Wonder whether you've had COVID-19, but you don't want to leave the house to get blood drawn for antibody testing? Now you don't have to. Sylvia Sandoval and her husband Eddie are providing the service through their Fresno company O Labs, which they had set up earlier this year to...
PD Commission’s Celedon Declines to Explain ‘Burn it Down’ Tweet
In its first public meeting Monday, the Fresno Commission on Police Reform's second-in-command, Sandra Celedon, declined to explain a controversial tweet after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Also in Politics 101: Police Reform commissioners want more time. Another Fresno police committee is still active. County...
‘Take It Outside’ Vohra Recommends to Fresno Restaurants
Fresno County Public Health officials said Thursday that they expect bars and restaurants to comply with Gov. Gavin Newsom's order to close many indoor businesses. If restaurants want to offer customer dining, it needs to be outdoors or in a patio setting, they said. In addition, Newsom made it clear...
‘July Is Going to Be Very Tragic,’ Says Fresno County Health Officer
New numbers from the state Tuesday show Fresno County has had a 97.7% increase in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the past 14 days. During the same time frame, the county has seen a 33.3% increase in ICU cases. Public health officials report that 200 of 270 ICU beds are occupied (40...
New COVID-19 Test Site Opening at West Fresno Regional Center
The West Fresno Regional Center will join Fresno City College and the Sanger Community Center as OptumServe's third free COVID-19 test site in Fresno County. The site is expected to begin testing this week. The goal is to do 135 free nasal-swab tests a day. Tests are by-appointment-only and can be...
Fresno Hospitals at or Beyond Capacity Because of COVID-19: Dr. Vohra
State figures show Fresno County's hospitalized COVID-19 patients have increased by more than 48% in the last two weeks. Eight more patients have gone into intensive care over the last 14 days — leaving 28% of the county's ICU beds available. Listen to this article: Fresno County interim health officer...
Health Officers Leave in Droves After Threats, Fresno’s Top Doc Responds
As the pressure and scrutiny rise, many more health officials have chosen to leave or been pushed out of their jobs. A review by Kaiser Health News and The Associated Press finds at least 27 state and local health leaders have resigned, retired, or been fired since April across 13...
Fresno County Shows Big Gains in Containing COVID-19
Fresno County jumped onto the state's radar earlier this month when positive COVID-19 test percentages climbed above 8%. At the time, Fresno County Department of Public Health’s Interim Health Officer Rais Vohra said, "It's a concern." But, Monday numbers from the state show the county heading in a much better direction. Over the...
Why Wear a Face Mask & Protective Eyewear? Study Says COVID-19 Droplets Can Remain Airborne for 16 Hours
COVID-19 droplets stay in the the air longer than SARS or MERS. Much longer, in fact. The Lancet medical journal found, "viable virus in the air 16 hours after aerosolisation." In other words, COVID-19 stays in the air for quite a while after someone breaths, talks, or sneezes. That's the...
You Have a ‘Moral Obligation’ to Wear a Facemask: Fresno County’s Top Doc
California health officials are bracing for a second COVID-19 wave as soon as July. The Fresno County Department of Health is also bracing for that possibility. It has seen cases and hospitalizations rise as more people are going outside and becoming more mobile. The county's rate of doubling cases has...