CALIFORNIA HAS SHED MORE LIGHT ON THE DECISION to terminate PerkinElmer’s valuable contract to run the Valencia Branch Laboratory (VBL). The lab has been embroiled in controversy for much of its existence. Show The state noted that SARS-CoV-2 testing options for the public played a large part in ending the contract. PerkinElmer notified the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 31 that its $1.7 billion agreement to operate the state-owned lab would soon cease. (See TDR, “PerkinElmer Says California Terminated COVID-19 Contract,” April 4, 2022.) The diagnostics company, based in Waltham, Mass., had run the lab since it opened in November 2020. Response Pushes Testing In February, California rolled out its next phase of COVID-19 response, known as the SMARTER Plan. SMARTER stands for Shots, Masks, Awareness, Readiness, Testing, Education, and Rx. According to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), ample choices for both polymerase chain reaction and rapid antigen tests allowed state health officials to reassess the need for VBL. “As highlighted by the California SMARTER plan, antigen testing is now a major component of our ongoing testing response, and the commercial laboratory capacity has been dramatically increased over the last 18 months with constant changes in testing approaches and capabilities,” Timothy Bow, CDPH’s Contract Officer for COVID Emergency Operations, wrote to PerkinElmer in a March 31 letter. “As such, it is time for California to leverage the now-sufficient laboratory capacity of the commercial market and the flexibility it brings,” Bow continued. “Therefore, we are notifying you that we are terminating the contract in 45 days.” Under that timeline, PerkinElmer’s oversight of the VBL ended on May 15. Lab Operated for 16 Months PerkinElmer entered into the agreement to operate the VBL in October 2020. The contract automatically renewed in October 2021. However, that renewal was steeped in controversy. A series of clinical laboratory inspections earlier in 2021 revealed dozens of deficiencies, some of which placed patients in immediate jeopardy, according to regulators. (See TDR, “California Agency Problems Deepened Valencia Branch Laboratory Saga,” April 4, 2022.) The state’s letter to PerkinElmer praises the company’s work and never mentions the history of deficiencies. That omission may fuel further debate about whether CDPH shrugged off the problems at the lab. It is not clear what the VBL’s role will be going forward. The site performed more than 8.5 million COVID-19 tests from 2021 until now. “At this point in the pandemic, and as part of the SMARTER Plan, testing capacity will be provided through a network of commercial partners rather than the Valencia Branch Laboratory,” CDPH’s media office told The Dark Report. State of California Terminates Contract with PerkinElmer for COVID-19 Testing LabEFFECTIVE THIS WEEK, THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA ENDS ITS COVID-19 TESTING CONTRACT WITH PERKINELMER. It was in the summer of 2020 when the state government gave PerkinElmer the contract, potentially worth as much as $1.7 billion, to design and construct a new clinical laboratory facility in Valencia, Calif., and then operate the lab. Here is the letter PerkinElmer received from state officials, closing the lab after less than 18 months of operation. (Reproduced from the print version of The Dark Report.) CalMatters is dedicated to explaining how state government impacts our lives. Your support helps us produce journalism that makes a difference.
Donate now. Piece by piece, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration and state lawmakers are pulling down pillars of California’s emergency
COVID response — even as the test positivity rate begins to tick back up. The latest cornerstone to fall, less than two years after it was built: California’s $25 million COVID testing lab. As
first reported by CBS Sacramento’s Julie Watts, the state Department of Public Health in a March 31 letter notified diagnostics company PerkinElmer that its
no-bid contract worth as much as $1.7 billion to operate the Valencia Branch Laboratory would end on May 15, months ahead of schedule. And while the Newsom administration pares back other COVID regulations, the majority of Democratic lawmakers’
slate of aggressive vaccine bills have either been stalled or watered down. Meanwhile, as the U.S. Department of Justice announced plans Wednesday to appeal a Monday ruling that struck down the federal mask mandate on public transportation, California health care
employees are seeking stronger protections in their own workplaces. A message from our Sponsor The coronavirus bottom line: As of Monday, California had 8,550,657 confirmed cases (+0.2% from previous day) and 89,054 deaths (+0.2% from previous day), according to state data now updated just twice a week on
Tuesdays and Fridays. CalMatters is also tracking coronavirus hospitalizations by county. California has administered 74,361,797 vaccine doses, and 75.2% of eligible Californians are
fully vaccinated. A message from our Sponsor 1. Abortion emerges as campaign topic Abortion continues to make headlines in California: On Wednesday, the day after hundreds of anti-abortion activists gathered at the state Capitol to protest
a controversial bill, abortion rights advocates rallied behind Attorney General Rob Bonta, arguing this year’s election for California’s top cop could have massive
implications for reproductive rights across the country. But California hasn’t always been a bastion for reproductive rights. So how did it go from threatening abortion providers to positioning itself as a “sanctuary” for out-of-state women seeking
abortions? And how is it poised to go even further? CalMatters’ Kristen Hwang breaks down everything you need to know in this comprehensive explainer. 2. Can a conservative win attorney general? Police officers escort people in the wake of a church shooting in Sacramento on Feb. 28, 2022. Photo by Fred Greaves, ReutersAbortion rights advocates aren’t the only ones who think a lot is riding on California’s attorney general race: Republicans and conservative independents are hoping it could be the one to finally break the California Democratic Party’s 16-year streak of winning every statewide elected office. Bonta’s three main opponents — independent Anne Marie Schubert and Republicans Nathan Hochman and Eric Early — have so far taken three different approaches to trying to unseat a sitting Democrat, CalMatters’ Ben Christopher reports. But, even with rising voter concern over crime and public safety, do Republican or no-party-preference candidates stand a chance in deep-blue California?
