KQED's The California Report

While many Americans feel like the COVID pandemic is in the past, countless others are still feeling symptoms months or years after they were infected. They're suffering from Long COVID. One such person is Bay Area writer and author Mary Ladd, who recruited more than 40 people from across the country to share essays and poetry in The Long COVID Reader, released earlier this month. Guests: Mary Ladd and Lisa Carpentier, The Long COVID Reader Construction on the Pajaro River levee that breached and flooded hundreds of homes in March will begin next summer. The upgrades will cost more than $500 million.Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A highly anticipated — and controversial — new program, championed by Governor Gavin Newsom, will begin in LA County on December 1. CARE Court will allow family members to ask a judge to step in with a treatment plan for loved ones living with severe and untreated mental illness. Reporter: Robert Garrova, LAistA surprise inspection by a federal watchdog agency has found more than half of immigrants in border facilities in the San Diego area were detained for longer than the standard three-day limit. When the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general made unannounced visits to five San Diego locations in May, investigators found hundreds of migrants had been locked up for far longer, including a few held over a month. Reporter: Tyche Hendricks, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s the first morning since a stretch of the I-10 Freeway near downtown Los Angeles reopened. The freeway was damaged by a fire and had been completely shut down in both directions for just over a week. It was originally thought that repairs might take months.Guest: Saul Gonzalez, The California ReportThe state Democratic Party convention this weekend in Sacramento was derailed by protesters demanding a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas War in Gaza. The demonstrations reveal a rift in the party heading into 2024 races. Reporter: Guy Marzorati, KQEDThousands of pediatric RSV shots are being shipped nationwide, including here in California. But some health experts say it's too little, too late.Reporter: Jackie Fortier, LAist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last month, Los Angeles County ended its money bail system for many crimes.  Now, most people who are arrested in the county for what’s classified as non-violent, non-serious misdemeanors and felonies -- which includes most thefts and vehicle violations -- can be released quickly and without paying a single cent of bail.Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California ReportState energy regulators have approved a plan that allows Pacific Gas and Electric to raise rates on its customers. That revenue is supposed to help the utility pay for burying power lines to prevent wildfires and for investments in clean energy. Reporter: Kevin Stark, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California’s largest utility wants to bury thousands of miles of power lines to prevent them from causing wildfires. That’s after Pacific Gas and Electric’s equipment caused the Camp Fire that killed 85 people in the community of Paradise.  But state regulators – who will vote on PG&E’s proposal on Thursday – say that will send rates through the roof for the company’s customers.Reporter: Kevin Stark, KQED This week, leaders from around the world are meeting in San Francisco for the APEC conference. The gathering has also been a magnet for protesters. Nearly a thousand climate activists attempted to prevent attendees from entering the APEC conference on Wednesday.Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQEDNearly 50 maternity wards in California have shut down in the last decade. That means some Californians have to drive hours to give birth at a hospital. Reporter: Ana Ibarra, CalMatters  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new law signed by Governor Gavin Newsom will make it easier for low-income teens to access mental health treatment. But some parents are protesting, saying it infringes on their rights as parents.Reporter: April Dembosky, KQED California’s local governments are thinking about staffing up for climate change related challenges. A new report from the nonpartisan group Next 10 tried to gauge how ready the state’s local governments are when it comes to dealing with a warming planet.Reporter: Erik Anderson, KPBS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Officials say it was arson that caused an enormous fire that damaged a stretch of the I-10 Freeway near downtown L.A., shutting it down to traffic. The closure has made L.A.’s already terrible congestion even worse for commuters across much of the city.State transportation officials say they're working around the clock to speed the reopening of the 10 Freeway. But they acknowledge they face a difficult challenge and have no idea when the repairs will be finished.Reporter: Frank Stoltze, LAistThe closure of the 10 Freeway is not only affecting people who drive to work each day. It’s also affecting some parents who drop off their kids at school, and teachers and staff at these schools.   Reporter: Mariana Dale, LAistCalFire is downsizing its seasonal staff in the northern part of the Bay Area, following the end of fire season. The North Bay has been the site of some of the region's most devastating wildfires.Reporter: Danielle Venton, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How did the state’s unemployment insurance program get conned out of billions of dollars by scammers, all while millions of Californians who had lost their jobs were stuck waiting for money they badly needed? A year-long CalMatters investigation finds that the state was primed for disaster by years of missed red flags and failed reforms.Guest: Lauren Helper, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Biden administration promises a “worker-centered” trade policy that delivers shared prosperity for all Americans. But as San Francisco gets ready to host this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, labor advocates say worker interests are not sufficiently represented at the talks.Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQEDScammers have been stealing millions of dollars a month from low-income Californians’ EBT cards. Yet the state still hasn’t put in needed protections to keep those cards secure. Reporter: Jeanne Kuang, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After months of picketing, SAG-AFTRA has reached a tentative deal to end the strike with the Association of Motion Picture and Television Producers. In a letter to its members, the union said the new contract is valued at a billion dollars, and that the approval vote was unanimous.Guest: Robert Garrova, Reporter LAistAutonomous taxi operator Cruise says it's identified a software glitch that led one of its cars to drag a pedestrian in a downtown San Francisco crash. The company has now issued a safety recall.Reporter: Dan Brekke, KQEDThe owner of a Bay Area farm and its parent company are facing felony charges in the death of a farmworker. Reporter: Nina Thorsen, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices