latimes--2020-06-12--Students struggle to make campus housing decisions as colleges make reopening plans

When the UC Irvine campus abruptly shut down in mid-March in response to the coronavirus — like many colleges across the country — Lori Sinanian immediately left her nearby apartment to shelter with her family in Los Angeles .
To break the lease on the Irvine Co-owned apartment , Sinanian and her three roommates ponied up nearly $ 2,000 apiece .
“ It was a horrible situation , ” said Sinanian , who is graduating this month .
“ We paid two months extra for an empty apartment.
” The situation isn ’ t unique to Sinanian .
Dozens of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s practices amid the pandemic and recently urged local officials to intervene .
The company declined to comment through a spokesperson but pointed out that the company has offered temporary rent reductions .
Without city action , the students aren ’ t legally protected .
Lease-breaking isn ’ t one of the statewide emergency rent protections enacted because of the pandemic .
Only Solano County has passed a law giving residents the right to temporarily break lease agreements without penalty , as long as it ’ s related to the coronavirus , according @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attorney specializing in tenant law .
There are other emergency protections in place .
Gov .
Gavin Newsom halted residential evictions in California for three months following the end of the coronavirus emergency period .
In the city of Los Angeles , residents can defer rental payments for up to a year after the local state of emergency ends .
American Campus Communities , a large national student housing owner , has maintained mostly steady occupancy since March , Chief Marketing Officer Jason Wills said .
Wills called a rash of lease-breaking in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to confusion and concern .
In mid-April , the company preleased 76.6 % of its portfolio for the upcoming academic year — up from 76.2 % during the same period last year .
However , Tobener said his law office is fielding 15 to 20 calls a week from parents and students , primarily in the Bay Area , who want to break their lease .
“ It ’ s only going to get worse , ” he said .
Tom Bannon , president of the California Apartment Assn.
, said several concerned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue last month .
Tobener and Bannon figure that more students might want to get out of their leases if their campuses remain closed or open for limited use , singling out the University of California system , which hasn ’ t yet announced concrete plans for the fall .
“ The big question is , are those students going to stay with Mom and Dad or friends , or are they going to move into those apartments that they had planned to move into ?
” Bannon said .
UC officials said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in operation , ” in the fall , but they have offered little detail .
Each campus is likely to announce a plan this month , spokeswoman Sarah McBride said .
“ We are considering a mixed approach for classes ” — sometimes referred to as a hybrid model — “ with some student instruction potentially delivered in classrooms and labs , while other instruction may remain remote , ” McBride said in a statement .
USC announced it would offer in-person classes with safety measures and online classes in the fall , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the state to announce a specific reopening plan .
California State University , the largest four-year college system in the country , plans to offer instruction primarily online , with some exceptions .
Referring to the hybrid model , Sinanian said , “ Students are now wondering , ‘ Am I going to rent an apartment for one in-person class ?
’ ” Drew Sugars , a spokesman for Glendale Community College , said the lines between what universities mean when they say they will be open or closed is blurring .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ learning in the fall , with some exceptions .
Other schools are “ basically saying what I ’ m saying , but they ’ re packaging it differently , ” Sugars said .
That means students are making fall housing decisions based on limited details of what “ open ” and “ closed ” will really look like .
Jimmy Winick , a rising junior at UCLA , signed a lease for a nearby apartment even before the pandemic hit .
He said landlords weren ’ t letting other students he knew out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ so I wouldn ’ t imagine that they ’ d let us out if something like online classes happened.
” Winick isn ’ t going to try to break his lease .
Echoing several students , Winick said he wants to be close to campus , “ to pick back up at least a little bit on some of the social element that we ’ ve all kind of been missing .
”

UC Irvine Associate Dean for Students Megan Osborn wore a mask to a drive-through commencement ceremony in May. What campuses will look like in the fall is still an open question.
When the UC Irvine campus abruptly shut down in mid-March in response to the coronavirus — like many colleges across the country — Lori Sinanian immediately left her nearby apartment to shelter with her family in Los Angeles.
To break the lease on the Irvine Co-owned apartment, Sinanian and her three roommates ponied up nearly $2,000 apiece.
“It was a horrible situation,” said Sinanian, who is graduating this month. “We paid two months extra for an empty apartment.”
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The situation isn’t unique to Sinanian. Dozens of students are now protesting Irvine Co.’s practices amid the pandemic and recently urged local officials to intervene. The company declined to comment through a spokesperson but pointed out that the company has offered temporary rent reductions.
Without city action, the students aren’t legally protected. Lease-breaking isn’t one of the statewide emergency rent protections enacted because of the pandemic.
Only Solano County has passed a law giving residents the right to temporarily break lease agreements without penalty, as long as it’s related to the coronavirus, according to Joseph Tobener, a Bay Area attorney specializing in tenant law.
There are other emergency protections in place. Gov. Gavin Newsom halted residential evictions in California for three months following the end of the coronavirus emergency period. In the city of Los Angeles, residents can defer rental payments for up to a year after the local state of emergency ends.
American Campus Communities, a large national student housing owner, has maintained mostly steady occupancy since March, Chief Marketing Officer Jason Wills said. Wills called a rash of lease-breaking in the spring a “knee-jerk response” to confusion and concern. In mid-April, the company preleased 76.6% of its portfolio for the upcoming academic year — up from 76.2% during the same period last year.
However, Tobener said his law office is fielding 15 to 20 calls a week from parents and students, primarily in the Bay Area, who want to break their lease. “It’s only going to get worse,” he said.
Tom Bannon, president of the California Apartment Assn., said several concerned landlords reached out for advice about the issue last month.
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Tobener and Bannon figure that more students might want to get out of their leases if their campuses remain closed or open for limited use, singling out the University of California system, which hasn’t yet announced concrete plans for the fall.
“The big question is, are those students going to stay with Mom and Dad or friends, or are they going to move into those apartments that they had planned to move into?” Bannon said.
UC officials said all of its campuses will be “in operation,” in the fall, but they have offered little detail. Each campus is likely to announce a plan this month, spokeswoman Sarah McBride said.
“We are considering a mixed approach for classes” — sometimes referred to as a hybrid model — “with some student instruction potentially delivered in classrooms and labs, while other instruction may remain remote,” McBride said in a statement.
USC announced it would offer in-person classes with safety measures and online classes in the fall, becoming one of the first major universities in the state to announce a specific reopening plan. California State University, the largest four-year college system in the country, plans to offer instruction primarily online, with some exceptions.
Referring to the hybrid model, Sinanian said, “Students are now wondering, ‘Am I going to rent an apartment for one in-person class?’”
Drew Sugars, a spokesman for Glendale Community College, said the lines between what universities mean when they say they will be open or closed is blurring. His community college will stick to distance learning in the fall, with some exceptions.
Other schools are “basically saying what I’m saying, but they’re packaging it differently,” Sugars said.
That means students are making fall housing decisions based on limited details of what “open” and “closed” will really look like.
Jimmy Winick, a rising junior at UCLA, signed a lease for a nearby apartment even before the pandemic hit. He said landlords weren’t letting other students he knew out of their leases after the coronavirus hit, “so I wouldn’t imagine that they’d let us out if something like online classes happened.”
Winick isn’t going to try to break his lease. Echoing several students, Winick said he wants to be close to campus, “to pick back up at least a little bit on some of the social element that we’ve all kind of been missing.”


