China locks down third city, raising affected to 20 million

A third Chinese city has locked down its residents because of a COVID-19 outbreak, raising the number confined to their homes in China to about 20 million people.

Unauthorized COVID testing site in San Francisco has outdated license

As omicron cases surge, the demand for COVID testing is through the roof, but health experts in San Francisco are warning people to be careful which sites they go to for testing.

Private insurers to cover home COVID-19 tests starting Saturday

Under the new policy, Americans will be able to either purchase home testing kits for free under their insurance or submit receipts for the tests for reimbursement, up to the monthly per-person limit.

Hayward Unified to go remote despite warnings not to; risks losing $2.5M a day

The Hayward Unified School District will switch to all-remote learning for its 20,000 students on Tuesday, making it the first in the Bay Area to revert to online learning for the next week despite being warned by the county and the state that they should not do that. 

California governor forbids price-gouging of at-home COVID tests

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order this weekend aimed at preventing price gouging on COVID-19 at-home test kits, which are in high demand due to the omicron variant surge.   

911 calls spike in San Francisco with callers asking for COVID help

Demand for emergency medical assistance in San Francisco stabilized to typical levels on Saturday night, following a spike in calls last week due to residents seeking help for COVID-19 symptoms, officials said. 

COVID and confusing rules challenge California school reopenings

Complicating matters are conflicting messages from state and county officials about closing schools and the number of days school staff must quarantine after a positive test or exposure.

Georgia woman gets prison time for COVID relief fraud

Federal prosecutors say 49-year-old Hunter VanPelt of Roswell submitted six false loan applications to the Paycheck Protection Program from April to June 2020. She allegedly requested a total of more than $7.9 million and received more than $6 million.

Student test scores, graduation rates decline during pandemic

New data from the California Department of Education shows a decline in student test scores during the past year of the pandemic.

Sharks plan to terminate Evander Kane's contract

The San Jose Sharks have placed forward Evander Kane on unconditional waivers with the intent to terminate the remainder of his $49 million, seven-year contract.

Gov. Newsom activates National Guard to assist with COVID testing sites

Governor Gavin Newsom on Friday announced he was activating California's National Guard to help with additional COVID-19 testing facilities and capacity as cases from the omicron variant continue to surge.

California nursing homes requiring vaccine booster and negative COVID test

Nursing home visitors are now required to show proof of vaccination, a booster shot, and a negative COVID-19 test in order to go inside a California facility, following a state health order.

District says unauthorized Oakland teacher 'sickout' technically 'illegal'

Oakland teachers staged a ‘sickout’ Friday that saw 500 teachers staying out of class and forcing the school district to close 12 schools for the day.

Pleasanton restaurants dismantle parklets for outdoor dining

It's fair to say that curbside eating platforms known as parklets, saved a lot of restaurants from going under. The question is: are parklets here to stay or a passing pandemic accommodation?.

San Francisco health department warns of 'unauthorized' COVID test sites throughout city

The post-holiday gathering rush to get a COVID test in San Francisco faces a new obstacle. On Friday, the city's health department issued an advisory on Twitter that "unauthorized COVID-19 test sites are popping up throughout the city."

West Contra Costa Unified School District shuts all schools due to COVID

Administrators for the West Contra Costa Unified School District have closed all of their schools for two days due to a surge in COVID cases and teacher shortages.