latimes--2020-03-12--L.A. County reports new community-spread coronavirus cases as state total hits 198

Coronavirus cases continued to mount across California , as counties both big and small reported new tallies on Thursday and Disneyland took unprecedented action to close the theme park for the rest of the month .
Los Angeles County confirmed three new cases , health officials said .
Two of the three have an unidentified source of exposure , further evidence of community spread .
The third new case was a person who was exposed by a close contact who tested positive after attending a conference in Washington , D.C. One of the patients is hospitalized .
The additions bring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ County to 32 , which includes four cases in Long Beach and one case in Pasadena .
California has recorded 198 cases of the new coronavirus as of Thursday , up from 177 the day before , Gov .
Gavin Newsom announced .
California officials are calling for the cancellation of all gatherings with 250 or more people to slow the spread of the coronavirus , a decision that came hours after a new federal travel ban and the suspension of the NBA season .
In response to the governor ’ s order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Anaheim theme park and California Adventure , beginning Saturday through the end of the month .
Disneyland Resort hotels will remain open until Monday and will refund hotel bookings during the closure .
The recommendations have the potential to touch virtually all corners of social life across the state : community meetings , sports events and school theater performances .
The move comes as President Trump suspended travel from Europe as the coronavirus continued its spread across the globe Wednesday , claiming its first life in L.A. County and causing the World Health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first time as a pandemic .
The new policy from the California Department of Public Health , which will be in effect at least through March , marks the first time the state has issued a request for all residents across California to adopt so-called “ social distancing ” measures and represents a new sense of urgency in the administration ’ s approach to fighting the virus .
“ Changing our actions for a short period of time will save the life of one or more people you know , ” Newsom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s the choice before us .
Each of us has extraordinary power to slow the spread of this disease .
Not holding that concert or community event can have cascading effects — saving dozens of lives and preserving critical healthcare resources that your family may need a month from now .
The people in our lives who are most at risk — seniors and those with underlying health conditions — are depending on all of us to make the right choice.
” As a result , the Los Angeles Police Department will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which was scheduled for this week at the Los Angeles Police Academy , to avoid a large gathering , according to officials .
Such a graduation typically draws 300 people to the training facility near Dodgers Stadium .
People are also advised to avoid communal eating , meetings or gatherings with more than 50 attendees and all nonessential travel , both international and domestic , Dr. Barbara Ferrer , director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health , said Thursday at a news conference .
Those who are immunocompromised , pregnant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even 10 people , she said .
Those who take public transit should wash their hands before getting on a bus or train and after arriving at their destination , and people should take care to wipe down gym equipment and wash their hands before and after working out , she said .
Group fitness classes where people aren ’ t able to stay 6 feet apart should be avoided entirely , she said .
“ We ’ re not at the point of closing down all activities for everybody , ” Ferrer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the point of saying you know who you are .
You know how much you can help at this point .
We ’ ve asked for everyone ’ s help and that means modifying pretty much everything you do outside of your house every day.
” Faced with two outbreaks of coronavirus on its ships and increasing government pressure , Princess Cruises announced Thursday it would suspend all operations for its vacation voyages for 60 days .
The news comes as federal and state authorities undertake a massive operation to disembark 3,500 passengers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them infected by the virus , and move them to quarantine sites largely on U.S. military bases .
And in an announcement that brought the spreading public health crisis to Hollywood , Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson said they had tested positive for the virus .
“ Hello , folks , ” Hanks said in a statement .
“ Rita and I are down here in Australia .
We felt a bit tired , like we had colds , and some body aches .
Rita had some chills that came and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ play things right , as is needed in the world right now , we were tested for the coronavirus and were found to be positive.
” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Thursday announced sweeping measures to try to limit the spread of the virus .
Garcetti said all city departments were being ordered to postpone or cancel public events and meetings expected to draw 50 or more people .
He also called for a ban on all public events and conferences on city-owned properties expected to draw 50 or more people .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ from City Hall .
“ We are closing City Hall to all non-city employees.
” Guests , however , are allowed to attend City Council meetings , he said .
The directive prompted the Griffith Observatory to close , starting Friday .
The tourist attraction typically sees 4,000 visitors a day , so limiting that number to 50 “ just doesn ’ t make sense , ” said Department of Recreation and Parks General Manager Mike Shull .
“ It ’ s just safer .
We could create other issues with lines forming.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ close to the public beginning Friday .
Employees will continue to report to work to care for the animals .
The closure is expected to last through March 31 .
Pasadena city officials announced the city was canceling all “ nonessential ” city-sponsored events and activities until further notice .
Nonessential events and activities would generally include recreational events and classes ; , census events , Community Police Academy Kids Safety Academy , PALS center activity , educational and cultural events , and community excursions .
Pasadena is not directing the cancellation of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parties , although the city is reaching out to the coordinators and providing current guidelines by the California Department of Public Health regarding mass gatherings .
Three L.A. County sheriff ’ s deputies and five L.A. County Fire Department personnel are now under quarantine after answering a Monday call to Walnut to attend to a woman who later died of the coronavirus , Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Thursday .
The woman was taken by ambulance to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center in full cardiac arrest , the hospital said in a news release @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she was placed in isolation but died shortly afterward , officials said .
“ Our highly trained staff followed all appropriate infection control protocols and took every precaution in caring for this patient , who tragically succumbed to their complications , ” Dr. Daniel Gluckstein , the hospital ’ s medical director of infectious disease , said in a statement .
“ We extend our deepest condolences to the patient and family.
” The hospital has identified all staffers who came into contact with the patient and is following guidelines issued by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worker exposure , the news release said .
The rapid-fire developments come as the virus continued to spread elsewhere in the state .
Karen Elliott , public health director for Tulare County , said at a news conference that the infected person was tested at Sierra View Medical Center in Porterville and was being kept in isolation at home .
The person was in stable condition , “ and we hope for a quick recovery , ” Elliott said .
“ The individual does not fall within a vulnerable population , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contracted the virus outside the county , she said .
Riverside County also announced an additional locally acquired case of the virus , bringing the total number of confirmed cases there to eight .
It was announced Thursday that a San Jose firefighter had tested positive and might have exposed other firefighters , city manager David Sykes said .
By Thursday afternoon , four firefighters had tested positive , said Sean Kaldor , president of IAFF Local 230 , which represents San Jose firefighters .
They worked in different stations , on different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ As far as how they got exposed , the challenge with COVID-19 is that it ’ s starting to become prevalent in our community , ” he said .
“ So any patient , any call , any time could be symptomatic with it.
” Two other San Jose firefighters were awaiting results after being tested for the coronavirus , and a total of 77 were on leave to see if they developed symptoms , Kaldor said .
Contra Costa County reported a total of 16 cases , up from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Francisco reported 18 cases , up from 14 on Wednesday .
Sen. Dianne Feinstein said she was closing her California offices and considering closing her Washington office because of the coronavirus .
“ I don ’ t want people unnecessarily hurt , ” she said in a brief interview .
“ It ’ s a big decision.
” She said Senate Democrats were advised in a healthcare meeting to close their offices .
Meanwhile , San Francisco and Seattle announced bans on large gatherings , and a growing number of universities moved to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of how surreal the disruption of American life looks to become , NCAA tournament games for men ’ s and women ’ s basketball will be played in empty arenas .
“ This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus , ” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said .
“ We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear.
” In a televised address to the nation Wednesday night , Trump imposed stringent new restrictions , barring foreign nationals traveling from Europe from entering the country for 30 days , beginning Friday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United Kingdom and does not affect travel by U.S. citizens , permanent residents or immediate family members of U.S. citizens .
It applies to any foreign national who has been in Europe during the 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival in the U.S. “ The European Union failed to take the same precautions ” as the United States did in barring travel from China , he said , claiming that U.S. clusters of the disease were “ seeded by travelers from Europe.
” Trump said he was instructing the Small Business Administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ businesses hurt by the outbreak and asked Congress to approve $ 50 billion in additional funding for that purpose .
And he asked Congress again to approve payroll tax relief , a proposal that neither party on Capitol Hill has favored .
“ This is the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in modern history , ” Trump said .
“ I am confident by continuing to take these tough measures we will significantly reduce the threat to our citizens , and we will ultimately and expeditiously defeat this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ came after a player for the Utah Jazz tested positive for the coronavirus .
In a bizarre scene , the game in Oklahoma City between the Thunder and the Jazz was delayed seconds before tip-off and canceled minutes later .
“ The NBA announced that a player on the Utah Jazz has preliminarily tested positive for COVID-19 , ” the league said in a statement .
“ The test result was reported shortly prior to the tip-off of tonight ’ s game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s game was canceled .
The affected player was not in the arena.
” Meanwhile , L.A. County health officials continued to urge people — particularly older residents , pregnant women and those with underlying health problems — to be cautious in large crowds or avoid them altogether , but they said the number of cases did not yet warrant closing schools or stadiums .
“ We will get to a point , unfortunately , here in L.A. County , where we will be asking for events to close , ” said Barbara @ @ @ @ @ @ @ County Department of Public Health .
“ But we ’ re not there yet.
” The person who died was a woman older than 60 who had underlying health conditions and was visiting Los Angeles County after extensive travel over the last month , including a long layover in South Korea .
“ Shortly after being hospitalized , she unfortunately passed , ” Ferrer said .
Nine new cases confirmed Wednesday brought the total to 29 in the county , officials reported — a reflection of the minimal amount of testing conducted so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the new cases came from community spread and that the contagion is not just in a few pockets but “ scattered throughout the entire county.
” “ If you are a person who is older and you have underlying health conditions or you have a serious immunocompromised system , or you are a pregnant woman or you are just aging , this is the time to avoid all nonessential travel , this is the time to stop going to events where there are large groups of people gathering , this is the time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concerts or sporting events , ” Ferrer said .
Newsom said Tuesday that thousands of California residents may have been exposed to the virus .
The United States has surpassed 1,300 coronavirus cases , with most in Washington state , New York and California , where the Department of Public Health reported a total of 198 positive cases .
By Tuesday evening , 1,452 passengers had been transferred from the Grand Princess cruise ship to be quarantined at Air Force bases or flown to their home countries .
On Wednesday , officials continued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , on which at least 21 people had tested positive for the coronavirus .
That same day , officials announced that 120 people showing signs of illness would be quarantined separately at an otherwise empty hotel in San Pablo .
The mounting side effects of the virus could be seen across the country : empty subway cars , quiet streets , a longtime Houston rodeo canceled , tours of the Capitol stopped in Washington , and the Dow Jones industrial average entering bear territory after an 11-year bull market .
In Washington state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ involving any gathering of more than 250 people in the Seattle metro area — be it Sunday church , a wedding , a concert or a political fundraiser .
The ban does not extend to airports , grocery stores or transportation systems such as buses and ferries .
The big conundrum public officials are facing is whether to close school systems .
Seattle announced plans to shut its public schools for two weeks starting Thursday .
But Los Angeles , Santa Clara and San Francisco counties are holding off such closures , at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the illness has been very mild , ” said Dr. Grant Colfax , health officer for San Francisco , adding that they were either showing no signs of physical illness or experiencing mild flu-like symptoms .
In a study of nearly 45,000 lab-confirmed coronavirus cases , no one under the age of 10 had died of the virus .
Colfax and other health experts raise the possibility that closing schools could actually cause more deaths , as a number of those children stay home with elderly caretakers who are much more likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Clara County , which has the state ’ s largest outbreak with 48 confirmed cases , is keeping its schools open for now .
But others are closing .
In the Sacramento suburb of Elk Grove , public schools were closed after two family members of students at several campuses tested positive for the coronavirus .
Sacramento County health officials announced Tuesday that a resident at an Elk Grove senior-living facility had become the county ’ s first fatality from COVID-19 .
The woman , 90 , was among about 140 patients at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sacramento County ’ s health director , said other residents of the Elk Grove facility were now subject to special protective measures , including having meals delivered to rooms and not being allowed to congregate in communal areas .
He said the county was changing its goal from trying to keep the virus contained to simply slowing its spread .
That is the approach of the World Health Organization as well .
“ Even those countries with community transmission or larger clusters can turn the tide on this virus , ” said Tedros @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said his agency ’ s calling the disease a pandemic — a word many experts have been using for weeks — doesn ’ t change the need for more aggressive government responses .
“ WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock , and we ’ re deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction , ” Tedros said .
The coronavirus outbreak has now sickened at least 127,000 people on six continents and caused more than 4,700 deaths .
The objective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infections so that the healthcare system isn ’ t overwhelmed with patients .
Public health officials have a name for this : flattening the curve .
Left alone , the virus would race through the population , and the number of cases would shoot skyward and then fall , resembling the shape of a mountain peak .
But with containment measures , the curve can be squashed into a wide hill .
The outbreak would take longer to run its course .
But if the strategy works , the number of people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be greatly reduced .
Ideally , it would fall below the threshold that would swamp hospitals , urgent care clinics and medical offices .
That ’ s why public health officials will continue the labor-intensive work of recording and tracking new infections , ensuring that infected individuals stay home and guarding the borders against the arrival of new cases .
At the same time , they ’ ll expand their mitigation efforts , such as canceling events and encouraging people to work from home .
Many universities are moving their classes online ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Cal State L.A. , Cal State Northridge , Pepperdine and Chapman universities announced such measures .
In some ways , mitigation is just containment on a larger scale .
Instead of focusing on a single infected individual , officials target clusters of infected people .
Buildings , city blocks or whole neighborhoods might be identified as infected , then walled off .
That ’ s why New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo dispatched the National Guard to suburban New Rochelle to enforce a “ containment zone ” around a community with more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infections are unavoidable , pushing them into the future will increase the chances that a treatment will be available by the time a patient needs it .
Some might even benefit from a coronavirus vaccine , though that is nearly a year away , at best .
“ What we have to do right now is to put a lid on this epidemic , to flatten the curve of infection and buy ourselves some time to get a vaccine , ” said Georgetown University ’ s Lawrence Gostin , an expert in public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have to think about bringing all the interventions we have up to scale.
” Times staff writers Jennifer Haberkorn and Noah Bierman in Washington , Rong-Gong Lin II in San Francisco , Anita Chabria , Taryn Luna and John Myers in Sacramento , Melissa Healy in New York and Josh Rottenberg , Dan Woike and Soumya Karlamangla in Los Angeles contributed to this report .

