The Brief

When schools reopened in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, school officials warned parents to keep their kids home if they showed even the slightest sign of illness. Now, as we head into the third school year with COVID, the messaging has changed.

“My advice on keeping children home from school now is similar to what was in place pre-pandemic,” Dr. Smita Malhotra, chief medical officer for the Los Angeles Unified School District, wrote in an update to parents and caregivers.

Parents are now being told to send their children to school if they are unwell, but keep them home if they have more serious symptoms.

“It is not practical for working parents to keep children home from school for every runny nose, nor is it in the best interest of children to continue to miss school after pandemic school closures,” Malhotra wrote. “If your child has a mild runny nose or cold symptoms that are not bothering them, and they test negative for COVID-19, send them to school. Your child can wear a mask at school when they have these mild symptoms.”

This guidance is significantly different than in past years when parents were told that any illness meant keeping kids at home.

“I completely agree with LAUSD’s message,” said Dr. Anuradha Seshadri, internal medicine and pediatrician at UCLA Health Century City. “It has been shown to improve their psyche and emotional well-being by seeing their friends at school, interacting, coming back and being a part of extracurricular activities, getting that exercise that they need, and just social stimulation is very, very important for one's health.”

We’re in a quieter phase of the pandemic, she says, and between the availability of vaccinations, home testing and telehealth visits, Seshadri is comfortable with the district’s recommendations for most kids.

At-home COVID testing is a must

She does have some concerns about the policy and how it could hurt the health of an immunosuppressed child.

“If a child is at higher risk for possibly being hospitalized, whether (because) they are immunosuppressed, if they're on cancer medications, or they have sickle cell, or they're diabetic, or extremely obese, then they need to be a little bit more cautious.”

Seshadri said children shouldn’t be treated in isolation. Time and again, grandchildren with a mild COVID case infect grandparents or other immunosuppressed adults.

“When the kids get sick, it's not just the kids getting sick,” she said. “They come back and spread it to family members.”

At-home testing, she says, is key.

“Even with mild symptoms, I think it would benefit not only the child, but other people to just rule out COVID with the antigen test, Seshadri said. “Parents and families need to maintain good hygienic measures at school and preventative measures so that if there is a chance that you had COVID, I would say implement the testing measures that we have.”

What do multiple COVID infections do to kids?

Last August and September, TK-12 schools in L.A. County reported more than 1,100 COVID clusters — or groups of three or more potentially connected cases over an eight-week period, according to data from Public Health.

Children are the least vaccinated age group in L.A. County. Just 2.5% of children six months to 4-years-old are up to date on their COVID shots, followed by 7% of 5 to 11-year-olds and 11% of 12 to 17-year-olds.

Studies have shown that repeat COVID infections in adults can spell trouble. A 2022 study found multiple cases of COVID in adults can increase risk in many areas, including potential cardiac, pulmonary or neurological problems.

Dr. Seshadri said we don’t know how multiple COVID infections could affect children or their developing organ systems, including brain development.

“We’re still in the learning phase right now,” she said.

Can children get the newly formulated COVID shot this fall? 

The CDC expects the updated vaccine rollout to begin the third or fourth week of September, meaning pharmacies will likely start offering them in October, but who will be eligible for the shot is still up in the air.

The Food and Drug Administration is waiting on safety data from pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna for their respective updated COVID shots. Once the FDA has approved the shot, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will likely call a special meeting to review the data and make recommendations on the dosage size and which age group will be able to get the shots.

There are COVID vaccines available right now. Children six months and older can get the bivalent vaccine, which Seshadri recommends.

“We saw a big uptick in child vaccinations in June, parents were interested in getting them vaccinated before traveling,” she said.

How much COVID is there? 

Getting accurate data on COVID cases is harder now. The weekly data from L.A. County Public Health measure the number of patients in the hospital with COVID, including emergency room visits and COVID-positive ICU patients.

It does indicate an upward trend since the start of July.

L.A. County also does wastewater detection, which is an indicator of how much COVID is circulating in the community, which is also rising.

Should we treat COVID the same way we treat the flu?

