latimes--2020-03-18--In confronting coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom takes California on its own path

When it comes to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic , Gov .
Gavin Newsom has made clear he ’ s not concerned that California ’ s way may be different from that of other states .
While the arrival of the novel coronavirus has prompted governors across the country to issue sweeping statewide orders in the name of public health — legal mandates to cancel school , quarantine the sick and close down businesses — Newsom ’ s historic directives for the state ’ s 40 million residents have come with a deliberately light touch .
The Democratic governor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ communities with COVID-19 cases , asked event organizers to cancel large gatherings , urged — but not ordered — bars , restaurants , movie theaters and gyms to close their doors and recommended that seniors and people with underlying health conditions shelter at home .
“ We ’ re not some small isolated state .
We ’ re a nation-state , ” Newsom told reporters on Sunday .
“ Santa Clara County ’ s conditions are extraordinarily different than Tulare .
Extraordinarily different than Madera .
Or Colusa .
And so , while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ perception standards , for some [ who want ] one size fits all , that ’ s not the world in which we view the reality on the ground .
There ’ s no community spread in some communities , there [ is ] significant community spread in other communities.
” Some have questioned why Newsom isn ’ t being more aggressive , and whether his softer tone could put the state at a disadvantage .
But to both Republicans and Democrats who have been part of crisis decisions made by other governors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ looks different : They see a chief executive methodically easing Californians into a new way of life as more drastic quarantine measures begin in counties inundated with cases of the virus .
“ He ’ s been very slow to act authoritarian , ” said Rob Stutzman , a Republican consultant and former advisor to Gov .
Arnold Schwarzenegger .
“ He ’ s been very intentional that these are his directives .
This is what he ’ s asking and he ’ s expressing optimism that people will comply because that is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. , I think that ’ s a very important tone to take because people will not take well to having their freedoms restricted.
” Newsom has described differences between his actions and those of other governors as a “ nuance ” and said California is too large and its counties are too distinct for a singular approach .
As a former mayor , Newsom has repeatedly said that he ’ s responding with a “ bottom-up ” approach in a state known for a governing model that gives local leaders a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their communities .
California ’ s public health system largely relies on county public health officers to respond to outbreaks .
Counties have issued requirements to their residents that often go above and beyond state guidelines — something Newsom said he ’ s encouraged in areas hardest hit by the virus .
The state also practices a system of mutual aid during disasters , in which locals officials serve as the first line of response on the ground and look to the state to provide guidance or fill in the gaps when they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the federal government to aid in recovery , often for financial support .
Susan Kennedy , a former top aide to Govs .
Gray Davis and Arnold Schwarzenegger , said the system works .
“ The locals will tell you what the problems are instead of having the state coming in thinking they know how to solve the problem , ” Kennedy said .
“ This kind of communication in the middle of a disaster is critical .
We practice for if you have a gap , you ring the bell and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Still , there have been calls for the state ’ s actions in the current crisis to be more bold .
Leah Simon-Weisberg , legal director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment , said Newsom needs to do more to halt evictions statewide and help people who are under threat of losing their homes , especially if they aren ’ t working due to closures and other government action .
Newsom took action to allow cities and counties to impose moratoriums on residential evictions .
Simon-Weisberg said local communities already have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that requiring each jurisdiction to adopt eviction bans would take too long to help everyone in need and demand a high level of intervention from advocates who are working with limited resources or are on home quarantine .
“ It ’ s really being tone-deaf , ” she said .
“ I just think this is when he has to be a leader and just pause all of the evictions.
” Newsom said Tuesday that he would take additional steps if he felt local jurisdictions were failing to protect their residents from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ considered statewide school closures , but ultimately opted against it and instead provided new financial aid to shuttered campuses .
The vast majority of schools across the state have closed on their own , but when pressed about his lack of action , Newsom criticized some districts for moving too quickly before coming up with a plan to continue to feed low-income children .
“ At this time , I don ’ t deal with perceptions , I deal with reality , and I deal with reality on the ground that 85 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to go to school on Monday , ” Newsom said at a news conference on Sunday .
“ I know for a fact that not all these districts have planned for the needs of these kids next week .
And I ’ m deeply concerned about their health .
And I ’ m deeply concerned about their safety and we are deeply concerned about their parents ’ inability to go to work.
” Newsom ’ s candid response highlighted the difficult calculus involved in making decisions during an unprecedented crisis — each action @ @ @ @ @ @ @ affect the state ’ s most vulnerable populations .
Karen Smith , a communicable disease expert and former director of the California Department of Public Health , is among those who agreed with the governor ’ s decision to not shut down schools across the state .
While counties affected by COVID-19 made the decision to close on their own , it ’ s an unnecessary step in other parts of the state , she said .
“ There are huge swaths of California where there ’ s no coronavirus yet , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place financial burdens on parents , including some healthcare workers , who would have to stay home without pay to care for their children .
Grandparents , who are most susceptible to serious illness , also could become primary caregivers for children , putting them at risk of contracting the virus .
Smith and others say school closures , or requests to quarantine at home , should come with an expiration date or some explanation as to when residents can expect to live a normal life again .
“ If you ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s going to create so much social disruption , you have to be able to articulate when you are going to decrease the restrictions , ” Smith said .
During a news conference on Tuesday , Newsom advised parents not to count on schools reopening before summer break .
“ This is a very sober thing to say , ” Newsom said .
“ And I can ’ t say this with certainty , but I can say this quite learnedly : Don ’ t anticipate schools are going to open up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t anticipate in a few weeks , and I say that because one needs to be honest , and I need to be accountable to you.
” Other governors , including Illinois Gov .
J.B. Pritzker , Washington Gov .
Jay Inslee and Ohio Gov .
Mike DeWine have taken more sweeping approaches than Newsom , ordering all schools in the state shut down and bars and restaurants closed .
“ We have been consulting with experts all through this every single day .
And it was time , ” DeWine said during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The experts told us it was time to do this .
This was not something we wanted to do , particularly with the schoolchildren.
” “ Our biggest concern in Ohio and this country is overtaxing our whole medical system , so we end up like , apparently , Italy is , where they ’ re making life-and-death decisions.
” And unlike some of his Democratic counterparts in other states , Newsom has also refrained from criticizing President Trump ’ s response to the pandemic , instead praising his administration ’ s work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ m working to solve problems , not create problems , ” Newsom said .
“ I ’ m willing to put aside our differences on a lot of issues to meet this moment , so I can meet the needs of the people in the state of California .
And I think we ’ re better off when we ’ re working partners , not sparring partners.
” Shortly after Newsom issued a directive on Sunday calling on bars to close and restaurants to enhance social distancing by cutting their dine-in clientele in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ went a step further .
Garcetti ordered bars and nightclubs closed and limited restaurants to takeout orders until March 31 .
The mayor also ordered the closure of movie theaters , gyms and fitness centers .
Newsom followed late Monday by advising restaurants to close their doors to dine-in customers , asking gyms , health clubs and movie theaters to shutter and asking residents to cease gatherings .
Several counties in California have adopted broad “ shelter-in-place ” orders of all residents , similar to the measures that have been applied to control @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Spain and China , where infectious disease experts say it appears to be slowing the spread of the deadly disease in the epicenter of the pandemic .
On Tuesday , seven counties in the Bay Area ordered all residents to remain in their homes , foreshadowing strict requirements that could be replicated regionally or statewide as more cases of COVID-19 are confirmed in California .
Sacramento County followed with a similar request for residents to stay home .
Dr. Rohan Radhakrishna , Contra Costa County deputy health officer , said local officials showed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agreed that it was the best approach .
He anticipated that additional counties would follow , but said some might be slow to issue mandatory orders without confirmed cases .
“ If transmission is high enough , that starts to leak out — especially in LA or the Bay Area where you can ’ t tell where one city ends and the next one begins , ” said Smith , who led the state public health under former Gov .
Jerry Brown and is working as a consultant in Santa Clara and Mendocino @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scenarios like this all the time and I just never expected it to happen while I ’ m working and part of it.
” Newsom said Sunday that he didn ’ t see a need to mandate a statewide quarantine yet .
“ If you want to establish a framework of martial law , which is ultimate authority enforcement , we have the capacity to do that , ” Newsom said Sunday .
“ But we are not at this moment feeling that is a necessity.
” Days later , he warned that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go further if we don ’ t think the local efforts are meeting the moment.
” Under the authority of the Emergency Services Act , the governor possesses widespread power to respond during a state of emergency such as a pandemic , said Stephen M. Duvernay , senior research fellow at Berkeley Law ’ s California Constitution Center .
The governor has authority to commandeer private property , including hospitals , medical labs , hotels and motels , and put them under the state ’ s authority — something Newsom authorized state agencies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last week .
The governor also has the authority to suspend state regulations .
For example , after the 1994 Northridge earthquake Gov .
Pete Wilson suspended regulations under the California Environmental Quality Act — a nearly half-century-old law that requires developers to disclose a project ’ s environmental effects and take steps to reduce or eliminate them — to speed up the recovery efforts .
Newsom has the authority to redirect state funds to help in an emergency , even funds appropriated by the California Legislature for an entirely different purpose .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a state of emergency , California law gives state health officials — who answer to the governor — the authority to “ quarantine , isolate , inspect , and disinfect persons , animals , houses , rooms , other property , places , cities , or localities , whenever in its judgment the action is necessary to protect or preserve the public health.
” The law also allows health officials to “ take possession or control of the body of any living person , or the corpse of any deceased person ” to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
State health officials can require the sheriff of each county to enforce orders .
Newsom used his authority in a historic step on Tuesday to direct the National Guard to be prepared to perform humanitarian missions across the state , which he described as overseeing food distribution and ensuring people aren ’ t hoarding food at grocery stores .
Through the state agencies under his control , Newsom has authority to call in the national guard to police cities , set curfews , suspend licenses to sell liquor and other services .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ safety code , Newsom could also have people arrested and quarantined in their homes , said Kevin Eckery , who served as a senior aide to Wilson .
Eckery praised Newsom for avoiding a “ draconian ” response , saying his decision to issue voluntary directives has proven to largely be effective .
“ The power is there .
But the problem is that when you exercise that authority , then you have to enforce it , ” Eckery said .
“ If you can get almost all the way there through social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frees up a lot of resources for other things.
” Eckery said that during his time in the Wilson administration in the 1990s , the governor issued 27 declarations of emergency , including during the 1994 Northridge earthquake , the AIDS epidemic , the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the Mediterranean fruit fly infestation .
The California National Guard patrolled the streets of L.A. after the riots broke out , and aided Californians displaced by the Northridge quake , Eckery said .
But Eckery and others agree that the threat of the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unprecedented in California ’ s modern history .
“ The governor can call in the National Guard , the governor can use them in any police function .
He can call for curfews .
He can call for quarantines , ” Eckery said .
“ It ’ s not something that should be used willy-nilly .
It ’ s something he should only use when he needs it — but not before it ’ s necessary and not when it ’ s too late .
”

