COVID-19

CALIFORNIA — A variant first discovered in California in December is more contagious than earlier forms of the coronavirus, two new studies have shown, fueling concerns that emerging mutants like this one could hamper the sharp decline in cases overall in the state and...

YUMA, Ariz. — The Rev. Emilio Chapa was delivering a homily on a recent Sunday when he paused to lament a sight that had shaken him as he entered the sacristy before Mass. The board where his staff posted requests for funeral services was covered...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County Health Officer Dr. Edward Moreno said in an Aug. 18 press briefing that the county continues to have higher case rates of Covid-19 from the Delta variant, and that data is backing up the effectiveness of vaccines. “In Monterey County,...

CALIFORNIA — Dozens of times a day in COVID-19 wards across California, a scene like this plays out: A hospital chaplain watches as a death is announced by machine. Kristin Michealsen, a hospital chaplain in Los Angeles, stood at a man’s bedside, holding his hand....

KING CITY — Monterey Bay Aquarium has loaned a freezer capable of reaching sub-zero temperatures to Mee Memorial Healthcare System in an effort to help the South Monterey County hospital administer Covid-19 vaccines in the area. “While vaccines remain in short supply in Monterey County,...

State prison systems across the United States have begun allowing visitors for the first time since the pandemic started, presenting challenges for facilities that want to balance much-needed contact between inmates and their families with the need to limit the spread of COVID-19 in...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County Board of Supervisors has moved forward with a countywide indoor face covering ordinance, which could take effect in late October. Last week the board introduced language for the mask mandate and met on Tuesday for approval. However, due to amendments...

SALINAS VALLEY — High schools in King City and Greenfield will reopen this week with a phased return of teachers and students to classrooms beginning April 15. South Monterey County Joint Union High School District Superintendent Brian Walker issued a video update on April 2...

We’ve been waiting for this week for a long time. After more than a year of complex, evolving rules governing where Californians can go and what we can do, on Tuesday, nearly all of them will go away. California, the nation’s most populous state, will be...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Infection rates are declining in Monterey County, with fewer daily confirmed cases of Covid-19 as time goes on, reported county health officer Dr. Edward Moreno during the March 3 press briefing. “If we continue to avoid gatherings and stay home as much...