Alex Wigglesworth, Richard Winton, Dakota Smith, Hailey Branson-Potts, Joe Mozingo

NBA referees Marc Davis, left, and Justin Van Duyne wait on the sideline before the New Orleans Pelicans-Sacramento Kings game in Sacramento was called off Wednesday.
Coronavirus cases continue to mount across California as counties big and small reported new tallies on Thursday and Disneyland took unprecedented action to close the theme park for the rest of the month.
Los Angeles County health officials confirmed three new cases, two of which had an unidentified source of exposure, suggesting that the virus is actively spreading in the community.
Over the past week, county leaders have stressed the importance of personal responsibility as coronavirus is believed to be active throughout Los Angeles County, which has 32 confirmed cases.
“We’re not at the point of closing down all activities for everybody,” said Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “But we are at the point of saying you know who you are. You know how much you can help at this point. We’ve asked for everyone’s help and that means modifying pretty much everything you do outside of your house every day.”
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California officials are calling for the cancellation of all gatherings with 250 or more people to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The state has recorded 198 cases of the new coronavirus as of Thursday, up from 177 the day before.
Meanwhile, the United States has surpassed 1,300 coronavirus cases, with most in Washington state, New York and California.
President Trump suspended travel from Europe as the coronavirus continues its spread across the globe Wednesday, claiming its first life in L.A. County and causing the World Health Organization to refer to the outbreak for the first time as a pandemic.
“This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. “We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear.”
This week, the outbreak brought significant disruption, with a growing number of school closures, event cancellations and travel restrictions.
× The WHO has officially declared the coronavirus a pandemic. This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus. Infectious disease physician Timothy Brewer of UCLA compares the novel coronavirus to other pandemics, like H1N1, MERS, SARS and influenza.
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A call for ‘social distancing’
The new mass gathering policy from the California Department of Public Health, which will be in effect at least through March, marks the first time the state has issued a request for all residents across California to adopt so-called “social distancing” measures and represents a new sense of urgency in the administration’s approach to fighting the virus.
The recommendations have the potential to touch virtually all corners of social life across the state: community meetings, sports events and school theater performances.
In response to the governor’s order, Disneyland announced it will close its Anaheim theme park and California Adventure, beginning Saturday through the end of the month.
Additionally, the Los Angeles Police Department will postpone its graduation ceremony for new officers, which was scheduled for this week at the Los Angeles Police Academy, to avoid a large gathering, according to officials. Such a graduation typically draws 300 people to the training facility near Dodgers Stadium.
“Changing our actions for a short period of time will save the life of one or more people you know,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. “That’s the choice before us. Each of us has extraordinary power to slow the spread of this disease. Not holding that concert or community event can have cascading effects — saving dozens of lives and preserving critical healthcare resources that your family may need a month from now.”
In recent days, public health officials have modified their requests to the public, advising people to avoid communal eating, meetings or gatherings with more than 50 attendees and all nonessential travel, both international and domestic. They’ve also advised those who are immunocompromised, pregnant or elderly to consider avoiding gatherings of even 10 people.
Dr. Barbara Ferrer, director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health, said Thursday at a news conference that those who take public transit should wash their hands before getting on a bus or train and after arriving at their destination, and people should take care to wipe down gym equipment and wash their hands before and after working out, she said. Group fitness classes where people aren’t able to stay 6 feet apart should be avoided entirely, she said.
L.A. County health officials continued to urge people — particularly older residents, pregnant women and those with underlying health problems — to be cautious in large crowds or avoid them altogether, but they said the number of cases did not yet warrant closing schools or stadiums.
“We will get to a point, unfortunately, here in L.A. County, where we will be asking for events to close,” Ferrer said. “But we’re not there yet.”
City halls closed, events canceled
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Thursday announced sweeping measures to try to limit the spread of the virus. Garcetti said all city departments were being ordered to postpone or cancel public events and meetings expected to draw 50 or more people. He also called for a ban on all public events and conferences on city-owned properties expected to draw 50 or more people.
He also said visitors were effectively banned from City Hall.
“We are closing City Hall to all non-city employees.” Guests, however, are allowed to attend City Council meetings, he said.
The directive prompted the Griffith Observatory to close, starting Friday. The tourist attraction typically sees 4,000 visitors a day, so limiting that number to 50 “just doesn’t make sense,” said Department of Recreation and Parks General Manager Mike Shull. “It’s just safer. We could create other issues with lines forming.”
The Los Angeles Zoo also will close to the public beginning Friday. Employees will continue to report to work to care for the animals. The closure is expected to last through March 31.
Pasadena city officials announced the city was canceling all “nonessential” city-sponsored events and activities until further notice. Santa Monica announced its city hall building would be closed to the public starting Monday, and its libraries closed starting this weekend, with the facilities remaining closed at least through the end of the month. Cities across the Southland, including Beverly Hills, Glendale, Malibu, Redondo Beach and Santa Ana, have taken similar measures.
Frustration mounted in Manhattan Beach after city leaders learned from a resident that they had coronavirus and were self-quarantined in their home.
The city issued a news release Thursday, noting that local leaders had repeatedly contacted the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and Supervisor Janice Hahn’s office to find out whether any Manhattan Beach residents had tested positive for coronavirus.
Hahn’s office advised them that the public health department will not confirm COVID-19 to a local entity unless there’s a known public exposure or need to cancel an event or close a facility, according to the news release. Further, under state and federal law, public health investigations are confidential.
“This is very disturbing and seriously disappointing to say the least,” Mayor Richard Montgomery said in a statement. “Not being able to obtain information about COVID-19 cases in our own community is counterproductive to our common goal of protecting our residents.”
Malibu city leaders, faced with questions from residents about whether any residents had tested positive with COVID-19, sent out a news release Tuesday explaining how local leaders aren’t provided with specific details about coronavirus activity.
Meanwhile, San Francisco, which reported 18 cases, up from 14 on Wednesday, and Seattle announced bans on large gatherings, and a growing number of universities moved to hold classes online.
Counties take precautions
Three L.A. County sheriff’s deputies and five L.A. County Fire Department personnel are now under quarantine after answering a Monday call to Walnut to attend to a woman who later died of the coronavirus, Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Thursday.
The woman was taken by ambulance to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center in full cardiac arrest, the hospital said in a news release. After arriving at the hospital, she was placed in isolation but died shortly afterward, officials said.
“Our highly trained staff followed all appropriate infection control protocols and took every precaution in caring for this patient, who tragically succumbed to their complications,” Dr. Daniel Gluckstein, the hospital’s medical director of infectious disease, said in a statement. “We extend our deepest condolences to the patient and family.”
The hospital has identified all staffers who came into contact with the patient and is following guidelines issued by the county department of public health regarding healthcare worker exposure, the news release said.
Rapid-fire developments come as the virus continues to spread elsewhere in the state.
Tulare County announced its first case late Wednesday.
Karen Elliott, public health director for Tulare County, said at a news conference that the infected person was tested at Sierra View Medical Center in Porterville and was being kept in isolation at home. The person was in stable condition, “and we hope for a quick recovery,” Elliott said.
“The individual does not fall within a vulnerable population,” she said. Health officials believed the person contracted the virus outside the county, she said.
Riverside County also announced an additional locally acquired case of the virus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases there to eight.
It was announced Thursday that a San Jose firefighter had tested positive and might have exposed other firefighters, city manager David Sykes said.
By Thursday afternoon, four firefighters had tested positive, said Sean Kaldor, president of IAFF Local 230, which represents San Jose firefighters. They worked in different stations, on different shifts, performing different roles, he said.
“As far as how they got exposed, the challenge with COVID-19 is that it’s starting to become prevalent in our community,” he said. “So any patient, any call, any time could be symptomatic with it.”
Two other San Jose firefighters were awaiting results after being tested for the coronavirus, and a total of 77 were on leave to see if they developed symptoms, Kaldor said.
Contra Costa County reported a total of 16 cases, up from 10 the day before.
Ventura County now has 3 cases, up one from yesterday.
The San Mateo County health officer issued an order Thursday banning all mass gatherings of 250 or greater. The order is effective Friday at 11:59 p.m. through April 3 but exempts houses of worship, museums, malls, hospital and medical facilities, and the normal operations of hotels and airports.