When it comes to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Gavin Newsom has made clear he’s not concerned that California’s way may be different from that of other states.
While the arrival of the novel coronavirus has prompted governors across the country to issue sweeping statewide orders in the name of public health — legal mandates to cancel school, quarantine the sick and close down businesses — Newsom’s historic directives for the state’s 40 million residents have come with a deliberately light touch.
The Democratic governor has advised schools to consider shuttering in communities with COVID-19 cases, asked event organizers to cancel large gatherings, urged — but not ordered — bars, restaurants, movie theaters and gyms to close their doors and recommended that seniors and people with underlying health conditions shelter at home.
“We’re not some small isolated state. We’re a nation-state,” Newsom told reporters on Sunday. “Santa Clara County’s conditions are extraordinarily different than Tulare. Extraordinarily different than Madera. Or Colusa. And so, while it may be fanciful and comforting by perception standards, for some [who want] one size fits all, that’s not the world in which we view the reality on the ground. There’s no community spread in some communities, there [is] significant community spread in other communities.”
Some have questioned why Newsom isn’t being more aggressive, and whether his softer tone could put the state at a disadvantage.
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But to both Republicans and Democrats who have been part of crisis decisions made by other governors, Newsom’s approach so far looks different: They see a chief executive methodically easing Californians into a new way of life as more drastic quarantine measures begin in counties inundated with cases of the virus.
“He’s been very slow to act authoritarian,” said Rob Stutzman, a Republican consultant and former advisor to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. “He’s been very intentional that these are his directives. This is what he’s asking and he’s expressing optimism that people will comply because that is how serious the situation is. In the U.S., I think that’s a very important tone to take because people will not take well to having their freedoms restricted.”
Newsom has described differences between his actions and those of other governors as a “nuance” and said California is too large and its counties are too distinct for a singular approach. As a former mayor, Newsom has repeatedly said that he’s responding with a “bottom-up” approach in a state known for a governing model that gives local leaders a wide berth to take the lead in their communities.
California’s public health system largely relies on county public health officers to respond to outbreaks. Counties have issued requirements to their residents that often go above and beyond state guidelines — something Newsom said he’s encouraged in areas hardest hit by the virus.
The state also practices a system of mutual aid during disasters, in which locals officials serve as the first line of response on the ground and look to the state to provide guidance or fill in the gaps when they need help. The state can turn to the federal government to aid in recovery, often for financial support.
Susan Kennedy, a former top aide to Govs. Gray Davis and Arnold Schwarzenegger, said the system works.
“The locals will tell you what the problems are instead of having the state coming in thinking they know how to solve the problem,” Kennedy said. “This kind of communication in the middle of a disaster is critical. We practice for if you have a gap, you ring the bell and we’re right behind you.”
Still, there have been calls for the state’s actions in the current crisis to be more bold. Leah Simon-Weisberg, legal director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, said Newsom needs to do more to halt evictions statewide and help people who are under threat of losing their homes, especially if they aren’t working due to closures and other government action.
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Newsom took action to allow cities and counties to impose moratoriums on residential evictions. Simon-Weisberg said local communities already have the power to pause evictions. She said that requiring each jurisdiction to adopt eviction bans would take too long to help everyone in need and demand a high level of intervention from advocates who are working with limited resources or are on home quarantine.
“It’s really being tone-deaf,” she said. “I just think this is when he has to be a leader and just pause all of the evictions.”
Newsom said Tuesday that he would take additional steps if he felt local jurisdictions were failing to protect their residents from eviction.
Late last week, Newsom considered statewide school closures, but ultimately opted against it and instead provided new financial aid to shuttered campuses. The vast majority of schools across the state have closed on their own, but when pressed about his lack of action, Newsom criticized some districts for moving too quickly before coming up with a plan to continue to feed low-income children.
“At this time, I don’t deal with perceptions, I deal with reality, and I deal with reality on the ground that 85% of our kids are no longer going to go to school on Monday,” Newsom said at a news conference on Sunday. “I know for a fact that not all these districts have planned for the needs of these kids next week. And I’m deeply concerned about their health. And I’m deeply concerned about their safety and we are deeply concerned about their parents’ inability to go to work.”
Newsom’s candid response highlighted the difficult calculus involved in making decisions during an unprecedented crisis — each action carries potential unintended consequences that could negatively affect the state’s most vulnerable populations.
Karen Smith, a communicable disease expert and former director of the California Department of Public Health, is among those who agreed with the governor’s decision to not shut down schools across the state.
While counties affected by COVID-19 made the decision to close on their own, it’s an unnecessary step in other parts of the state, she said.
“There are huge swaths of California where there’s no coronavirus yet,” Smith said.
Smith emphasized that closures place financial burdens on parents, including some healthcare workers, who would have to stay home without pay to care for their children. Grandparents, who are most susceptible to serious illness, also could become primary caregivers for children, putting them at risk of contracting the virus.
Smith and others say school closures, or requests to quarantine at home, should come with an expiration date or some explanation as to when residents can expect to live a normal life again.
“If you’re going to do that, because it’s going to create so much social disruption, you have to be able to articulate when you are going to decrease the restrictions,” Smith said.
During a news conference on Tuesday, Newsom advised parents not to count on schools reopening before summer break.
