News
Jan 29
Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill to extend COVID-19 eviction protections through June
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday signed an emergency bill that will extend through June eviction protections for Californians suffering financial hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic, acting just days before an earlier moratorium was set to expire.
Newsom’s action on the legislation followed the measure’s approval Thursday by the state Legislature and was aimed at heading off what many state officials ...
Read More
Read More
Jan 27
Letters to the Editor: L.A. can’t fix homelessness without the federal government’s help
To the editor: Whether or not President Biden’s proposals for building more housing are politically possible, the urgency is clear: We need a national solution to homelessness that draws on the much larger federal budget and more far-reaching federal programs.
They offer our best hope for solving the many challenges of successfully housing our homeless neighbors. At Venice Family Clinic, we ...
Read More
Read More
Jan 12
Councilman Kevin de León wants 25,000 housing units for homeless by 2025
When the Los Angeles City Council opens its 2021 term on Tuesday, Councilman Kevin de León will introduce a range of motions with the goal of creating 25,000 new housing units for homeless people by 2025.
The former state Senate president pro tem made homelessness a centerpiece of his run for the seat that represents skid row and includes the most ...
Read More
Read More
Jan 3
L.A. homeless sites ‘overwhelmed’ by COVID-19: ‘These are the toughest times’
The day after Christmas, Dr. Heidi Behforouz, medical director for L.A. County’s Housing for Health program, sent out a call of distress.
People living in skid row shelters were being diagnosed with dozens of new cases of COVID-19, and Behforouz needed a place to send them quickly to isolate.
The call went to the Rev. Andrew J. Bales, chief executive of the ...
Read More
Read More
Jan 1
How the pandemic led to a rare success in California’s effort to house the homeless
Natosha Johnson sat in a chair in the apartment building lobby, looking exhausted and rubbing her legs as her four children shuttled trash bags full of the family’s possessions into an elevator and then into their new two-bedroom apartment.
“It’s such a relief to be here,” said Johnson, 41, whose fatigue was a symptom of her lupus. “Our cramped situation was ...
Read More
Read More
Dec 30
HIV and COVID-19: What Do We Know Now?
Larger studies suggest people living with HIV might have a modestly higher risk of severe COVID-19, but much remains to be learned.
In the early days of the pandemic, POZ published a roundup of What People With HIV Need to Know About the New Coronavirus. Many HIV-positive people were concerned about their risk because immune suppression is linked to more severe COVID-19. What’s more, nearly half ...
Read More
Read More
Dec 15
Homelessness is Day 1 focus for new L.A. council members Raman, Ridley-Thomas
Los Angeles’ newest City Council members, Nithya Raman and Mark Ridley-Thomas, put forward proposals aimed at addressing homelessness at their first council meeting Tuesday, signaling the crisis will be a priority for both politicians.
Raman, who represents a district stretching from Silver Lake to Sherman Oaks, introduced a motion that asks the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and the city to ...
Read More
Read More
Nov 27
Who has it harder than homeless people when the pandemic closes indoor spaces?
I have a roof over my head. I have heat. I have electricity. I have more than one bathroom to choose from. I have a kitchen full of food.
This past week, I set out to check up on people living on the streets of my Hollywood neighborhood because I couldn’t stop thinking about the extent of that privilege.
I couldn’t stop ...
Read More
Read More
Nov 20
Garcetti’s signature homeless program shelters thousands, but most return to the streets
In the spring of 2018, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti put his personal stamp on the city’s response to homelessness by announcing a departure from its primary focus of building permanent housing. Garcetti proposed to open a homeless shelter in each of L.A.'s 15 council districts.
Garcetti has largely made good on that goal, defying the skepticism that greeted his plan, ...
Read More
Read More
Nov 10
In ‘a panic situation,’ L.A. may turn the convention center into a homeless shelter
Several members of the Los Angeles City Council have asked the city to study the feasibility of using the Los Angeles Convention Center, which has gone dark during the COVID-19 pandemic, to shelter homeless people.
This move is a reflection of the increasingly desperate situation thousands of homeless people face living on the streets. As coronavirus cases rise again in Los ...
Read More
Read More
Pages