Trump announces travel restrictions
The mounting side effects of the virus could be seen across the country: empty subway cars, quiet streets, a longtime Houston rodeo canceled, tours of the Capitol stopped in Washington, and the Dow Jones industrial average entering bear territory after an 11-year bull market.
In a televised address to the nation Wednesday night, Trump imposed stringent new restrictions, barring foreign nationals traveling from Europe from entering the country for 30 days, beginning Friday. The ban does not include the United Kingdom and does not affect travel by U.S. citizens, permanent residents or immediate family members of U.S. citizens.
It applies to any foreign national who has been in Europe during the 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival in the U.S.
“The European Union failed to take the same precautions” as the United States did in barring travel from China, he said, claiming that U.S. clusters of the disease were “seeded by travelers from Europe.”
Trump said he was instructing the Small Business Administration to provide new low-interest loans for some businesses hurt by the outbreak and asked Congress to approve $50 billion in additional funding for that purpose. And he asked Congress again to approve payroll tax relief, a proposal that neither party on Capitol Hill has favored.
In Washington state, Gov. Jay Inslee banned events involving any gathering of more than 250 people in the Seattle metro area — be it Sunday church, a wedding, a concert or a political fundraiser. The ban does not extend to airports, grocery stores or transportation systems such as buses and ferries.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein said she was closing her California offices and considering closing her Washington office because of the coronavirus.
“I don’t want people unnecessarily hurt,” she said in a brief interview. “It’s a big decision.”
She said Senate Democrats were advised in a healthcare meeting to close their offices.
Faced with two outbreaks of coronavirus on its ships and increasing government pressure, Princess Cruises announced Thursday it would suspend all operations for its vacation voyages for 60 days.
The news comes as federal and state authorities undertake a massive operation to disembark 3,500 passengers from the Grand Princess, a number of them infected by the virus, and move them to quarantine sites largely on U.S. military bases.
By Tuesday evening, 1,452 passengers had been transferred from the Grand Princess cruise ship to be quarantined at Air Force bases or flown to their home countries.
On Wednesday, officials continued to allow passengers to leave the ship, on which at least 21 people had tested positive for the coronavirus. That same day, officials announced that 120 people showing signs of illness would be quarantined separately at an otherwise empty hotel in San Pablo.
In a sign of how surreal the disruption of American life looks to become, NCAA tournament games for men’s and women’s basketball have been canceled.
The NBA’s announcement of the indefinite suspension of its season came after a player for the Utah Jazz tested positive for the coronavirus. In a bizarre scene, the game in Oklahoma City between the Thunder and the Jazz was delayed seconds before tip-off and canceled minutes later.
“The NBA announced that a player on the Utah Jazz has preliminarily tested positive for COVID-19,” the league said in a statement. “The test result was reported shortly prior to the tip-off of tonight’s game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. At that time, tonight’s game was canceled. The affected player was not in the arena.”
In an announcement that brought the spreading public health crisis to Hollywood, Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson said they had tested positive for the virus.
“Hello, folks,” Hanks said in a statement. “Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus and were found to be positive.”
The big conundrum public officials are facing is whether to close school systems.
Seattle announced plans to shut its public schools for two weeks starting Thursday. But Los Angeles, Santa Clara and San Francisco counties are holding off such closures, at least for now.
“In children, the illness has been very mild,” said Dr. Grant Colfax, health officer for San Francisco, adding that they were either showing no signs of physical illness or experiencing mild flu-like
symptoms.
In a study of nearly 45,000 lab-confirmed coronavirus cases, no one under the age of 10 had died of the virus.
Colfax and other health experts raise the possibility that closing schools could actually cause more deaths, as a number of those children stay home with elderly caretakers who are much more likely to succumb to the disease.
Santa Clara County, which has the state’s largest outbreak with 48 confirmed cases, is keeping its schools open for now. But others are closing.
Catholic schools run by the Diocese of San Jose will close Friday for at least two weeks, and begin distance learning on Tuesday. The West Contra Costa Unified School District and San Mateo Union High School District also announced closures beginning Monday; both said instruction would continue with remote learning.
Ross School District in Marin County is closing on Friday; Carmel Unified in Monterey County is shutting schools Friday and intends to begin remote instruction Wednesday.
Classes at Berkeley High School are canceled starting Friday, and classes for Berkeley Unified’s elementary and middle schools are canceled starting Monday.
Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District announced Thursday evening that it would close schools from noon Friday until April 3.
“Schools will be open for students and staff Friday, March 13, 2020 from 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m,” Superintendent Alex Cherniss wrote in an email. “During this time, students who do not have a device at home, may sign-out a Chromebook at the main office for use during this closure and other students may stop in briefly to pick up any items (i.e., textbooks, workbooks, etc.) that they may have left behind. We understand that school closure affects all families, and we are committed to addressing the needs of all our learners.”
All public schools in Santa Cruz County have been ordered to shutdown beginning Monday after a case of coronavirus was confirmed at Rio Del Mar Elementary School.
In the Sacramento suburb of Elk Grove, public schools were closed after two family members of students at several campuses tested positive for the coronavirus.
Cases of respiratory illness continued to be reported across the San Francisco Unified School District, which ordered a district wide shutdown Thursday to begin Monday.
Besides the four students suffering from pneumonia, suspected to be caused by the coronavirus, at Lakeshore Elementary, which closed earlier this week, the district Thursday afternoon also ordered a shut down of Glen Park Elementary, where seven students were suffering from respiratory illness.
Sacramento County health officials announced Tuesday that a resident at an Elk Grove senior-living facility had become the county’s first fatality from COVID-19.
The woman, 90, was among about 140 patients at the facility.
Dr. Peter Beilenson, Sacramento County’s health director, said other residents of the Elk Grove facility were now subject to special protective measures, including having meals delivered to rooms and not being allowed to congregate in communal areas.
He said the county was changing its goal from trying to keep the virus contained to simply slowing its spread.
That is the approach of the World Health Organization as well.
“Even those countries with community transmission or larger clusters can turn the tide on this virus,” said Tedros, the director-general of WHO.
He said his agency’s calling the disease a pandemic — a word many experts have been using for weeks — doesn’t change the need for more aggressive government responses.
“WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock, and we’re deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction,” Tedros said.
The coronavirus outbreak has now sickened at least 127,000 people on six continents and caused more than 4,700 deaths.
The objective now is to spread out the inevitable infections so that the healthcare system isn’t overwhelmed with patients.
Public health officials have a name for this: flattening the curve.
Left alone, the virus would race through the population, and the number of cases would shoot skyward and then fall, resembling the shape of a mountain peak. But with containment measures, the curve can be squashed into a wide hill.
The outbreak would take longer to run its course. But if the strategy works, the number of people who are sick at any given time will be greatly reduced.
Ideally, it would fall below the threshold that would swamp hospitals, urgent care clinics and medical offices. That’s why public health officials will continue the labor-intensive work of recording and tracking new infections, ensuring that infected individuals stay home and guarding the borders against the arrival of new cases.
At the same time, they’ll expand their mitigation efforts, such as canceling events and encouraging people to work from home. Many universities are moving their classes online; on Wednesday, Cal State Long Beach, Cal State L.A., Cal State Northridge, Pepperdine and Chapman universities announced such measures.
In some ways, mitigation is just containment on a larger scale. Instead of focusing on a single infected individual, officials target clusters of infected people.
Buildings, city blocks or whole neighborhoods might be identified as infected, then walled off. That’s why New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo dispatched the National Guard to suburban New Rochelle to enforce a “containment zone” around a community with more than 100 infected residents.
Even when infections are unavoidable, pushing them into the future will increase the chances that a treatment will be available by the time a patient needs it. Some might even benefit from a coronavirus vaccine, though that is nearly a year away, at best.
“What we have to do right now is to put a lid on this epidemic, to flatten the curve of infection and buy ourselves some time to get a vaccine,” said Georgetown University’s Lawrence Gostin, an expert in public health law. “We are going to have to think about bringing all the interventions we have up to scale.”
Times staff writers Jennifer Haberkorn and Noah Bierman in Washington, Rong-Gong Lin II in San Francisco, Anita Chabria, Taryn Luna and John Myers in Sacramento, Melissa Healy in New York and Josh Rottenberg, Dan Woike, Soumya Karlamangla and Jaclyn Cosgrove in Los Angeles contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-03-12--We text and order food on apps. Why does coronavirus social distancing feel different?

