Monthly Archives: March 2022

#wearamask, Benicia CA, Community transmission rate, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Hospitalizations, Solano County CA, Solano County Health Department, Vaccine

Solano County reports 487 previously undisclosed COVID hospitalizations

NOTE: The information below is not the latest.  TAP HERE for today’s latest information.

By Roger Straw, Thursday, March 31, 2022

Solano County’s Thursday report: 107 new COVID infections, and 487 previously undisclosed hospitalizations.  County will likely offer an explanation tomorrow for the unprecedented increase in hospitalizations.

Solano Public Health COVID dashboard, Thursday, March 31, 2022:

DEATHS:  Solano reported no new COVID-related deaths in today’s report.  In March, 17 County residents were reported to have died with COVID.  One was age 18-49, five were age 50-64, and eleven were age 65+.  COMPARE: 15 COVID deaths were reported in February, ALL over 65 years of age.  A total of 413 Solano residents have now died of COVID or COVID-related causes over the course of the pandemic.

TRANSMISSION RATE: With today’s report, Solano remained in the desired MODERATE transmission rate. with 195 new cases in the last 7 days.  CDC FORMULA: Based on Solano County’s population, 450 or more cases in 7 days places Solano in the CDC’s population-based definition of a HIGH transmission rate.  We need to drop below 225 cases in 7 days to show MODERATE community transmission.  Numbers between 225 and 450 are considered SUBSTANTIAL transmission.

ACTIVE CASES: Solano reported 229 ACTIVE cases today, up from 194 at last report.

CASES BY CITY – Thursday, March 31, 2022:

  • BENICIA added 8 new cases today, total of 3,135 cases since the outbreak began.  TRANSMISSION RATE: Benicia’s 7-day case count is 17 as of today’s report, back up into the CDC’s SUBSTANTIAL range.  Benicia was in the MODERATE range from mid-March until today’s report.  For a city with Benicia’s population, anything over 27 cases in 7 days is considered HIGH TRANSMISSION.  14 to 27 cases is considered SUBSTANTIAL.  Below 14 is rated MODERATE.
  • Dixon added 7 more cases today, total of 4,344 cases.
  • Fairfield added 26 new cases today, total of 22,652 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 1 new case today, total of 1,191 cases.
  • Suisun City added 9 new cases today, total of 5,948 cases.
  • Vacaville added 38 new cases today, a total of 21,628 cases.
  • Vallejo added 18 new cases today, a total of 25,499 cases.
  • Unincorporated added 0 new cases today, a total of 199 cases.

TEST RATE:  Solano County’s 7-Day Percent Positive TEST RATE fell dramatically in March, and remains low, at only 4% today. Even at this lower rate, Solano does not compare favorably: The CALIFORNIA 7-day % positive rate fell to only 1.0% today,  [Source: Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Tracking Center] and the U.S. 7-day % positive rate was down a bit today from 2.5% to 2.3%. [Source: CDC COVID Data Tracker.] 

HOSPITALIZATIONS:

CURRENT: The number of those currently hospitalized with COVID in Solano County fell today from 8 persons to only 7.  Current hospitalizations don’t tell the whole story, though, as this number reflects both admissions and discharges.  Only from the increase in total hospitalizations (below) can we know how many new admissions have come into our hospitals as of this date.

TOTAL hospitalizations: Solano Public Health posted a MAJOR UPDATE its Age Group and Race/Ethnicity charts today.  Solano reported an unprecedented jump, adding 487 new hospitalizations today, for a March total of 644 newly reported hospitalizations.  TREND: Solano reported 284 hospitalizations in January and 184 in February.   Solano’s pandemic total of hospitalizations is now 4,337.  (The County’s hospitalization numbers for Race/Ethnicity is less accurate, but presented here to show relative percentages.)

ICU Bed Availability Solano County reported a sudden drop in available hospital beds today, falling from 46% to only 33%, just barely still in the County’s GREEN safe zone .

Ventilator Availability in Solano County rose slightly today from 72% available to 73% available, in the County’s GREEN safe zone. 

HOW DOES TODAY’S REPORT COMPARE?  See recent reports and others going back to April 20, 2020 in my ARCHIVE of daily Solano COVID updates (an excel spreadsheet).

Click green text above or on the image.

>The data on this page is from the Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard.  The Dashboard is full of much more information and (as of 3/14/2022) is updated Monday and Thursday between 4 and 6pm.  On the County’s dashboard, you can hover a mouse or click on an item for more information.  Note the tabs at top for “Summary, Demographics” and “Vaccines.”  Click here to go to today’s Solano County Dashboard.

See also my BENINDY ARCHIVE of daily Solano COVID updates (an excel spreadsheet).  I have also archived the hundreds of full CORONAVIRUS REPORTS posted here almost daily on the Benicia Independent since April 2020.

