The Registrar sent over 1.7 million reminder postcards to registered voters in San Diego County who had not voted as of Oct. 21.

Don’t delay! If you have been holding onto your ballot, act now and vote from the comfort of your home. Sign and date your return envelope, seal your completed ballot inside and return it by mail promptly to make sure it arrives at the Registrar’s office well before Election Day.

You also have the option to use one of the Registrar’s 141 official ballot drop boxes. The new stand-alone boxes feature the Registrar’s logo along with the County seal and are labeled “Official Ballot Drop Box.” Find one close to you through the Registrar’s online locator tool or inside your information pamphlet. Check each location’s hours of operation before heading out at sdvote.com.

The sooner the Registrar’s office receives your ballot, the sooner it is processed for the first release of election night results.

If you want to vote in person, that option is available too. You can cast your ballot at the Registrar’s office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Starting Saturday, Oct. 29, 39 vote centers will be open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Starting Saturday, Nov. 5, 218 vote centers will be open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

All vote center locations and the Registrar’s official ballot drop boxes will be open on Election Day, Nov. 8, when voting hours change to 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

You can find a complete list of vote center and ballot drop box locations at sdvote.com.

The man died on Oct. 15. He had underlying medical conditions and had not been vaccinated against the flu. He tested negative for COVID-19.

New influenza cases also continued to increase last week. The County Health and Human Services Agency is reporting 856 lab-confirmed flu cases for the week ending Oct. 22. That’s an almost 45% increase when compared to the previous week, when 591 new infections were reported.

The County Health and Human Services Agency now publishes the Respiratory Virus Surveillance Report weekly. The report is published each Thursday and tracks key respiratory illness indicators, including flu cases and deaths.

For the week ending Oct. 22, 2022, the report shows the following:

• Emergency department visits for influenza-like illness: 6% of all visits (compared with 5% the previous week)
• Lab-confirmed influenza cases for the week: 856 (compared to 591 the previous week)
• Total lab-confirmed cases to date: 2,528 (compared to 232 at the same time last season and a 196 prior 5-year average during the same week)

“Every flu death is tragic and our condolences go out to the man’s family and friends,” said Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “Unfortunately, we see influenza deaths every fall and winter and I encourage San Diegans to do their part to stop the spread of illnesses and prevent deaths.”

Get Vaccinated

The influenza vaccine is available at doctors’ offices and retail pharmacies and is covered by medical insurance. People with no health care coverage can get vaccinated at one of the County’s six public health centers or a local community clinic. To find the nearest public health center location, visit the County’s Flu Vaccine Locations page or call 2-1-1 San Diego.

“Vaccination is the best defense we have against the flu,” Wooten said. “It is still early in the flu season and we are already seeing cases spike, so we have reason to believe that the flu could be extremely disruptive this year. Protect yourself and your family now and get the flu shot as soon as you can.”

It takes about two weeks after immunization until immunity develops.

In addition to getting vaccinated, Wooten recommends that people, especially those who are at a higher risk of severe outcomes, recommit themselves to the following precautions this fall and winter:

• Wash hands thoroughly and often;
• Use hand sanitizers, if unable to wash hands;
• Stay away from sick people;
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth;
• Clean commonly touched surfaces; and
• If you are sick, stay home and avoid contact with others.

Flu Symptoms

The flu and COVID-19 are both spread from person-to-person, especially indoors and in crowded places. Symptoms for both viruses include fever, headache, and muscle and joint pain, as well as a sore throat and coughing.

Since symptoms for both the flu and COVID are similar, but treatment varies, COVID testing, which is still widely available across the region, is a good first step to help sick individuals determine a plan of action.

It is recommended that San Diegans who develop flu-like symptoms get tested for COVID-19, especially if you have an underlying condition that puts you at an increased risk of severe outcomes from the flu or COVID.

High-risk individuals include:

• People with chronic medical conditions like asthma, diabetes and lung disease, even if symptoms are under control;
• Pregnant women;
• People aged 65 years and older; and
• People who live with or care for others who are at higher risk.

During the 2021-2022 flu season, 4,192 flu cases were reported and eight San Diegans died from influenza. During the 2020-2021 flu season, a total of 848 influenza cases were reported in San Diego, and two San Diegans died from the flu.

(Source: County of San Diego Communications Office)

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The new report will be released each Thursday and contains, for now, both flu and COVID-19 activity, including cases, outbreak information and deaths. The report contains graphs and tables that allow the community to compare illness activity this year to activity during prior seasons.

The Respiratory Virus Surveillance Report replaces the separate Influenza Watch and COVID-19 Watch reports the County released previously.

“The new report paints a more comprehensive picture of respiratory illness activity in the region,” said Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “The report is a one-stop-shop for community members and healthcare providers, and we will continue to update it with new features in the future, as necessary.”

San Diegans can sign up for the report here, or access it on the County of San Diego COVID-19 website and Influenza website.

Bivalent Boosters For Children 5 And Older

The California Department of Public Health recently updated its emergency use authorization of the bivalent COVID-19 boosters in California to include younger children. Eligibility for the Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent booster now extends to individuals 5 years of age and older and eligibility for the Moderna bivalent booster now extends to individuals 6 years of age and older.

These bivalent boosters are available through healthcare providers, at participating pharmacies, and at County public health centers. Parents should visit the state’s My Turn website to schedule an appointment.

Bivalent boosters were designed to protect individuals from the worst outcomes of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death. Everyone 5 years of age and older who has had their primary vaccination series is eligible to get the updated booster two months following any COVID vaccine or booster dose.

Vaccination Progress:

• Close to 2.69 million or 80.4% of San Diegans received the primary series of one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines.
• Boosters administered: 1,480,105 or 60.0% of 2,467,279 eligible San Diegans.
• More vaccination information can be found at coronavirus-sd.com/vaccine.

Deaths:

• 10 additional deaths were reported since the last report on Oct. 13, 2022. The region’s total is 5,517.
• Of the 10 additional deaths, two were women and eight were men. They died between Jan. 29, 2022 and Oct. 5, 2022. One of the newly reported deaths occurred in the last two weeks.
• Four of the people who died were 80 years or older, three were in their 70s and three were in their 50s.
• Eight received at least the primary series of the vaccine and two had not.
• All had underlying medical conditions.

Cases, Case Rates and Testing:

• 1,591 COVID-19 cases were reported to the County in the past seven days (Oct. 11 to Oct. 17, 2022). The region’s total is now 927,970.
• The 1,591 cases reported in the past week were slightly lower compared to the 1,855 infections identified the previous week (Oct. 4 to Oct. 10, 2022).
• 4,710 tests were reported to the County on Oct. 15, and the percentage of new positive cases was 4.0% (Data through Oct. 15).
• The 14-day rolling percentage of positive cases, among tests reported through Oct. 15, is 3.9%.

(Source: County of San Diego Communications Office)

This website has a free subscription function, please enter your email address and name (any nickname) in the upper right corner of the page. After subscribing, you can receive timely updates of the website. I hope that new and old readers will actively subscribe, so that we have the opportunity to provide you with better services

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Follow The Chinese Media's Twitter account: https://twitter.com/wechineseinus

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