latimes--2020-06-12--L.A. youth group demands defunding police, other reforms

A youth-led group of hundreds of protesters rallied Friday afternoon outside Los Angeles City Hall as demonstrations continue amid a widening national debate about police brutality and racial injustice in the wake of the death of George Floyd .
The demonstration , sponsored by the Youth Justice Coalition , was billed as a march , rally and open mic for families and youth “ impacted by state violence , ” according to a flier .
In a social media post advertising the event , the coalition called for taking hundreds of millions of dollars from the budgets of city and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agencies and redirecting them to fund youth centers , jobs and the establishment of comprehensive youth development departments .
As the event got underway , posters with faces of Black victims lined the metal blockades in front of City Hall .
Black Lives Matters graffiti and messages of “ Defund the police ” were peppered across the building ’ s concrete exterior .
Peaceful protesters spilled onto Spring Street , leaving one lane open for traffic as Aztec dancers performed in solidarity .
Veatrice Johnson , a 34-year-old Long Beach resident , brought @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They were emblazoned with “ Black Lives Matter ” and “ I can ’ t breathe.
” “ Even if they don ’ t have the money , we ’ re still giving them out , ” she said .
“ We want people to be safe out here , ” she said .
Johnson recently lost her job due to COVID-19 and created masks to support the movement and help her family financially .
Jennifer Alvarez , a 28-year-old volunteer with the Youth Justice Coalition , said she helped publicize the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their list of demands was made public .
“ I came out to make sure their voices and messages were heard , ” she said .
“ I ’ ve been spreading the message of how this is also a matter of public health.
” As they marched to LAPD headquarters , protesters chanted , “ You ’ re about to lose your job.
” Similar calls to defund law enforcement agencies in favor of diverting funding to jobs programs , health initiatives and other services supporting communities of color have grown increasingly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 46-year-old Black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pinned his neck down with his knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds .
L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti has pledged that his administration will look for $ 250 million in cuts from city departments , including the LAPD , to reinvest for such purposes .
While some protests in the early aftermath of Floyd ’ s May 25 death were at times marred by violent clashes between crowds and police and instances of vandalism and theft , recent days have seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California calling for fundamental changes in policing .
Other demonstrations were planned Friday in Hawthorne , Inglewood and Pasadena .
Elsewhere in L.A. , about 100 protesters gathered Friday at the Ronald Reagan State Building to call for the removal of a statue of Christopher Columbus that sits at the California Capitol .
“ As a racial reckoning occurs across the country , we must not forget the many racist symbols of America ’ s dark legacy of oppression , slavery and colonialism that still stand , ” organizers wrote in announcing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chanted , “ When indigenous rights are under attack , what do we do ?
Stand up fight back.
” Sarah Ruemenapp , a 23-year-old Mid-City resident , participated in several protests during the past week , and this was one she did not want to miss .
“ I think now is a time to look at what symbols our culture and our city values , ” Ruemenapp said .
“ And colonizing symbols of Columbus are the wrong thing.
” Nikole Cababa , a 34-year-old community organizer , said the statue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We will continue to stand in solidarity with the American Indian community who have taught us to militantly fight back , ” Cababa said .
Calls to remove monuments to the Italian explorer are nothing new .
While his voyages across the Atlantic Ocean were celebrated and commemorated for centuries , Columbus ’ arrival paved the way for European colonization of North , Central and South America — and many activists view him as a symbol of the genocide of native peoples .
Though Columbus Day remains a federal holiday in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Los Angeles County — have in recent years chosen to instead observe Indigenous Peoples Day .
Earlier this week , protesters tore down a statue of Columbus in Richmond , Va. , set it on fire and threw it into a lake .
Crowds also toppled a statue of Columbus outside the Minnesota Capitol , and another statue was beheaded in Boston .
Chula Vista pulled down its statue of Christopher Columbus and placed it in storage Friday , hours before a planned protest to push for its removal .

