California will allow amusement parks and sports stadiums to resume operations with limited capacity as early as April 1, per state guidance unveiled Friday.

Why it matters: As coronavirus case counts drop and the vaccine campaign ramps up, California's decision reflects renewed confidence in the safe reopening of its economy and restarting some, albeit with reduced capacity, out-of-the-house activities.

Bars, restaurants and many other businesses in West Virginia can return to 100% capacity if social distancing can be maintained, Gov. Jim Justice (R) said Friday.

The big picture: Justice is the latest governor to lift statewide coronavirus restrictions, despite warnings from health officials.

All public K-12 schools in Oregon must offer in-person instruction by mid-April, Gov. Kate Brown (D) said Friday.

Driving the news: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last month that K-12 schools could safely resume for in-person instruction and remain open if mitigation strategies are strictly adhered to and community transmission of the coronavirus remains low.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's advisers successfully pushed state health officials to exclude certain data on the number of COVID-19 nursing home deaths from a July report, the Wall Street Journal reported late Thursday.

Why it matters: The changes resulted in a "significant undercount of the death toll attributed to the state’s most vulnerable population," WSJ wrote.

Now that COVID-19 vaccines are bringing hope to fighting the pandemic, there is some concern the U.S. and others will lose interest in improving the tools needed to confront emerging outbreaks.

The big picture: On top of the coronavirus pandemic, there are currently other smaller outbreaks around the globe — some with pandemic potential. These, and the threat of viruses emerging in the future, mean more permanent pandemic preparedness is needed, experts tell Axios.

Some of the biggest chains in the U.S., including Target and Starbucks, will continue to require masks and limit capacity in Texas and Mississippi after the states lift coronavirus restrictions, Wall Street Journal reports.

Why it matters: The Republican governors' move to reopen "100%" has divided the business community, with some welcoming the decision while others worry about risk of backslide on progress and put workers at risk.

The RNA technology that helped us get a COVID vaccine may help the world get a vaccine for malaria, too.

Driving the news: Scientists have applied for a patent for an RNA-based vaccine that might circumvent the problems that have made it difficult to come up with any kind of malaria vaccine, per the Academic Times.

The Food and Drug Administration on Saturday issued an emergency use authorization for Johnson & Johnson's one-shot coronavirus vaccine.

Why it matters: The authorization of a third coronavirus vaccine in the U.S. will help speed up the vaccine rollout across the country, especially since the J&J shot only requires one dose as opposed to Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech's two-shot vaccines.

Italy on Saturday announced it was tightening restrictions in five of the country's 20 regions in an effort curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Driving the news: The announcement comes as health experts and scientists warn of the more transmissible coronavirus variants, per Reuters.

The Palestinian Authority on Saturday announced fresh coronavirus restrictions, including a partial lockdown, for the occupied West Bank as COVID-19 cases surge.

The big picture: The new measures come as Israel, which leads the world in vaccinations, faces increased pressure to ensure Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip have equal access to vaccines.