Category Archives: Jails and prisons

Benicia CA, California State Prison Vacaville, Coronavirus, Covid 19, COVID-19 tier assignments, Jails and prisons, Re-opening, Solano County CA, Solano County Health Officer Bela Matyas

Solano County progress? Very low COVID numbers reported today

By Roger Straw, Tuesday, June 8, 2021

Solano County reports only 7 new infections and no new deaths today.  Vaccinate! Stay safe when indoors or in crowds, and remember…

People with mild COVID can have long-term health problems.  And: “More than 70% of COVID-19 patients studied report having at least one “long haul” symptom that lasts for months.”  It’s not over yet!

Solano County COVID report on Tuesday, June 8.
[Source: see far below.  See also my ARCHIVE spreadsheet of daily Solano COVID updates.]
Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard – SUMMARY:

Solano County reported only 7 new COVID cases today, and no new deaths.

About 40 cases over last weekend…
Yesterday’s total of 20 new cases included a negative number (-9) for Vacaville, indicating an adjustment of some kind.  The 6 other Solano cities had a total of 29 new cases, so that 29 – 9 = yesterday’s supposed total of 20.  Stay with me here – it is certain that Vacaville would have had 4 or more new cases per day (based on previous 4 weeks averages). So it is highly likely that the County actually had around 12 new Vacaville cases over the weekend.  The actual total would include 29 from the 6 other cities + about 12 from Vacaville = about 41 new cases.  Got it?  The math would then also indicate that the Vacaville adjustment was approximately -21 cases (41 – 21 = 20).

Who were the 21? Probably from the outbreak at the State Prison in Vacaville
Who were the 21, and why were they counted last Friday and removed today?  Based on an email from Dr. Bela Matyas, my hunch is that they were inmates in the State Prison in Vacaville.  Responding to my question as to the reason for last week’s atypical surge of 108 new cases from Vacaville, Dr. Matyas wrote on June 4 that “There is an outbreak at the state prison, which accounts for most of those cases.”  My BenIndy speculation is that some of those prisoners were initially counted as Solano cases, but later determined to be more properly documented according to the person’s city of residence.

Monthly: Solano County saw 1,288 new cases in April, an average of 43 per day.  In May, Solano reported 920 new cases, an average of 30 per day.  Today, only 7 new cases!

Solano County reported no new deaths today.  The County total is now 244 deaths since the pandemic began.

SOLANO NOW IN ORANGE TIER – Solano County was finally moved into the orange tier last week, the last Bay Area County to leave the red tier.  See details on remaining restrictions and new freedoms in the County’s press release, also in the account of the Vallejo Times-Herald.

JUNE 15 RE-OPENING – Solano County Public Health posted 2 links on its dashboard on Monday detailing new re-opening developments:

Cal/OSHA prepares for the June 15 Beyond the Blueprint announcement.  The revised Cal/OSHA standards will go into effect no later than June 15. For more information, visit: https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2021/2021-58.html

For more information about Beyond the Blueprint, see the flyer “What will California look like after June 15?”

Solano’s Active cases are now at 63, down slightly from yesterday’s 65.  Our percent positivity rate also fell slightly today from 5.5% to 5.4%.

>> The numbers are improving, but the virus is still active here.  Stay safe, get vaccinated, wear a mask in crowds and social distance if you’re not sure who’s vaccinated!  We will get through this together.

Cases by City on Tuesday, June 8:

  • Benicia added 1 new case today, a total of 1,002 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon added 1 new case today, total of 1,922 cases.
  • Fairfield added 3 new cases today, total of 9,109 cases.
  • Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 391 cases.
  • Suisun City added 1 new case today, total of 2,292 cases.
  • Vacaville added zero new cases today (!), a total of 8,797 cases.  Note that Vacaville is home to a California State Prison, which experienced an outbreak last week.
  • Vallejo added only 1 new case today, total of 9,902 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 103 cases.

COMPARE: Screenshots from Solano County COVID Dashboard on Monday, June 7:

The data on this page is from today’s and the previous Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard.  The Dashboard is full of much more information and updated weekdays around 4 or 5pm.  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.

Sources
Benicia CA, California State Prison Vacaville, Coronavirus, Covid 19, COVID-19 tier assignments, Jails and prisons, Re-opening, Solano County CA, Solano County Health Officer Bela Matyas

State Prison in Vacaville experiencing COVID outbreak, Solano County adjusting its numbers

By Roger Straw, Monday, June 7, 2021

Solano County reports 20 new infections over the weekend, but there were surely more.  County reports negative 9 cases in Vacaville.

Solano County COVID report on Monday, June 7.
[Source: see far below.  See also my ARCHIVE spreadsheet of daily Solano COVID updates.]
Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard – SUMMARY:

Solano County reported 20 new COVID cases over the weekend, but the actual total was closer to 40 (explanation below).

