A new model indicates California is moving in the right direction, at least to the tune of one day earlier than the same model last week. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation is a research institute working in the area of global health statistics and impact evaluation at the...
High and Low Tech Surveys Show Sierra Snowpack Is Still Stingy
The snowpack above the central San Joaquin Valley looks slightly better after March and April brought the winter weather that was AWOL during the first two months of 2020. But the late storms weren’t enough to get Valley rivers much above 60% of average — if that. San Joaquin River...
Clovis Issues First Price Gouging Citation
A Clovis business owner with a checkered past has received the city's first citation for violating an emergency anti-price gouging ordinance. Green Planet, a janitorial service and supply company at 850 San Jose Avenue, suite 114, allegedly sold toilet paper, paper towels, sanitizer, and gloves for more than the allowed...
Nursing Home Deaths Jump to 15 in Visalia. State Sends in Medical Teams.
Four more nursing home residents have died after being infected with COVID-19 at Visalia's Redwood Springs Healthcare Center, the Tulare County Health Department confirmed Tuesday. Twenty-two people have now died from the infection in Tulare County, the highest number of fatalities for any county in the central San Joaquin Valley....
UCSF-Fresno Uses Experimental Treatment on COVID-19 Patient
ECMO stands for "extracorporeal membrane oxygenation." But that's not important right now. What is important: There's anecdotal evidence it's helping patients beat COVID-19. UCSF-Fresno Dr. Mohamed Fayed is working with colleagues around the globe to study ECMO's usefulness in a trial. Extra Oxygen Into the Blood The ECMO machine is...
Besides COVID-19, Minor League Clubs Like the Grizzlies Face MLB Squeeze
While COVID-19 lockdowns squeeze minor-league baseball teams across the country, Major League Baseball is pressuring the game's grassroots franchises, too. And it is making for an uncertain future for franchises such as the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies down to short-season rookie-league operators. Looming in the background of the minors' tenuous situation...
Home Buyers Direct $55K to Local Charities for COVID Relief Efforts
Local home buyers directed $55,000 in donations this week to programs facing rising demands for services because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Three area non-profits working to address domestic violence, food insecurity, and health care needs received the first round of funds Monday from an initiative sponsored by Granville Homes. Company...
Where Are Fresno COVID Antibody Tests? Health Officer: 'I Emailed the State.'
"We're not doing any antibody testing right now," answered interim Fresno County Health Officer Dr. Rais Vohra in response to a question Monday during a teleconference. "That's something that we're still waiting to start." His answer came on the heels of a large study by USC and the Los Angeles Department...
Social Distancing Costly, but Effective. USA Rebound, Cultural Changes Next.
The human race is on pause. Our planet is changing. I wonder what cultural and moral transformations might emerge as a result of this pandemic. From my vantage point, we are becoming more aware of our own humanity, kinder, and more empathetic to those who are less fortunate. Is that how...
More Deaths, No Benefit From Malaria Drug in VA Virus Study
A malaria drug widely touted by President Donald Trump for treating the new coronavirus showed no benefit in a large analysis of its use in U.S. veterans hospitals. There were more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care, researchers reported. The nationwide study was not a rigorous experiment. But...