“This is a very sober thing to say,” Newsom said. “And I can’t say this with certainty, but I can say this quite learnedly: Don’t anticipate schools are going to open up in a week. Please don’t anticipate in a few weeks, and I say that because one needs to be honest, and I need to be accountable to you.”
Other governors, including Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine have taken more sweeping approaches than Newsom, ordering all schools in the state shut down and bars and restaurants closed.
“We have been consulting with experts all through this every single day. And it was time,” DeWine said during a CNN interview on Thursday. “The experts told us it was time to do this. This was not something we wanted to do, particularly with the schoolchildren.”
“Our biggest concern in Ohio and this country is overtaxing our whole medical system, so we end up like, apparently, Italy is, where they’re making life-and-death decisions.”
And unlike some of his Democratic counterparts in other states, Newsom has also refrained from criticizing President Trump’s response to the pandemic, instead praising his administration’s work with the state.
“I’m working to solve problems, not create problems,” Newsom said. “I’m willing to put aside our differences on a lot of issues to meet this moment, so I can meet the needs of the people in the state of California. And I think we’re better off when we’re working partners, not sparring partners.”
Shortly after Newsom issued a directive on Sunday calling on bars to close and restaurants to enhance social distancing by cutting their dine-in clientele in half, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti went a step further. Garcetti ordered bars and nightclubs closed and limited restaurants to takeout orders until March 31. The mayor also ordered the closure of movie theaters, gyms and fitness centers.
Newsom followed late Monday by advising restaurants to close their doors to dine-in customers, asking gyms, health clubs and movie theaters to shutter and asking residents to cease gatherings.
Several counties in California have adopted broad “shelter-in-place” orders of all residents, similar to the measures that have been applied to control the virus in Italy, France, Spain and China, where infectious disease experts say it appears to be slowing the spread of the deadly disease in the epicenter of the pandemic.
On Tuesday, seven counties in the Bay Area ordered all residents to remain in their homes, foreshadowing strict requirements that could be replicated regionally or statewide as more cases of COVID-19 are confirmed in California. Sacramento County followed with a similar request for residents to stay home.
Dr. Rohan Radhakrishna, Contra Costa County deputy health officer, said local officials showed some resistance to the move, but agreed that it was the best approach. He anticipated that additional counties would follow, but said some might be slow to issue mandatory orders without confirmed cases.
“If transmission is high enough, that starts to leak out — especially in L.A. or the Bay Area where you can’t tell where one city ends and the next one begins,” said Smith, who led the state public health department under former Gov. Jerry Brown and is working as a consultant in Santa Clara and Mendocino counties. “I used to run scenarios like this all the time and I just never expected it to happen while I’m working and part of it.”
Newsom said Sunday that he didn’t see a need to mandate a statewide quarantine yet.
“If you want to establish a framework of martial law, which is ultimate authority enforcement, we have the capacity to do that,” Newsom said Sunday. “But we are not at this moment feeling that is a necessity.”
Days later, he warned that the state reserves “the right to go further if we don’t think the local efforts are meeting the moment.”
Under the authority of the Emergency Services Act, the governor possesses widespread power to respond during a state of emergency such as a pandemic, said Stephen M. Duvernay, senior research fellow at Berkeley Law’s California Constitution Center.
The governor has authority to commandeer private property, including hospitals, medical labs, hotels and motels, and put them under the state’s authority — something Newsom authorized state agencies to do in an executive order issued last week.
The governor also has the authority to suspend state regulations. For example, after the 1994 Northridge earthquake Gov. Pete Wilson suspended regulations under the California Environmental Quality Act — a nearly half-century-old law that requires developers to disclose a project’s environmental effects and take steps to reduce or eliminate them — to speed up the recovery efforts.
Newsom has the authority to redirect state funds to help in an emergency, even funds appropriated by the California Legislature for an entirely different purpose.
Along with the power to quarantine during a state of emergency, California law gives state health officials — who answer to the governor — the authority to “quarantine, isolate, inspect, and disinfect persons, animals, houses, rooms, other property, places, cities, or localities, whenever in its judgment the action is necessary to protect or preserve the public health.”
The law also allows health officials to “take possession or control of the body of any living person, or the corpse of any deceased person” to prevent the spread of a contagious disease. State health officials can require the sheriff of each county to enforce orders.
Newsom used his authority in a historic step on Tuesday to direct the National Guard to be prepared to perform humanitarian missions across the state, which he described as overseeing food distribution and ensuring people aren’t hoarding food at grocery stores.
Through the state agencies under his control, Newsom has authority to call in the national guard to police cities, set curfews, suspend licenses to sell liquor and other services. Under the state’s health and safety code, Newsom could also have people arrested and quarantined in their homes, said Kevin Eckery, who served as a senior aide to Wilson.
Eckery praised Newsom for avoiding a “draconian” response, saying his decision to issue voluntary directives has proven to largely be effective.
“The power is there. But the problem is that when you exercise that authority, then you have to enforce it,” Eckery said. “If you can get almost all the way there through social pressure, peer pressure, then that frees up a lot of resources for other things.”
Eckery said that during his time in the Wilson administration in the 1990s, the governor issued 27 declarations of emergency, including during the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the AIDS epidemic, the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the Mediterranean fruit fly infestation.
The California National Guard patrolled the streets of L.A. after the riots broke out, and aided Californians displaced by the Northridge quake, Eckery said. But Eckery and others agree that the threat of the coronavirus and the state’s response is unprecedented in California’s modern history.
“The governor can call in the National Guard, the governor can use them in any police function. He can call for curfews. He can call for quarantines,” Eckery said. “It’s not something that should be used willy-nilly. It’s something he should only use when he needs it — but not before it’s necessary and not when it’s too late.”


