Tag Archives: Solano County CA

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA, Solano Supervisor Monica Brown, Vaccine

Solano Supervisor Monica Brown – update on vaccines and more

February 11, 2021 Roger Straw

[Editor: I highly recommend Supervisor Brown’s newsletter. Go to solanocounty.com/depts/bos/members/brown/default.asp and click at top right on “Get e-mail updates when this information changes.” – R.S.]

February 11, 2021

SUPERVISOR MONICA BROWN CORONAVIRUS UPDATE 42

Hello Benicia, Fairfield, and Vallejo,

Welcome to my most recent coronavirus update. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at mebrown@solanocounty.com or at 707-784-3031.

VACCINES

I know the vaccines are important to everyone. We have, as of February 8^th, vaccinated 35,500 people in Solano County. We have had mass vaccination events in Vallejo and Benicia and are planning on more. The subject of vaccinating teachers to allow reopening schools is something I have received many emails about. I wrote a letter to the Governor asking that teachers be vaccinated with all deliberate speed.

I also requested that our school districts be given funding to operate a voluntary summer school program. I believe this is necessary to offer an opportunity to make up for lost time in the classroom. The Fairfield-Suisun School District has informed my office they are planning a summer school program.

I know we all want the vaccine rollout to move faster, but the hard truth continues to be that we simply do not have enough vaccines for all those eligible to receive the vaccine. We will hopefully be able to open vaccine eligibility to those 65 and over in the next couple of weeks. Please remember that eligibility for the vaccine does not necessarily equate to availability of the vaccine. Availability continues to be constrained by our supply.

The Johnson and Johnson vaccine will hopefully be approved soon on an emergency basis. Since this vaccine will only require one dose, its approval will dramatically increase the nation’s capacity to vaccinate. Also, the production of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines is also expected to increase.

The state has vaccinated about 10% of our population. Solano is at about 8%. I encourage everyone to sign up for the vaccine interest form. This list is where the county will pull names from when we have mass vaccination clinics.

CVS is offering vaccinations to those eligible and lists Vallejo as a participating pharmacy. Although the Vallejo site is listed as full at this time, please keep checking back here to see if they have availability. https://www.cvs.com/immunizations/covid-19-vaccine

This weekend (Friday the 12^th and Saturday the 13^th), the county will have a vaccination site at the fairgrounds. While the appointments have probably filled up by now, you can call or fill out the form to see if there is still availability.

For more information about vaccine numbers, tiers, signing up for the interest form, or seeing if there is still space this weekend, please visit: https://solanocounty.com/depts/ph/coronavirus_links/covid_19_vaccines.asp

COVID NUMBERS

While our coronavirus numbers are still too high, we have seen much improvement from the holiday surges. We will see in the next week or two whether we will have a surge from Super Bowl gatherings. For more information about our numbers and other coronavirus information, please visit: https://solanocounty.com/depts/ph/coronavirus.asp

EVICTION PROTECTIONS

I want to remind everyone that Solano County’s eviction protections extend until 90 days after the state lifts the emergency order. Evictions cannot happen until 90 days after the state order is lifted in Solano County.

The county has approved a plan to administer the funds we received for rental assistance at the February 9^th Board meeting. We will be looking for an administrator to oversee the distribution of the funds. Once we have the administrator and the application process, I will be providing that information in an update.

BLACK HISTORY MONTH RESOLUTION

On Tuesday February 9^th, the Board of Supervisors approved a resolution recognizing February as Black History Month.

BENICIA CITY CEMETERY

The Benicia City Cemetery has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This honor recognizes Benicia’s historic character.

FAIRFIELD GENERAL PLAN UPDATE

The city of Fairfield is updating the General Plan. This will govern development in the city for decades to come. There will be zoom community workshops tonight (Thursday February 11^th) at 6pm and Saturday Feb. 13^th at 10am. For more information, please visit: https://www.fairfieldforward.com/

VALLEJO NATIVE PERFORMS AT SUPERBOLW

Vallejo native H.E.R. performed “America the Beautiful” at the Super Bowl. This was a major accomplishment. Solano County, and Vallejo specifically, is extremely proud. https://www.timesheraldonline.com/2021/02/08/photo-vallejos-h-e-r-performs-at-super-bowl/

SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESSES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY

As Valentine’s day approaches, please consider supporting our local businesses if you plan on doing something special.