Nationwide, protesters and activists have been calling to “defund the police.” But what does it actually mean? And why are so many people calling for it to happen?
A youth-led group of hundreds of protesters rallied Friday afternoon outside Los Angeles City Hall as demonstrations continue amid a widening national debate about police brutality and racial injustice in the wake of the death of George Floyd.
The demonstration, sponsored by the Youth Justice Coalition, was billed as a march, rally and open mic for families and youth “impacted by state violence,” according to a flier.
In a social media post advertising the event, the coalition called for taking hundreds of millions of dollars from the budgets of city and county law enforcement and prosecutorial and probation agencies and redirecting them to fund youth centers, jobs and the establishment of comprehensive youth development departments.
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As the event got underway, posters with faces of Black victims lined the metal blockades in front of City Hall. Black Lives Matters graffiti and messages of “Defund the police” were peppered across the building’s concrete exterior.
Peaceful protesters spilled onto Spring Street, leaving one lane open for traffic as Aztec dancers performed in solidarity.
Veatrice Johnson, a 34-year-old Long Beach resident, brought masks to sell for $5 each. They were emblazoned with “Black Lives Matter” and “I can’t breathe.”
“Even if they don’t have the money, we’re still giving them out,” she said. “We want people to be safe out here,” she said.
Johnson recently lost her job due to COVID-19 and created masks to support the movement and help her family financially.
Jennifer Alvarez, a 28-year-old volunteer with the Youth Justice Coalition, said she helped publicize the message from the youth organizers and ensure their list of demands was made public.
Advertisement
“I came out to make sure their voices and messages were heard,” she said. “I’ve been spreading the message of how this is also a matter of public health.”
As they marched to LAPD headquarters, protesters chanted, “You’re about to lose your job.”
Similar calls to defund law enforcement agencies in favor of diverting funding to jobs programs, health initiatives and other services supporting communities of color have grown increasingly loud following the death of Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pinned his neck down with his knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti has pledged that his administration will look for $250 million in cuts from city departments, including the LAPD, to reinvest for such purposes.
While some protests in the early aftermath of Floyd’s May 25 death were at times marred by violent clashes between crowds and police and instances of vandalism and theft, recent days have seen a stream of peaceful demonstrations in Southern California calling for fundamental changes in policing.
Other demonstrations were planned Friday in Hawthorne, Inglewood and Pasadena.
California Somber memorials for George Floyd as protesters demand police reforms Protests continued Monday in L.A. as people take to the streets to protest the police killings of George Floyd and other black Americans.
Elsewhere in L.A., about 100 protesters gathered Friday at the Ronald Reagan State Building to call for the removal of a statue of Christopher Columbus that sits at the California Capitol.
“As a racial reckoning occurs across the country, we must not forget the many racist symbols of America’s dark legacy of oppression, slavery and colonialism that still stand,” organizers wrote in announcing the rally.
Protesters raised their fists and chanted, “When indigenous rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back.”
Sarah Ruemenapp, a 23-year-old Mid-City resident, participated in several protests during the past week, and this was one she did not want to miss.
“I think now is a time to look at what symbols our culture and our city values,” Ruemenapp said. “And colonizing symbols of Columbus are the wrong thing.”
Nikole Cababa, a 34-year-old community organizer, said the statue fails to recognize Columbus’ actions.
“We will continue to stand in solidarity with the American Indian community who have taught us to militantly fight back,” Cababa said.
Calls to remove monuments to the Italian explorer are nothing new. While his voyages across the Atlantic Ocean were celebrated and commemorated for centuries, Columbus’ arrival paved the way for European colonization of North, Central and South America — and many activists view him as a symbol of the genocide of native peoples.
Though Columbus Day remains a federal holiday in the United States, some municipalities — including Los Angeles County — have in recent years chosen to instead observe Indigenous Peoples Day.
Earlier this week, protesters tore down a statue of Columbus in Richmond, Va., set it on fire and threw it into a lake. Crowds also toppled a statue of Columbus outside the Minnesota Capitol, and another statue was beheaded in Boston.
Chula Vista pulled down its statue of Christopher Columbus and placed it in storage Friday, hours before a planned protest to push for its removal.


latimes--2020-06-12--L.A. Metro bus driver dies of complications from COVID-19

A Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus driver has died of complications from COVID-19 , Los Angeles County officials said Friday .
The driver , whose name has not been released , died Thursday , union officials said .
He last worked in mid-May , driving a route out of Division 13 , the bus yard across the street from Union Station .
He worked for Metro for 23 years , said John M. Ellis , the general chairman of the bus driver ’ s union , SMART-TD GO-875 .
“ Many of you knew him , ” Ellis wrote in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the union .
“ We share the sadness felt by those who worked with him .
His presence will be sorely missed.
” The driver is the first Metro employee to die of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
A security guard who was a contractor for Metro died April 13 .
“ This is a heartbreaking day for all Metro employees as we continue to face this grave public health threat , ” said Metro Chief Executive Phil Washington in a prepared statement .
The death toll for transit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 200 , including nearly 130 deaths in New York .
Dozens of those workers drove buses , New York transit officials said .
Locally , a bus driver died in Santa Clarita in April .
Metro has 100 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among employees , contractors and vendors .
Of those cases , more than two dozen are bus drivers , according to the most recent data available .
The fear of contracting the disease has dogged bus drivers , who are spending hours per day in an enclosed space with strangers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they get sick .
During the first two months of the pandemic , drivers said they feared for their health because many riders were not wearing masks and bus yards faced periodic shortages of masks , hand sanitizer and other protective gear .
After an outcry from drivers and a push from elected officials , Metro made masks mandatory for all riders on May 11 .
Officials had resisted the rule until then , saying they could face civil rights issues if the rule were enforced against someone with a disability or who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of riders are now wearing masks , officials say .

The Metro driver worked out of the bus yard across the street from Union Station.
A Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus driver has died of complications from COVID-19, Los Angeles County officials said Friday.
The driver, whose name has not been released, died Thursday, union officials said. He last worked in mid-May, driving a route out of Division 13, the bus yard across the street from Union Station.
He worked for Metro for 23 years, said John M. Ellis, the general chairman of the bus driver’s union, SMART-TD GO-875.
“Many of you knew him,” Ellis wrote in a letter to the thousands of drivers represented by the union. “We share the sadness felt by those who worked with him. His presence will be sorely missed.”
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The driver is the first Metro employee to die of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. A security guard who was a contractor for Metro died April 13.
“This is a heartbreaking day for all Metro employees as we continue to face this grave public health threat,” said Metro Chief Executive Phil Washington in a prepared statement.
The death toll for transit workers across the U.S. has reached almost 200, including nearly 130 deaths in New York. Dozens of those workers drove buses, New York transit officials said.
Locally, a bus driver died in Santa Clarita in April. Metro has 100 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among employees, contractors and vendors. Of those cases, more than two dozen are bus drivers, according to the most recent data available.
The fear of contracting the disease has dogged bus drivers, who are spending hours per day in an enclosed space with strangers, wondering whether this will be the day they get sick.
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During the first two months of the pandemic, drivers said they feared for their health because many riders were not wearing masks and bus yards faced periodic shortages of masks, hand sanitizer and other protective gear.
After an outcry from drivers and a push from elected officials, Metro made masks mandatory for all riders on May 11. Officials had resisted the rule until then, saying they could face civil rights issues if the rule were enforced against someone with a disability or who had difficulty breathing.
More than 90% of riders are now wearing masks, officials say.


latimes--2020-06-12--Investigation ongoing after young Black man found hanging from tree in Palmdale

The Los Angeles County Sheriff ’ s Department is investigating the death of a 24-year-old Black man who was found hanging from a tree near Palmdale City Hall this week , authorities said .
Sheriff ’ s officials said Friday that it appeared the man died by suicide , though a full autopsy is planned .
Lt. Kelly Yagerlener of the Los Angeles County medical examiner-coroner ’ s office said the death was initially reported as an apparent suicide , but the cause of death is deferred pending an investigation A passerby spotted the man ’ s body at 3:39 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9th Street East , according to authorities .
Emergency personnel responded and determined that the man — later identified as Robert Fuller — was dead , authorities said .
“ Investigators have been in contact with Mr. Fuller ’ s family and are continuing their investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Fuller ’ s death , ” officials wrote in a statement .
Community members confronted city officials at a news conference on Friday , questioning why officials were quick to label Fuller ’ s death a suicide and questioning whether foul play @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there were cameras around the park that could have captured what happened .
The city said there were no outdoor cameras and that video recorders on a nearby traffic signal could not have determined what happened .
City officials said they should have referred to the case as an “ alleged suicide ” and that they want to find out what happened to Fuller .
A representative for the Sheriff ’ s Department said the investigation is continuing and that detectives are trying to speak with Fuller ’ s family and look at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the news conference detailed examples of racism in the high-desert city and said officials should not be quick to dismiss that as playing a role in Fuller ’ s death .
Anyone with additional information is asked to call the Sheriff ’ s Department at ( 323 ) 890-5500 .
The city of Palmdale expressed “ sincere condolences and sympathies to the family and friends of Robert Fuller ” on Friday .