Just the other day , I went out and observed people mingling en masse .
I watched a crowd of tourists in the forecourt of what I still call Mann ’ s Chinese place their hands , as they ’ ve always done , into the much-touched cement handprints of stars .
I watched shoppers crowd around tables and fondle the shiny iPhones and MacBooks on display at the Apple Store at The Grove .
I watched families squeeze in next to other families to admire the outdoor mall ’ s dancing fountain .
The mall wasn ’ t exactly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ odd mask .
I didn ’ t notice anyone make an obvious effort to stand six feet away from anyone else .
If social distancing was happening , it was too subtle for me .
The sun was out .
Rain had yet to fall .
Life in the time of coronavirus , I thought , didn ’ t seem to have changed our habits so much .
Still , as I stood just off to the side taking these scenes in , I felt an intense wave of loss and nostalgia .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ at home on my own that I fully began to understood why .
At first I thought I was mourning the enforced separation from each other that we were just about to start experiencing .
Then I realized I was mourning a togetherness already on the way out — from a long ago age before Amazon , before Netflix , before Postmates .
Before giant flat-screen home TVs with surround sound , before virtual reality .
We are in the midst of a pandemic .
People suddenly are falling sick .
They are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now — for our own health , to protect the health of others and to fight to keep this coronavirus in check .
But haven ’ t we been distancing ourselves from each other more and more for years ?
Isn ’ t being apart becoming more and more our norm ?
I ’ d started out thinking about how , in California , we ’ re used to crises making us come together , not come apart .
In the rubble , in the ash , we ’ re used to crossing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and reaching out to anyone at all who needs help .
But then I realized that part of what ’ s striking in the modern era of our earthquakes and fires and mudslides is the many times when neighbors who were strangers meet each other in extremis , when in calamity communities suddenly spring to life and coalesce .
Because in the modern age , in ordinary circumstances , a lot of us increasingly keep to ourselves .
After all , it ’ s become so very easy and convenient .
Why go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exactly what you would have ordered there delivered to you in the comfort of your home ?
Why go to a theater when you can watch a movie that ’ s practically just come out on TV ?
Why go see a friend when you can Facetime and text ?
Why go to the store and see people — except for pandemic panic shopping — when you have Amazon and Instacart ?
Why work in an office with others when you can do your job on your own in your pajamas ?
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of crowds , the rain arrived here in Los Angeles — literally and figuratively .
Events that draw crowds started being canceled right and left .
So did plenty of far cozier , more intimate gatherings .
Concerts , conferences , festivals , tournaments , classes , church services , campaign rallies — all nixed , postponed or preparing to become online only .
Everything changed in a flash , dictated by necessity .
Social distance was no longer theoretical , isolation no longer optional .
I ’ ve written before about my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more and more people are isolated and lonely , working at jobs without offices , going whole days without real human contact .
Now we ’ re all in that boat .
I ’ m hoping enforced separation will do the trick and slow down the community spread of coronavirus .
I ’ m willing to do anything to help make that happen .
I think we all have to be all in to do that .
Still , many things I often chose to do immediately felt different and constricting when they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our modern conveniences — our screens and our apps , our online shopping , our delivery services — can provide us with so much coziness and ease when we ’ re feeling overstimulated and worn out and need to retreat from the big world outside .
But it ’ s one thing to work from home because you feel like it and you can .
It ’ s another to be told that you can not go spend the day with your co-workers in the office .
It ’ s one thing to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ choose to watch a basketball game on TV .
It ’ s another to be told that you should not go to a movie theater , that you can ’ t go to a basketball game , that concerts have been called off .
It ’ s one thing to order in food because you want to put on your comfy clothes and curl up on the couch .
It ’ s another thing to get a note from one of the delivery apps saying you can now request not to even see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order left at the front door .
It ’ s one thing to know you can choose the big world anytime , when you ’ re tired of the couch and of texting .
Right now , of course , just a few days in , I want nothing more than to go out to eat with friends , to hug a neighbor , to hold a hand .
I ’ m hoping we get to the other side of this without large-scale tragedy .
There ’ s no way of knowing yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do , I ’ m hoping that the experience of social distancing gives us pause and makes us realize how much we have missed company , not just the company of those we know and love but of strangers .
We live in a world that can be scary , a world where people fire into crowds , where stock markets crash , where the gap between the haves and the have-nots keeps growing , along with the anger and division .
But I ’ m hoping that if we get through this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take over , that we come together again in full appreciation of how good that can feel .
Just the other day , I watched people mingling en masse .
I hope I ’ ll get to do so again before long .

