Newsom touts Long Beach as model for COVID-19 vaccinations, schools reopening

By Hayley Smith

Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, left, and Gov. Gavin Newsom after touring a COVID-19 vaccination site in Long Beach. Despite wavering supplies and glaring racial and geographic inequities plaguing Los Angeles County’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday praised the region’s distribution efforts and touted the city of Long Beach as a model for the rest of the state.

Speaking from a vaccination site at the Long Beach Convention Center, Newsom vowed to press forward with plans to vaccinate educators, reopen schools and refocus on hard-hit communities. Long Beach, which has its own public health department, separate from L.A. County’s, began vaccinating teachers in January and has announced plans to reopen schools for its youngest students March 29.

“I want to encourage that to be replicated all throughout the state of California,” Newsom said, noting that vaccinating teachers and getting kids back into schools are essential to reopening the economy. On Friday, he announced that the state is setting aside 10% of first doses of vaccine it receives for educators and child-care workers. “We’re moving in that direction with clarity, with determination,” he said. In addition to educators, Long Beach last month began vaccinating food and grocery […]

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