El Camino Healthcare District to end vaccine and testing program, offer free at-home tests to community

The El Camino Healthcare District announced that after three years of administering thousands of COVID-19 vaccinations and tests, the district will replace this program with a stockpile of at-home test kits that community members can pick up for free.

For the past three years, the healthcare district has administered more than 63,000 vaccines and 53,000 tests, the district said in a March 29 statement. More than $1.4 million was invested toward this effort since the pandemic started.

“The El Camino Healthcare District voted Tuesday to replace its successful COVID-19 testing and vaccination program with a stockpile of at-home test kits available to community residents who are unable to purchase or receive test kits through other means,” the district said.

The program will officially end on April 15. On the same day, 500 at-home antigen test kits will become available to community members.

“The decision to end testing comes one month after California lifted its COVID State of Emergency and Santa Clara County ended its mass vaccine and testing site,” the district wrote. “Health care providers and pharmacies throughout Santa Clara County now have enough capacity to provide residents with access to testing and vaccinations.”

The statement added that testing, vaccines and therapeutic treatments are still available at El Camino Health’s outpatient pharmacies.

Mountain View seeks public input on new city website

The City of Mountain announced that it has launched a beta website, Beta.MountainView.gov, to gather public input for the city’s new website.

“The website redesign project entails the replacement of an eight-year-old City website as well as the creation of dedicated sites for Economic Development, the Mountain View Public Library and the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts,” a city statement said.

The new website aims to make it easier for the city to share information with the public. The new site will feature “intuitive navigation, improved search functionality, advanced email notification customization, upgraded web accessibility for better online inclusion, and responsive design that automatically adapts to various devices, including desktop, tablet and mobile.”

Over the next few weeks, city staff will conduct public beta testing. There are a few ways the community can get involved.

First, people can explore the beta site and take an online survey, available in English, Spanish and Chinese, to provide feedback on the new site. The survey is available until 5 p.m. on April 18.

Community members can also test out the new website in-person at the Mountain View Public Library, Mountain View Senior Center and The View Teen Center.

Finally, the public has the option to attend one of three Beta Website Focus Group sessions, in which participants will test the site’s functionality.

• Register online for Monday, April 10, 6 to 7 p.m. session

• Register online for Tuesday, April 11, 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. session

• Register online for Thursday, April 13, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. session

The focus groups will take place at the library, located at 585 Franklin St., and are limited to 10 individuals for each session.

“Staff will assess the input received during beta testing and make enhancements, when possible, in preparation for launching the new website,” the statement said. “The new MountainView.gov is anticipated to go live this spring.”

Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation to host free event to talk about local pressing issues

The Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation is hosting an event to bring together the community and discuss the most pressing issues facing Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View.

The event, “Community Convening: Building Community Vibrancy,” will be on April 6 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Mountain View Community Center, located at 201 S. Rengstorff Ave. It’s free to attend and continental breakfast will be provided.

“We are bringing together community leaders, activists, philanthropists, and residents from Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, and Mountain View to discuss the important issues facing the communities we serve,” the organization said.

“Join us for conversations about mental health, housing and homelessness, universal basic income, local philanthropy and more, and how to establish a path forward for community advocacy and service.”

People interested in attending can register here for free.