Just the other day, I walked out in the sun and observed people mingling en masse.
I watched a crowd of tourists in the forecourt of what I still call Mann’s Chinese place their hands, as they’ve always done, into the handprints of stars.
I watched shoppers crowd around tables at the Apple Store at The Grove. I watched families squeeze in next to other families to admire the mall’s dancing fountain.
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I saw only the odd mask. I saw strangers walk side by side. If coronavirus social distancing was happening, it was too subtle for me.
Still, I felt an intense wave of loss and nostalgia, which has been growing ever since. Since the rain began to fall. Since Southern California grew cold and gray. Since coronavirus so quickly closed in.
Lately I’ve been mourning not just the physical community we’re now giving up of necessity, but also a togetherness we’ve so casually been letting slip away — since Amazon, since Netflix, since Postmates. Since giant home TVs with surround sound and streaming services, since the arrival of virtual reality.
We have to practice social distancing now for everyone’s sake. We are in the midst of a pandemic. People are falling sick. They are dying.
But haven’t we been distancing ourselves from each other more and more for years? Hasn’t being apart become more and more our norm? Maybe we’re about to start seeing the downside.
In the modern age, even in ordinary circumstances, a lot of us increasingly choose to keep to ourselves. After all, it’s become so very easy and convenient.
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Why go to a restaurant when you can have exactly what you would have ordered there delivered to you in the comfort of your home? Why go to a theater when you can watch a newly released movie on TV?
Why go see a friend when you can Facetime and text?
Why go to the office when you can do your job on your own in your pajamas?
Why go to the store and see people — except perhaps to fight for the last rolls of toilet paper — when you can shop on Amazon or Instacart?
Why is it that all these conveniences that we’ve been embracing for years now feel so different when a pandemic requires them? Why does cozy and comfy on the couch now suddenly feel claustrophobic?
In California, we’re used to our earthquakes and our fires making us come together, not come apart. In the rubble, in the ash, we quickly cross our own property lines and comfort zones and reach out to anyone who needs help.
We’re just a few days in, and already coronavirus feels like the loneliest of crises.
Now I go out to walk my dog and strangers see me and cross the street, even when there’s still half a block between us.
Everything that brings us together is being canceled or postponed or turned remote: concerts, conferences, festivals, tournaments, classes, church services, campaign rallies.
Social distance is no longer theoretical, isolation no longer optional.
I’ve stated my worries before about a modern-day world in which more and more people are isolated and lonely, working at jobs without offices, going whole days without real human contact. Now we’re all in that boat. We all will feel how that feels.
I’m hoping forced separation will do the trick and slow down the community spread of coronavirus. I’m willing to do anything to help make that happen. I think we all have to be all in to do that.
Still, many things I often choose to do immediately feel constricting when they are no longer by choice.
All our modern conveniences — our screens and our apps, our online shopping, our delivery services — can provide us with so much coziness and ease when we’re feeling overstimulated and worn out and need to retreat from the big world outside. But we also have the big world to plunge back into. Now suddenly we don’t.
It’s one thing to work from home because you feel like it and you can. It’s another to be told that you cannot go spend the day with your co-workers in the office. It’s one thing to stream a movie by choice or to choose to watch a basketball game on TV. It’s another to be told that you should not go to a movie theater, that you can’t go to a basketball game, that concerts have been called off.
It’s one thing to order in food because you want to put on your comfy clothes and curl up on the couch. It’s another to be told by the experts that it might be best not even to see or greet your delivery person but to have your order left at the front door.
It’s so different to know that you can step out into a crowd again whenever you’re tired of the couch and of texting. Now that crowds are canceled, I am longing for them.
Right now, already, I want nothing more than to go out to eat with friends, to hug a neighbor, to hold a hand. Instead my neighbor stands on the sidewalk and I stay on the porch and we wish each other well from a safe distance.
I’m hoping we get to the other side of this without large-scale tragedy. There’s no way of knowing yet if we will.
But if we do, I’m hoping that the experience of social distancing gives us pause and makes us realize how much we have missed company, not just the company of those we know and love but of strangers.
We live in a world that can be scary, a world where people fire into crowds, where stock markets crash, where the gap between the haves and the have-nots keeps growing, along with the anger and division. But I’m hoping that if we get through this, we don’t let fear take over, that we come together again in full appreciation of how good that can feel.
Just the other day, I watched people mingling en masse. I hope I’ll get to do so again before long.


latimes--2020-03-12--The coronavirus will slam the brakes on California's economic growth, study says

California ’ s economic growth will slow this year as unemployment rises and job creation weakens as a result of the coronavirus outbreak , according to a UCLA forecast released Thursday .
“ Prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic we were optimistic about the California economy , ” wrote Jerry Nickelsburg , director of the Anderson School of Management forecast , noting that unemployment in December stood at just 3.9 % and income growth was higher than in the U.S. overall despite the toll of the trade war on the state ’ s logistics industry .
But “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrote .
“ Supply chains are interrupted and transpacific travel has ground to a standstill .
The epidemic is on , and how long it lasts and how severe it becomes is an open question.
” • The state ’ s jobless rate will average 4.4 % this year , growing to 4.5 % in 2021 and dropping to 4.3 % in 2022 .
• Payrolls , which expanded by 1.79 % from December 2018 to December 2019 , will hardly grow at all in the third quarter of this year — by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % in 2020 and 2021 , and 0.9 % in 2022 .
• Personal income growth adjusted for inflation will slow to 1.3 % this year , followed by 1.7 % in 2021 and 2022 .
It stood at 2 % last year .
Last month , UCLA economists were in the middle of compiling data for their quarterly March report when the coronavirus hit the U.S. “ As a result we tore up the forecast we were about to present , ” wrote senior economist David Shulman , adding that the new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ incomplete and rapidly evolving information.
” Shulman predicted that U.S. GDP in the second and third quarters of this year would see “ very modest increases of 1.3 % and 0.6 % respectively , compared to the 2 % plus growth we previously forecast .
You can view our forecast as the midpoint between the coronavirus having a very minimal effect to it causing a full-blown recession .
Time will tell.
” Despite UCLA ’ s forecast for slower growth , however , Nickelsburg suggested that “ the strength with which the California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buffer particularly for relatively short-term interruptions in supply chains and travel.… By 2022 , we expect the economy to be more-or-less at the same levels it would have been absent this event.
” Some economists are less optimistic .
Scott Anderson , chief economist for Bank of the West in San Francisco , said he forecasts “ somewhat more severe impacts ” than the UCLA economists , with a 50 % likelihood of recession by the second or third quarter of this year .
In California , he said , “ You ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in consumer demand — something you only see in recessions .
We ’ re seeing cancellations of events .
Employers have people working from home .
That will impact bars and restaurants .
With the drop in air travel , hotel occupancies are down .
“ You ’ ll see pretty big declines in sales at retailers , maybe not in March because there ’ s a hoarding effect with people buying toilet paper at Costco .
But we ’ re stealing from future sales , so you ’ ll see significant hits @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he noted , a widely watched index of U.S. service business activity , known as US Markit Services PMI , fell into contraction in February for the first time since 2016 and was at its worst level since October 2013 .
“ In California , service business employment makes up 87.1 % of the total , higher than the national share of 86.0 % , ” Anderson said , “ so this drop could be a bad sign for the economic and labor market outlook.
” Allan Zaremberg , president of the California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he went to get his car serviced at a BMW outlet in Sacramento this week , the mechanic complained that business had slowed since the coronavirus hit .
“ People are probably more conservative in spending money , ” Zaremberg said .
“ That may impact the macro economy in the long run.
” But he suggested that “ the diversity of California ’ s economy , which doesn ’ t exist in other states , is a significant factor in buffering a crisis like this.
” Zaremberg said , for example , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and logistics , the state has a large agricultural industry .
Still , Zaremberg said , “ the level of uncertainty has ramped up in the last week .
The general notion is , ‘ Don ’ t panic.
’ But every business should have a contingency plan based on the best-case scenario , the worst-case scenario and the most likely scenario — and how do you manage that.
” In Southern California , where 1 in 9 jobs is tied to international trade through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a toll , UCLA ’ s Nickelsburg wrote , with a decline in the movement of goods .
The signing of an initial trade agreement with China had lifted hopes for a revival , but “ the outbreak of COVID-19 mitigates against any increase in goods movement until the last quarter of the year , ” he said .
With Chinese factories operating at about 40 % of capacity , officials at the San Pedro Bay complex this week projected a 15 % to 17 % plunge in cargo volumes in the first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three months of 2019 .
Thousands of dockworkers and truckers have lost work .
Economists cited several factors making California particularly vulnerable to a coronavirus-related downturn : the concentration of Pacific Rim trade , travel and tourism , and related leisure and hospitality businesses , along with the information technology sector that relies on trade .
Anderson also said that the steep decline in the stock market will “ hit state tax revenues harder than most and put pressure on the state to cut expenses and slow job creation.
” California ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wealthy residents , whose income is more dependent on the stock market than that of the general population .
Nickelsburg suggested a rise in demand for healthcare services and personal care services may partially offset the toll of the coronavirus on international tourism and on logistics .
But , as with manufacturing , estimating the true effect is “ problematic ” because of the unknown nature of the virus threat , he wrote .
“ More is unknown than known.
” The UCLA forecast factored in data from earlier epidemics , including SARS @ @ @ @ @ @ @ H1N1 swine flu of 2009-10 , which alone killed 12,500 Americans .
But Shulman wrote , “ What makes COVID-19 different from the prior epidemics … is that although less fatal , it is potentially far more contagious… .
That triggered the economic shutdowns that have become so disruptive to the global economy .
”

