A Riverside County mother is warning others after her 8-year-old son was severely sickened by COVID-19 and had to be hospitalized for nearly a week.“It has the strangest effects on any age, at any time,” said Teresa Carriera, who got COVID-19–along with her husband Javier in mid-February.In addition to Teresa and Javier, the couple’s 8-year-old son Christian also caught the illness.“My son kept saying he was fine, and yet I could see his breathing was difficult and rapid,” Teresa said.Christian has a mild form of autism, and Teresa says sometimes it is difficult for the 8-year-old to verbalize how he is feeling. But when his high fever wouldn’t let up, Teresa says her motherly instincts kicked in and she took him to Loma Linda University Medical Center in Murrieta.Christian was then transported by ambulance to Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego for specialized care, where Teresa was isolated in a room with him for five days while he was given medications for his severe illness.“So, between the remdesivir, steroids, blood thinners and the oxygen, my son got well,” the relieved mother said.Riverside County Public Health Officer Cameron Kaiser says it is somewhat rare for children to get severely ill from […]

California will begin rolling out a statewide COVID-19 vaccine system Monday, making the same groups eligible for doses in all 58 counties.The state’s vaccine rollout was marked by confusion among residents over who’s eligible for the shots as each local jurisdiction offered the vaccines at different a pace. Frustration over the fragmented eligibility rules was only compounded by technical issues and a patchwork of different vaccine appointment websites to navigate.State officials hope to remedy this by having the same groups eligible for vaccines statewide, and begin using MyTurn.ca.gov as the main source for Californians to sign up for appointments.Currently being prioritized for COVID-19 vaccines in California are health care workers, long-term care facility residents, people 65 and older, and workers in food, agriculture, education, child care and emergency services sectors.The MyTurn website is already being piloted in Los Angeles County, where seniors, teachers, grocery workers and other essential workers can now use it to make vaccine appointments at county-run sites.More counties will begin using the website over the next month.Blue Shield of California, a health plan provider in the state, will manage the state’s vaccine network, which counties will join in three waves.Riverside, Fresno, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and […]

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties all reported additional deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus Friday.Riverside County health officials reported 265 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases and 18 additional fatalities, bringing countywide totals to 289,450 cases and 3,767 deaths. Of those who contracted the illness, 270,693 had recovered.There were 361 COVID-19 patients hospitalized Friday, 96 of whom were being treated in intensive care units — both decreases from Thursday.As of Thursday, Riverside County reported it had administered 475,623 vaccine doses.San Bernardino County health officials reported 743 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases and 110 additional fatalities after not reporting case data on Thursday, bringing countywide totals to 286,077 cases and 2,783 deaths. Of those who contracted the illness, 280,235 had recovered.There were 352 COVID-19 patients hospitalized as of Friday, 91 of whom were being treated in intensive care units — both decreases from Thursday.As of Friday, San Bernardino County reported that COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered to 344,361 people, including 140,784 first doses and 102,125 second doses to county residents.Ventura County health officials reported 240 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases and 10 additional fatalities, bringing countywide totals to 77,256 cases and 844 deaths. Of those who contracted the illness, 75,454 had recovered.There were 131 […]

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) — Teachers and staff at public and private schools, including colleges and universities, in San Bernardino County are now eligible for a coronavirus vaccine.Some districts are making arrangements to vaccinate their employees but educators can also schedule a shot at any vaccination site in the county.A new super site opened this week at the Inland Empire Health Plan headquarters in Rancho Cucamonga.Appointments are required – and may be limited due to supply. The site is open Tuesdays through Saturdays.Appointments can be made here.By ABC7.com staffWednesday, February 24, 2021 3:23PM

REDLANDS, Calif. (KABC) — Little by little, students in the Inland Empire are returning to classrooms.Some districts already have the greenlight to bring students back on campus, while others are awaiting approval.San Bernardino County public health has given all elementary schools permission to reopen, if they have an approved safety plan, after the county’s COVID-19 case rate dropped to the state’s acceptable threshold.Sacred Heart Academy, a private Catholic school in Redlands, was among those welcoming students back this week.“Hoping and praying for it but we wanted it only when it was safe and we had all of the PPE and equipment that we need to ensure everyone’s safety,” said Sacred Heart Principal Angie Williams.Riverside County can also begin the process of bringing back its TK through 6th grade students.But first each school district has to submit a COVID-19 Safety Plan to the county and state public health departments for approval.“It is really a true safety plan – how the kids will be in class, what the distance is between the students, the cohorts that go to lunch together, masking, washing their hands, cleaning the school rooms,” said Michael Osur, assistant director with the Riverside County Department of Public Health.So far, […]

The COVID-19 positivity rate dropped below 10% in Riverside County — the lowest in almost three months — and coronavirus hospitalizations continued to fall, while an additional 31 virus-related deaths were reported Tuesday.According to the Riverside University Health System, the state-adjusted positivity rate, which is based on test results over rolling seven-day periods, is down to 7.6%, compared to 11% last week.The last time that metric hovered below 10% was in the first week of December, according to figures.Coronavirus-positive hospitalizations are at 407, compared to 441 on Monday, and that includes 112 intensive care unit patients, 20 fewer than Monday, RUHS said.ICU bed availability countywide increased to 12%, though the majority of admissions are not from COVID-19, according to Riverside County Public Information Officer Brooke Federico.The total number of COVID-19 cases recorded since the public health documentation period began in March is 288,541, up 719 from Monday.Officials said there have been 3,695 deaths from virus-related complications in the last 11 months, compared to 3,664 reported Monday. The fatalities are trailing indicators because of delays processing death certificates and cover three- to four-week cycles.The number of known active virus cases countywide is 18,269, down 254 compared to a day ago. The […]