Inland Empire

The Board of Supervisors Tuesday approved a resolution declaring Riverside County's intent to join six other Southern California counties in calling for increased efforts to expand broadband internet access to the farthest reaches of the region to ensure all residents can get online.

Some California hospitals are close to reaching their breaking point, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to bring in hundreds of hospital staff from outside the state and to prepare to re-start emergency hospitals that were created but barely used when the coronavirus surged last spring. California officials paint a dire picture of overwhelmed hospitals and exhausted health workers as the state records an average of 22,000 new cases a day.

The Soboba Health Clinic operated by Riverside-San Bernardino County Indian Health Inc. has been a mainstay for the Native American population for many years. More than 15 years ago, talks began about expanding the clinic to better serve the community.

Thirteen counties in Northern California will be placed under the state's most restrictive coronavirus rules this week because capacity in intensive care units has fallen below 15%, and officials warned Wednesday that hospitals across the state are filling up with COVID-19 patients.

UC Riverside will lead a multi-campus consortium tasked with researching the origins of COVID-19, which might ultimately lead to methods of stopping its propagation, it was announced Wednesday.