Actually more like 40 cases over the weekend…
Today’s total of 20 new cases includes a negative number (-9) for Vacaville, indicating an adjustment of some kind.  The 6 other Solano cities had a total of 29 new cases, so that 29 – 9 = today’s supposed total of 20.  Stay with me here – it is certain that Vacaville would have had 4 or more new cases per day (based on previous 4 weeks averages). So it is highly likely that the County actually had around 12 new Vacaville cases over the weekend and an actual total of 29 from the 6 other cities + about 12 from Vacaville = about 41 new cases.  Got it?  The math would then also indicate that the Vacaville adjustment was approximately -21 cases (41 – 21 = 20).

Outbreak at the State Prison in Vacaville
Who were the 21, and why were they counted last Friday and removed today?  Based on an email from Dr. Bela Matyas, my hunch is that they were inmates in the State Prison in Vacaville.  Responding to my question as to the reason for last week’s atypical surge of 108 new cases from Vacaville, Dr. Matyas wrote on June 4 that “There is an outbreak at the state prison, which accounts for most of those cases.”  My BenIndy speculation today is that some of those prisoners were initially counted as Solano cases, but later determined to be more properly documented according to the person’s city of residence.

Oh, and…
Of course, Vacaville MIGHT have had more than an average number of new cases over the weekend.  It’s entirely possible, for instance, that there were 10-15 new cases per day.  That would mean Solano actually saw 30-45 new cases in Vacaville, for a Countywide total of 59-74 new cases over the weekend, and a subtraction of 39 to 54 Vacaville prisoners.  My guess is we’ll never know for sure.  The County gives daily cumulative totals without a lot of detail.

Monthly: Solano County saw 1,288 new cases in April, an average of 43 per day.  In May, Solano reported 920 new cases, an average of 30 per day.  Over the weekend, maybe about 41 new cases, an average of only 14 per day.

Solano County reported no new deaths today.  The County total is now 244 deaths since the pandemic began.

SOLANO NOW IN ORANGE TIER – Solano County was finally moved into the orange tier last week, the last Bay Area County to leave the red tier.  See details on remaining restrictions and new freedoms in the County’s press release, also in the account of the Vallejo Times-Herald.

JUNE 15 RE-OPENING – Solano County Public Health posted 2 links on its dashboard today detailing new re-opening developments:

Cal/OSHA prepares for the June 15 Beyond the Blueprint announcement.  The revised Cal/OSHA standards will go into effect no later than June 15. For more information, visit: https://www.dir.ca.gov/DIRNews/2021/2021-58.html

For more information about Beyond the Blueprint, see the flyer “What will California look like after June 15?”

Solano’s Active cases are now at 65, down dramatically from Friday’s 193.  Our percent positivity rate also fell today from 10.6% to 5.5%.

>> The virus is still active here.  Stay safe, get vaccinated, wear a mask in crowds and social distance if you’re not sure who’s vaccinated!  We will get through this together.

Cases by City on Monday, June 7:  Prison outbreak in CA State Prison, Vacaville

  • Benicia added 1 new case today, a total of 1,001 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon remained steady today, total of 1,921 cases.
  • Fairfield added 10 new cases today, total of 9,106 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 391 cases.
  • Suisun City added 5 new cases today, total of 2,291 cases.
  • Vacaville added an unknown number of new cases today (see above, “Actually more like…”, a new total of 8,797 cases.  Note that Vacaville is home to a California State Prison, which experienced an outbreak last week.
  • Vallejo added 11 new cases today, total of 9,901 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 103 cases.

COMPARE: Screenshots from Solano County COVID Dashboard on Friday, June 4:

The data on this page is from today’s and the previous Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard.  The Dashboard is full of much more information and updated weekdays around 4 or 5pm.  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.

Sources
California, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Jails and prisons, Nursing homes

They’re trapped, and the killer virus knows where to find them in California

Los Angeles Times reports on huge numbers in our nursing homes and prisons

Rep. Nanette Barragan (D-San Pedro) speaks during a news conference after touring the federal penitentiary at Terminal Island to inquire about the high number of COVID-19 cases among inmates and prison staff. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Los Angeles Times, by Steve Lopez, May 13 2020

There are two places in California where, as the pandemic rages, you do not want to be.

Prisons and elder care facilities.

An astounding 49% of all COVID-19 deaths in California were linked to elder care facilities as of last week, with more than 1,200 cases, along with hundreds more infected patients and employees.

Meanwhile, 886 inmates at the federal prison in Lompoc (almost 70%) have been infected with the virus; 396 infections, including five deaths, were reported at the state prison in Chino; and there have been 709 infections and seven deaths at Terminal Island federal pen in San Pedro.

