Monthly Archives: September 2021

#wearamask, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Mandatory face coverings, Solano County Board of Supervisors, Solano Supervisor Monica Brown, Vaccine

Solano Supervisor Monica Brown – COVID news and the Board’s failure to mandate masks and vaccines

[Editor: I commend our District 2 Solano County Supervisor, Monica Brown, and I highly recommend her latest advisory on COVID-19, below.  To subscribe to her weekly newsletter, click here.  – R.S.]

Solano County Header
SUPERVISOR MONICA BROWN SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2021 UPDATE

Hello Benicia, Fairfield, and Vallejo,

Welcome to my most recent update. I can be reached at mebrown@solanocounty.com.

CORONAVIRUS

We are still in a pandemic. Our hospitals are overwhelmed, our residents are catching this virus, and we are seeing consumers pull back on activities because of the continuing pandemic. It is devastating to see the impacts on our community.

However, as I have said many times and as we have heard from many people, this is a pandemic of the unvaccinated. According to the most recent data, 77.5% of those in Solano County testing positive for COVID-19 are unvaccinated. Data has also shown that those who are vaccinated are much less likely to have symptoms, even less likely to have a severe illness, and to have a statistically small chance of dying. You have a 17x higher chance of being hospitalized if you are unvaccinated. Vaccines work and they are the key to beating this pandemic.

I plead with our entire community to get vaccinated. This is the easiest and most effective way to keep all of us safe. It is also protecting our most vulnerable residents, children under 12 and those who are immunocompromised, from the disease. Please get vaccinated if you have not already. If you have been vaccinated, please encourage everyone you know to get vaccinated. We are all in this together and we will only success together.

Solano County has many opportunities for you to get vaccinated. The county is offering all three COVID-19 vaccinations at the Solano Mall (1350 Travis Blvd in Fairfield on the second floor across from the Applebee’s) and rapid COVID-19 testing every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 10am-7pm. No appointment is necessary, but you may make an appointment by calling 707-784-8655.

At this past Tuesday’s Board meeting, the subject of a mask mandate and a vaccine mandate was brought forward. While I wanted both, there was not enough support on the Board for either. The Board did mandate that if a local jurisdiction in the county has a mask mandate, then any county buildings in that jurisdiction must follow it. The two jurisdictions in Solano County with mask mandates are Benicia and Vallejo. I sent a letter to the Governor asking him to implement a statewide mask mandate. Please wear your masks. This pandemic is not over.

I want to thank Dr. Bonnie Hamilton from the Napa Solano Medical Society for speaking in support of a mask mandate. The Napa Solano Medical Society represents over 1,200 physicians in the Napa Solano area. I also want to thank Dr. Seth Kaufman, who is the chief medical officer for NorthBay Healthcare, for speaking in support of a mask mandate. Their testimony, along with the guidelines from the Center for Disease Control, make it abundantly clear that the science supports mandating masks.

The California Department of Public Health is looking for partner organizations to set up on-site rapid testing for employees, guests and/or community members. The state will provide test kits, training, and other support. This is free to organizations. For more information, please contact testing.taskforce@cdph.ca.gov.
Monica Brown, Solano County Supervisor, District 2
Monica Brown,
Solano County Supervisor, District 2

First elected in 2016, Monica represents District 2 on the Solano County Board of Supervisors. District 2 encompasses the city of Benicia, the portion of Vallejo south of Georgia Street, Mare Island, Cordelia, Green Valley and a portion of Fairfield.

#wearamask, Benicia CA, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Delta variant, Face coverings, Hospitalizations, Solano County CA, Solano County Health Department, Vaccine

Another elderly COVID death in Solano County, 185 new infections

By Roger Straw, Friday, September 17, 2021

Friday, September 17: Solano County reports
1 new death and 185 new infections

Solano County COVID dashboard SUMMARY:
[Sources: see below.]

DEATHS: One new death today, someone 65+ years of age.  Total Solano deaths over the course of the pandemic now at 281.

CASES: The County reported  185 new COVID cases over the last two days, 92 per day, down from Wednesday’s 184 but up from Monday’s 50 per day, and well back in the range of last winter’s surge.

COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION RATE: Over the last 7 days, Solano has seen 714 new cases, NEARLY TWICE the CDC’s population-based definition of a HIGH rate of transmission!

(CDC FORMULA: Based on Solano County population of 449,432, the CDC would rate us in “SUBSTANTIAL” transmission with 225 cases over the last 7 days.  Double that, or 450 cases in the last 7 days would rank us in “HIGH” transmission.  Reference: CDC’s “Level of SARS-CoV-2 Community Transmission”.]

ACTIVE CASES: Solano’s 816 ACTIVE cases is up from Wednesday’s 773, and up alarmingly up from 212 on July 2.

POSITIVE TEST RATE:  Our 7-day average percent positivity rate was 9.4% today, down from 10.7% on Wednesday.  COMPARE: today’s California rate is 2.6%.  Today’s U.S. rate is 9.1%.  [Source: Johns Hopkins]  WARNING: The Delta Variant is here in Solano County and spreading fast.  Time to mask up again – watch out and take care!

HOSPITALIZATIONS:

CURRENT hospitalizations were down slightly today from 92 to 85 persons, but still in the range we saw during the winter surge.

ICU Bed Availability went up today from 23% to 28%, but still in the yellow danger zone.  Again, we are still in the range we saw during the winter surge.

Ventilator Availability went up today from 49% to 52%, still in the range of last February’s winter surge.

TOTAL hospitalizations  Solano County’s TOTAL hospitalized over the course of the pandemic must be independently discovered in the County’s occasional update of hospitalizations by Age Group and by Race/Ethnicity.  The County updated its Hospitalizations charts today.  See below.  Interestingly, the race/ethnicity numbers don’t square with the age group numbers.

FACE MASKS… Good News in Benicia and Vallejo

GOOD NEWS! Benicia City Council passed a citywide indoors mask mandate that went into effect on August 24 and includes everyone 4 years old and up when indoors in public places, even those of us who are vaccinated.  Benicia was joined by Vallejo on August 31.  In the Bay Area, Solano County REMAINS the only holdout against a mask mandate for public indoors spaces.

THE SOLANO COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS failed to even consider an agendized proposal for a countywide MASK MANDATE this week.  On Tuesday, September 14. the Board’s agenda called for discussion of an indoors mask mandate for all and a vaccination mandate for county workers.  The Board voted 4-1 to require county-run facilities in Vallejo and Benicia to abide by local mandates.  But the Board voted down a vaccination mandate 3-2, and failed to even consider the county-wide mask mandate.  The Solano Board of Supervisors now joins with Dr. Bela Matyas in officially showing poor leadership on the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cases by City on Friday, September 17:
  • Benicia added 10 new cases today, a total of 1,388 cases since the outbreak began.  Benicia has seen 26 new cases over the last 7 days, remaining just below the CDC’s definition of HIGH community transmission (based on Benicia population).  Benicia is still at the HIGH END of the CDC’s range of SUBSTANTIAL transmission.  [Note that Solano County is also rated far above high transmission, and Solano’s 6 other cities are likely also individually experiencing high or substantial transmission.]
  • Dixon added 11 new cases today, total of 2,414 cases.
  • Fairfield added 40 new cases today, total of 11,664 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 3 new cases today, total of 550 cases.
  • Suisun City added 17 new cases today, total of 3,062 cases.
  • Vacaville added 58 new cases today, a total of 11,457 cases.
  • Vallejo added 46 new cases today, a total of 12,710 cases.
  • Unincorporated added 0 new cases today, a total of 134 cases (population figures not available).

Continue reading Another elderly COVID death in Solano County, 185 new infections →

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Mandatory face coverings, Vacaville CA

Vacaville waking up to COVID threat – Council votes mask mandate for City buildings and events

Vacaville Council requires masks for Vacaville city buildings, some outdoors activities

Fairfield Daily Republic, By Susan Hiland, September 17, 2021

VACAVILLE — City Council members voted Tuesday to require face masks indoors at city buildings and during certain activities as the delta variant continues its surge.

Council members debated the proposed directive of the use of face coverings inside all city facilities and while participating in outdoor programs and events conducted by the city when social distancing is not possible.

