Health care workers and state employees will have to prove COVID vaccine status

The [coronavirus] increases started shortly after the June 15 statewide reopening, which marked an end to most pandemic restrictions throughout the Golden State. Yet this time is markedly different because everything is open and roughly half of the county is fully vaccinated, said Andrew Noymer, an epidemiologist, public health expert, [and associate professor of population health and disease prevention] at UC Irvine. …  “The vaccine works better than masks— we’re so fortunate to have a COVID vaccine and so unfortunate that so many people don’t’ want to take it.”