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At a time when nursing homes continue to be among the hardest hit settings in the coronavirus pandemic, new studies are beginning to offer insight as to why some facilities are seeing more cases than others -- and, according to one, how important nursing home employees themselves are to the fight. A study released on Monday by The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that across eight states those facilities that were able to maintain more staffing in the homes had fewer COVID-19 cases than staffing in homes the study rated as low-performing. (Romero, 8/13)

Before he became California governor last year, Gavin Newsom built his reputation as a tech-savvy Bay Area politician, who wrote a book arguing government should follow Silicon Valley’s lead and embrace new technology. But five months into the biggest crisis of his governorship, technology problems have become major stumbling blocks to his coronavirus strategy. The state’s unemployment system has been mired in delays, leaving thousands of people desperate for aid checks in limbo. (Bollag and Wilner, 8/12)

Los Angeles County renters who’ve suffered financial setbacks because of the COVID-19 pandemic can soon apply for thousands of dollars in assistance to help them get on top of their payments. The application period for the income-based L.A. County COVID-19 Rent Relief program opens Monday and will remain open until Aug. 31. Up to $10,000 will be given to households that meet the program’s income guidelines. (Cosgrove, 8/12)

A fast-moving Southern California wildfire forced evacuation orders for about 100 homes and other buildings in northern Los Angeles County on Wednesday. The blaze, dubbed the Lake Fire, had grown to about 10,000 acres as of 8 p.m. PDT between Lake Hughes and Lake Castaic in the Angeles National Forest, about 65 miles northeast of Los Angeles. No injuries had been reported. (Childs, 8/13)

As the pandemic shut down restaurants this spring, California farmers and ranchers saw their markets drop by half, leaving many with fields full of crops but no buyers. And as millions of people lost their jobs, the state’s food banks needed to triple their food supply. Fortunately for California, the state had a longstanding initiative tailor-made to help with these twin crises. The Farm to Family program, run by the California Association of Food Banks and the state’s Department of Food and Agriculture, pays farmers to send surplus produce to food banks. (Brown, 8/13)

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city is moving forward with “painfully real” plans to lay off 22,000 public workers on Oct. 1 unless another source of cash comes through. De Blasio confirmed the layoff plans are progressing after POLITICO first reported Tuesday that agencies have been ordered to come up with a list of employees being considered for job cuts by the end of next week. (Durkin, 8/12)

As teachers and parents agonize over final plans to return to school, the state’s early education leaders are sounding the alarm over care for younger children: Only 72 percent of the spots available in Massachusetts child-care centers before the pandemic are expected to be available in September, the Department of Early Education revealed this week. (Ebbert, 8/12)

As coronavirus infections surged in Texas this summer, Houston Methodist Hospital opened one intensive care unit after another for the most critically ill. We had unique access to one of the I.C.U.s, where many patients or their families gave us permission to follow their care. In mid-July, more than 60 percent of the patients on this 24-bed Covid unit identified as Hispanic, compared with just over 20 percent among the hospital’s I.C.U. patients without Covid. (Fink, Rhyne and Schaff, 8/10)

The Navajo community suffered one of the highest COVID-19 infection rates per capita in the country just three months ago but with the implementation of strict public health measures such as curfews and mandatory mask-wearing, Navajo Nation has curbed the spread of coronavirus. Overall, the number of coronavirus cases have declined in the Navajo community. (Brantley-Jones, 8/13)

More than 100 inmates have tested positive for the coronavirus at Folsom State Prison, and a state prison employee who worked there has died, authorities said this week. Folsom State Prison reports 99 inmates with active COVID-19 infections, all of them confirmed within the last two weeks, according to the CDCR coronavirus data tracker as of 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, an increase from the 56 listed in the morning. Another four inmates at Folsom had lab-confirmed cases that are now classified as “resolved,” and an additional three were released from custody with still-active cases, CDCR reports. No inmate deaths at Folsom have been reported. (McGough, 8/12)

Thirty-seven people recently tested positive for the coronavirus at the Saline County jail in Benton, according to a news release from the county sheriff's office, but authorities said nearly all of the infected individuals have exhibited no symptoms. Officials at the jail tested a total of 186 inmates and employees after a case was introduced into the facility, though the sheriff's office did not elaborate on when and how that occurred. (Flaherty, 8/13)