SF New Year's Eve fireworks, big parties are back, despite rainy weather
Crews from Pyro Spectacular by Souza, producing San Francisco's New Year's Eve fireworks show, worked through wind and rain Friday, to load the enormous amount of fireworks shells onto the barge off the pier, putting plastic covers on them to keep them dry. The last time San Francisco held its annual midnight fireworks show was in 2019.
Wastewater tests show high COVID levels in Santa Clara County
Wastewater samples used for the Sewer Coronavirus Alert Network show all four Santa Clara County sewersheds have high levels of COVID-19.
FDA clears bivalent COVID-19 booster shots for children under 5
The FDA has authorized use of the tweaked shots starting at age 6 months, but just who is eligible depends on how many vaccinations they’ve already had.
Respiratory virus hospitalizations expected to severely impact state's hospital capacity
A wave of flu, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus infections among children is currently outpacing the state's availability of pediatric hospital beds, one of the state's top health officials said Tuesday.
Stanford researchers launch first study on long-COVID treatment with Pfizer's Paxlovid
Researchers at Stanford University are launching a new study to see whether Pfizer's anti-viral drug Paxlovid, which is approved to treat COVID-19, might also be an effective cure for so-called "long COVID" that causes suffering in patients long after their initial SARS-CoV2 infection.
Long COVID could be aging organs faster by 3-4 years, research shows
"You can start thinking about getting COVID as almost as an accelerant to aging," the lead researcher warned.
Santa Clara Co. health officer urges residents to get new COVID booster before holiday season
Just 11% of Santa Clara County residents have received the newest booster vaccine, which protects against the original COVID strain as well as two subvariants of the omicron variant. Health officials say get boosted before the holiday season.
FDA authorizes updated COVID boosters for kids as young as 5
Only people who’ve gotten their initial Covid-19 vaccinations -- with any of the original-formula versions -- qualify for an updated booster.
U.S. making progress toward defanging COVID-19 but death rate remains too high, Fauci says
While the COVID-19 virus has not been eradicated, the ongoing pandemic is moving "in the right direction" toward the virus being a relatively minor threat, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday.
COVID: BART mask requirement set to end October 1
Bay Area Rapid Transit has had a mask mandate in place for most of the coronavirus pandemic, but on Thursday, officials announced the mandate would end on October 1.
New COVID-19 booster shots available in Sonoma County
A new, updated booster shot specifically formulated to protect against the highly contagious COVID-19 omicron variant is now available in Sonoma County.
East Bay MUD wastewater samples show decline in COVID, rise in monkeypox
East Bay MUD samples wastewater three times a week, more if necessary. They're currently seeing a drop-off of COVID, but an upswing in monkeypox. With less COVID testing happening, this is important information.
FDA revision allows pharmacists to prescribe COVID treatment pill
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday revised its emergency use authorization of Paxlovid, allowing pharmacists to prescribe the anti-viral drug used to treat COVID.
Bay Area COVID-19 positivity rate hits 15 percent, CDC recommends masking in public
COVID-19 cases are continuing to surge across the Bay Area, driven largely by subvariants of Omicron. All nine Bay Area counties are now considered ‘high’ risk for the community spread of COVID-19 by the CDC.
Shipments of COVID-19 vaccine for kids arrive in Bay Area
Shipments of COVID-19 vaccine for kids are already beginning to arrive in the Bay Area after the CDC authorized the shot for children five and younger over the weekend. Santa Clara County was among the first in the Bay Area to receive its shipments, and officials say the health department plans to begin administering shots on Tuesday.
Moderna says updated COVID shot boosts omicron protection
Moderna’s study results revealed people given the combination vaccine shot had higher antibody levels to fight omicron and other variants.
San Francisco's current COVID surge sees 500 new cases a day, so where are the restrictions?
COVID-19 cases are once again surging here in the Bay Area with an average of 500 new cases every day in San Francisco. But this time around, we aren't' seeing city and county governments across the region implementing new COVID restrictions.
Bay Area health officers recommend masking indoors; region has highest infection rate in California
Twelve Bay Area health officers on Friday recommended that people wear masks indoors amidst a new swell of COVID cases and hospitalizations.
Dr. Sara Cody's message: Keep your mask handy, wear indoors in crowded spaces as virus once again surges
With the novel coronavirus once again on the rise, Santa Clara County's top health official, Dr. Sara Cody, shares a message to keep your mask handy and to wear it indoors, especially in crowded indoor spaces. She adds that we need to take more precautions than we did a month ago.
Calculating risk on Mother's Day as COVID cases rise
Just in time for Mother's Day, COVID cases are on the rise throughout the Bay Area. One health expert says a highly transmissible variant is going around, but that hospitalizations remain low.