latimes--2020-03-18--What are the coronavirus restrictions in my community? A guide for Southern California

Southern California has taken sweeping measures this week to stop dine-in restaurant eating , close gyms and movie theaters , and ban or limit all gatherings to fight the spread of the coronavirus .
The measures , as of Wednesday morning , in most parts of Southern California were not as stringent as those imposed in 10 counties in the Bay Area and Central California , which asked residents to shelter in place and stay home as much as possible in the coming weeks , and forcing all but essential businesses to close .
The coronavirus outbreak has killed 13 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Coachella Valley in Riverside County — all over the age of 70 , with two of them having underlying health conditions — and one person in Los Angeles County , a non-California resident in her 60s with underlying health issues .
The virus strikes hardest among older people and those with underlying medical conditions ; a viral infection of the lungs can begin a cascade of problems that results in respiratory failure , septic shock and multiple organ failure .
Unlike most of the counties in the Bay Area , each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ counties has taken different approaches to slowing the spread of the virus .
As of Wednesday morning , none of the counties has the same rules over whether restaurants must serve food only to go , whether bars , gyms and movie theaters should be required to close , and how big gatherings must be to be prohibited .
Violations of health orders can be enforceable as a misdemeanor , punishable as a fine or imprisonment or both .
Here ’ s a summary of the new restrictions , first by the kind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : • Los Angeles , Orange , San Bernardino , Ventura and San Diego counties required restaurants to offer food by takeout or delivery only .
Also issuing the same order was the city of Palm Springs in Riverside County ’ s Coachella Valley , which imposed a shelter-in-place order modeled on the one issued in the San Francisco Bay Area .
• Los Angeles , Orange , San Bernardino , Ventura and San Diego counties and Palm Springs ordered bars that do not serve food to close .
• Ventura , San @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Springs ordered gyms and movie theaters to close .
• Orange and San Bernardino counties and Palm Springs banned all gatherings ; • Riverside County banned gatherings of 10 or more people ; • L.A. and San Diego counties have prohibited gatherings of 50 or more people .
Here ’ s a summary of the new restrictions by geography .
Exceptions to the gathering ban can be found in the text of the health orders .
Gatherings : Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned anywhere within the jurisdiction of the Los @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which does not include Long Beach , Pasadena or Vernon .
Gatherings of 10 to 49 people in a confined or enclosed space are not banned , but organizers must do the following : • Require attendees present for more than 10 minutes to be separated by at least six feet from other attendees ; • Provide access to hand-washing facilities with soap and water or with hand sanitizer with at least 60 % alcohol ; • Post a sign that tells people to leave if they are sick , such as having @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and nightclubs that do not serve food ; • May offer food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .
Gatherings : Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned .
Ordered shut : Bars , adult entertainment establishments and other businesses that serve alcohol but not food .
Restaurants : May offer food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .
Gatherings : Gatherings of any size outside of a single living unit are prohibited .
Ordered shut : All bars and other establishments that serve alcohol and not food .
Restaurants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , pickup or drive-through .
Gatherings : Gatherings of 10 or more people are prohibited .
Exceptions : The city of Palm Springs plans to issue a more stringent shelter-in-place order .
The city of Palm Springs issued an emergency order modeled on the “ shelter-in-place ” order in effect in San Francisco .
The order in San Francisco is similar to the one in effect in six other Bay Area counties — San Mateo , Santa Clara , Alameda , Contra Costa , Sonoma and Marin , as well as Santa Cruz @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Here ’ s what that would look like : Ordered to shelter in place : The public should stay at home as much as possible , with certain exceptions — such as to go to the supermarket , pick up prescriptions or go to the doctor ; exercise , such as walking , running or hiking ; and to check on relatives .
There are exceptions for certain essential government and business functions .
• To do things essential to health and safety of the household , including pets , like getting medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , or obtaining supplies to work from home .
• To obtain needed services or supplies , like buying groceries .
• To engage in outdoor activities like walking , hiking , running , and taking the dog for a walk , while keeping six feet away from others .
• To do work for essential businesses that are exempted from the order to shut down , as defined below .
• To care for a family member or pet in another household .
• To continue working for a healthcare operation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s office , pharmacy , pharmaceutical and biotech company , a healthcare facility , healthcare supplier , home healthcare service , mental health provider , veterinary office or other related services .
• To continue working for construction projects needed for essential infrastructure , such as building housing , airport operations , and work on water , sewer , gas , electrical , oil refining , roads and highways , public transportation , solid waste collection , internet and telecom systems .
• To continue working as first responders , emergency management @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and law enforcement .
Anyone needed to ensure the continuing operation of government agencies and provide for the health , safety and welfare of the public is exempt .
Ordered shut : All businesses , including bars , gyms and movie theaters , must cease operations .
Exceptions to the order to shut down : Essential businesses or firms that perform an essential government function can continue operating .
They include : • Essential infrastructure , including construction of housing and operation of public transportation and utilities ; • Businesses that provide necessities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shelter facilities ; • Hardware stores , plumbers , electricians , and other service providers necessary to maintain the safety , sanitation and essential operation of residences and other essential businesses ; • Educational institutions , for the purposes of facilitating distance learning ; • Businesses that ship or deliver groceries , food and goods directly to residences ; • Childcare facilities providing services that enable essential employees to go to work ; • Roles required for any essential business to “ maintain basic operations , ” which include security , payroll and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .
• Bars , adult entertainment establishments and other businesses that serve alcohol and not food ; • Must offer food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .
Ordered to shelter in place : Those 75 or older and those 70 or older with underlying medical conditions , except for needed trips outside home , such as for getting medical care or food .
If they need to take a trip outside , they must at all times as reasonably possible keep at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • Bars and nightclubs that do not serve food ; • May offer food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .
Long Beach is one of three cities in Los Angeles County with its own public health department .
Gatherings : Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned .
Gatherings of 10 to 49 people in a confined or enclosed space are not banned , but organizers must do the following : • Require attendees present for more than 10 minutes to be separated by at least six feet from other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ facilities with soap and water or with hand sanitizer with at least 60 % alcohol ; • Post a sign that tells people to leave if they are sick , such as with a fever or cough ; • Bars , pubs , cocktail lounges and nightclubs that do not serve food ; • Wineries , distilleries , breweries and taprooms that do not serve food or are not licensed to sell bottled or packaged alcohol off the licensed premises .
• May offer food only by delivery , pickup or drive-through .