Sailor Jack’s in downtown Benicia has outdoor dining and a wonderful menu. Bookshop Benicia on First Street has an excellent collection for that perfect gift. The Napa Deli in Fairfield has a fine selection of foods available. Liled’s candy shop in Vallejo has amazing ice cream and incredibly tasty chocolates. Liled’s is located at 1318 Tennessee St in Vallejo. Liled’s has been in Vallejo since 1936 and is a local treasure.

Our local businesses are essential to our community and they need our support now more than ever.

The above businesses are examples of local businesses. There are many local businesses in Benicia, Fairfield, and Vallejo that need our support. For more information about local businesses for your special Valentine’s day treat, here are some links:

Thank you for reading my most recent update. Please continue to wear your masks, socially distance, follow all health guidelines, and spread kindness in our community.

Sincerely,

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.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Two mass vaccination events coming up on Feb. 12 & 13 at Vallejo Fairgrounds

February 10, 2021 Roger Straw

From an email sent by Solano County Supervisor Monica Brown. Thanks, Monica!

February 10, 2021

TWO ADDITIONAL MASS VACCINATION EVENTS

Solano County Public Health is again partnering with Kaiser Permanente, NorthBay Healthcare, Partnership HealthPlan of California, Medic Ambulance and Touro University California to host two large scale vaccination clinics, including 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, February 12 and Saturday, February 13 in the Exposition Hall at the Solano County Fairgrounds campus in Vallejo.

4,000 VACCINATIONS AVAILABLE BY APPOINTMENT

Vaccinations are available by appointment only for 4,000 Solano County residents who meet the eligibility requirements. This currently includes health care workers, first responders, and Solano County residents over the age of 75. Vaccination appointments are open to all those who are in an eligible tier, regardless of where they receive medical care.

SIGNING UP TO RECEIVE A VACCINE / SHAREABLE LINKS

Those who fall into an eligible tier may make an appointment using the links below. The person signing up for their first dose would automatically be signed up for their second dose exactly four weeks from the date of first dose. Those without access to the internet may call 707-784-8655 for registration assistance.

February 12 event – http://bit.ly/sccovax0212
February 13 event – http://bit.ly/sccovax0213

ADDITIONAL TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS

Solano Transportation Authority/Solano Mobility also has multiple options for transportation if need be: https://www.solanomobility.org/. Folks needing transportation assistance can call the Solano Mobility Call Center 800-535-6883 (Mon-Fri 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.).

OUTREACH TO ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS / COMMUNICATION PLAN

Starting this afternoon Public Health will be sending out mass communications (emails, automated phone calls, text messages) to eligible individuals who have registered using the Vaccine Interest Form, along with IHSS Care Providers, and eligible IHSS recipients (75+). We will allow those folks to have priority signing up, and at the end of today, we will start pushing the event on social media, following up with a press release and website posting tomorrow.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA

Solano County COVID-19 Update: 132 new cases overnight, 81 currently hospitalized

February 10, 2021 Roger Straw

UPDATE: See today’s latest information

By Roger Straw, Wednesday, February 10, 2021

COVID is still spreading and dangerous in Solano County – stay safe!

Wednesday, February 10: 132 new Solano cases overnight, no new deaths. Since February 2020: 29,172 cases, over 850 hospitalized, 140 deaths.Compare previous report, Tuesday, February 9:Summary

[From Solano County Public Health and others, see sources below. For a running archive of daily County updates, see my Excel ARCHIVE.

