Essential California Week in Review: A vaccine at the end of the tunnel

A vaccine is finally here, and plans for distributing it are finally within sight. But it's a dark final stretch ahead for California. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [Los Angeles Times] Essential California PRESENTED BY Rebuild SoCal Partnership* December 12, 2020 [View in browser]( Good morning, and welcome to the [Essential California newsletter](. It is Saturday, Dec. 12. Here’s a look at the top stories of the last week: A vaccine is here. On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration [authorized emergency use of the COVID-19 vaccine]( developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, clearing the way for widespread immunizations to begin and opening a new front in America’s battle against the pandemic. Vaccine distribution. More than 300,000 doses are expected to [arrive in California within a few days]( and by the end of the year, the state expects to have administered the first dose to more than 2 million people. But health officials will still need to build trust in the hardest-hit communities, [where some Latinos remain wary]( in order for enough people to get the shots. Record cases and full hospitals. New coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths broke records in L.A. County [several times over this week](. Although Southern California and the Central Valley are by far the [state’s biggest contributors of total deaths]( counties across the state have said their [ICU beds are dwindling or completely full](. Escalating restrictions. Much of the state began the week under new stay-at-home orders. Further restrictions followed, including a [hard closure of L.A. County’s public schools]( and a [stay-at-home order for the Sacramento region](. Pushback and reversal. New safety rules were met with pushback [in Orange County]( in [L.A. County’s restaurant industry]( [from parents]( and beyond. State and local health officials responded by [walking back a ban on playgrounds]( but [a court decision on L.A.’s dining ban was mixed](. A lost last chance. The Supreme Court on Friday [rejected a longshot and highly unusual lawsuit]( backed by President Trump that urged the justices to overturn the election result by nullifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in four key states. The ruling makes clear that the voters in each state — not unelected judges — decide who is elected president. New legislative session. The new two-year session of the California Legislature began Monday as legislators took the oath of office and [quickly compiled an urgent to-do list]( to address the impact of the pandemic. Another California opening. President-elect Joe Biden has nominated California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra to be [the next Health and Human Services secretary]( a historic choice that would make the former Los Angeles congressman the first Latino to hold the office. It also means another position for Gov. Gavin Newsom to fill. Cheap rent, nice views. It’s a coveted perk for state parks employees: For just a few hundred dollars a month, they can live in government-owned homes in some of California’s most sought-after locations. But current and former employees allege that state property is being used for the benefit of some favored staff members, according to a Times investigation. A new prosecutorial plan. On his first day in office after unseating incumbent Jackie Lacey, L.A. County Dist. Atty. George Gascón embarked Monday on a plan to reimagine criminal prosecutions in the county. Among the [sweeping policy changes he announced]( is an end to cash bail. End-of-life care — and fraud — has boomed. Older people in California are becoming [unwitting recruits for unscrupulous providers]( who bill Medicare for hospice services and equipment for “terminally ill” patients who aren’t dying. Air quality ups and downs. The year began with Los Angeles enjoying a 21-day stretch of smog-free days, a silver lining to a deadly pandemic. But it didn’t last, and 2020 will instead go down as one of Southern California’s [smoggiest in decades](. Experts say this year’s drop in global emissions similarly [won’t last](. L.A.’s storied Magic Castle shaken. In interviews with The Times, 12 people accused management, staff, performers and academy members of a variety of abuses, [including sexual assault, sexual harassment and discrimination](. Enjoying this newsletter? Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. [Become a Times subscriber.]( ADVERTISEMENT BY REBUILD SOCAL PARTNERSHIP [REBUILD SOCAL PARTNERSHIP]( Infrastructure is Essential #RebuildSoCal See how [SB1 projects]( make streets safer and commutes easier. Rebuild SoCal Partnership showcases improvements to freeways, local roads, bridges, rails, and bike paths throughout Southern California thanks to the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. While transportation corridors are enhanced and travel has been made safer, the investment of $54 billion over the next decade also provides good-paying jobs for skilled labor to work on essential jobs. These videos highlight work being done on vital infrastructure and also explain the impact on communities and the many workers who take pride in these important projects. End of advertisement This week’s most-clicked links in Essential California 1. Members of the Proud Boys, a far-right hate group, crashed a holiday toy drive in Placerville. [Sacramento Bee]( 2. “He’s radioactive”: Inside Johnny Depp’s self-mad implosion. [The Hollywood Reporter]( 3. California’s new stay-at-home order: What you need to know, from supermarkets to playgrounds. [Los Angeles Times]( 4. What Hollywood Boulevard looks like when COVID-19 drives the tourists away. [Los Angeles Times]( 5. “The Summer Day” by Mary Oliver. [Library of Congress]( ADVERTISEMENT ICYMI, here are this week’s great reads En route to join her husband on a Fairbanks military base, a woman and her two children were stranded in western Canada. A stranger drove them 1,000 miles to Alaska. [New York Times]( “Choosing to honor the intimate, private voice.” The text of Louise Glück’s 2020 Nobel lecture, accepting the Nobel Prize in literature. [New York Review of Books]( Some experts say a harm-reduction approach to public health — educating people how to mitigate risk in their activities — would be more effective than all-or-nothing pleas to abstain from contact with other people. [Los Angeles Times]( Poem of the week: “Night Walk” by Franz Wright. [Poem-a-Day]( Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints, ideas and unrelated book recommendations to [Julia Wick.](mailto:julia.wick@latimes.com) Follow her on Twitter [@Sherlyholmes](. (And a giant thanks to the legendary [Laura Blasey]( for all her help on the Saturday edition.) ADVERTISEMENT Thank you for reading the Los Angeles Times Essential California newsletter. Invite your friends, relatives, coworkers to sign up [here](. Not a subscriber? Get unlimited digital access to latimes.com. [Subscribe here](. [Los Angeles Times] Copyright © 2020, Los Angeles Times 2300 E. 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