“I think people have the right to make the decision that is best for their family, whether to put something in your body or wear masks,” Councilman Roy Stockton said. “This to me feels like tyranny.”

“This is not about tyranny,” Councilman Michael Silva said. “This is about how to keep staff safe and showing that we genuinely are concerned for keeping staff safe.”

The city government has experienced firsthand the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

A total of 29 city employees tested positive for Covid-19 in August and numerous others were forced to miss work for testing and quarantine due to workplace exposures, the city reports. Several of the positive cases were in vaccinated employees.

Solano County Public Health reported 773 active Covid-19 cases in the county as of Wednesday with 92 people hospitalized and the availability of staffed ICU beds at 23%.

Roy Stockton Michael Silva
“Part of this is looking at this as a business,” Vice Mayor Nolan Sullivan said. “We have an outbreak in the city and it is affecting how business is working. I am for anything that helps keep things moving.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended July 27 that face coverings be worn in public indoor settings, regardless of vaccination status, in areas of substantial or high Covid-19 transmission. The California Department of Public Health has recommended that fully vaccinated people wear face coverings in indoor public settings statewide.

Vacaville has the lowest vaccinate among its residents 12 and older – 68.3% – among the seven Solano County cities.

The number of reported cases is going down from the surge seen in August. But numbers are still high with some 11,399 cases in Vacaville. The number of deaths is 280 with 16 recently added during the current surge.

The CDC has released data that indicates people who are unvaccinated who contract Covid-19 are 11 times more likely to die than are those who are vaccinated.

The face-covering mandate will be effective until repealed by either the city manager or the City Council.

[…continued…]
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Electoral politics, Solano County CA

Recall vote – Solano showed least support for Newsom among Bay Area counties

[BenIndy editor: For updated results  check out Solano County Registrar of Voter’s Sept 14 election results here.  As of Thursday Sept 16, breakdown results by City and precinct are not yet available. 12,500 to 23,000 ballots are received but not yet processed, mostly vote-by-mail ballots.  Unofficial results as of Sept 16 show 2/3 voting NO by mail and 2/3 of a much smaller number voting YES on election day.  As of today, 111,000+ voted by mail, and only 15,000+ voted on election day.  – R. S.]

Solano was the Bay Area county most receptive to the Newsom recall

A sign against the recall is posted behind California Gov. Gavin Newsom as he talks with volunteers who are phone banking against the recall at Manny's on Aug. 13, 2021, in San Francisco. California Gov. Gavin Newsom kicked off his "Say No" to recall campaign as he prepares to face a recall election on Sept. 14.
A sign against the recall is posted behind California Gov. Gavin Newsom as he talks with volunteers who are phone banking against the recall at Manny’s on Aug. 13, 2021, in San Francisco. California Gov. Gavin Newsom kicked off his “Say No” to recall campaign as he prepares to face a recall election on Sept. 14. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
SFGATE, by Joshua Bote, September 15, 2021

The Bay Area overwhelmingly opposed the Gavin Newsom recall, with San Francisco, Marin and Alameda counties all rejecting the recall at a rate of more than 80%.

But while almost every county in the Bay Area is currently reporting more than 70% of voters opposed to the recall, one Bay Area county flirted with the idea of a recall more than any other: Solano County.

With more than 77% of votes tabulated as of Wednesday afternoon, 64.3% of Solano voters rejected the recall, according to data from CNN and the Associated Press. That’s six percentage points less than the Bay Area county with the second-smallest percentage of Newsom supporters, Napa County, where the infamous French Laundry incident that galvanized the recall effort took place.

63.9% of voters in the state voted against the recall.

Historically, Solano has proven to be among the more conservative-leaning of the Bay Area counties. But more interestingly, Solano County’s voting numbers mirror the state overall better than any other county in the Bay Area, and arguably, in the state in general.

In 2020, about 64% of Solano County voters sided with President Joe Biden — nearly the same exact percentage of California’s voters.

Same goes for the 2016 presidential election, when 61% of Solano County voters sided with Hillary Clinton, again nearly identical to the state’s vote total.

So while Solano County may lean more conservative than the rest of the Bay Area, it’s also something of a bellwether county in California — at least for these key elections.