Contributed

COVID-19 may be grabbing most of the headlines, but flu season has arrived as well, and unlike the novel coronavirus, there are safe and effective vaccines to reduce the risk of flu.

For the first time in nearly 50 years, older workers face higher unemployment than their midcareer counterparts, according to a study released Tuesday by the New School university in New York City.

Air pollution was significantly associated with an increased risk of hospital admissions for several neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and other dementias, in a long-term study of more than 63 million older U.S. adults. The research was conducted by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and colleagues at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health.

On Monday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a report showing the trend of lower premiums and increased issuer participation for HealthCare.gov will continue for 2021 year. The average premium for the second lowest cost silver plan (also called the benchmark plan) dropped by 2% for the 2021 coverage year and, when looking at states that are using HealthCare.gov in both 2020 and 2021, 22 more issuers will offer coverage in 2021, for a total of 181 issuers delivering more choice and competition for consumers.

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced today that Riverside County will move back to the state’s purple tier, which is the most restrictive tier that requires several types of businesses and places of worship to move outside. These places will need to change operations to outside only within 72 hours.