The state has pre-ordered 1.4 million doses of Pfizer's pediatric COVID-19 vaccine, so medical providers can start putting shots in arms as soon as federal health officials sign off.

Staffing levels for federal wildland firefighters have dipped dramatically in recent years, impacting efforts to contain massive wildfires across the country, particularly in California. At a hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, advocates argued for two pieces of legislation aimed at helping hire more firefighters.

Reporter: Keith Mizuguchi, The California Report 

President Joe Biden has presented a trimmed down reconciliation bill to Congress on Thursday morning. California Senator Alex Padilla joined the California Report to talk about the proposal and some of the reasons it's been so heavily debated by his Democratic colleagues in the Senate.

Guest: U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, California

The Beverly Hills Police Department has been accused of racially profiling Black shoppers on Rodeo Drive. New records from a class action lawsuit show that out of 90 people who were arrested along the shopping corridor, 80 were Black. 

Reporter: Tara Atrian, KCRW

The coronavirus pandemic led to record drug use across the country. Fatal overdoses rose almost 30% percent last year, driven mainly by fentanyl and other opioids. But the stimulant methamphetamine is also a huge part of the problem. It doesn’t get as much attention, though, in part because it doesn’t cause the impressive death counts that make for good headlines.

Guest: Sam Quinones, Journalist and Author of the book "The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth"

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