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#BlackLivesMatter, Benicia Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, Misogynoir, Misogyny, Racism, Senator Cory Booker, US Supreme Court, Women's equality

Benicia mom Amira Barger: I’m a Black Bay Area parent. The Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings were disappointing — though not surprising

A Black Bay Area parent and community activist reflects on the Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings

SFGate, by Amira Barger, March 30, 2022

Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson becomes emotional during an impassioned speech by Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., during her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 23, 2022. | Andrew Harnik/AP

I hope my daughter never has to endure the treatment Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson has been subjected to.

Being a Black woman and the mother of a young Black girl, I felt it was important for her to witness this historical moment. But instead of the positive experience it could have been, the scene that played out was sadly familiar. As we sat together watching the Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing, my nine-year-old wondered why Texas Sen. Cruz frequently interrupted Jackson.

“May I say a word I’m not supposed to?” she asked. “Isn’t he kind of being…a jerk, and why isn’t anyone doing anything?”

I explained a lesson from bell hooks: “Sometimes people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power — not because they don’t see it, but because they see it and they don’t want it to exist.” Black women have a common experience — we are often required to respond with restraint and calm in the face of misogynoir (misogyny directed towards Black women where both race and sex play a role), so as not to disrupt the dynamics of power. I witnessed this misogynoir with my daughter as Jackson smiled and paused — a response born of hard-earned wisdom. It was triggering to watch.

We have waited 233 years to be represented. The Supreme Court has had 115 judges — of these, there have been two Black men and five women — none of them Black. Interestingly, confirmation hearings have only existed since 1916, when Woodrow Wilson put forward Louis Brandeis, the first Jewish man nominated. Hearings were not previously required for the white Christian men who had historically held these seats. Many might suggest the treatment of Jackson is some sort of retribution for treatment received by the last two Supreme Court nominees — particularly Brett Kavanaugh. Several GOP senators alluded to as much. However, in presuming this, one chooses to conveniently forget the circumstances surrounding those hearings.

Kavanaugh was accused of sexual assault. The consternation surrounding Amy Coney Barrett had less to do with the nominee than it did with whether, only weeks from the presidential election, confirmation proceedings should be happening at all. Senators blocked President Barack Obama from replacing Justice Antonin Scalia in the spring of 2016 — months before the election. During her hearing, Barrett repeatedly sidestepped questions, stating she shouldn’t give an opinion on matters she might have to rule on as a justice. Such answers have long-standing precedent, and did not seem to ruffle too many feathers among the GOP members of the committee. Contrast that with their treatment of Jackson, berated for not answering questions even as she was interrupted time and again. Still, she sat composed as she was met with conjecture and infighting amongst senators. Compare that with Kavanaugh, red-faced and shouting at the committee about how much he liked beer.

One might also be tempted to write off the treatment of Jackson as merely partisan politics as usual. However, you would only have to go back so far as the nominations of Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to note the marked differences in tone and tenor of those hearings compared to the Jackson hearings. A desire for the “most qualified candidate” has been the GOP rallying cry in response to President Joe Biden’s promise to nominate a Black woman. Of course, the quiet part of that seemingly reasonable request is the underlying assumption that no Black woman could possibly fit the bill as “most qualified.” As a federal appellate judge, a district court judge, a member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission, an attorney in private practice, and as a public defender, Jackson has broad experience across the legal profession. A visual from the Washington Post paints a poignant picture of the totality of Jackson’s unparalleled qualifications in comparison to her would-be colleagues. Kagan, for example, had never been a judge at any level before her appointment to the Supreme Court, yet her nomination was met with a far greater degree of civility.

What Jackson endured is a result of inequitable procedure propped up by decades of empty diversity, equity and inclusion promises without accountability. True commitment to inclusion requires opportunity for any historically excluded or marginalized person to enter without constant monitoring of the system. Black women, who must overcome the bigotry of both race and gender, are most often the last to be allowed in the room. As it stands, there are no Black women in the U.S. Senate, nor are there any Black women serving as governor. Yes, Kamala Harris is the vice president. And Jackson’s confirmation would be a step. But these singular exceptions do not themselves break the ceiling too many of us encounter.

I consult in diversity, equity and inclusion, and my professional experience leads me to believe that the linguistic and mental contortion we saw Jackson masterfully navigate was not nearly as difficult as assumed. She is a trained contortionist, as are many Black women. We anticipate the questioning, racism, sexism, and blatant contempt. We know that, once in the room, the fight to prove ourselves only intensifies. We embody the age-old adage of exceptionalism: “twice as good, to get half as much”. This often manifests as an alphabet soup of degrees and certifications behind Black women’s names, mine included. The problem with exceptionalism is that it falsely espouses one will, having achieved the exceptional, be treated well. Sadly, these hearings have served to reinforce that, not only was Jackson’s humanity not sufficient to be treated well, but neither were her exceptional qualifications.

