 2,632
Feb. 13, 2021
12 p.m.
7-day positivity, 14-day positivity rate in CA below five percent for first time this year
For the first time in few months, the seven- and 14 day- positivity rates in California are below five percent. Hospitalizations have dropped by over 50% compared to the beginning of January when we had more than 20,000.
Deaths remain high due to the surge that lasted well into the second week of January. Overall, however the picture keeps on improving for the state.
New cases: 9,421 (3,391,036 total)
7-day average: 10,025
14-day average: 11,904
7-day positivity rate: 4.1% (was 4.3% from Friday)
14-day positivity rate: 4.9%
Deaths: 433 (46,435 total)
7-day average: 398
14-day average: 444
Hospitalized: 9,444 (down 458 from Friday)
In ICU: 2,731 (down 118)
Feb. 12, 2021
3 p.m.
Vaccine eligibility in California to be expanded to ages 16-64 with underlying health conditions
California is expanding the list of people eligible for coronavirus vaccine by another 4 to 6 million people. State Health Director Dr. Mark Ghaly said Friday that starting March 15 people between ages 16-64 who are severely disabled, and those with health conditions that put them at high risk can get in line for shots. Get more details here.
8:20 a.m.
San Mateo Co. to expand vaccine eligibility
San Mateo County will expand vaccine eligibility in just over a week for people working in essential jobs. Starting February 22, teachers, childcare providers, first responders and people working in food and agriculture will be eligible. These workers are included in Phase 1-B of California's vaccine framework. Supply issues have kept Bay Area counties from expanding vaccinations to more groups.
Feb. 11, 2021
7:30 a.m.
Fully vaccinated people can skip COVID quarantines if exposed to someone infected, CDC says
People who have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus -- right now that means with two doses of either the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccine -- can skip quarantine if they are exposed to someone infected with the virus, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. Read more about the updated guidance here.
Fauci says 'virtually everybody' could start getting COVID-19 vaccines in April
Dr. Anthony Fauci predicts by April it will be "open season" for vaccinations in the U.S., as supply boosts allow most people to get shots to protect against COVID-19. Get the full story here.
6:15 a.m.
Calif. high school athletes to bring petition to Gov. Newsom
Today 100 high school athletes, some from the Bay Area, will deliver 10,000 signatures to Governor Gavin Newsom to bring back sports immediately. Tuesday at Levi's Stadium, Newsom said "we're making real progress" in restarting sports, but didn't specify further. Only low-risk sports are allowed in the purple tier. Many families say the loss of a sports season deeply hurts a students' future.
Feb. 10, 2021
12:25 p.m.
2 cases of South African COVID-19 variant found in Bay Area
Two cases of the South African COVID-19 variant have been found in the Bay Area. One of the cases was found in Alameda County and the other was in Santa Clara County, according to Governor Gavin Newsom.
8 a.m.
SJ approves hero pay but it may take a while
There's an update on the push to get hero pay to grocery store workers in San Jose. The city council approved a $3 an hour pay bump. It may take some time before the ordinance take effect. It needed eight votes to start immediately but the council voted 7-3. This means it will need to go through the city's normal approval process, which could take up to two months.
Feb. 9, 2021
4:30 a.m.
San Mateo Union High School District to restart in-person classes
San Mateo Union High School District says they will restart in-person classes. The Teachers' Association and the school board have agreed on a phased reopening that starts when San Mateo County moves into the Red Tier. Schools will start with specialized programs for students with disabilities. Then eventually, students who opt for in-person instruction will return to a hybrid system -- switching between in-person and virtual.
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Feb. 8, 2021
12 p.m.
SF to move to next vaccine tier in 2 weeks
San Francisco will soon be moving into the next phase of vaccine distribution, Mayor London Breed announced Tuesday. The city will move into Phase 1B starting on Feb. 24, Breed said. That means teachers, child care workers, food and grocery workers, and emergency workers (including police officers) will all be eligible to receive the vaccine. Get more details here.
7:25 a.m.
Santa Clara Co. limits indoor worship to 20% capacity
Santa Clara County has given the green light to hold indoor worship services. The county is limiting attendance to 20-percent of capacity. This comes after a temporary order by a U.S. District Court -- saying the county is not exempt from a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Friday that lifted California's ban on indoor services.
Feb. 8, 2021
11:30 a.m.
Gov. Newsom speaks at San Diego mass vaccination site
Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke Monday at Petco Park in San Diego, which has been turned into a mass vaccination site. He said the state is continually ramping up the pace of its vaccine distribution as it sees its COVID-19 cases drop.
"Everything that should be up is up," the governor said. "Everything that should be down is down as it relates to case counts, positivity rates, people being hospitalized, people in our ICU. That is encouraging news, indeed. (But with) vaccinations, however, we can't move fast enough."
Newsom said California received about 1 million vaccine doses last week from the federal government -- a figure that everyone from "the president on down" recognizes is too low.
7:15 a.m.
Protest planned outside Palo Alto School District
Parents are planning to protest outside the Palo Alto School District today for not reopening schools for older students. The district reopened elementary schools to hybrid learning in October and is planning to bring sixth graders back in March. There are no plans to bring back older students until this fall - which has many parents filling in the gap with private schools. Today's protest is from 4 to 5 p.m. at the Palo Alto Unified School District Offices at Churchill and El Camino.
Feb. 7, 2021
8 a.m.
Agreement to reopen San Francisco schools reached by district, teachers, union says
The union representing teachers in the San Francisco Unified School District say they've reached a tentative agreement regarding the reopening of schools amid the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the union, under the agreement, schools can return to in-person learning once the city is in the Red Tier and staff and teachers onsite are vaccinated. If vaccinations are not available, the agreement says classrooms could reopen once the city is in the orange tier, once the spread of COVID-19 is considered moderate.
Feb. 6, 2021
8 p.m.
CA revises indoor church guidelines after Supreme Court ruling, but Santa Clara Co. continues ban on indoor gatherings
California Gov. Gavin Newsom's office issued revised guidelines for indoor church services after the Supreme Court lifted the state's ban on indoor worship during the coronavirus pandemic, but left in place restrictions on singing and chanting. But not all places of worship plan to reopen right away. In a statement, Santa Clara County health officials said, "We recognize that many in our diverse faith community in Santa Clara County are eager to return to indoor worship services and some may have welcomed last nights U.S. Supreme Court decision partially blocking the States prohibition on indoor places of worship. But at this pivotal timewith still very high levels of COVID-19 transmission, yet amid the initial hopeful rollout of vaccinesit remains critical to avoid potential superspreader events including indoor gatherings. Indoor gatherings of all types remain prohibited in Santa Clara County." Read full story here.
12 p.m.
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California reports new cases, deaths
California reported another 12,394 cases of COVID-19 on Friday and a total of 623 people died of the virus. More than 12,000 remain hospitalized, with 3,391 in the ICU statewide. California has reported a total of 3,320,862 cases of COVID-19 to date.
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