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As the COVID-19 summer swell intensifies, many people who have previously recovered from the virus are falling ill again due to new variants known as FLiRT. UCSF infectious disease specialist Dr. Peter Chin-Hong noted that this trend is becoming more common with omicron offshoots, as the coronavirus falls into a predictable pattern of surging approximately every six months and evolving to evade protections developed against previous versions. (Vaziri, 6/18)

Inside secret warehouses strategically placed around the state, California is storing a massive cache of vital medical supplies, including masks, gloves and life-saving medicines, seeking to be better-equipped than it was during the COVID crisis. Four years after our lives were upended by the coronavirus, with a new viral threat looming, public health experts are asking: What else have we learned from the pandemic? (Krieger, 6/19)

An outbreak of the gastrointestinal illness Shigella has been identified in encampments of people experiencing homelessness in San Jose since June 3, according to Santa Clara County’s public health department. There have been three confirmed cases of Shigella related to the outbreak, as well as four cases under evaluation and at least 19 suspected cases, said Dr. Monika Roy, assistant health officer and communicable disease controller for Santa Clara County. Two of the cases have resulted in hospitalization, which is how officials learned of the outbreak, she added at a Tuesday news conference. (Pender, 6/18)

A proposed measure to establish a permanent half-cent sales tax in Los Angeles County to fund affordable housing and homeless services has qualified for the November ballot, campaign organizers announced on Tuesday, June 18. (Tat, 6/19)

Tim Icely did everything he was supposed to do to save up for retirement. He worked 27 years in hospitality and hotel management before he was furloughed during the pandemic and forced to retire at 74. Icely is now 76, single with no dependents and no spouse, living on his own in Van Nuys. Half of his Social Security check goes toward rent, and sometimes it feels as though he’s tiptoeing on the edge of disaster. (Deng, 6/19)

Bacteria known to cause sometimes-deadly respiratory infections have been found in a midtown Sacramento state office complex, as more than 200,000 state workers started returning to their offices at least twice a week. Legionella, which could lead to a serious pneumonia named Legionnaires’ disease, have been detected in the water system of the five-building East End Complex, which houses three major state departments.  (Yu, 6/18)

The Los Angeles Unified School District approved an all-day ban on cellphones, saying the devices distract children from learning, erode mental health and stifle personal connections. The 400,000-student district, the nation’s second-biggest school system, said it will study ways to implement the program when it takes effect in January, including whether to force students to store cellphones in locked pouches or special lockers. (Juell, 6/18)