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is investigating after the body of 24-year-old Robert Fuller was found hanging from a tree in Palmdale.
The discovery of a 24-year-old Black man hanging from a tree near Palmdale City Hall this week has sparked alarm in the Antelope Valley as investigators try to determine whether his death was caused by suicide or if foul play was involved.
A passerby spotted the man’s body at 3:39 a.m. Wednesday in the 38300 block of 9th Street East, according to authorities. Emergency personnel responded and determined that the man — identified as Robert Fuller — was dead, authorities said.
Lt. Kelly Yagerlener of the Los Angeles County medical examiner-coroner’s office said the death was initially reported as an apparent suicide, but a decision on the cause of death is deferred pending an investigation. A full autopsy is planned.
“Investigators have been in contact with Mr. Fuller’s family and are continuing their investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Fuller’s death,” Palmdale officials wrote in a statement.
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Fuller’s death has generated intense attention, especially after weeks of protests over the police killing of George Floyd. Kim Kardashian West tweeted about the case, urging people to sign a petition demanding a full investigation.
Community members confronted city officials at a news briefing Friday, questioning why they were quick to label Fuller’s death a suicide and asking whether he might have been the victim of homicide.
The residents asked whether there were cameras around the park. The city said there were no outdoor cameras, and video recorders on a nearby traffic signal could not have captured what happened.
Some of the community members detailed examples of racism in the high desert city, including confederate flags, and said officials should not be quick to dismiss it as playing a role in Fuller’s death.
“We have a history with nooses. We don’t like ropes around our necks,” said one man. “It was a message for the protest we had in Palmdale and Lancaster.”
City Manager J.J. Murphy acknowledged, “Maybe we should have said it was ‘an alleged suicide.’” Then he added: “Can I also ask that we stop talking about lynchings?”
The audience erupted with cries of “Hell no!”
Capt. Ron Shaffer of the L.A. County Sheriff’s Palmdale station said homicide detectives are investigating and urged members of the public to contact the homicide bureau with any information.
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“I have doubts about what happened,” said Marisela Barajas, who lives in Palmdale. After the press conference, Barajas walked over and joined a crowd gathering at the tree where Fuller died. An American flag flew nearby.
“All alone, in front of the City Hall — it’s more like a statement,” she said. “Even if it was a suicide, that in itself is kind of a statement.”
Fuller’s family has launched a GoFundMe page seeking help covering funeral expenses.
“Words can’t describe how my family is feeling. We grew up there in the Antelope Valley, we have so many friends, families that loved Robert,” one wrote.
Anyone with additional information is asked to call the Sheriff’s Department at (323) 890-5500.
Related: Suicide prevention and crisis counseling resources


latimes--2020-06-12--Inmate dies at Chuckawalla Valley, site of worst coronavirus outbreak in prison system

An inmate at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison , which has become the setting for the worst coronavirus outbreak to hit the California prison system to date , died Thursday from what officials suspect was complications related to COVID-19 .
The inmate , who has not been identified , died at a hospital outside the prison .
While the cause of death has not been finalized , it appears the man died of complications related to COVID-19 , said Dana Simas , press secretary for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation .
If so , the fatality would be the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eastern Riverside County and the 15th within the state prison system , Simas said .
Jails and prisons , where crowded conditions can make it challenging to maintain the physical distancing that health officials say is vital in stemming the spread of the disease , have proved to be particularly vulnerable .
“ CDCR takes the health and safety of all those who live and work in our state prisons very seriously and will continue to work diligently to address the COVID-19 pandemic , ” Simas wrote in a statement .
In the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ confirmed coronavirus infections at Chuckawalla has risen from zero to 991 as of Friday .
Five people have been released after testing positive , according to the state prison system .
In total , about 44 % of the more than 2,000 men incarcerated at Chuckawalla have tested positive for the coronavirus , data shows .
Chuckawalla and four other institutions — the California Institution for Men in Chino , the California Institution for Women in Corona , Avenal State Prison and California State Prison Corcoran , both in Kings County — that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state prison system ’ s population but roughly 75 % of its confirmed cases .
No new inmates have been admitted to Chuckawalla since the outbreak began , Simas told The Times earlier this week .
The prison has designated separate housing for inmates who have tested negative for the virus , and officials are freeing up vacant space to accommodate social distancing measures , she added .
But Michael Duran , an inmate at Chuckawalla who has spent the last 35 years in prison on a second-degree murder conviction , questioned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when nearly half the population has been infected .
Built to hold 1,738 men , Chuckawalla currently houses 2,237 , according to figures released Wednesday .
“ Where are they going to put everyone ?
” Duran asked .
“ There ’ s COVID-positive people everywhere.
” Social distancing measures might work outside of prison , but here , he said , “ there ’ s nowhere to go .
Where are you going to go ?
We ’ re stuck with each other .
We ’ re breathing the same air.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the state prison system were confirmed to be infected .
In addition to the death at Chuckawalla , 13 inmates have died at the Chino prison and one has died at the Corona women ’ s prison , according to the state .