2022 ElectionYour guide to the 2022 general election in California 3. Funding CA schools — and students Students on their first day of transitional kindergarten at Tustin Ranch Elementary School on Aug. 12, 2021. Photo by Paul Bersebach, The Orange County Register via APMy takeaway from these two wonderful stories by CalMatters’ Elizabeth Aguilera and Mikhail Zinshteyn: California education finance is extremely complicated.
In other education news: California just got another task force! This one was launched Wednesday by Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond to “support and improve a systemwide approach to addressing the challenges” of California’s declining public school enrollment, which in 2021 dropped below 6 million students for the first time since the start of the century. A message from our Sponsor Other things worth your timeRevised California bill would warn parents of gun danger. // Associated Press Inflation brings California food banks a surge in first-time users on ‘razor’s edge.’ // Los Angeles Times L.A. teacher shortage hits underserved schools hardest. // Los Angeles Times Sonoma State president criticized CSU’s sex harassment response. Now she faces her own scandal. // Los Angeles Times ‘Defund’ candidates look to win seats at L.A. City Hall. // Los Angeles Times Garcetti seeks more LAPD spending, boost in police overtime. // Los Angeles Times Chesa Boudin recall campaign featured exceptionally high signature-gathering costs. // San Francisco Standard Robbers make off with $20,000 in goods in Beverly Crest follow-home hold-up. // Los Angeles Times L.A. County to settle for $1.85 million with whistleblower who alleged child welfare failures. // Los Angeles Times In wake of Los Gatos ‘Party Mom’ case, council passes teen drinking ordinance. // Mercury News L.A. County mental health chief resigning due to ‘health scare.’ // Los Angeles Times FBI: Sacramento grocery owner charged in cocaine ring linked to Mexican cartel. // Sacramento Bee ASAP Rocky arrested at LAX in connection with 2021 Hollywood shooting. // Los Angeles Times 7 Californians among those charged in $150 million COVID fraud. // Los Angeles Times San Francisco Redistricting Task Force hit with lawsuit after missing its deadline. // San Francisco Chronicle Realtor-affiliated group sues six cities for failing to adopt new housing plans. // Orange County Register ‘It’s not tenable’: California bill aims to erase permits delays that hold up housing projects. // San Francisco Chronicle CalPERS plans to vote to replace Warren Buffett as Berkshire Hathaway’s chairman. // Wall Street Journal State highlights insurance industry fossil fuel investments. // Los Angeles Times How the supply chain crunch is hurting California’s farmers. // New York Times After wildfires, scorched trees could disrupt California’s water supplies. // Associated Press California to get heavy snow, rain from latest spring storm. // Associated Press U.S. appeals court will not reconsider California net neutrality ruling. // Reuters Wholesale cannabis prices collapse in California. // Sacramento Bee Olive oil feud sparks larger debate about California’s brand. // Los Angeles Times See you tomorrow. Tips, insight or feedback? Email . Follow me on Twitter: @emily_hoeven Subscribe to CalMatters newsletters here. Follow CalMatters on Facebook and Twitter. CalMatters is now available in Spanish on Twitter, Facebook and RSS. Emily Hoeven writes the daily WhatMatters newsletter for CalMatters. Her reporting, essays, and opinion columns have been published in San Francisco Weekly, the Deseret News, the San Francisco Business... |