I want more than this for us. This being the vitriol, pain, and perseverance. This being hopes and dreams sandwiched between systemic barriers and misogynoir. This being agility and strength earned on a rigged playing field. I want more than what we have today. For me, for you, for my little Black girl, and all little Black girls to come. We are to be treated well because we are human. Full stop. Our success should be judged by more than proximity to an impossible and unnecessary white ideal. We are enough as we are. The preeminently qualified Jackson, with her own display of vulnerability and humanity, reminded us that being human is enough. I saw myself and my daughter in Jackson, as her daughter proudly looked on. I know many of us did. Because her story is our story.

With other supposed allies in the room, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker had to be the one to boldly disrupt the disgusting onslaught — to affirm, to encourage, to look her in the eyes and give a moment of reprieve. As Black women, we continue to navigate a world that so often demonstrates how little it values us. The sexism, racism, and discrimination are constant. Celebration of our perseverance only serves as a tacit reminder of the systemic inequity we face while offering little in the way of actual change. Do us a favor, if you will: 1. Lead from your chair to disrupt harm. Affirm, encourage, and look someone in their eyes and recognize their humanity. 2. Call your senator and demand confirmation of Judge Jackson.

A lesson I teach my nine-year-old is one we can all apply here: Leave people and places better than you find them. Also, don’t be a jerk.

Amira Barger is a Bay Area Black mom, an adjunct professor of marketing and communications and a diversity, equity and inclusion consultant.

 

Keeping Watch on Earth News

Dr. Richard Fleming: Correcting the record on Solano County’s COVID outcomes

Comparing Solano to Sonoma or to the entire Bay Area, Solano fared worse

[Dr. Fleming’s letter is addressing the editor of the Northbay Business Journal]

Richard Fleming, M.D., Benicia, CA

I am writing to clarify some inaccuracies in a Northbay Business Journal article by Jeff Quackenbush appearing on March 21 and comparing Sonoma and Solano Counties’ covid-19 responses and outcomes.

The article gave the impression that the two counties have had similar pandemic metrics, or even that Solano has done better than Sonoma as far as covid deaths. The article indicates this happened despite Solano following looser public health precautions than Sonoma.

The clear implication of the article is that stricter public health precautions have not yielded better outcomes during the pandemic.

In fact, data from the two counties, and from around the U.S., shows the opposite is true.

It is the case that Solano’s public health response was less strict than Sonoma’s. Actually, Solano’s response was less strict than the rest of the Bay Area. This was largely due to Public Health Officer Matyas tending to reject safeguards that every other Bay Area county public health officer were following.

Matyas opposed mask mandates for indoor public settings, claiming such mandates were ineffective because most viral spread occurred in private settings. In fact, there is widespread evidence of the effectiveness of masking in public, which is why there is an overwhelming consensus in support of mask mandates by public health experts. Communities with public mask mandates have fared better during the pandemic than communities without such mandates.

While Matyas has said vaccination is key to combatting the pandemic, the county could have done more to encourage vaccinations and make them readily available. Solano’s fully-vaccinated rate lags the rest of the Bay Area and is 70.5%, compared to 80% for Sonoma, according to state data (covid19.ca.gov/vaccination-progress-data/). Matyas states this is because Solano County is more like the Central Valley than the Bay Area. This appears to blame county residents for the relatively low vaccination rate, when public health leadership could have done more to encourage vaccinations.

In an official county video from early in the pandemic, Matyas states, “The problem is that people are overreading the (public health) orders, they’re overreacting…” (This video was taken down a few days after it was posted.) twitter.com/openvallejo/status/1241503281832058882

What did Solano’s looser approach to covid-19 lead to? It has had the worst outcomes of any county in the Bay Area. Even compared to Sonoma, Solano has done worse. According to the California Open Data Portal, Solano’s case rate is 11% higher than Sonoma’s, and its death rate is 4% higher (abc7news.com/feature/coronavirus-cases-covid-19-map-bay-area-covid/9891245/). The claim that the two counties have had similar outcomes is contradicted by the data.

Throughout the U.S., counties which have done less to follow the science around covid-19 prevention have suffered worse outcomes. The virus does not behave differently in the North Bay than in other areas of the country. We should all know that by now.

Lastly, Quackenbush’s article closed with Matyas saying, “I couldn’t care less about schools. Yes, a lot of children test positive, but they mostly have brought it from home, and they are not effective in spreading it.” Here too, the actual data shows a very different picture. A recent CDC study from Arkansas showed that school districts with mask mandates have 23% fewer covid cases among students and staff than districts without such mandates. While it is true that children are less likely than older people to get sick, the data clearly shows they can spread it to other, more vulnerable people. And we should keep in mind that over 1,000 children have died from covid-19 so far. Covid-19’s adverse impact in the schools should be an issue that all county public health officers care about.