Surinder Singh, owner of Urban India restaurant in San Diego, with no customers in sight on March 17, a day before San Diego County banned dine-in eating at restaurants.
Southern California has taken sweeping measures this week to stop dine-in restaurant service, close gyms and movie theaters, and ban or limit all gatherings to fight the spread of the coronavirus.
The measures, as of Thursday, in most parts of Southern California were not as stringent as those imposed in 17 counties in the Bay Area, North Coast, Sacramento Valley and Central Coast, which asked residents to shelter in place and stay home as much as possible in the coming weeks, and forcing all but essential businesses to close.
The coronavirus outbreak has killed 19 people across California, including three people in the Coachella Valley in Riverside County — all over the age of 70, with two of them having underlying health conditions — and two people in Los Angeles County, a 68-year-old retiree on her way home to Florida from a trip to Asia, and a man between the ages of 30 and 50 with an underlying medical condition.
The virus strikes hardest among older people and those with underlying medical conditions; a viral infection of the lungs can begin a cascade of problems that results in respiratory failure, septic shock and multiple organ failure.
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Unlike most of the counties in the Bay Area, each of Southern California’s most populous counties has taken different approaches to slowing the spread of the virus. As of Thursday, none of the counties has the same rules over whether restaurants must serve food only to go; whether bars, gyms and movie theaters should be required to close; and how big gatherings must be to be prohibited.
California How the San Francisco Bay Area coronavirus ‘shelter in place’ order works Stay at home as much as possible, officials say, but there are exceptions, like to go out and get food, pick up medicine, buy gas, go to the bank and check up on relatives.
Violations of health orders can be enforceable as a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine, imprisonment or both.
Here’s a summary of the new restrictions, first by the kind of restriction, and then by geography:
Ban on dine-in eating
Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Ventura and San Diego counties required restaurants to offer food by takeout or delivery only. Also issuing the same order was the city of Palm Springs in Riverside County’s Coachella Valley, which imposed a shelter-in-place order modeled on the one issued in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Order to close bars
Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Ventura and San Diego counties and Palm Springs ordered bars that do not serve food to close.
Order to close gyms and movie theaters
Ventura, Orange, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties and Palm Springs ordered gyms and movie theaters to close.
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Ban on gatherings
Orange and San Bernardino counties and Palm Springs banned gatherings.
Riverside County banned gatherings of 10 or more people.
L.A. and San Diego counties have prohibited gatherings of 50 or more people.
Here’s a summary of the new restrictions by geography. Exceptions to the gathering ban can be found in the text of the health orders.
Los Angeles County
Gatherings: Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned anywhere within the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, which does not include Long Beach, Pasadena or Vernon.
Gatherings of 10 to 49 people in a confined or enclosed space are not banned, but organizers must do the following:
Require attendees present for more than 10 minutes to be separated by at least 6 feet from other attendees.
Provide access to hand-washing facilities with soap and water or with hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
Post a sign that tells people to leave if they are sick, such as having a fever or cough.
Clean and disinfect the site.
Ordered shut:
Bars and nightclubs that do not serve food.
Movie theaters, live performance venues, bowling alleys and arcades.
Gyms and fitness centers.
Wineries, breweries and taprooms that provide tastings.
Restaurants:
May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through March 31.
San Diego County
Gatherings: Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned.
Ordered shut: Bars, adult entertainment establishments and other businesses that serve alcohol but not food.
Restaurants: May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through March 31.
Orange County
Gatherings: Gatherings are prohibited.
Ordered shut:
All bars and other establishments that serve alcohol and not food.
Movie theaters, gyms and health clubs.
Restaurants: May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through March 31.
Riverside County
Gatherings: Gatherings of 10 or more people are prohibited.
Effective: Now through April 30.
Exceptions: The city of Palm Springs plans to issue a more stringent shelter-in-place order.
City of Palm Springs
The city of Palm Springs issued an emergency order modeled on the “shelter-in-place” order in effect in San Francisco. The order in San Francisco is similar to the one in effect in the eight other Bay Area counties — San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, Sonoma, Marin, Napa and Solano, as well as Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito, Sacramento, Yolo, Mendocino, Lake and San Luis Obispo counties. Here’s what that looks like:
Ordered to shelter in place: The public should stay at home as much as possible, with certain exceptions — such as to go to the supermarket, pick up prescriptions or go to the doctor; exercise, such as walking, running or hiking; and to check on relatives. There are exceptions for certain essential government and business functions.
Exceptions to the stay-at-home order:
To do things essential to health and safety of the household, including pets, like getting medical supplies, visiting a clinic or hospital, or obtaining supplies to work from home.
To obtain needed services or supplies, like buying groceries.
To engage in outdoor activities like walking, hiking, running, and taking the dog for a walk, while keeping 6 feet away from others.
To do work for essential businesses that are exempted from the order to shut down, as defined below.
To care for a family member or pet in another household.
To continue working for a healthcare operation, like a hospital, clinic, dentist’s office, pharmacy, pharmaceutical and biotech company, a healthcare facility, healthcare supplier, home healthcare service, mental health provider, veterinary office or other related services.
To continue working for construction projects needed for essential infrastructure, such as building housing, airport operations, and work on water, sewer, gas, electrical, oil refining, roads and highways, public transportation, solid waste collection, internet and telecom systems.
To continue working as first responders, emergency management personnel, emergency dispatchers, court personnel and law enforcement. Anyone needed to ensure the continuing operation of government agencies and provide for the health, safety and welfare of the public is exempt.
Gatherings: Gatherings are prohibited.
Ordered shut: All businesses, including bars, gyms and movie theaters, must cease operations.
Exceptions to the order to shut down: Essential businesses or firms that perform an essential government function can continue operating. They include:
Healthcare operations, including home health workers;
Essential infrastructure, including construction of housing and operation of public transportation and utilities;
Grocery stores, farmers markets, food banks, convenience stores;
Businesses that provide necessities of life for economically disadvantaged individuals and shelter facilities;
Pharmacies, healthcare supply stores and healthcare facilities;
Gas stations and auto repair facilities;
Banks;
Garbage collection;
Hardware stores, plumbers, electricians, pool service, landscape maintenance, exterminators and other service providers necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation and essential operation of residences and other essential businesses;
Educational institutions, for the purposes of facilitating distance learning;
Laundromats, dry cleaners and laundry service providers;
Businesses that ship or deliver groceries, food and goods directly to residences;
Businesses that supply products needed for people to work from home, including electronic stores, mobile phone stores and office supply stores;
Airlines, taxis and other transportation providers offering services needed for essential activities;
Home-based care for seniors, adults or children;
Childcare facilities providing services that enable essential employees to go to work, but must be carried out in groups of 12 or fewer, and that children do not mix between groups;
Roles required for any essential business to “maintain basic operations,” which include security, payroll and similar activities.
Hotels, motels and lawfully permitted vacation rentals and homesharing, provided that they comply with social distancing requirements;
Licensed cannabis dispensaries and lounges, provided that cannabis products are picked up, or if licensed to do so, taken for delivery; the lounge areas shall not be used.
Restaurants: May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: March 18 to April 2.
San Bernardino County
Gatherings: Gatherings are prohibited.
Ordered shut:
Bars, adult entertainment establishments and other businesses that serve alcohol and not food;
Movie theaters, gyms and health clubs.
Restaurants:
Must offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through April 6.
Ventura County
Ordered to shelter in place: Those 75 or older and those 70 or older with underlying medical conditions, except for needed trips outside home, such as for getting medical care or food. If they need to take a trip outside, they must at all times as reasonably possible keep at least 6 feet away from anyone else.
Ordered shut:
Bars and nightclubs that do not serve food;
Movie theaters, live performance venues, bowling alleys and arcades;
Gyms, fitness centers and aquatic centers;
Wineries, breweries and tap rooms that provide tastings.
Restaurants:
May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through April 1.
City of Long Beach
Long Beach is one of three cities in Los Angeles County with its own public health department.
Gatherings: Gatherings of 50 or more people are banned. Gatherings of 10 to 49 people in a confined or enclosed space are not banned, but organizers must do the following:
Require attendees present for more than 10 minutes to be separated by at least 6 feet from other attendees;
Provide access to handwashing facilities with soap and water or with hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol;
Post a sign that tells people to leave if they are sick, such as with a fever or cough;
Clean and disinfect the site.
Ordered shut:
Bars, pubs, cocktail lounges and nightclubs that do not serve food;
Movie theaters, live performance venues, bowling alleys and arcades;
Gyms and fitness centers;
Wineries, distilleries, breweries and taprooms that do not serve food or are not licensed to sell bottled or packaged alcohol off the licensed premises.
Restaurants:
May offer food only by delivery, pickup or drive-through.
Effective: Now through March 31.