The coronavirus is expected to slow the growth of California’s personal income and jobs.
California’s economic growth will slow this year as unemployment rises and job creation weakens as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, according to a UCLA forecast released Thursday.
The university economists stopped short of predicting a recession.
“Prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic we were optimistic about the California economy,” wrote Jerry Nickelsburg, director of the Anderson School of Management forecast, noting that unemployment in December stood at just 3.9% and income growth was higher than in the U.S. overall despite the toll of the trade war on the state’s logistics industry.
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But “that has now changed,” he wrote. “Supply chains are interrupted and transpacific travel has ground to a standstill. The epidemic is on, and how long it lasts and how severe it becomes is an open question.”
Business Truckers, dockworkers suffer as coronavirus chokes L.A., Long Beach ports cargo The nation’s largest port is hurting. That may be a leading indicator of the pain that’s in store for Southern California and the U.S. economy as businesses hunker down to deal with the rapidly expanding new coronavirus.
Among the forecast’s predictions:
The state’s jobless rate will average 4.4% this year, growing to 4.5% in 2021 and dropping to 4.3% in 2022.
Payrolls, which expanded by 1.79% from December 2018 to December 2019, will hardly grow at all in the third quarter of this year — by 0.3% — and by just 1% in 2020 and 2021, and 0.9% in 2022.
Personal income growth adjusted for inflation will slow to 1.3% this year, followed by 1.7% in 2021 and 2022. It stood at 2% last year.
Last month, UCLA economists were in the middle of compiling data for their quarterly March report when the coronavirus hit the U.S. “As a result we tore up the forecast we were about to present,” wrote senior economist David Shulman, adding that the new forecast is “an attempt to distill incomplete and rapidly evolving information.”
Shulman predicted that U.S. GDP in the second and third quarters of this year would see “very modest increases of 1.3% and 0.6% respectively, compared to the 2% plus growth we previously forecast. You can view our forecast as the midpoint between the coronavirus having a very minimal effect to it causing a full-blown recession. Time will tell.”
Despite UCLA’s forecast for slower growth, however, Nickelsburg suggested that “the strength with which the California economy entered the current decade provides a buffer particularly for relatively short-term interruptions in supply chains and travel.… By 2022, we expect the economy to be more-or-less at the same levels it would have been absent this event.”
Some economists are less optimistic. Scott Anderson, chief economist for Bank of the West in San Francisco, said he forecasts “somewhat more severe impacts” than the UCLA economists, with a 50% likelihood of recession by the second or third quarter of this year.
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In California, he said, “You’re going to see a significant drop in consumer demand — something you only see in recessions. We’re seeing cancellations of events. Employers have people working from home. That will impact bars and restaurants. With the drop in air travel, hotel occupancies are down.
Customers wait in line to buy water and other supplies at a Costco in Burbank on March 6. (ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
“You’ll see pretty big declines in sales at retailers, maybe not in March because there’s a hoarding effect with people buying toilet paper at Costco. But we’re stealing from future sales, so you’ll see significant hits in April or May.”
Already, he noted, a widely watched index of U.S. service business activity, known as US Markit Services PMI, fell into contraction in February for the first time since 2016 and was at its worst level since October 2013.
“In California, service business employment makes up 87.1% of the total, higher than the national share of 86.0%,” Anderson said, “so this drop could be a bad sign for the economic and labor market outlook.”
Allan Zaremberg, president of the California Chamber of Commerce, said that when he went to get his car serviced at a BMW outlet in Sacramento this week, the mechanic complained that business had slowed since the coronavirus hit.
“People are probably more conservative in spending money,” Zaremberg said. “That may impact the macro economy in the long run.”
But he suggested that “the diversity of California’s economy, which doesn’t exist in other states, is a significant factor in buffering a crisis like this.” Zaremberg said, for example, that in addition to tourism, technology and logistics, the state has a large agricultural industry.
Still, Zaremberg said, “the level of uncertainty has ramped up in the last week. The general notion is, ‘Don’t panic.’ But every business should have a contingency plan based on the best-case scenario, the worst-case scenario and the most likely scenario — and how do you manage that.”
In Southern California, where 1 in 9 jobs is tied to international trade through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the trade war had already taken a toll, UCLA’s Nickelsburg wrote, with a decline in the movement of goods. The signing of an initial trade agreement with China had lifted hopes for a revival, but “the outbreak of COVID-19 mitigates against any increase in goods movement until the last quarter of the year,” he said.
With Chinese factories operating at about 40% of capacity, officials at the San Pedro Bay complex this week projected a 15% to 17% plunge in cargo volumes in the first quarter of this year from the first three months of 2019. Thousands of dockworkers and truckers have lost work.
Economists cited several factors making California particularly vulnerable to a coronavirus-related downturn: the concentration of Pacific Rim trade, travel and tourism, and related leisure and hospitality businesses, along with the information technology sector that relies on trade.
Anderson also said that the steep decline in the stock market will “hit state tax revenues harder than most and put pressure on the state to cut expenses and slow job creation.” California’s tax structure relies heavily on income from wealthy residents, whose income is more dependent on the stock market than that of the general population.
Nickelsburg suggested a rise in demand for healthcare services and personal care services may partially offset the toll of the coronavirus on international tourism and on logistics. But, as with manufacturing, estimating the true effect is “problematic” because of the unknown nature of the virus threat, he wrote. “More is unknown than known.”
The UCLA forecast factored in data from earlier epidemics, including SARS, MERS, Ebola and especially the H1N1 swine flu of 2009-10, which alone killed 12,500 Americans.
But Shulman wrote, “What makes COVID-19 different from the prior epidemics … is that although less fatal, it is potentially far more contagious…. That triggered the economic shutdowns that have become so disruptive to the global economy.”


latimes--2020-03-12--Large gatherings should be canceled due to coronavirus outbreak, California Gov. Gavin Newsom says

Gov .
Gavin Newsom joined state health officials in recommending the cancellation of gatherings of 250 or more people across the entire state , escalating the effort by his administration to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus .
The new policy from California Department of Public Health , which will be in effect at least through March , marks the first time the state has issued a request for all residents across California to adopt so-called “ social distancing ” measures and represents a new sense of urgency in the administration ’ s approach to fighting the virus in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Changing our actions for a short period of time will save the life of one or more people you know , ” Newsom said in a statement .
“ That ’ s the choice before us .
Each of us has extraordinary power to slow the spread of this disease .
Not holding that concert or community event can have cascading effects — saving dozens of lives and preserving critical health care resources that your family may need a month from now .
The people in our lives who are most at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ health conditions — are depending on all of us to make the right choice.
” The size recommendations have the potential to touch virtually all corners of social life across the state — community meetings , sports events and school theater performances .
The new guidelines broadly apply requirements that have been adopted in counties across California that are struggling to combat community spread of the virus .
Until now , the decision to implement such measures has been left to the discretion of county public health officials , who the governor previously @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for their communities .
In recent days , counties including Santa Clara , Sacramento and San Francisco , have shifted from aggressively tracking and tracing every known contact of a confirmed COVID-19 patient to asking residents to avoid congregating in large groups .
Some counties have warned the elderly and people with underlying health conditions , such as asthma , chronic obstructive pulmonary disease , diabetes , chronic liver disease , blood disorders and other conditions , to remain at home as much as possible .
Public health experts say county health departments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at a scale that makes it difficult to trace everyone who may have been potentially exposed to the disease , allowing officials to focus resources on protecting hospitals , nursing homes and other facilities most at risk .
The new directive also reflects guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week to cancel large gatherings greater than 250 people in communities with minimal to moderate community spread .
The California recommendations say small events at venues that do not allow 6 feet of space between people should be postponed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high risk of severe illness from COVID-19 should be limited to no more than 10 .
State health officials offered a series of suggestions on making gatherings less susceptible to the spread of coronavirus if the event is small or deemed essential .
Those include staggering start times so that attendees don ’ t all show up at once , limiting the number of people who stand in lines and adding space between places where people sit or stand .
The advisory , which does not carry the force of law , stops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work , travel or even some leisure habits .
A document provided by the governor ’ s administration said the limit on large gatherings does “ not apply to essential public transportation , airport travel , or shopping at a store or mall.
” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said he and other mayors were briefed on the plan by the Newsom administration earlier Wednesday night .
In an interview on CBS2 TV , he said L.A. would follow suit on limiting large gatherings .
“ We should not have Angelenos going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gatherings , ” Garcetti said .
“ But even in that case , we think that should be avoided.
” It remains to be seen whether Newsom ’ s late-night announcement reflects the full extent of how far he ’ s willing to go to change the daily behavior of Californians .
State laws grant broad authority to local and state officials in times of a health or safety crisis .
Following the 2001 terrorist attacks , those laws were updated to allow for an emergency declaration to respond to any “ imminent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any contagious , infectious , or communicable disease , chemical agent , noncommunicable biologic agent , toxin , or radioactive agent.
” The governor also has powers under the state ’ s Emergency Services Act — including the ability to make far-reaching decisions , as the law states , if he “ finds that local authority is inadequate to cope with the emergency.
” Invoking those statutes could come with considerable political risk , likely upending the existing working relationships the Newsom administration has sought to establish with counties and cities most heavily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Newsom ’ s announcement extends the administration ’ s previous recommendations for event organizers to create contingency plans in counties without confirmed COVID-19 cases and to make preparations to cancel non-essential large-scale events in counties with confirmed cases of the virus .
The governor ’ s request came hours before Gov .
Kate Brown of Oregon is expected to announce new orders addressing mass gatherings , social distancing , workplaces and other statewide mitigation efforts at a press conference on Thursday .
Governors along the West Coast have scrambled in recent days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ growing problem that was hardly noticeable just a few weeks earlier .
California officials have said there ’ s a possibility that international travelers brought COVID-19 to the state in January and before the first patients tested positive .
“ I mean our best estimate is sometime in January , but we ’ re not exactly certain , ” said Dr. Mark Ghaly , secretary of California Health and Human Services .
As of Wednesday , more than 11,000 international travelers who returned to the state through San Francisco or Los Angeles international @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the disease .
The Newsom administration has activated emergency operations centers and said state resources have been deployed to counties that request help .
The governor declared a state of emergency last week to remove any regulatory restrictions related to response efforts .
Newsom said Tuesday that his administration had requested additional testing kits from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has begun distributing some 21 million masks to healthcare facilities from a reserve of state supplies .