- CASES – Solano County reported 132 new cases overnight, a total of 29,172 cases since the outbreak started. In the month of January, Solano added 8,495 new cases, for an average of 274 new cases per day.
- DEATHS – the County reported no new deaths overnight, a total of 140 Solano deaths since the pandemic began. 18 Solano County COVID deaths have been reported in the first 10 days of February, and in the month of January, Solano recorded 24 coronavirus deaths. While many other COVID stats are improving, the recent surge in deaths is no doubt the final sad result of our holiday surge.
- ACTIVE cases – Solano reported 59 more active cases today, a total of 824 active cases. Compare: Solano’s average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650, in December 1,658, in January 2,185 – and TODAY we are at 824. Better, but still, is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons? My guess is we just sit back and wait for a voluntary 10 day quarantine to expire. Who knows? To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
- HOSPITALIZATIONS – (See expanding ICU capacity and ventilator availability below.) Today, Solano reported 5 fewer currently hospitalized cases, total of 81. The County also reported no new hospitalizations among age groups, a total of 855 hospitalized in all age groups since the pandemic began. Accuracy cannot be certain – note>> In a Dec. 31 Fairfield Daily Republic article, reporter Todd Hanson wrote, “Since the start of the pandemic, and as of Wednesday, 9,486 residents have been hospitalized.” This startling number is far and away above the number of residents hospitalized as indicated in the County’s count of age group hospitalizations, and not available anywhere on the County’s COVID-19 dashboard. Asked about his source, Hanson replied that Solano Public Health “had to do a little research on my behalf.” It would be good if the County could add Total Hospitalized to its daily Dashboard update. [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below. For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
- ICU BEDS – In late January, Solano hospitals expanded their ICU capacity [see BenIndy, Jan. 25] Even with the expanded ICU capacity, Solano County remains in the YELLOW DANGER ZONE, reporting 28% available today, down from 30% yesterday. The State’s COVID19-CA.GOV reports that Solano County had 14 AVAILABLE ICU BEDS as of yesterday, February 9. (For COVID19-CA.GOV info see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County, and for REGIONAL data see COVID-19 ICU Bed Availability by REGION.)
- VENTILATORS available – Today Solano hospitals have 62% of ventilators available, up from yesterday’s 58% but down substantially from last summer’s reports of 82-94% available.

Positive Test Rate – SOLANO TEST RATE of 10.3% – STILL HIGH, VIRUS STILL SPREADING, STAY SAFE!

Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate of 10.3%, up from yesterday’s 10.2%, and still above the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%. Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus. COMPARE: The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate was 4.8% today, same as yesterday. (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results. However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results. The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.)

By Age Group

Youth 17 and under – 23 new cases overnight, total of 3,390 cases, representing 11.6% of the 29,172 total cases. No new hospitalizations were reported today among this age group, total of 18 since the outbreak began. Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group. But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has remained at over 11% since September 30. Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11% may seem low. The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 18 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
Persons 18-49 years of age – 76 new cases overnight, total of 16,116 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents 55.3% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today. A total of 243 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. Solano recorded no new deaths in this young group today, total of 9 deaths. Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders. I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
Persons 50-64 years of age – 22 new cases overnight, total of 6,100 cases. This age group represents 20.9% of the 29,172 total cases. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today, a total of 233 reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. No new deaths were reported in this age group today, a total of 23 deaths.
Persons 65 years or older – 11 new cases overnight, total of 3,555, representing 12.2% of Solano’s 29,172 total cases. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today, a total of 361 hospitalized since the outbreak began. No new deaths were reported in this age group today. A total of 108 of our elders have died of COVID, accounting for 77% of Solano’s 140 total deaths.

City Data

Benicia added 1 new case overnight, total of 828 cases since the outbreak began.
Dixon added 3 new cases overnight, total of 1,704 cases.
Fairfield added 28 new cases overnight, total of 7,949 cases.
Rio Vista added 3 new cases overnight, total of 294 cases.
Suisun City added 17 new cases overnight, total of 1,982 cases.
Vacaville added 29 new cases overnight, total of 7,715 cases.
Vallejo added 51 new cases overnight, total of 8,614 cases.
Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 86 cases.

Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics. This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans. Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 12% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 17% of hospitalizations, and 21% of deaths.
Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 13% of cases, 21% of hospitalizations, and 13% of deaths.
Multi-race / Others are 7% of Solano’s population, but account for 35% of cases, 18% of hospitalizations, and 12% of deaths.
White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 29% of cases, 31% of hospitalizations and 34% of deaths.

