VALLEY FEVER BILLS BECOME LAW

Governor Brown has signed two bills by Bakersfield lawmakers to better track Valley Fever, the fungal disease that killed nine people and infected more than 2,900 in Kern County last year.

Assemblymen Rudy Salas and Vince Fong co-authored AB 1787 to require the California Department of Public Health to track of the number of infections every year with the goal of getting more research money allocated towards fighting the disease.

AB 1788 authored by Salas lets laboratories test more patient samples for Valley Fever to track possible outbreaks.

Kelli Pierce