COVID isn’t seasonal in the same way as other viruses like the flu and RSV. Symptoms for flu and COVID are very similar, making it hard to differentiate as a physician without a lab test.

LAUSD recommends that children should not go to school if they have these symptoms:

• Fever (100.4 F and above)
• Vomiting or diarrhea
• Severe pain
• Difficulty breathing 

Take them to their pediatrician, who can do one nasal swab that tests for the big three viruses — COVID, flu and RSV.

Health experts look to the Southern Hemisphere to help predict our coming flu season, and it’s been a busy one in Australia. They’ve had a lot of influenza A and B, which tend to target children, putting pressure on pediatric services. About 80% of hospital admissions have been in children, and Australian health authorities have been urging young people to get the flu vaccine after two deaths of school-aged children.

“We're already seeing some flu cases here itself, so we're prepping for the flu and RSV season,” Dr. Seshadri said.

L.A.’s status as a tourist destination as well as its dense population makes it important for children to get their immunizations and booster doses, she said.

“Los Angeles is special in the sense that it is a very big tourist area. Even if you're not traveling, or the schools don't recommend it, it’s still a good idea to get vaccinated. We get a lot of tourists here that bring in viruses and other communicable diseases. In daycares and schools, there's a lot of prolonged close contact and protecting your children is protecting your family,” she said.

At least seven wildfires burning around Southern California are sending smoke across the region. The South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended a smoke advisory warning of unhealthy air through 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

What does a smoke advisory mean?

Local health officials send out warnings when the air quality is unhealthy. The advisories encourage people to avoid outdoor activities and take other steps to limit contact with smoky air.

Where are the wildfires?

Wildfires are burning in Ventura, San Diego, Riverside, Santa Barbara and L.A. counties. You can keep tabs on the fires on the CalFire website.

How bad is the air?

Wildfire smoke is generally worse for your health than the kind of “garden variety urban pollution” Angelenos are used to, said Suzanne Paulson, an atmospheric chemist at UCLA. But air quality depends on where you live, and might change from hour to hour. The good news is that low-cost air quality sensors have made it easier to find out just how bad the air is in your neck of the woods. You can check PurpleAir, Clarity, and IQAir for real-time data on pollution levels, often down to the neighborhood level.

How to avoid breathing bad air

Staying indoors in the best way to avoid bad air pollution, Paulson said. You can also try to avoid the worst areas. “So for example, I ride my bike to work. I regularly look at the map and see if the air quality is OK, and sometimes I even change my route,” Paulson said.

The city of Santa Ana is just $85 short of closing what started as a $13 million budget deficit. On the chopping block: after-school programming, park maintenance and more.

The city manager’s office presented another round of cuts to balance the budget at yesterday’s City Council meeting. Officials reported that the current proposal avoids layoffs and furloughs. Most of the cuts will come from the Public Works Department at more than $3 million.

Santa Ana's current budget proposal includes an estimated $85 deficit for the upcoming fiscal year.

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Courtesy of the city of Santa Ana

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More on what’s being cut 

The Police Department is seeing a proposed $2 million in cuts, but could still be allocated $4 million more than last year, according to the budget draft.

The city is looking to cut 20 vacant full-time positions and reduce part-time spending.

Five non-mandated commissions will also be dissolved, including the youth, parks and recreation, and arts and culture commissions. The move will save the city nearly $28,000.

Ambulance services will be cut down from a 24-hour unit to a 12-hour unit, saving $250,000, and fees will increase.

How did we get here? 

At a City Council meeting earlier this month, officials reported that the city’s revenue increased by 3% compared to last year, but spending is up 6%, with hikes in labor and pension/liability costs.

What’s the deal with youth programming? 

The Santa Ana Police Athletic and Activity League, also known as PAAL, costs the city more than $877,000, about 80% of which goes toward salaries for its current fiscal budget.

PAAL costs the city about $5,400 per child, compared to youth programs run by the Parks and Recreation Department, which cost about $100 per kid.

PAAL’s after-school and summer programs serve 87 children, and more than 200 are mentored and coached through its sports programming. The program’s budget will be slashed by about half.

