Another month passes. The coronavirus pandemic marches on. And Americans struggling amid the economic fallout once again have to worry as their next rent checks come due Aug. 1. Many left jobless by the crisis are already behind on payments. And the arrival of August brings new anxieties. A supplemental...
Anonymous Tips Help California Counties Enforce Virus Orders
LOS ANGELES — After weeks of stressing education over enforcement, California communities say they are now issuing fines and relying on anonymous tips to make sure businesses and residents are complying with health orders requiring masks, disinfection and social distancing as the state tries to contain the coronavirus. Los Angeles...
Madera High Student Tests Positive for COVID-19, School Shutters Athletics
Madera High School has suspended all athletic workouts after a student-athlete tested positive for COVID-19, athletic director John Fernandez said Thursday. The student, who was not identified, was exposed this month to the coronavirus by a person off campus and away from all school facilities and activities. Positive Test Reported...
Misinformation on Coronavirus Is Proving Highly Contagious
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — As the world races to find a vaccine and a treatment for COVID-19, there is seemingly no antidote in sight for the burgeoning outbreak of coronavirus conspiracy theories, hoaxes, anti-mask myths and sham cures. The phenomenon, unfolding largely on social media, escalated this week when President Donald...
#Central4Kids to Link Students on Distance Learning with ‘Caring’ Adult
Central Unified School District students who are doing their schoolwork at home until schools can reopen will have more people on their side to make sure things are going OK. The district, in partnership with its teachers and classified employees unions, is launching #Central4Kids, a program that will match each...
Pilgrims Pray on Peak Day of Hajj in Shadow of Coronavirus
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Masked pilgrims arrived Thursday at Mount Arafat, a desert hill near Islam’s holiest site, to pray and repent on the most important day of the hajj, the annual pilgrimage in Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The global coronavirus pandemic has cast a shadow over every aspect...
Can the Coronavirus Spread Through the Air?
Can the coronavirus spread through the air? Yes, it's possible. The World Health Organization recently acknowledged the possibility that COVID-19 might be spread in the air under certain conditions. Recent COVID-19 outbreaks in crowded indoor settings — restaurants, nightclubs and choir practices — suggest the virus can hang around in the air...
2nd US Virus Surge Hits Plateau, but Few Experts Celebrate
NEW YORK — While deaths from the coronavirus in the U.S. are mounting rapidly, public health experts are seeing a flicker of good news: The second surge of confirmed cases appears to be leveling off. Scientists aren’t celebrating by any means, warning that the trend is driven by four big,...
Stakes Rise for Virus Talks as Jobless Aid Lapses, GDP Drops
WASHINGTON — Frustrated negotiators of a massive coronavirus relief bill face heightened pressure with Thursday's brutal economic news and the rapidly approaching lapse in a $600 per-week expanded jobless benefit that has helped prop up consumer demand. Talks are at a standstill with few reasons for optimism despite sweeping agreement...
California Minimum-Wage Jump to Hit Virus-Battered Companies
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday the state would keep in place a planned jump in the state's minimum wage to $14 an hour next year for larger businesses, saying it would help hard hit lower-income workers even as many companies struggle to survive amid the coronavirus crisis. The...