latimes--2020-03-19--Glendora man, 34, dies of coronavirus infection after visiting Disney World, sources say

A 34-year-old man who tested positive for the coronavirus infection after visiting Disney World and traveling through Los Angeles International Airport earlier this month died Thursday at a hospital in Pasadena , according to medical and government sources .
The Glendora man , who spent nearly a week on a ventilator , had underlying medical conditions , including asthma and bronchitis , the sources said .
The Times has chosen not to not identify the man to prevent his family from being shunned or targeted .
Los Angeles County health officials on Thursday announced that a man between the ages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ becoming the second person in the county to die from the novel coronavirus .
They did not provide the man ’ s name .
Barbara Ferrer , director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health , said the man lived in a “ small community in the area near Pasadena ” and had underlying health conditions .
All cases in the county are being isolated and their close contacts quarantined , she said .
“ I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of the person who is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I am so sorry for your loss , and I hope you know that we as a community are mourning with you.
” On Thursday , the sister of a 34-year-old Glendora man posted on Facebook that her brother “ went to be with Jesus this morning.
” “ He suffered a lot and put up a good fight , ” she said .
For six days , his sister took over his Facebook page , posting updates about his rapidly-deteriorating condition .
He had sent her a text message , she wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my friends.
” The man had a history of asthma and frequent bronchitis as a child , but he had not needed an inhaler for years , his sister wrote .
“ He beat testicular cancer in 2016 with surgery alone , ” she wrote Sunday .
“ 2020 , he will beat COVID-19.
” According to his sister , the man flew from LAX to Orlando , Fla. , for a work conference on March 2 .
He was healthy .
He extended his trip for two days to visit Disney World @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March 7 , she wrote , he developed a cough .
The next day , he began coughing up blood .
The man flew back to LAX on March 9 and “ went straight to the ER with a high fever , ” his sister wrote .
“ A chest X-ray confirmed pneumonia.
” The man was tested for COVID-19 , given fluids and a dose of IV antibiotics .
He was sent home , she wrote , and told to monitor his symptoms and self-quarantine until the results came back .
On @ @ @ @ @ @ @ results came back positive .
An ambulance picked him up and took him to the emergency room .
The next morning , he was taken to an intensive care unit after a CT scan showed 60 % to 70 % of his lungs blocked with pneumonia , she wrote .
“ Shortly after his transfer to the ICU , they sedated him and put him on the ventilator , ” she wrote .
For days , the man ’ s sister wrote about doctors trying different antiviral medications as he lay sedated and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ praying.
” On Tuesday , she was hopeful , writing that he had gotten Remdesivir , an antiviral drug that has been administered to some coronavirus patients and is being tested in clinical trials .
He “ JUST GOT THE ANTIVIRAL !
!
THANK YOU JESUS !
!
” his sister wrote Tuesday night in a post filled with praying-hands emojis .
On Thursday morning , she wrote , he died .
“ We are thankful for all the fun happy memories of the times we had together , ” she wrote .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ been praying .
We love you all .
”

A man who visited Disney World and traveled through Los Angeles International Airport this month has died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, sources said.
A 34-year-old man who tested positive for the coronavirus infection after visiting Disney World and traveling through Los Angeles International Airport earlier this month died Thursday at a hospital in Pasadena, according to medical and government sources.
The Glendora man, who spent nearly a week on a ventilator, had underlying medical conditions, including asthma and bronchitis, the sources said.
The Times has chosen not to not identify the man to prevent his family from being shunned or targeted.
Los Angeles County health officials on Thursday announced that a man between the ages of 30 and 50 had died, becoming the second person in the county to die from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. They did not provide the man’s name.
Barbara Ferrer, director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health, said the man lived in a “small community in the area near Pasadena” and had underlying health conditions. All cases in the county are being isolated and their close contacts quarantined, she said.
“I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of the person who is deceased,” Ferrer said. “I am so sorry for your loss, and I hope you know that we as a community are mourning with you.”
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On Thursday, the sister of a 34-year-old Glendora man posted on Facebook that her brother “went to be with Jesus this morning.”
“He suffered a lot and put up a good fight,” she said.
For six days, his sister took over his Facebook page, posting updates about his rapidly-deteriorating condition.
He had sent her a text message, she wrote Sunday, that said: “Tell my friends.”
The man had a history of asthma and frequent bronchitis as a child, but he had not needed an inhaler for years, his sister wrote.
“He beat testicular cancer in 2016 with surgery alone,” she wrote Sunday. “2020, he will beat COVID-19.”
According to his sister, the man flew from LAX to Orlando, Fla., for a work conference on March 2. He was healthy.
He extended his trip for two days to visit Disney World and Universal Studios with friends. On March 7, she wrote, he developed a cough. The next day, he began coughing up blood.
The man flew back to LAX on March 9 and “went straight to the ER with a high fever,” his sister wrote. “A chest X-ray confirmed pneumonia.”
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The man was tested for COVID-19, given fluids and a dose of IV antibiotics. He was sent home, she wrote, and told to monitor his symptoms and self-quarantine until the results came back.
On March 13, she wrote, the results came back positive. An ambulance picked him up and took him to the emergency room. The next morning, he was taken to an intensive care unit after a CT scan showed 60% to 70% of his lungs blocked with pneumonia, she wrote.
“Shortly after his transfer to the ICU, they sedated him and put him on the ventilator,” she wrote.
For days, the man’s sister wrote about doctors trying different antiviral medications as he lay sedated and told his friends: “Please keep praying.”
On Tuesday, she was hopeful, writing that he had gotten Remdesivir, an antiviral drug that has been administered to some coronavirus patients and is being tested in clinical trials.
He “JUST GOT THE ANTIVIRAL!! THANK YOU JESUS!!” his sister wrote Tuesday night in a post filled with praying-hands emojis.
On Thursday morning, she wrote, he died.
“We are thankful for all the fun happy memories of the times we had together,” she wrote. “Thank you to everyone who has been praying. We love you all.”


latimes--2020-03-19--2,500 'pop-up' shelters, 3,500 hotel rooms to be used to isolate homeless people, others in San Fran

2,500 'pop-up' shelters, 3,500 hotel rooms to be used to isolate homeless people, others in San Francisco

San Francisco is adding 2,500 new shelter spaces for homeless people and identifying at least 3,500 hotel rooms to house people who need to be isolated as the city battles the coronavirus spread .
Many of the hotel rooms will go to those who live in single-occupancy hotels with shared bathrooms and kitchens , said Trent Rhorer , executive director of San Francisco ’ s Human Services Agency .
The rooms are for people who test positive for the virus but don ’ t need a hospital and don ’ t have a place to self-isolate .
The city will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shelters to ensure social distancing and isolate homeless individuals who have tested positive but do not require hospitalization .
Rhorer said the city was in the process of securing food and staffing for those in isolation .
In addition to the 3,500 hotel rooms for isolation , the city will lease rooms for first responders .
“ We don ’ t want healthcare workers on the front line to go home and potentially infect others , ” he said .
In 2019 , 8,011 homeless individuals were counted in San Francisco ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was an increase of more than 14 % over the 2017 count .
According to state models , as many as 60,000 homeless people could become infected with the coronavirus , and 20 % could require hospitalization .
That would mean California would need 12,000 hospital beds just for those living on the streets — a formidable task for a state already struggling to find extra capacity to manage the pandemic before by too many patients .
“ That creates a deep point of anxiety for the existing population , but moreover for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Gavin Newsom said Wednesday evening .

