SF almost gives up monkeypox contact tracing

San Francisco has demanded more vaccines and treatment options for its growing cases of monkeypox — but the city has all but abandoned an age-old method of containing outbreaks: contact tracing.

With 472 cases, more than a third of California’s total, San Francisco public health officials believe the city has the highest rate of monkeypox per capita in the country. So, at first, the practice of tracking down those exposed to a rapidly spreading disease and then isolating or treating them — as was done at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic — seemed like a good idea.

But city officials said when they tried to track down every person exposed to monkeypox – mostly men who have sex with men – it didn’t work because many people were unwilling or unable to not share the names and contact details of their partners.

So about a month ago, health officials instead began urging people with monkeypox to do their own contact tracing. Although some tracings are taking place, they are mostly limited to children under 18 and pregnant women, officials said. This contrasts with many other counties in the Bay Area, where tracing numbers are much lower.

Read more from Nanette Asimov.

• Sewage helped trace the spread of COVID in the Bay Area. Can it do the same for monkeypox?

What to eat and drink

Owners of small and medium-sized Bay Area bakeries are doing everything they can to keep their prices steady in the face of inflation and rising ingredient costs. Even if it means making other changes to the business or reducing profits in the end.

“Imagine if the corner cafe you went to had a different price every week like the stock market,” said Andrew Burnham, operating partner at Manresa Bread. “It would have a very strange vibe. It wouldn’t convey any quality. That wouldn’t convey any confidence.

In an analysis by Chronicle, data from five local bakeries between 2016 and 2022 shows that the price of a butter croissant has increased slowly, by an average of 20%.

Read more from Caleb Pershan and Yuri Avila.

• Cozy Japanese jazz bars, like Bar Shiru in Oakland, are booming in the Bay Area.

• Rudy’s Can’t Fail Cafe, a Bay Area restaurant co-owned by Green Day bassist, is closing after 20 years.

around the bay

• Blasted policy: Officers in this northern California county are stopping Asian drivers at 12 times the rate of white drivers, according to the lawsuit.

• It’s official: SF District Attorney Brooke Jenkins is running to keep her job in November.

• Rebuild a community hub: Oakland’s Chinatown is worried about climate change. Big plans are underway to adapt.

• Proposed prison changes: California places some of its most vulnerable inmates in solitary confinement. A state bill would change that.

• The truth came out: This beer-themed water park in Napa was a publicity stunt after all, surprising no one.

• California fires: A 73-year-old US Forest Service lookout died at her home in McKinney Fire.

Boarding for Sacramento from SF

A new cruise will soon pamper passengers on a unique river trip from San Francisco to Stockton, Sacramento, Napa and back – for a hefty sum.

With prices starting at $6,095, passengers will travel round-trip from San Francisco to California’s capital via the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta on an eight-day trip dubbed the “Cruise in the San Francisco Bay,” American Cruise Lines officials said. The most luxurious accommodation – a large suite with a private balcony – costs $11,680 per person.

This is the company’s first-ever cruise in California, with an itinerary along the San Joaquin, Napa and Sacramento rivers.

Learn more about Jessica Flores.

Bay Briefing is written by Kellie Hwang and Anna Buchmann and sent to readers’ inboxes weekday mornings. Sign up for the newsletter here and contact the writers at kellie.hwang@sfchronicle.com and anna.buchmann@sfchronicle.com.