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GENERAL COVID-19 NEWS
This section curates noteworthy coronavirus news, trends and opinions. No endorsement by UCI is implied. Note: Some news sites require subscriptions to read articles. The UCI Libraries offer free subscriptions to The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and OC Register ;for students, faculty and staff.
What’s going on with all these Coronavirus variants? An illustrated guide
Check out this lay version of how the coronavirus mutates and what that looks like in this article with easy-to-understand language and illustrations.
ICE won’t make immigration arrests at vaccination sites
The U.S. government says it won’t conduct immigration enforcement arrests at or near coronavirus vaccination sites around the country. In a statement Monday, the Department of Homeland Security said vaccine sites will be considered “sensitive locations” and will not be targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents except in “extraordinary circumstances.”
CVS to administer vaccines at 100 pharmacies in California
CVS Health will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines to eligible populations on Feb. 11 at 100 CVS Pharmacy locations across California. Appointments will become available for booking as early as Tuesday as stores receive shipments of vaccine.
Medical school applications surge as COVID-19 inspires Black and Latino students to become doctors
Applications to medical school for this coming fall are up 18%, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, which represents 155 U.S. institutions. Some schools have seen 30% jumps. And many school officials specifically note that the number of applicants from traditionally underrepresented Americans is helping to drive the surge.
San Francisco to sue its own schools for not reopening
San Francisco officials reportedly plan to sue their own school district for its failure to reopen schools, nearly a year after the pandemic shuttered in-person education.
Olympics organizers unveil rules for COVID-19 Games
Olympic officials on Wednesday unveiled the first of many COVID-19 rules for the Tokyo Games this summer, banning singing and chanting during events and mandating participants to wear masks at “all times” except when eating, sleeping or outdoors.
OC Social Services Agency reopens four regional centers
The reopening will provide Orange County residents with additional access to public assistance benefits and related services, while continuing to provide safeguards that help maintain the protection of SSA clients and staff during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Orange County has cut its coronavirus case rate in half since mid-January
While Orange County has made huge strides back toward lower tiers in the state’s four-level tracking system over the past few weeks, a high case rate keeps it well within the most-restrictive purple tier.
Biden administration announces direct vaccine shipments to 21 pharmacy chains
The Biden administration announced Tuesday it will begin direct shipments of coronavirus vaccines to retail pharmacies next week, expanding points of access for Americans to receive shots as concerns about variants of the virus expand.
HOPE, INSPIRATION, LAUGHTER
Amid the heartbreaking loss of life and economic hardship wrought by the coronavirus, we recognize the need for stories of kindness, hope, courage and humor.
The ‘Sex and the City’ revival will address the COVID-19 pandemic
Sarah Jessica Parker reveals the “Sex and the City” revival won’t ignore the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic will “obviously be part of the storyline because that’s the city [these characters] live in,” Parker said. The show, titled “And Just Like That,” will feature the women, who will now be in their 50s.
The people wanted Lego bike lanes, and Lego listened
A thousand years ago, back in 2019, Marcel Steeman undertook a seemingly impossible challenge: convince the makers of one of the most popular toys in the world to do something a little different. He wanted Lego, the toy production company based in Billund, Denmark, to add bike lanes to their tiny, brick-made cities. Steeman posted his bike lane proposal to Lego’s “Ideas” website, where enthusiasts can share and vote on each others’ ideas. Really popular ideas can get the chance to ascend up the ladder and become part of an official Lego set.
#UCIconnected
If you have a shoutout, or if you’d like to share what you’ve been up to during the pandemic, send photos and/or words about your activities, workstation, volunteering, etc., to marketing@uci.edu or post on social media with the #UCIconnected hashtag.
EXPOSURE NOTIFICATION
* Potential workplace exposure: UCI provides this notification of a potential workplace COVID-19 exposure. Employees and subcontractors who were in these locations on the dates listed may have been exposed to the coronavirus. You may be entitled to various benefits under applicable federal and state laws and University-specific policies and agreements. The full notification is available on the UCI Forward site. If you have been identified as a close contact to a COVID-19 case, the UCI Contact Tracing Program will contact you and provide additional direction.