The California Institution for Men in Chino, where 13 inmates have died after contracting the coronavirus.
An inmate at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison, which has become the setting for the worst coronavirus outbreak to hit the California prison system to date, died Thursday from what officials suspect was complications related to COVID-19.
The inmate, who has not been identified, died at a hospital outside the prison. While the cause of death has not been finalized, it appears the man died of complications related to COVID-19, said Dana Simas, press secretary for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
If so, the fatality would be the first coronavirus-related death at the prison in eastern Riverside County and the 15th within the state prison system, Simas said.
Jails and prisons, where crowded conditions can make it challenging to maintain the physical distancing that health officials say is vital in stemming the spread of the disease, have proved to be particularly vulnerable.
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“CDCR takes the health and safety of all those who live and work in our state prisons very seriously and will continue to work diligently to address the COVID-19 pandemic,” Simas wrote in a statement.
In the past three weeks, the number of confirmed coronavirus infections at Chuckawalla has risen from zero to 991 as of Friday. Five people have been released after testing positive, according to the state prison system.
In total, about 44% of the more than 2,000 men incarcerated at Chuckawalla have tested positive for the coronavirus, data shows.
Chuckawalla and four other institutions — the California Institution for Men in Chino, the California Institution for Women in Corona, Avenal State Prison and California State Prison Corcoran, both in Kings County — that account for less than 10% of the state prison system’s population but roughly 75% of its confirmed cases.
No new inmates have been admitted to Chuckawalla since the outbreak began, Simas told The Times earlier this week. The prison has designated separate housing for inmates who have tested negative for the virus, and officials are freeing up vacant space to accommodate social distancing measures, she added.
But Michael Duran, an inmate at Chuckawalla who has spent the last 35 years in prison on a second-degree murder conviction, questioned how the facility could sequester healthy inmates when nearly half the population has been infected. Built to hold 1,738 men, Chuckawalla currently houses 2,237, according to figures released Wednesday.
“Where are they going to put everyone?” Duran asked. “There’s COVID-positive people everywhere.” Social distancing measures might work outside of prison, but here, he said, “there’s nowhere to go. Where are you going to go? We’re stuck with each other. We’re breathing the same air.”
As of Friday morning, 3,161 inmates in the state prison system were confirmed to be infected. In addition to the death at Chuckawalla, 13 inmates have died at the Chino prison and one has died at the Corona women’s prison, according to the state.


latimes--2020-06-12--California is on the cusp of 5,000 COVID-19 deaths as more businesses reopen

As California reopened another large sector of its businesses Friday , the number of coronavirus cases continued on its upward trajectory and the death toll neared 5,000 .
The state recorded its largest one-day increase in new cases Thursday , logging a total of 3,620 new infections and 79 additional deaths .
Los Angeles County accounted for nearly half of the increase .
Public health officials reported nearly 1,850 new cases Thursday — the largest one-day increase since the pandemic began — and 50 related deaths .
Of the new cases , 600 were from a backlog of test results @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now recorded more than 68,000 cases of the virus , almost half of the state ’ s case count of more than 143,000 .
The cumulative death toll in L.A. County — 2,818 — represents 57 % of the state ’ s fatalities , despite the county being home to one-quarter of California ’ s population .
The continued rise comes as L.A. County took another step toward easing stay-at-home rules put in place to slow the virus ’ spread .
Friday marked the first day that gyms , fitness facilities , museums @ @ @ @ @ @ @ travel were permitted to reopen , and music , film and television production was allowed to resume .
Officials have always expected an increase in the number of cases as the strictest version of the stay-at-home order was gradually lifted .
The question now is whether COVID-19 will require the hospitalization of a moderate number of people , which the hospital system can handle , or grow into a surge of severely ill patients that will overwhelm intensive care units .
It can take two to four weeks before hospitals start seeing a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been infected .
Hospitalizations have continued to decline slightly , but the pace has slowed since last month .
The most recent three-day average of the daily number of hospitalized patients represented a decline of about 1 % , according to the latest figures from the Public Health Department ’ s dashboard of reopening metrics .
In late May , the decline was hovering at 15 % to 16 % .
As of Thursday , 1,416 confirmed coronavirus patients were hospitalized , with 29 % of them in intensive care .
Another unknown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more people are contracting the virus , or it is a result of increased testing that ’ s enabling health professionals to identify cases that would have otherwise gone undetected .
For that reason , officials are keeping an eye on the positivity rate , which represents the proportion of people who have tested positive out of all those who have been tested .
So far , that number continues to decline .
As of Thursday , 746,000 people in L.A. County had been tested and received their results , with about 8 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the county reported a positivity rate of 8.5 % , and in late April , it was 14 % .
Still , there ’ s also evidence that the spread of the virus is rising .
Before the county began easing stay-at-home requirements last month , the effective transmission rate of the coronavirus was in a good spot : Every infected person on average was infecting fewer than one other person , said Dr. Christina Ghaly , L.A. County ’ s director of health services .
But last Friday , Ghaly announced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1 .
The increase showed up a little more than two weeks after L.A. County allowed many retail stores to open for pickup service .
“ The model predicts more firmly that the spread of COVID-19 in the Los Angeles County area is likely to increase gradually over time , ” Ghaly said .

Alex Wigglesworth, Colleen Shalby, Rong-Gong Lin II

Mall employee Glenby Ramirez, right, wipes down the escalator handrail as mask-wearing shoppers pass by on the first day of South Coast Plaza’s reopening on Thursday in Costa Mesa.
As California reopened another large sector of its businesses Friday, the number of coronavirus cases continued on its upward trajectory and the death toll neared 5,000.
The state recorded its largest one-day increase in new cases Thursday, logging a total of 3,620 new infections and 79 additional deaths.
Los Angeles County accounted for nearly half of the increase. Public health officials reported nearly 1,850 new cases Thursday — the largest one-day increase since the pandemic began — and 50 related deaths. Of the new cases, 600 were from a backlog of test results, officials said.
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L.A. County has now recorded more than 68,000 cases of the virus, almost half of the state’s case count of more than 143,000. The cumulative death toll in L.A. County — 2,818 — represents 57% of the state’s fatalities, despite the county being home to one-quarter of California’s population.
California Some shun wearing masks even though they’re essential coronavirus protection In California, mandatory face coverings that experts say reduce the spread of the coronavirus are at the center of an intense political fight.
The continued rise comes as L.A. County took another step toward easing stay-at-home rules put in place to slow the virus’ spread. Friday marked the first day that gyms, fitness facilities, museums, swimming pools and hotels for leisure travel were permitted to reopen, and music, film and television production was allowed to resume.
Officials have always expected an increase in the number of cases as the strictest version of the stay-at-home order was gradually lifted.
The question now is whether COVID-19 will require the hospitalization of a moderate number of people, which the hospital system can handle, or grow into a surge of severely ill patients that will overwhelm intensive care units. It can take two to four weeks before hospitals start seeing a surge in patients after they’ve been infected.
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Hospitalizations have continued to decline slightly, but the pace has slowed since last month.
The most recent three-day average of the daily number of hospitalized patients represented a decline of about 1%, according to the latest figures from the Public Health Department’s dashboard of reopening metrics. In late May, the decline was hovering at 15% to 16%.
As of Thursday, 1,416 confirmed coronavirus patients were hospitalized, with 29% of them in intensive care.
Another unknown is whether the increase in is because more people are contracting the virus, or it is a result of increased testing that’s enabling health professionals to identify cases that would have otherwise gone undetected.
For that reason, officials are keeping an eye on the positivity rate, which represents the proportion of people who have tested positive out of all those who have been tested. So far, that number continues to decline.
As of Thursday, 746,000 people in L.A. County had been tested and received their results, with about 8% testing positive. In late May, the county reported a positivity rate of 8.5%, and in late April, it was 14%.
Still, there’s also evidence that the spread of the virus is rising.
Before the county began easing stay-at-home requirements last month, the effective transmission rate of the coronavirus was in a good spot: Every infected person on average was infecting fewer than one other person, said Dr. Christina Ghaly, L.A. County’s director of health services.
But last Friday, Ghaly announced that the transmission rate had risen above 1.
The increase showed up a little more than two weeks after L.A. County allowed many retail stores to open for pickup service.
“The model predicts more firmly that the spread of COVID-19 in the Los Angeles County area is likely to increase gradually over time,” Ghaly said.


