UCLA Health receives $25.3M for street medicine program to help homeless
MADIA Tech report: Local engineering firm broadens its reach
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LA County to lift COVID emergency declarations on March 31 By City News Service
| Photo courtesy of dapiki moto on Unsplash
T
he Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to end the county's local emergency declarations due to COVID-19 at
the end of March while warning that the move doesn't mean the virus no longer poses a threat. "Yes, COVID-19 is still with us," Supervisor Hilda
Solis said. "No, we don't want to abandon those tools that got us to this place ... but with effective vaccines and testing abundantly available we can
move on to the next phase of our response to COVID19." The board voted unanimously in support of Supervisor Janice Hahn's motion,
which will end the proclamation of a local emergency and the proclamation of a local health emergency on March 31. The board's decision came on the day the statewide COVID emergency declaration ended. Hahn noted in her motion that the emergency declarations "saved lives and protected the health of county residents." But it noted that thanks to the widespread availability of vaccines, therapeutics and other measures to combat virus spread and illness, "hospitalizations and deaths due to COVID-19 have dramatically reduced." "Over the last three years, the county has developed the tools to continue to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 without exclusively relying on the use of the extraordinary powers afforded by the various emergency proclamations and declarations," Hahn's motion states. "The county's sustained preparedness, infrastructure and avail-
able tools in combating COVID-19 demonstrate that it is time to evaluate the county's readiness to terminate both the county's proclamation of local emergency and declaration of local health emergency for COVID-19." Supervisor Kathryn Barger said the county is "no longer at that point of needing the same level of emergency response" due to the virus. "Although COVID-19 is still present, ... we are at less risk of crippling our health care system and making it become overwhelmed," she said. Lifting the emergency declarations does not automatically mean that all COVID-related restrictions will immediately go away. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said last week her agency will be reviewing existing health officer orders, noting that some of the requirements See COVID Page 28
BOS wants new LA County Fire Department chief to bolster diversity in ranks By City News Service
T
he Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved Anthony C. Marrone as the next county fire chief, but board members made clear they wanted to see improvements in the numbers of women and people of color in the agency's ranks. Marrone has been serving as interim chief of the department since July 2022. He has
been with the department for 36 years, previously serving as acting chief deputy over business operations. His selection as chief was met with opposition from several organizations, including the Women's Fire League, L.A. County Stentorians and Los Bomberos de LA County, who pointed to systemic failures in the department to bolster diversity within the
department and create jobs and advancement opportunities for women and people of color. The groups and others also blasted the Board of Supervisors, saying it failed to hold a thorough, transparent and fair search for a new fire chief. In a letter to the board, the groups called for a 90-day delay in the vote to allow for a more thorough search for the
next chief. "Opening the process will ensure that diverse applicants from across the nation have the opportunity to apply," according to the letter. "This will increase the pool of men and women committed to equality and opportunity with the required education and relevant certifications to See BOS Page 28
Chief Anthony C. Marrone. | Photo courtesy of LACoFD