Family members protested at the San Pedro facility last week and Congresswoman Nanette Barragán, who represents the area, told the Times’ Richard Winton she felt the warden was not doing enough to protect inmates with medical conditions. She said she reported the situation to Trump administration health official Dr. Anthony Fauci, who “seemed a little alarmed.”

I think he might want to be a lot alarmed.

Tiffani Fortney’s father was at Terminal Island serving a 26-month sentence for tax-related crimes, and she was biting her nails at her home in Arizona. Her dad had diabetes and heart issues that made him a sitting duck in the tight confines of a communal setting.

“It was hell,” she said about trying to get information on her father’s welfare. “I talked to him on Easter and he told me one person there had the virus and they were separating everybody.… He told me he’d call in a few days and he never did.”

Unbeknown to Fortney, her father, 70-year-old Scott Douglas Cutting of Apple Valley, got sick. Very sick. And Fortney said she did not learn until the end of last month that her father had been hospitalized in mid-April with COVID-19 symptoms.

“I tried calling the prison but couldn’t get answers. I left a message sometimes, but other times I couldn’t even get to the message thing,” she said.

On May 1, the federal public defender’s office filed an emergency application for the release of medical records and for prison compliance with family notification policies. According to the filing, Fortney’s brother Scott was informed on April 29 that their father had been hospitalized and intubated. The next day, Fortney got a call from a prison staff member saying her father was “not doing well.”

Fortney told me she and her brother were able to speak to him by phone and say goodbye, thanks to the “amazing staff” at Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance. On Saturday, May 9, Cutting became the seventh inmate to die of COVID-19 while serving time at the aptly named Terminal Island.

“No one deserves to die like that,” Fortney said. “I don’t care if they’re criminals or not.”

A spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons declined my request for an interview, but sent a long list of steps taken since the pandemic began.

“We are deeply concerned for the health and welfare of those inmates who are entrusted to our care, and for our staff, their families, and the communities we live and work in,” said the spokesperson, adding that the bureau is doing “everything we can to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in our facilities.”

Across the country, thousands of prisoners have been released early to stem the spread of the virus to inmates and jail staff, and in L.A. County some jail inmates are even suspected of trying to infect themselves with the virus thinking that might get them sprung early.

Civil rights attorneys and relatives of inmates have argued for broader release of elderly or sick inmates, and for more testing and protective measures. But despite support from public health experts, that’s not an easily winnable argument given resistance from top federal officials, says Mark Rosenbaum of Public Counsel.

“The responsibility is mistakenly placed on the officials who run these facilities, but it’s the government that is defending” the status quo, said Rosenbaum. “It is punitive and it is a means of saying these are subhuman individuals and what happens to them and their communities does not matter.”

That same societal judgment has been made about those living in some elder care facilities, which is one reason they’ve become such deathtraps.

“People are really shocked that this has happened, but I’m not surprised,” said Charlene Harrington, 78, an emeritus UC San Francisco nursing professor who has spent decades fighting for stricter nursing home regulations and more oversight. “Even before the virus hit, three-fourths of nursing homes didn’t have adequate staffing and did not meet what we would consider to be reasonable standards.”

You’d think that with the virus being particularly deadly for older people, Harrington said, nursing facilities would have gotten a higher priority when it came to testing and doling out protective equipment for staff.

Part of the problem, she says, is a shift in the nursing home industry as independently owned mom and pop operations have given way to big chains and private equity investors.

“They squeeze out every cent that they can,” Harrington said, paying “the lowest possible wages,” often to minorities and immigrants, usually with no healthcare insurance and no sick leave. That raises the possibility of employees reporting to work when they’re sick, or getting sick at work and then infecting friends and relatives outside the facility.

So why can’t a civilized society do a more humane job of caring for grandma and grandpa?

As we’ve been reminded in recent weeks, some people seem to think old folks — especially those already warehoused —are expendable. But the more accurate answer involves money and politics.

The nursing homes wield tremendous influence over policymakers. And even though taxpayers cover the majority of the cost of care through Medicare and Medicaid, Harrington said, “nursing homes have gotten away with minimal enforcement for over 20 or 30 years, so they were ripe for disaster.”

And Harrington said that just as with the other COVID-19 hot-spots — jails and prisons — we can’t be entirely sure what’s going on behind closed doors. For nursing homes, she said, there’s an incentive for under-playing the number of cases to families that are now barred from visiting facilities.

In fact, one source directed me to discrepancies between what one L.A. County nursing facility has acknowledged about COVID-19 infections and deaths among patients and staff, and the much larger numbers listed on the L.A. County Health Department website.

This virus doesn’t play fair. It goes after the trapped, the poor and the elderly, and the mounting list of casualties is unacceptable.

If you know an inmate or prison staffer who got sick or died, or if you know an elder care facility patient or employee who got sick or died, I’d like to hear your story.