latimes--2020-06-12--Some shun wearing masks even though they're essential coronavirus protection

Wearing masks should not be a contentious political issue , some public health experts say .
In places like Japan , Hong Kong and Taiwan , universal mask wearing is credited with helping prevent an out-of-control spread of the coronavirus .
Yet , in California the idea of mandatory face coverings has become the subject of an intense political fight in areas , from Southern California to the Central Valley .
Dr. Nichole Quick , who resigned as Orange County health officer this week , became the latest victim of the fight after receiving a death threat and being targeted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a public meeting displaying Quick ’ s photo with a Hitler mustache and swastikas .
Under intense pressure from the Orange County Board of Supervisors , her interim replacement , Dr. Clayton Chau , who is also the county ’ s Health Care Agency director , on Thursday rescinded Quick ’ s mandatory face mask order and said Orange County instead “ strongly recommends ” wearing masks in public settings .
Yet , as the U.S. death toll climbs past 114,000 , some of the nation ’ s top infectious disease and epidemiology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wearing — one of the only tools we have against the coronavirus until a vaccine is available — will only frustrate society ’ s efforts to reopen .
“ It ’ s the only way we get back to work — it ’ s to mask , ” said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo , chair of UC San Francisco ’ s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics .
“ All of the data tells us ... it ’ s pretty clear that masking is the element that changes the trajectories of the COVID pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ open up — which all of us want to do — is put on a mask , ” Bibbins-Domingo said .
She said it ’ s no coincidence that some countries where universal masking has long been culturally accepted have been hit less hard by the pandemic .
“ I don ’ t think there ’ s any doubt about it , ” she said .
In these countries , residents have been spared the most severe stay-at-home orders or have moved out of that phase more quickly .
“ They haven ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s a strong universal masking culture , ” Bibbins-Domingo said .
A new study adds even more weight to the suspicions of experts that masks are playing an important role in controlling the spread of COVID-19 .
Social distancing , quarantine and isolation aren ’ t enough , the researchers found .
The report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that , while a stay-at-home order that went into effect in New York on March 22 did slow the daily increase in new infections in New York City , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that went into effect April 17 that finally caused new infections to decline , at a rate of about 3 % a day .
The same pattern was seen in Italy , which announced a national lockdown on March 9 but didn ’ t impose a face covering rule in the nation ’ s hard-hit northern region until April 6 .
Again , researchers saw a difference in new daily cases after the mandatory mask rule was put in place .
“ Hence , the difference made by implementing face covering significantly shapes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the researchers , who are affiliated with Texas A & M University , the University of Texas at Austin , Caltech and UC San Diego .
The authors concluded that “ wearing of face masks in public corresponds to the most effective means to prevent interhuman transmission.
” They added : “ This inexpensive practice , in conjunction with simultaneous social distancing , quarantine , and contact tracing , represents the most likely fighting opportunity to stop the COVID-19 pandemic.
” There are other studies that back up the importance of mask wearing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ found that face masks reduced the daily growth rate of reported infections by around 40 % .
In a British study , mathematical models found that wearing face masks all the time while in public — and not just after symptoms appear — would reduce the number of people with active infections over time .
“ If widespread face mask use by the public is combined with physical distancing and some lockdown , it may offer an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and reopening economic activity long before there is a working @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the British study , Richard Stutt of the University of Cambridge , said in a statement .
In anecdotal evidence from the U.S. , no customers of a salon in Missouri became infected with the virus , even though two hairstylists were sick — and scientists think it was because the hairstylists were wearing face masks .
Health experts are increasingly saying the U.S. authorities erred in the early weeks of the pandemic in discouraging the use of masks by healthy people .
The message was “ they don ’ t work , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meant to say was , ‘ We don ’ t have enough masks .
And we need to give them to people like healthcare workers , ’ ” Bibbins-Domingo said .
“ That was a mistake.
” Some experts in the early days of the pandemic also emphasized what we didn ’ t know about masks ’ usefulness .
For one , there was much attention paid to the idea that masks alone are not particularly effective in preventing infection for the wearer , in part because they don ’ t protect the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and will cause people to touch their faces .
But even in late March , other experts started to suspect that early success in keeping a lid on the coronavirus in Taiwan and Singapore was partly due to universal mask wearing , a legacy of the SARS outbreak from 2003 .
“ If you go to Taiwan or Singapore , everyone ’ s got a mask on all the time — healthy or not , sick or not , ” Dr. Otto Yang , a UCLA expert on infectious disease , said in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That ’ s probably been an important thing in other countries ’ flattening their curve or preventing , containing infection.
” Now , some experts say masks are more important than social distancing .
“ They ’ re both important — don ’ t get me wrong .
If I had to choose one over another , ...
I ’ d choose masks , ” Dr. George Rutherford , a UC San Francisco epidemiologist and infectious-diseases expert , said at a campus webinar in May .
“ Remember , what we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who are asymptomatically infected from transmitting .
So it ’ s about ... keeping your virus to yourself , ” Rutherford said .
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 20 % to 50 % of everyone who gets infected by the coronavirus will remain asymptomatic yet may be just as contagious as people who are visibly ill. Those who do end up becoming visibly sick are also actually highly contagious two or three days before they develop their first symptoms , Yang said Thursday .
“ Everyone should really @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wear face masks to protect the people around them , ” Yang said .
“ It ’ s really kind of a public-minded thing to wear face masks for general protection of the public.
” There are some unfounded theories floating around , such as one that face coverings pose a danger to people ’ s oxygen levels .
Cloth face masks and surgical masks do not pose such a threat , experts say , noting that many people who work in hospitals wear them all the time .
“ No , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s all sorts of conspiracy theories about low oxygen and high CO2 levels , ” Yang said .
“ It ’ s really not an issue.
” In California , which has reported more than 140,000 coronavirus infections and almost 5,000 deaths , whether mandatory mask orders are controversial seems to depend on the region .
Mandatory masks have not been controversial in the two highly populated areas of California — Los Angeles County and the San Francisco Bay Area .
But mandatory mask laws have triggered opposition in other parts of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fresno County had a face mask rule for less than a day before it was pulled back .
Riverside and San Bernardino counties lifted their orders after blowback .
Stockton ’ s mayor , Michael Tubbs , proposed face covering rules but failed to get any support from the City Council .
Of California ’ s 15 most populous counties , those requiring the wearing of masks in public are : Los Angeles , San Diego , Santa Clara , Alameda , Sacramento , Contra Costa , San Francisco and San Mateo .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ public are Orange , Riverside , San Bernardino , Fresno , Kern , Ventura and San Joaquin .
Among officials who have decided not to implement mandatory mask rules are Dr. Robert Levin , the Ventura County health officer .
Levin said in April that he concluded that masks were not entirely effective , but added that he could change his mind “ if the prevalence of disease increases in our county or some convincing evidence comes along.
” In Riverside County , elected officials last month voted to instruct their health officer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saying people should make up their own minds whether to wear one .
“ People are smart enough to make [ that ] decision themselves , ” Supervisor Jeff Hewitt said .
Some counties on California ’ s Central Coast have mandatory mask rules , like Santa Barbara , Monterey and San Benito , but San Luis Obispo County does not have such a rule .
“ There is no incontrovertible , compelling or even a preponderance of evidence to support an order to wear a cloth mask in the community setting at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the health officer for San Luis Obispo County , wrote on May 3 .
Some sparsely populated counties also have implemented mandatory mask orders , including Mono and Inyo counties in the eastern Sierra ; counties north of the Bay Area , like Mendocino , Lake , Plumas and Del Norte ; Imperial County east of San Diego ; and other counties around and near the Sacramento region , including Sutter , Yolo , Yuba and Sierra .
The Orange County Medical Assn .
this week called Quick ’ s resignation a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of us , ” and that “ we must ... not allow bullying to drive the health recommendations that can keep us safe and healthy.
” “ This public health crisis is not over .
As we begin to reopen our county , the science is clear : Wearing a face covering can help slow the spread of this deadly virus , ” Dr. Diana Ramos , president of the Orange County Medical Assn.
, said in a statement .
“ We were absolutely appalled ... that a public servant is getting literally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and she has three small children , ” said the medical association ’ s executive director , Jim Peterson .
He said he was worried that some customers may start to refuse wearing masks in stores without the mandatory order .
“ It ’ s going to cause a lot of problems in our community , ” Peterson said .
“ The only thing we have as any kind of barrier to slow down the transmission of COVID is wearing a mask and social distancing .
That ’ s all we ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worked .
There ’ s no doubt about it.
” Peterson said the coronavirus is still as dangerous as it was months ago .
“ It ’ s still there .
It ’ s still contagious .
It ’ s still a very deadly virus to a lot of different types of people.
” Times staff writers Kailyn Brown , Hannah Fry , Melissa Gomez , Stephanie Lai and Luke Money contributed to this report .

