Bay Area
New Vaccination Mandate for First Responders
Unvaccinated first responders will need to receive their first dose of the COVID vaccine by March 1 and complete their primary series no later than April 15. In addition, personnel will need to be up-to-date with a booster shot within 15 days of becoming booster-eligible to continue working in higher-risk settings and interact with the public. Stating April 15, unvaccinated or unboosted first responders will be prohibited from entering higher-risk settings or interacting with the public in the course of their work unless they have a qualifying exemption. First responders without a medical or religious exemption can no longer “test out” of vaccination requirements.

Marin issues order directed to law enforcement, firefighters, medical personnel
Courtesy of Marin County
Marin County personnel in the fields of law enforcement, firefighting and emergency medical response must be fully vaccinated and boosted to work in Marin County’s higher-risk settings, according to a new Marin County health order taking effect at 12:01 a.m. on Feb. 10.
Unvaccinated first responders will need to receive their first dose of the COVID vaccine by March 1 and complete their primary series no later than April 15. In addition, personnel will need to be up-to-date with a booster shot within 15 days of becoming booster-eligible to continue working in higher-risk settings and interact with the public. Stating April 15, unvaccinated or unboosted first responders will be prohibited from entering higher-risk settings or interacting with the public in the course of their work unless they have a qualifying exemption. First responders without a medical or religious exemption can no longer “test out” of vaccination requirements.
Recent COVID-19 outbreaks have been traced to unvaccinated first responders, according to Marin County Public Health records. As of Feb. 7, Marin County Public Health was managing multiple, preventable outbreaks in vulnerable, higher-risk settings. Those settings include those in which the first responders work with people who are at higher risk of severe illness, hospitalization, or death from COVID-19, including congregate settings. Among active outbreaks countywide, there is one at the Marin County Jail, nine at skilled nursing facilities (“nursing homes”), nine at residential care facilities for the elderly, and 19 at other group living facilities.
“These outbreaks have been amplified by contact with unboosted staff, an inadequate testing cadence, and a highly contagious variant,” said Dr. Lisa Santora, the County’s Deputy Public Health Officer. “It is critical to protect our public safety and health care systems from the Omicron variant as well as future waves of COVID-19 activity.”
First responders included in the Public Health order include police officers, Sheriff’s deputies, probation officers, part-time and full-time firefighters and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel, and those providing pre-hospital medical care. The order also applies to first responders who routinely interact with the public.
Marin has one of the highest COVID-19 vaccination rates of any county in the nation with 94.9% of those ages 5 and over having completed a vaccine series.
“While highly vaccinated, Marin County is experiencing waning community immunity,” Santora added. “It has been more than one year since many first responders completed their primary COVID-19 vaccine series.”
Evidence indicates that the Omicron variant is significantly more transmissible than prior virus variants and that individuals who have had only their initial vaccine series and are eligible for the booster are susceptible to the Omicron variant.
Santora said it’s critical to ensure all individuals working in higher-risk settings are both vaccinated and boosted when eligible. Protecting frontline workers from infection is essential to staffing our critical infrastructure, including public safety and health care systems. Individuals working in higher-risk settings can also expose highly vulnerable individuals who are at increased risk of severe illness and death.
For the time being, workers in those first-responder roles who are not fully vaccinated or not up-to-date with a booster must comply with the following if they have not tested positive for COVID-19 in past 90 days:
- use a fit-tested N95 mask at all times when around other people, except when eating, bathing, or sleeping; and,
- undergo twice weekly testing; and,
- when practicable, avoid using indoor breakrooms or cafeterias and avoid eating indoors or sleeping indoors when others are present.
For more information, visit Coronavirus.MarinHHS.org.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of January 29 – February 4, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of January 29 – February 4, 2025

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Activism
Oakland Poll: Tell Us What You Think About the Cost of Groceries in Oakland
Food banks and grocery giveaways are a large part of the resources nonprofits in Oakland prioritize, particularly in areas like East and West Oakland where low-income families of color tend to reside. These neighborhoods are often labeled as “food deserts” or communities that have limited access to affordable and nutritious foods.

By Magaly Muñoz
In 2023, the average spending on groceries increased by nearly $30 each month from the year before;people are spending over $500 a month to put food on the table.
Through previous reporting by the Post, we’ve learned that families in Oakland are depending more and more on free or low cost groceries from food banks because they can no longer afford the rising costs of food at the store.
Food banks and grocery giveaways are a large part of the resources nonprofits in Oakland prioritize, particularly in areas like East and West Oakland where low-income families of color tend to reside. These neighborhoods are often labeled as “food deserts” or communities that have limited access to affordable and nutritious foods.
We’ve recently spoken to families across these two areas of Oakland and have heard several stories that all point to one problem: food is expensive. Some individuals are spending upwards of $150 a week for themselves or double if they have teens or small children in the family.
We’ve also heard stories of people with chronic illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure struggling to maintain their diets because they’re having a hard time affording the food that helps them stay healthy.
Do these experiences sound similar to what you or your family are dealing with every month? Are you struggling to afford your basic groceries every week? Do you depend on food banks to help you get by? Are there any chronic illnesses in your household that need to be managed by a special diet?
We want to hear about your experiences and ideas for solutions!
The Oakland Post is investigating food access in Oakland and how residents are surviving as the cost of living continues to increase. Your experiences will help shape our reporting and show local leaders the need to invest in our communities.
In order to get as much feedback as possible, we ask that you click this link to fill out a brief questionnaire or visit tinyurl.com/Oakland-Post-food-survey. You can also scan the QR code above to reach the survey. After you fill it out, please consider sharing the link with your friends and family in Oakland.
If you have questions, please reach out to our Oakland reporter Magaly Muñoz at mmunoz@postnewsgroup or text/call her at (510) 905-5286.
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