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Podcasts Take Two
Echo Park Lake's Homeless Population, The Health Conditions Being Prioritized For Vaccines in LA, Bioluminescence is Back in So Cal
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Mar 23, 2021
Listen • 32:32
Echo Park Lake's Homeless Population, The Health Conditions Being Prioritized For Vaccines in LA, Bioluminescence is Back in So Cal

Activists Bracing for a Possible Sweep of Homeless at Echo Park Lake, Answers to Your Questions About What Health Conditions Can Secure You a Vaccine, Bioluminescent Waves are Back
After a two-year and $45-million rehabilitation, Echo Park Lake will reopen on June 15, 2013.
Over the last year, a homeless encampment has built up around Echo Park Lake, drawing criticism from residents and activists for the unhoused who each are unhappy with how the city has handled things. Now, there are plans being formed to remove the encampments from the area.
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Todd Johnson/KPCC
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What's Happening with the Homeless Population at Echo Park Lake?

LA City Officials are preparing to fence off the park around Echo Park Lake and close it for renovations. But to do that, a large homeless encampment made up of more than a hundred tents would have to be removed, displacing the people living there. There's been a lot criticism from both Echo Park residents AND activists working with the unhoused people about how the situation there is being handled. Now, activists say they are waiting for a sweep of the encampment.

Guest: 

  • Benjamin Oreskes, general assignment reporter at the Los Angeles Times 

Why One Family Decided to ALL Participate in COVID-19 Vaccine Trials

Meet the Hendersons: Lisa, her 18-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter Aubrey are all participating in vaccine trials. Why? Because Lisa's husband Mark has had a liver and pancreas transplant and now needs another liver, and they all want to do what they can to protect him while helping protect society at large. KPCC's Jackie Fortier has the story. 

Questions Answered About Current Vaccine Eligibility

Now about those pre-existing health conditions. There's some confusion about what KIND of conditions are currently being prioritized for the vaccine. So we pulled in Jackie Fortier again to explain. 

LA County's New Deal with Blue Shield

We talked about Blue Shield’s role in the state’s vaccine roll out on yesterday’s show… We also talked about how pretty much all counties rejected the initial offer to sign an agreement with Blue Shield as the third party administrator.  We have an update on that front… recently the state amended the deal so agreements are now between counties and the state itself and include a partnership with Blue Shield. And LA County has signed on.  

Bioluminescence in Back in So Cal: An Explainer

Gaze into the ocean off Laguna Beach during the day and you’ll notice the water looking a little ruddy. But take a look after the sun sets and you’ll see a glowing light show in the waves. That’s because bioluminescent algae is back in bloom in Orange County waters.

Guest:

  • Clarissa Anderson, executive director of the Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System located at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.