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at a Feb. 27 news conference in Sacramento on the state’s response to novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19.
Gov. Gavin Newsom joined state health officials in recommending the cancellation of gatherings of 250 or more people across the entire state, escalating the effort by his administration to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The new policy from California Department of Public Health, which will be in effect at least through March, marks the first time the state has issued a request for all residents across California to adopt so-called “social distancing” measures and represents a new sense of urgency in the administration’s approach to fighting the virus in a state with 177 confirmed cases.
“Changing our actions for a short period of time will save the life of one or more people you know,” Newsom said in a statement. “That’s the choice before us. Each of us has extraordinary power to slow the spread of this disease. Not holding that concert or community event can have cascading effects — saving dozens of lives and preserving critical health care resources that your family may need a month from now. The people in our lives who are most at risk — seniors and those with underlying health conditions — are depending on all of us to make the right choice.”
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× Here’s a quick guide to how the novel coronavirus spreads, how likely you are to get it and what you can do to stay healthy.
The size recommendations have the potential to touch virtually all corners of social life across the state — community meetings, sports events and school theater performances.
The new guidelines broadly apply requirements that have been adopted in counties across California that are struggling to combat community spread of the virus. Until now, the decision to implement such measures has been left to the discretion of county public health officials, who the governor previously said are best equipped to make decisions for their communities.
In recent days, counties including Santa Clara, Sacramento and San Francisco, have shifted from aggressively tracking and tracing every known contact of a confirmed COVID-19 patient to asking residents to avoid congregating in large groups. Some counties have warned the elderly and people with underlying health conditions, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, chronic liver disease, blood disorders and other conditions, to remain at home as much as possible.
Public health experts say county health departments make the change when the virus spreads at a scale that makes it difficult to trace everyone who may have been potentially exposed to the disease, allowing officials to focus resources on protecting hospitals, nursing homes and other facilities most at risk.
The new directive also reflects guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week to cancel large gatherings greater than 250 people in communities with minimal to moderate community spread.
The California recommendations say small events at venues that do not allow 6 feet of space between people should be postponed or canceled. Gatherings of people at high risk of severe illness from COVID-19 should be limited to no more than 10.
State health officials offered a series of suggestions on making gatherings less susceptible to the spread of coronavirus if the event is small or deemed essential. Those include staggering start times so that attendees don’t all show up at once, limiting the number of people who stand in lines and adding space between places where people sit or stand.
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The advisory, which does not carry the force of law, stops short of asking Californians to change their work, travel or even some leisure habits. A document provided by the governor’s administration said the limit on large gatherings does “not apply to essential public transportation, airport travel, or shopping at a store or mall.”
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said he and other mayors were briefed on the plan by the Newsom administration earlier Wednesday night. In an interview on CBS2 TV, he said L.A. would follow suit on limiting large gatherings.
“We should not have Angelenos going to those unless they are absolutely essential business gatherings,” Garcetti said. “But even in that case, we think that should be avoided.”
It remains to be seen whether Newsom’s late-night announcement reflects the full extent of how far he’s willing to go to change the daily behavior of Californians.
State laws grant broad authority to local and state officials in times of a health or safety crisis. Following the 2001 terrorist attacks, those laws were updated to allow for an emergency declaration to respond to any “imminent and proximate threat of the introduction of any contagious, infectious, or communicable disease, chemical agent, noncommunicable biologic agent, toxin, or radioactive agent.”
The governor also has powers under the state’s Emergency Services Act — including the ability to make far-reaching decisions, as the law states, if he “finds that local authority is inadequate to cope with the emergency.”
Invoking those statutes could come with considerable political risk, likely upending the existing working relationships the Newsom administration has sought to establish with counties and cities most heavily impacted by the spread of COVID-19 cases.
Newsom’s announcement extends the administration’s previous recommendations for event organizers to create contingency plans in counties without confirmed COVID-19 cases and to make preparations to cancel non-essential large-scale events in counties with confirmed cases of the virus.
The governor’s request came hours before Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon is expected to announce new orders addressing mass gatherings, social distancing, workplaces and other statewide mitigation efforts at a press conference on Thursday.
California L.A. County reports new community-spread coronavirus cases as state total hits 198 As California called for a ban on gatherings of 250 or more people, Disneyland took the unprecedented action of announcing it will close the park through the end of the month.
Governors along the West Coast have scrambled in recent days to get out in front of a growing problem that was hardly noticeable just a few weeks earlier.
California officials have said there’s a possibility that international travelers brought COVID-19 to the state in January and before the first patients tested positive.
“I mean our best estimate is sometime in January, but we’re not exactly certain,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of California Health and Human Services.
As of Wednesday, more than 11,000 international travelers who returned to the state through San Francisco or Los Angeles international airports were self-monitoring for any signs of the disease.
The Newsom administration has activated emergency operations centers and said state resources have been deployed to counties that request help. The governor declared a state of emergency last week to remove any regulatory restrictions related to response efforts.
Newsom said Tuesday that his administration had requested additional testing kits from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has begun distributing some 21 million masks to healthcare facilities from a reserve of state supplies.


latimes--2020-03-12--L.A. Unified plans for teaching by television after canceling all large gatherings

All large student and staff gatherings in Los Angeles Unified schools have been canceled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic , L.A. Unified Supt .
Austin Beutner told parents in a letter and robocall on Wednesday night .
And in a retro move in line with the unusual times , the nation ’ s second-largest school system is now preparing to offer students instruction by television .
On Thursday , Beutner announced a partnership with public broadcasting giant KCET to prepare programming that would go on air in conjunction with any closing of schools .
No schools are closed as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that student competitions and sports games — considered to be large gatherings — will now occur “ without spectators.
” The steps with KCET are part of larger efforts to deal with the outbreak of the novel coronavirus — limiting its spread , but also planning for how teaching and other operations would continue in modified form .
“ The content is deep and rich and learning will continue , ” Beutner said in an interview Thursday morning .
“ We started with what ’ s good — what standards-based instruction looks like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what ’ s good TV.
” All the same , these offerings are intended to include some very good TV — including , for example , documentaries by Ken Burns that would fit into a history or government class .
The materials are being pulled from the KCET library , programs that often already include a syllabus or framework for academic study .
One problem , however , was how to handle the reality that different grade levels require vastly different instructional materials .
The solution being developed is to offer programming for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ KCET plans to offer high school level programming .
KLCS — which is operated by L.A. Unified — would offer content for grades 3 through 8 .
And PBS SoCal KOCE would manage preschool through grade 2 .
While it would be impossible to replicate a full day of instruction for every grade and academic level , the move still could prove to be the most comprehensive national effort yet to offer a school day on television .
Though that idea may seem about 20 years out of date given widespread use of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ quarter of families in L.A. Unified lack adequate broadband access for online studies and the district only has about half the devices it would need to send computers home with students , which also would raise additional complications .
Staff at L.A. Unified and PBS have been working intensively since Monday to ramp up planning .
“ When we sat together with our teams on Monday , we started talking about goals and key objectives , ” said Andrew Russell , chief executive and president of KCET and PBC SoCal .
“ That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ everybody given that some students won ’ t have access to the internet ?
” Shows cleared for broadcast include : “ Peg + Cat ” for pre-kindergarten students ; “ Cyberchase ” for grades 3 through 5 ; “ Nova ” for grades 6 through 8 , and the Burns documentary on the Civil War for high school .
The school system does not plan to rely only on TV , however .
Many district students have online accounts through which they can receive and turn in assignments .
There also are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in that field .
And Beutner said paper packets for work at home also would remain an option .
A key goal , he said , is for students to maintain a connection with teachers .
The district , he added , also is developing plans to continue feeding students and paying employees .
The ban on gatherings was a response to advice from health officials .
“ We are implementing , effective immediately , a series of steps based on recommendations from public health officials , ” Beutner said in the message @ @ @ @ @ @ @ large student and staff gatherings are canceled , as well as off-campus visits by students and staff to public places where crowds gather.
” Beutner sent the following in a separate directive to school leaders Wednesday : • Cancel or postpone all large gatherings , assemblies and school open houses .
In simple terms , if the gathering has more people than you might find in a classroom , students and staff should not participate .
• Athletic events and other similar activities can continue , but without spectators attending .
• Cancel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ development meetings .
• Try to use Zoom , conference calls or other ways to convene a virtual gathering .
• Cancel all outside use of school facilities .
• Cancel all school trips to public venues where there is exposure to crowds .
• Exclude from school campuses all students , staff , faculty members or visitors for 14 days who have traveled outside the United States .
The decision comes after the school board declared a state of emergency Tuesday , giving Beutner the powers to act quickly in case the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gives Beutner the authority to relocate students and staff , revise student transportation arrangements and approve alternative educational options .
It also gives him authority to provide paid leaves of absence for employees due to quarantine or illness , assign staff to serve as disaster-service workers , and order necessary alterations , repairs or improvements to district property .
None of the confirmed coronavirus cases in L.A. County are known to be connected to L.A. Unified schools , Beutner told parents , and the social distancing protocols are a precautionary measure .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is appropriate for schools to remain open and on as normal a schedule as possible , ” he wrote .
Although many colleges and universities have closed and moved completely to online learning , it is more difficult for K-12 schools to do so .
“ The colleges and universities are already equipped ” to offer classes online and have been doing it for years , explained Pomona Unified schools spokesman Oliver Unaka .
But K-12 classes rely “ a lot on in-person , day-to-day type things .
”