Councilmember Johnathan Ryan Hernandez said this move should not be seen as a cut to youth services.

“Through this new proposed recommendation, we’ll reinstate exercise instruction at four different elementary schools, and we will increase the services from 228 children to 2,200 children,” Hernandez said. “We are not cutting youth services, we're actually adding youth services while saving money for our city.”

Mayor Valerie Amezcua said the library and parks departments can do the same programs, but not the way PAAL does.

“I just want to make sure whatever cuts we're making, that we continue to include our Police Department. To me, that's very important for the public trust,” Amezcua said.

What’s next? 

The city isn’t completely in the clear when it comes to its finances. Measure X, a voter-approved sales tax, will be reduced in 2029, resulting in the loss of at least $30 million in annual revenue before completely expiring in 2039. The City Council, aside from Councilmembers David Penaloza and Jessie Lopez, has supported asking voters if the tax should be made permanent.

A public hearing to review the drafted budget will be held on June 2. Details will be posted on the city’s website.

At least 20 detainees have launched a hunger strike at Desert View Annex, an immigrant detention center in Adelanto, California, where about 400 people are being held.

At a news conference Wednesday, immigrant rights groups, including the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, said the strikers were motivated by the detention center’s inadequate response to life-threatening health conditions among detainees, “decreasing portions of food” as commissary prices rise and “retaliation and suppression” against those who’ve spoken out against conditions inside. The media event included family members and legal representatives, who described hearing from detainees about how the hunger strike began.

The strike follows the recent release of a critical report from the California Department of Justice. Grounded in interviews with 194 detainees across the state, the report details how the surge in immigrant apprehensions strained conditions and access to medical care at all of the facilities operating in California. State investigators also described the recent deaths of multiple detainees.

The annex strikers’ demands include:

• bond reform
• remediation of mold, repair of water infrastructure, clean water and functioning facilities
• timely medical appointments, “appropriate treatment for chronic conditions” and “substantive mental health support”
• “a diet that sustains basic physical health”
• accountability for detainee deaths, including a man who died shortly after being released 
• “The ability to meet collectively, speak with outside advocates, and communicate with family and the public without interference or retaliation.”

Desert View Annex is operated by The GEO Group, a private prison company, under contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. No one at the press conference could confirm whether any detainees at the main Adelanto detention facility were on a hunger strike, too.

What is the response from authorities?

In response to a request for comment, The GEO Group referred LAist to the federal government. In an emailed statement, an unnamed Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said: “There is no hunger strike at Adelanto.”

The department also added: “For the record: During hunger strikes, ICE continues to provide three meals a day, delivered to the detained alien’s room, and an adequate supply of drinking water or other beverages.”

The department also said: “It is a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental, and mental health services as available, and access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. For many illegal aliens this is the best healthcare they have received their entire lives.”

What do detainees experience?

Caleb Soto, an attorney with the National Day Labor Organizing Network, represents people currently detained at the Adelanto detention center. He said he goes inside the facility every week.

“I watch [detainees] deteriorate week by week,” he said. “The food they're given ... provides almost no nutrition. Medical appointments can take weeks or even months to be approved, and often last 60 seconds ending with the prescription of Tylenol, Advil or even a salt packet. People with serious conditions go untreated, and I've watched people age in front of me in a matter of months.”

Soto also described his experience with the bond system. “Discretionary releases have fallen 87%,” he said. “And for those who do get a bond hearing, the average bond is now over $14,000, which is a stark increase from the previous administration.”

Detainees have filed grievances, raised formal complaints and written officials about the conditions they’re experiencing, Soto added. “A hunger strike is not a first resort," he said. "It's what people do when every other option has been taken from them.”

Detainees say staff use solitary confinement to retaliate against those who speak out against these conditions, and to isolate detainees who are experiencing mental health crises.

Earlier this year, a coalition of immigrant rights groups filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of detainees, calling for conditions at Adelanto to be improved. The coalition has since requested an emergency court order to prevent further harm. A hearing is scheduled for July 10.