More…

The County’s Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis. The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight significant portions. For more, check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Source

Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard (posted on the County website late today). ALSO see important daily updates from the state of California at COVID19.CA.GOV, embedded here on the BenIndy at Cases and Deaths AND Hospitalizations AND ICU Beds by REGION.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA

Solano County COVID numbers on Tuesday Feb. 9: fewer new infections, but 6 new deaths

February 10, 2021 Roger Straw

UPDATE: See today’s latest information

By Roger Straw, Tuesday, February 9, 2021

COVID is still spreading and dangerous in Solano County – stay safe!

Tuesday, February 9: 46 new Solano cases overnight, 6 new deaths. Since February 2020: 29,040 cases, over 850 hospitalized, 140 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, February 8:Summary

[From Solano County Public Health and others, see sources below. For a running archive of daily County updates, see my Excel ARCHIVE.

- CASES – Solano County reported 46 new cases overnight, a total of 29,040 cases since the outbreak started. In the month of January, Solano added 8,495 new cases, for an average of 274 new cases per day. Today’s single-day increase of only 46 is the lowest since October 28 of last year. But according to the Fairfield Daily Republic, “Dr. Bela Matyas, the county public health officer, said the number is likely a reporting glitch from the state.”
- DEATHS – the County reported 6 new deaths overnight, a total of 140 Solano deaths since the pandemic began. 18 Solano County COVID deaths have been reported in the first 10 days of February, and in the month of January, Solano recorded 24 coronavirus deaths. While many other COVID stats are improving, the recent surge in deaths is no doubt the final sad result of our holiday surge.
- ACTIVE cases – Solano reported 134 fewer active cases today, a total of 765 active cases. Compare: Solano’s average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650, in December 1,658, in January 2,185 – and TODAY we are back down to 765. Much better, but still, is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons? My guess is we just sit back and wait for a voluntary 10 day quarantine to expire. Who knows? To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
- HOSPITALIZATIONS – (See expanding ICU capacity and ventilator availability below.) Today, Solano reported 3 fewer currently hospitalized cases, total of 86. However, in the number of hospitalizations among age groups, the county reported an increase of 6 new hospitalizations, 3 aged 50-64 and 3 over age 65, for a total of 855 hospitalized in all age groups since the pandemic began.) Even then, accuracy cannot be certain – note>> In a Dec. 31 Fairfield Daily Republic article, reporter Todd Hanson wrote, “Since the start of the pandemic, and as of Wednesday, 9,486 residents have been hospitalized.” This startling number is far and away above the number of residents hospitalized as indicated in the County’s count of age group hospitalizations, and not available anywhere on the County’s COVID-19 dashboard. Asked about his source, Hanson replied that Solano Public Health “had to do a little research on my behalf.” It would be good if the County could add Total Hospitalized to its daily Dashboard update. [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below. For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
- ICU BEDS – In late January, Solano hospitals expanded their ICU capacity [see BenIndy, Jan. 25] Even with the expanded ICU capacity, Solano County remained in the YELLOW DANGER ZONE until yesterday’s encouraging GREEN ZONE report. But today the County went YELLOW again, reporting 30% available today, down from 34% yesterday. The State’s COVID19-CA.GOV reports that Solano County had 15 AVAILABLE ICU BEDS as of yesterday, February 8. (For COVID19-CA.GOV info see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County, and for REGIONAL data see COVID-19 ICU Bed Availability by REGION.)
- VENTILATORS available – Today Solano hospitals have 58% of ventilators available, up from yesterday’s 55% but down substantially from last summer’s reports of 82-94% available.

Positive Test Rate – SOLANO TEST RATE of 10.2% – STILL HIGH, VIRUS STILL SPREADING, STAY SAFE!

Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate of 10.2%, up from yesterday’s 9.6%, and still above the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%. Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus. COMPARE: The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate was 4.8% today, down from yesterday’s 5.0%. (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results. However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results. The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.)