No schools have closed in the Los Angeles Unified School District because of the coronavirus, but restrictions have been placed on gatherings, field trips and school visits.
All large student and staff gatherings in Los Angeles Unified schools have been canceled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, L.A. Unified Supt. Austin Beutner told parents in a letter and robocall on Wednesday night.
And in a retro move in line with the unusual times, the nation’s second-largest school system is now preparing to offer students instruction by television.
On Thursday, Beutner announced a partnership with public broadcasting giant PBS SoCal/KCET to prepare programming that would go on air in conjunction with any closing of schools.
No schools are closed as of yet, but LAUSD has decided that student competitions and sports games — considered to be large gatherings — will now occur “without spectators.”
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The steps with PBS SoCal/KCET are part of larger efforts to deal with the outbreak of the novel coronavirus — limiting its spread, but also planning for how teaching and other operations would continue in modified form.
“The content is deep and rich and learning will continue,” Beutner said in an interview Thursday morning. “We started with what’s good — what standards-based instruction looks like. We didn’t start with what’s good TV.”
All the same, these offerings are intended to include some very good TV — including, for example, documentaries by Ken Burns that would fit into a history or government class. The materials are being pulled from the PBS SoCal/KCET library, programs that often already include a syllabus or framework for academic study.
One problem, however, was how to handle the reality that different grade levels require vastly different instructional materials. The solution being developed is to offer programming for varying ages on three separate channels.
The KCET channel plans to offer high school level programming. KLCS — which is operated by L.A. Unified — would offer content for grades 3 through 8. And PBS SoCal would manage preschool through grade 2.
While it would be impossible to replicate a full day of instruction for every grade and academic level, the move still could prove to be the most comprehensive national effort yet to offer a school day on television.
Though that idea may seem about 20 years out of date given widespread use of the internet, Beutner noted that a quarter of families in L.A. Unified lack adequate broadband access for online studies and the district only has about half the devices it would need to send computers home with students, which also would raise additional complications.
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Staff at L.A. Unified and PBS SoCal/KCET have been working intensively since Monday to ramp up planning.
“When we sat together with our teams on Monday, we started talking about goals and key objectives,” said Andrew Russell, PBS SoCal/KCET President & CEO. “That first one was how do we serve everybody given that some students won’t have access to the internet?”
Shows cleared for broadcast include: “Peg + Cat” for pre-kindergarten students; “Cyberchase” for grades 3 through 5; “Nova” for grades 6 through 8, and the Burns documentary on the Civil War for high school.
The school system does not plan to rely only on TV, however. Many district students have online accounts through which they can receive and turn in assignments. There also are online courses available through providers that specialize in that field. And Beutner said paper packets for work at home also would remain an option.
A key goal, he said, is for students to maintain a connection with teachers.
The district, he added, also is developing plans to continue feeding students and paying employees.
The ban on gatherings was a response to advice from health officials.
“We are implementing, effective immediately, a series of steps based on recommendations from public health officials,” Beutner said in the message to families about 7:45 p.m. “All large student and staff gatherings are canceled, as well as off-campus visits by students and staff to public places where crowds gather.”
Beutner sent the following in a separate directive to school leaders Wednesday:
Cancel or postpone all large gatherings, assemblies and school open houses. In simple terms, if the gathering has more people than you might find in a classroom, students and staff should not participate.
Athletic events and other similar activities can continue, but without spectators attending.
Cancel or postpone all in-person organizational and professional development meetings.
Try to use Zoom, conference calls or other ways to convene a virtual gathering.
Cancel all outside use of school facilities.
Cancel all school trips to public venues where there is exposure to crowds.
Exclude from school campuses all students, staff, faculty members or visitors for 14 days who have traveled outside the United States.
The decision comes after the school board declared a state of emergency Tuesday, giving Beutner the powers to act quickly in case the virus does reach schools.
The declaration gives Beutner the authority to relocate students and staff, revise student transportation arrangements and approve alternative educational options. It also gives him authority to provide paid leaves of absence for employees due to quarantine or illness, assign staff to serve as disaster-service workers, and order necessary alterations, repairs or improvements to district property.
None of the confirmed coronavirus cases in L.A. County are known to be connected to L.A. Unified schools, Beutner told parents, and the social distancing protocols are a precautionary measure.
“Public health officials also tell us it is appropriate for schools to remain open and on as normal a schedule as possible,” he wrote.
Although many colleges and universities have closed and moved completely to online learning, it is more difficult for K-12 schools to do so.
“The colleges and universities are already equipped” to offer classes online and have been doing it for years, explained Pomona Unified schools spokesman Oliver Unaka. But K-12 classes rely “a lot on in-person, day-to-day type things.”


latimes--2020-03-12--California prisons halt visits due to coronavirus risk

California prisons will stop visits in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus .
In a statement late Wednesday , the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said that the move was a precaution and that there had been no confirmed cases in the sprawling system .
“ CDCR values visitation as an essential part of rehabilitation , but at this time the Department must make difficult decisions in order to protect the health and wellness of all who live in , work in , and visit state prisons , ” the statement said .
Volunteers will still have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this time , we are still operating normal rehabilitative programming , ” said Corrections Department spokeswoman Dana Simas .
Inmate advocates have voiced concern that the congregate prison living conditions would make the spread of the virus unstoppable once behind bars .
“ It would not surprise me if there are undiagnosed as-of-yet-cases , because my layperson ’ s opinion is that there are plenty of such cases out in the ‘ free world , ’ given the very limited testing available and relatively mild symptoms in what apparently is the vast majority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the Prison Law Office .
“ Also , until this past weekend , it was tough to have a diagnosed case because tests were very limited .
That ’ s now changing , and CDCR medical , I ’ m told , can now can take samples on site and send them to their contracted private lab .
”

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation says that the visitor ban is a precaution and that there haven’t been any confirmed cases in the state prison system.
California prisons will stop visits in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus.
In a statement late Wednesday, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said that the move was a precaution and that there had been no confirmed cases in the sprawling system.
“CDCR values visitation as an essential part of rehabilitation, but at this time the Department must make difficult decisions in order to protect the health and wellness of all who live in, work in, and visit state prisons,” the statement said.
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Volunteers will still have access to the prisons. “At this time, we are still operating normal rehabilitative programming,” said Corrections Department spokeswoman Dana Simas.
Inmate advocates have voiced concern that the congregate prison living conditions would make the spread of the virus unstoppable once behind bars.
“It would not surprise me if there are undiagnosed as-of-yet-cases, because my layperson’s opinion is that there are plenty of such cases out in the ‘free world,’ given the very limited testing available and relatively mild symptoms in what apparently is the vast majority of cases,” said Steven Fama with the Prison Law Office.
“Also, until this past weekend, it was tough to have a diagnosed case because tests were very limited. That’s now changing, and CDCR medical, I’m told, can now can take samples on site and send them to their contracted private lab.”