Eden Health District received the District Transparency Certificate of Excellence by the Special District Leadership Foundation (SDLF) in recognition of its outstanding efforts to promote transparency and good governance. “This award is a testament to Eden Health District’s commitment to open government,” said Mark Friedman, CEO. “Our staff is to be commended for their contributions that empower the public with information and facilitate engagement and oversight.” To receive the award, the Eden Health District demonstrated the completion of essential governance transparency requirements, including conducting ethics training for all board members, properly conducting open and public meetings, and filing financial transactions and compensation reports to the State Controller in a timely manner. Eden Health District Read more

Financial assistance is available to both income-eligible tenants and to landlords who need help with unpaid or future rent or utility expenses because of COVID-19 financial struggles, Hayward housing officials announced today. The City of Hayward wants to make more tenants and landlords aware of the resources as the State of California’s COVID-19 emergency moratorium on evictions is scheduled to come to an end on Sept. 30. City of Hayward Read more

The Bay Area COVID vaccine booster rollout may be more of a trickle than a flood. Health experts said there are plenty of vaccine boosters available, but so far it appears the sense of urgency we saw with the initial vaccine is not quite there. "By far the elephant in the room is the people not getting the first shot in the first place," said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, UCSF infectious disease expert. With about 80% of San Franciscans fully vaccinated, neighbors are ready to do their part again, getting the booster shot when it is their turn. NBC Bay Area Read more

There have been only five COVID-19 outbreaks at San Francisco schools since the beginning of the school year and the return to in-person education, the San Francisco Department of Public Health told SFGATE. In each outbreak, fewer than five students or staff were involved, and in every incident, cases were “either mild to moderate illness,” with none requiring hospitalization, SFDPH added. It’s an incredible feat for San Francisco schools, which cater to thousands of students. The San Francisco Unified School District alone educates more than 57,000 students every year. SFGATE

In terms of transmission rate, San Francisco is at 2.3%, and California is at about 3%, down from 7% a week ago. NBC News Read more

President Joe Biden received a COVID-19 booster shot Monday at the White House, just days after the C.D.C. recommended a third shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for certain at-risk groups. In a brief speech at the White House ahead of getting his third dose, the president said that "boosters are important, but the most important thing we need to do is get more people vaccinated." The roughly 23 percent of Americans who have not received a single shot are "causing an awful lot of damage for the rest of the country," he said. NBC News Read more

Pfizer-BioNTech submitted data to the Food and Drug Administration to clear its Covid-19 vaccine for use in children ages 5 to 11, officials announced Tuesday. The FDA is expected to take at least several weeks to analyze data collected in a trial that included more than 2,000 children before it would grant emergency use authorization. A formal submission to request emergency use authorization of the companies’ vaccine is expected to follow in the coming weeks, officials said in a release. NBC News

The daily pace of new COVID-19 vaccinations in the United States is the lowest it has been since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention started tracking it in mid-January, data shows. The seven-day average rate of people getting their first shot is 231,695, 31% less than last week, almost half (47%) less than a month earlier - and a far cry from the millions a day the country saw in April. It's not that there's now a lack of people who are not immunized: Sixteen states have yet to vaccinate more than half of their residents, according to the CDC data, and almost 25% of the eligible population - about 70 million people - are not vaccinated. CNN Read more

LeBron James on Tuesday said he received the COVID-19 vaccine  despite his initial skepticism. The Los Angeles Lakers star spoke with reporters on the Lakers' annual media day for the upcoming season, saying he and his family got the vaccine after he did his own research. "I think everyone has they own choice - to do what they feel is right for themselves and their family and things of that nature," he said. "I know that I was very (skeptical) about it all but after doing my research. I felt like it was best suited for not only me but for my family and my friends." CBS News Read more

The divide in attitudes on COVID-19 vaccines between people who have or haven’t gotten the shots hasn’t changed with the introduction of booster shots. In fact, vaccinated people say the third dose approved by U.S. regulators last week shows that scientists are trying to make the shots more effective while 71% of unvaccinated Americans say it’s proof the vaccines don’t work, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Nearly 80% of vaccinated respondents see booster shots as a good sign. CNBC Read more

The summer surge of COVID-19 cases caused by the Delta (B1617.2) variant may be tapering off after causing the fourth wave of heightened pandemic activity in the United States. The 7-day average of new daily COVID-19 cases is 118,015, with 1,996 deaths, according to the Washington Post tracker. In the past week, new daily cases fell 20%, deaths fell 0.8%, and hospitalizations fell 8.9%. According to NBC NEWS, the drop in COVID-19 cases over the last week is the longest sustained decline in cases in nearly 3 months. NBC said the fourth wave likely peaked on Sep 13, when the 7-day average of cases at 166,807. CIDRAP Read more

Sarah Voit likes to keep 10 to 15 rapid test kits on hand in case any of the residents of the Family Emergency Shelter Coalition in Hayward need to be tested for COVID-19. They’ve had some infection scares, and the antigen tests - which return results in minutes - have been crucial to curbing the virus in the family shelter. But in recent weeks, the staff has struggled to purchase enough rapid test kits. The local Walgreens and Costco have started limiting sales to one per customer. “We ran into the same issue at the beginning of the pandemic when we were trying to buy Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer,” said Voit, the shelter’s program director. CalMatters Read more

The U.S. is bracing for a combination of threats this winter as both the flu and COVID-19 spread, and the country will likely have to change daily life to cope with both, an expert said. "I think the twin threats of this pathogen and the flu circulating every winter, as coronaviruses settle into a more seasonal pattern, is going to be too much for society to bear," former US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, told CNN's Jake Tapper. "I think we're going to have to readjust how we live our lives." CNN Read more

After the pandemic-related expansion of unemployment insurance ended on Sept. 6, roughly 7.5 million people lost their benefits entirel, with millions more losing the $300 weekly bonus checks. The temporary federal benefits - which included coverage for those normally ineligible for jobless aid, like gig workers and the long-term unemployed - were in place since spring 2020 to help those who lost income from COVID-19 restrictions or layoffs. A group of Democratic lawmakers, led by Reps. Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have called to reform the unemployment system in the coming $3.5 trillion House spending plan. CNET Read more

Sources: Johns Hopkins University, SF Chronicle, and dashboards for California and Alameda and Contra Costa counties.

Millions of Americans who had the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine are now eligible for a booster shot, which is meant to wake up the immune system so it stays sharp if confronted with COVID-19. And experts predict boosters for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccine recipients are right around the corner. Here’s what you need to know as the shots roll out. AARP Read more