Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.
Last month, Governor Brown declared a state of emergency in California after hundreds of Hepatitis A cases popped up in San Diego's homeless community.
The outbreak has since spread to LA, although public health officials say the general population is not at risk. However, an LAPD officer has contracted Hep A. That's prompting the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL), the union that represents the officer, to call for more vaccinations.
Take Two's A Martinez spoke with Mark Cronin, a director with LAPPL. The union issued a letter to the LA County Board of Supervisors calling for vaccines to go to 1,600 LAPD officers most at-risk for Hep A exposure.
"Hepatitis A vaccinations are something that frankly the county and the city should have been all over long before the exposures in San Diego," Cronin said. "We shouldn't have had this officer come down with this."
In response to the LAPPL letter, two motions are now scheduled for consideration before the board of supervisors addressing the need for more vaccines.
"What I think this comes down to is the priority of giving this to public safety," Cronin added. "There have been approximately 17,800 vaccinations administered and distributed by the Department of Public Health, but the reality is that they didn't go to public safety."
To listen to the full interview, click on the media player above.