Inland Empire

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is set to give perhaps the most important speech of his political life Tuesday, and he’s spent weeks laying the groundwork for an upbeat address aimed at nearly 40 million people exhausted by a year of coronavirus restrictions.

President Joe Biden said Tuesday the U.S. expects to take delivery of enough coronavirus vaccine for all adults by the end of May — two months earlier than anticipated — and he pushed states to get at least one shot into the arms of teachers by the end of May to hasten school reopenings. Biden also announced that drugmaker Merck will help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved one-shot vaccine, likening the partnership between the two drug companies to the spirit of national cooperation during World War II. “We’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May,” Biden said.

Riverside County health officials have planned a series of changes to better serve residents and provide more opportunities for COVID-19 vaccinations.

Moderate- and high-contact sports, including soccer, football, baseball, cheer and water polo, may now resume in Riverside County as the county’s adjusted case rate is 11.3. The case rate is updated every Tuesday and posted online at www.rivcoph.org/coronavirus. The state issued new sports guidance recently allowing certain moderate- and high-contact sports to begin in counties with an adjusted case rate of 14 cases or fewer per 100,000 residents.

California will likely face a critically dry year with much less runoff from the Sierra Nevada snowpack than normal and reservoirs that already are showing the impact of winter precipitation that is well below average, state water authorities said Tuesday.