People walk along Harbor Boulevard in downtown Fullerton in Orange County on Thursday. After the county’s health officer resigned under pressure, officials announced that wearing masks in public is no longer mandatory.
Wearing masks should not be a contentious political issue, some public health experts say. In places like Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan, universal mask wearing is credited with helping prevent an out-of-control spread of the coronavirus.
Yet, in California the idea of mandatory face coverings has become the subject of an intense political fight in areas , from Southern California to the Central Valley.
Dr. Nichole Quick, who resigned as Orange County health officer this week, became the latest victim of the fight after receiving a death threat and being targeted by anti-mask protesters who showed up at a public meeting displaying Quick’s photo with a Hitler mustache and swastikas.
Under intense pressure from the Orange County Board of Supervisors, her interim replacement, Dr. Clayton Chau, who is also the county’s Health Care Agency director, on Thursday rescinded Quick’s mandatory face mask order and said Orange County instead “strongly recommends” wearing masks in public settings.
Interim Health Officer Dr. Clayton Chau said Orange County now “strongly recommends” wearing masks in public settings, but they are not mandatory. (Orange County)
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Yet, as the U.S. death toll climbs past 114,000, some of the nation’s top infectious disease and epidemiology experts say moving away from universal mask wearing — one of the only tools we have against the coronavirus until a vaccine is available — will only frustrate society’s efforts to reopen.
“It’s the only way we get back to work — it’s to mask,” said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, chair of UC San Francisco’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. “All of the data tells us ... it’s pretty clear that masking is the element that changes the trajectories of the COVID pandemic.
“Literally, the only way we open up — which all of us want to do — is put on a mask,” Bibbins-Domingo said.
World & Nation Some world leaders embrace face masks, others reject them These days, the simple act of wearing a mask -- or not -- has devolved into partisan debate not just in the U.S. but in other countries as well.
She said it’s no coincidence that some countries where universal masking has long been culturally accepted have been hit less hard by the pandemic. “I don’t think there’s any doubt about it,” she said.
In these countries, residents have been spared the most severe stay-at-home orders or have moved out of that phase more quickly. “They haven’t seen large spikes because there’s a strong universal masking culture,” Bibbins-Domingo said.
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California O.C. health officer receives threats over face covering mandate Orange County Board of Supervisors Chair Michelle Steel condemned what she deemed to be a death threat against County Health Officer Dr. Nichole Quick this week.
A new study adds even more weight to the suspicions of experts that masks are playing an important role in controlling the spread of COVID-19. Social distancing, quarantine and isolation aren’t enough, the researchers found.
The report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that, while a stay-at-home order that went into effect in New York on March 22 did slow the daily increase in new infections in New York City, it was a mandatory mask wearing order that went into effect April 17 that finally caused new infections to decline, at a rate of about 3% a day.
The same pattern was seen in Italy, which announced a national lockdown on March 9 but didn’t impose a face covering rule in the nation’s hard-hit northern region until April 6. Again, researchers saw a difference in new daily cases after the mandatory mask rule was put in place.
“Hence, the difference made by implementing face covering significantly shapes the pandemic trends worldwide,” said the researchers, who are affiliated with Texas A&M University, the University of Texas at Austin, Caltech and UC San Diego.
The authors concluded that “wearing of face masks in public corresponds to the most effective means to prevent interhuman transmission.”
They added: “This inexpensive practice, in conjunction with simultaneous social distancing, quarantine, and contact tracing, represents the most likely fighting opportunity to stop the COVID-19 pandemic.”
There are other studies that back up the importance of mask wearing. A recent study out of Germany found that face masks reduced the daily growth rate of reported infections by around 40%. In a British study, mathematical models found that wearing face masks all the time while in public — and not just after symptoms appear — would reduce the number of people with active infections over time.
“If widespread face mask use by the public is combined with physical distancing and some lockdown, it may offer an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and reopening economic activity long before there is a working vaccine,” the lead author of the British study, Richard Stutt of the University of Cambridge, said in a statement.
In anecdotal evidence from the U.S., no customers of a salon in Missouri became infected with the virus, even though two hairstylists were sick — and scientists think it was because the hairstylists were wearing face masks.
Health experts are increasingly saying the U.S. authorities erred in the early weeks of the pandemic in discouraging the use of masks by healthy people.
The message was “they don’t work, when, in fact, what we meant to say was, ‘We don’t have enough masks. And we need to give them to people like healthcare workers,’” Bibbins-Domingo said. “That was a mistake.”
