Starting Monday, unvaccinated county employees no longer need to test for COVID-19 regularly, and new hires don’t have to be vaccinated.
“All the measures we took around COVID were all designed to be temporary. It was based on the threat of the collapse of the health care system,” said San Diego County Supervisor, Nathan Fletcher.
He said San Diegans have worked themselves out of the threat of such a collapse.
“We went through Delta; we didn't collapse that system. Went through Omicron; didn't collapse that system. More San Diegans just continue to get vaccinated and get boosted, so were in a stronger position."
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While cases of a COVID-19 subvariant are on the rise, Fletcher said we now have the vaccine as a tool to fight back.
"The situation we face today is fundamentally different than the one we faced 18 months ago, or two years ago in that we have the availability of the vaccine," he said.
He added that San Diegans' vaccine numbers are "off the charts." But they’re falling short when it comes to the booster.
"Getting the booster is still a good thing and it can help protect you — we now have the tools we need to protect ourselves. And so, this is an important step. It doesn't mean you won't get it [COVID], but it does significantly lower the chance you're going to end up in the hospital with very severe symptoms," Fletcher said.
Vaccine and booster shots are still available at locations throughout the county.
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On Monday the San Diego City Council voted to advance a “no fault” eviction moratorium. -
While the majority of Ukrainian refugees have remained in Europe, more than a thousand have arrived in Tijuana in recent days to request asylum in the U.S.