Richard Fleming, M.D.
Benicia, CA

#wearamask, Benicia CA, Community transmission rate, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Hospitalizations, Solano County CA, Solano County Health Department, Vaccine

Solano County COVID report – all numbers remain low for now…

NOTE: The information below is not the latest.  TAP HERE for today’s latest information.

By Roger Straw, Monday, March 28, 2022

Solano County’s Monday report: 88 new COVID infections, no new deaths.  County numbers remain low but US percent-positive rate is up.

Solano Public Health COVID dashboard, Monday, March 28, 2022:

DEATHS:  Solano reported 0 new COVID-related deaths in today’s report.  Fifteen new deaths were reported in February, ALL over 65 years of age.  So far in March, 17 County residents were reported to have died with COVID.  A total of 413 Solano residents have now died of COVID or COVID-related causes over the course of the pandemic.

TRANSMISSION RATE: With today’s report, Solano remained in the desired MODERATE transmission rate. with only 179 new cases in the last 7 days.  CDC FORMULA: Based on Solano County’s population, 450 or more cases in 7 days places Solano in the CDC’s population-based definition of a HIGH transmission rate.  We need to drop below 225 cases in 7 days to show MODERATE community transmission.  Numbers between 225 and 450 are considered SUBSTANTIAL transmission.

ACTIVE CASES: Solano reported 194 ACTIVE cases today, down from 251 at last report.

CASES BY CITY – Monday, March 28, 2022:

  • BENICIA added 9 new cases today, total of 3,127 cases since the outbreak began.  That’s over 11% of Benicia’s total population.  TRANSMISSION RATE: Benicia’s 7-day case count is only 9 as of today’s report, in the CDC’s MODERATE range.  Benicia has remained in the MODERATE range since mid-March.  For a city with Benicia’s population, anything over 27 cases in 7 days is considered HIGH TRANSMISSION.  14 to 27 cases is considered SUBSTANTIAL.  Below 14 is rated MODERATE.
  • Dixon added 4 more cases today, total of 4,337 cases.
  • Fairfield added 20 new cases today, total of 22,626 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 1 new case today, total of 1,190 cases.
  • Suisun City added 5 new cases today, total of 5,939 cases.
  • Vacaville added 17 new cases today, a total of 21,590 cases.
  • Vallejo added 32 new cases today, a total of 25,481 cases.
  • Unincorporated added 0 new cases today, a total of 199 cases.

TEST RATE:  Solano County’s 7-Day Percent Positive TEST RATE fell dramatically in March, and remains low, at only 4% today. Even at this lower rate, Solano does not compare favorably: The CALIFORNIA 7-day % positive rate remained at only 1.7% today.  [Source: Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Tracking Center] and the U.S. 7-day % positive rate was up today from 2.2% to 2.5%. [Source: CDC COVID Data Tracker.] 

HOSPITALIZATIONS:

CURRENT: The number of those currently hospitalized with COVID in Solano County fell today from 10 persons to only 8.  Current hospitalizations don’t tell the whole story, though, as this number reflects both admissions and discharges.  Only from the increase in total hospitalizations (below) can we know how many new admissions have come into our hospitals as of this date.

TOTAL hospitalizations: Solano did not update its Age Group and Race/Ethnicity charts today.  Last week however, Solano added 81 new hospitalizations for a March total of 157 newly reported hospitalizations.  Slight downward trend: Solano reported 284 hospitalizations in January and 184 in February.   Solano’s pandemic total of hospitalizations is now 3,850.

ICU Bed Availability in Solano County rose today from 40% to 46%, still in the County’s GREEN safe zone .

Ventilator Availability in Solano County rose slightly today from 71% available to 72% available, in the County’s GREEN safe zone. 

HOW DOES TODAY’S REPORT COMPARE?  See recent reports and others going back to April 20, 2020 in my ARCHIVE of daily Solano COVID updates (an excel spreadsheet).

Click green text above or on the image.

>The data on this page is from the Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard.  The Dashboard is full of much more information and (as of 3/14/2022) is updated Monday and Thursday between 4 and 6pm.  On the County’s dashboard, you can hover a mouse or click on an item for more information.  Note the tabs at top for “Summary, Demographics” and “Vaccines.”  Click here to go to today’s Solano County Dashboard.

See also my BENINDY ARCHIVE of daily Solano COVID updates (an excel spreadsheet).  I have also archived the hundreds of full CORONAVIRUS REPORTS posted here almost daily on the Benicia Independent since April 2020.

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