Coronavirus

New vaccines for RSV and an updated booster for COVID-19 give Californians more tools to protect themselves from respiratory viruses this fall.

As many resume their pre-pandemic lives, those with long COVID struggle with debilitating symptoms. In California, there are no legislative proposals to help despite long wait times for care and expensive treatments.

The state ended masking and vaccination requirements, including in high-risk settings such as health care facilities. Some patients with chronic illnesses say they may avoid treatment rather than risk contracting COVID-19.

As public health funding winds down, gaps in vaccination rates are increasing. Particularly for booster doses, the gap among racial and ethnic groups is widening significantly.

As the state prepares to end the state of emergency, those sites with less demand will close first.

Health officials say a key difference between this upcoming winter and the last two is the wider availability of COVID antivirals like Paxlovid. But many infected people aren’t aware of their availability or have difficulty accessing them.

The state of emergency gave Newsom wide-ranging powers to issue mandates and enter into billions of dollars of emergency response contracts.

In California, 32,000 children under 18 have experienced the death of a parent or primary caregiver from COVID-19. The state has set aside $100 million for trust funds for children who are in low-income families to access when they turn 18 for school, housing or other expenses.

The state decides it won't require COVID vaccines for children this fall, and a bill to mandate kids vaccines without personal belief exemptions stalls out.

Latino, Black and low-income people with inadequate health care could suffer the most. California doesn't have many long COVID specialists, and disadvantaged communities are underserved.