Some experts in the early days of the pandemic also emphasized what we didn’t know about masks’ usefulness. For one, there was much attention paid to the idea that masks alone are not particularly effective in preventing infection for the wearer, in part because they don’t protect the eyes; and because masks are itchy and will cause people to touch their faces.
But even in late March, other experts started to suspect that early success in keeping a lid on the coronavirus in Taiwan and Singapore was partly due to universal mask wearing, a legacy of the SARS outbreak from 2003.
“If you go to Taiwan or Singapore, everyone’s got a mask on all the time — healthy or not, sick or not,” Dr. Otto Yang, a UCLA expert on infectious disease, said in an interview in late March. “That’s probably been an important thing in other countries’ flattening their curve or preventing, containing infection.”
Now, some experts say masks are more important than social distancing.
“They’re both important — don’t get me wrong. If I had to choose one over another, ... I’d choose masks,” Dr. George Rutherford, a UC San Francisco epidemiologist and infectious-diseases expert, said at a campus webinar in May.
“Remember, what we’re trying to do here is prevent people who are asymptomatically infected from transmitting. So it’s about ... keeping your virus to yourself,” Rutherford said.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 20% to 50% of everyone who gets infected by the coronavirus will remain asymptomatic yet may be just as contagious as people who are visibly ill.
Those who do end up becoming visibly sick are also actually highly contagious two or three days before they develop their first symptoms, Yang said Thursday.
“Everyone should really assume that they’re infected and wear face masks to protect the people around them,” Yang said. “It’s really kind of a public-minded thing to wear face masks for general protection of the public.”
There are some unfounded theories floating around, such as one that face coverings pose a danger to people’s oxygen levels. Cloth face masks and surgical masks do not pose such a threat, experts say, noting that many people who work in hospitals wear them all the time.
“No, there’s nothing to that. There’s all sorts of conspiracy theories about low oxygen and high CO2 levels,” Yang said. “It’s really not an issue.”
In California, which has reported more than 140,000 coronavirus infections and almost 5,000 deaths, whether mandatory mask orders are controversial seems to depend on the region. Mandatory masks have not been controversial in the two highly populated areas of California — Los Angeles County and the San Francisco Bay Area.
But mandatory mask laws have triggered opposition in other parts of Southern California and the Central Valley. Fresno County had a face mask rule for less than a day before it was pulled back. Riverside and San Bernardino counties lifted their orders after blowback. Stockton’s mayor, Michael Tubbs, proposed face covering rules but failed to get any support from the City Council.
Of California’s 15 most populous counties, those requiring the wearing of masks in public are: Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Clara, Alameda, Sacramento, Contra Costa, San Francisco and San Mateo. Those that do not require masks in public are Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Fresno, Kern, Ventura and San Joaquin.
Among officials who have decided not to implement mandatory mask rules are Dr. Robert Levin, the Ventura County health officer. Levin said in April that he concluded that masks were not entirely effective, but added that he could change his mind “if the prevalence of disease increases in our county or some convincing evidence comes along.”
In Riverside County, elected officials last month voted to instruct their health officer to rescind the mandatory mask rule, saying people should make up their own minds whether to wear one. “People are smart enough to make [that] decision themselves,” Supervisor Jeff Hewitt said.
Some counties on California’s Central Coast have mandatory mask rules, like Santa Barbara, Monterey and San Benito, but San Luis Obispo County does not have such a rule.
“There is no incontrovertible, compelling or even a preponderance of evidence to support an order to wear a cloth mask in the community setting at this time,” Dr. Penny Borenstein, the health officer for San Luis Obispo County, wrote on May 3.
Some sparsely populated counties also have implemented mandatory mask orders, including Mono and Inyo counties in the eastern Sierra; counties north of the Bay Area, like Mendocino, Lake, Plumas and Del Norte; Imperial County east of San Diego; and other counties around and near the Sacramento region, including Sutter, Yolo, Yuba and Sierra.
The Orange County Medical Assn. this week called Quick’s resignation a “dangerous precedent that should concern all of us,” and that “we must ... not allow bullying to drive the health recommendations that can keep us safe and healthy.”
“This public health crisis is not over. As we begin to reopen our county, the science is clear: Wearing a face covering can help slow the spread of this deadly virus,” Dr. Diana Ramos, president of the Orange County Medical Assn., said in a statement.
“We were absolutely appalled ... that a public servant is getting literally death threats to her and her family, and she has three small children,” said the medical association’s executive director, Jim Peterson. He said he was worried that some customers may start to refuse wearing masks in stores without the mandatory order.
“It’s going to cause a lot of problems in our community,” Peterson said. “The only thing we have as any kind of barrier to slow down the transmission of COVID is wearing a mask and social distancing. That’s all we’ve got right now. And it worked. There’s no doubt about it.”
Peterson said the coronavirus is still as dangerous as it was months ago. “It’s still there. It’s still contagious. It’s still a very deadly virus to a lot of different types of people.”
Times staff writers Kailyn Brown, Hannah Fry, Melissa Gomez, Stephanie Lai and Luke Money contributed to this report.