San Francisco is adding 2,500 new shelter spaces for homeless people and identifying at least 3,500 hotel rooms to house people who need to be isolated as the city battles the coronavirus spread.
Many of the hotel rooms will go to those who live in single-occupancy hotels with shared bathrooms and kitchens, said Trent Rhorer, executive director of San Francisco’s Human Services Agency. The rooms are for people who test positive for the virus but don’t need a hospital and don’t have a place to self-isolate.
The city will open the 2,500 “pop up” shelters to ensure social distancing and isolate homeless individuals who have tested positive but do not require hospitalization.
Rhorer said the city was in the process of securing food and staffing for those in isolation.
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In addition to the 3,500 hotel rooms for isolation, the city will lease rooms for first responders.
“We don’t want healthcare workers on the front line to go home and potentially infect others,” he said.
In 2019, 8,011 homeless individuals were counted in San Francisco’s point-in-time street and shelter count. This was an increase of more than 14% over the 2017 count.
According to state models, as many as 60,000 homeless people could become infected with the coronavirus, and 20% could require hospitalization.
That would mean California would need 12,000 hospital beds just for those living on the streets — a formidable task for a state already struggling to find extra capacity to manage the pandemic before hospitals become overwhelmed by too many patients.
“That creates a deep point of anxiety for the existing population, but moreover for our healthcare delivery system,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday evening.


latimes--2020-03-19--More L.A. County jail inmates released over fears of coronavirus outbreak

The Los Angeles County Sheriff ’ s Department has reduced its inmate population by 6 % in the last three weeks to free up space in case the coronavirus enters its jails , officials said .
As of Thursday morning , there were no confirmed cases of the virus inside L.A. County jails , where the number of inmates was down to 16,017 inmates from 17,076 on Feb. 28 .
“ We anticipate the count is going to go further down , ” said Cmdr .
Jason Wolak of the Sheriff ’ s Department ’ s Custody Division .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it is so we can have flexibility in the jail in case we ’ re going to lose a part of it.
” The county ’ s sprawling jail system is the largest in the nation , and many civil rights groups and others have pushed to reduce incarceration levels to prevent lockups from becoming breeding grounds for spread of the virus .
Nine inmates were in isolation and getting tested for the virus at the Correctional Treatment Center , where everyone must get his temperature scanned before entering , Wolak said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ quarantined .
Since public visitation has been suspended , inmates are being offered two five-minute phone calls per week for free , Wolak said .
Wolak said the Sheriff ’ s Department is regularly hosting town halls for inmates , advising them about social distancing and to wash their hands , while also distributing more cleaning supplies .
Sheriff Alex Villanueva said earlier this week that he was speeding up the release of inmates with less than 30 days of jail time left to serve , and citing , instead of arresting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of less than $ 50,000 .
That doesn ’ t include people suspected of domestic violence .
The Sheriff ’ s Department is now also looking at potentially releasing pregnant women and older adults at a higher risk for contracting the virus , Wolak said .
Telephonic hearings to permit reduced bail will begin next week in the Men ’ s Central Jail for inmates being held on suspicion of nonviolent felonies .
Robin Steinberg , chief executive of The Bail Project , called on Villanueva and Dist .
Atty .
Jackie Lacey @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who are being held solely because they can not pay their bail , unless that person has been deemed a danger to the public .
“ We ’ re really thinking about this as these are our community members and we can ’ t leave these people behind as California braces for the full scale of this pandemic , ” she said .
“ Policing has to radically change in response to this crisis that we ’ re facing and the police should refrain from arresting people on the kinds of offenses that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on over the last few decades .
It ’ s an opportunity for them to only make an arrest when absolutely necessary .
”

To make space in case the coronavirus enters its jails, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has reduced its inmate population by 6% in the last three weeks.
Law enforcement officials speeded up efforts to release inmates from Los Angeles County jails over fears a coronavirus outbreak could afflict scores of individuals and strain the overburdened system.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has reduced its inmate population by 6% in the last three weeks and Dist. Atty Jackie Lacey said her office will consider reducing bail for thousands of nonviolent offenders.
As of Thursday morning, there were no confirmed cases of the virus inside L.A. County jails, where the number of inmates was down to 16,017 inmates from 17,076 on Feb. 28.
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“We anticipate the count is going to go further down,” said Cmdr. Jason Wolak of the Sheriff’s Department’s Custody Division. “The reason why we’re doing it is so we can have flexibility in the jail in case we’re going to lose a part of it.”
The county’s sprawling jail system is the largest in the nation, and many civil rights groups and others have pushed to reduce incarceration levels to prevent lockups from becoming breeding grounds for spread of the virus.
Nine inmates were in isolation and getting tested for the virus at the Correctional Treatment Center, where everyone must get his temperature scanned before entering, Wolak said. Elsewhere, 109 more inmates were being quarantined.
Since public visitation has been suspended, inmates are being offered two five-minute phone calls per week for free, Wolak said. Wolak said the Sheriff’s Department is regularly hosting town halls for inmates, advising them about social distancing and to wash their hands, while also distributing more cleaning supplies.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva said earlier this week that he was speeding up the release of inmates with less than 30 days of jail time left to serve, and citing, instead of arresting, people whose alleged offenses carry a bail of less than $50,000. That doesn’t include people suspected of domestic violence.
The Sheriff’s Department is now also looking at potentially releasing pregnant women and older adults at a higher risk for contracting the virus, Wolak said.
Lacey said Thursday that her office will consider, case by case, reducing the bail of 2,000 pretrial inmates the Sheriff’s Department has identified as nonviolent offenders. It was unclear what criteria were used to identify the inmates, but the department was expected to provide her office a list on Friday, she said.
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Lacey said her office would also conduct its own review of cases coming up for trial in the next 30 days to identify defendants who could be released on their own recognizance. A judge would have to approve any bail modifications.
“We’re looking for cases where no one was hurt, there was nobody threatened to be hurt, they don’t have anything in their prior record that indicates they’re capable of violence,” she said.
Starting next week, Lacey said, she hopes the courts will be able to get through 300 bail hearings a day, some of which will be conducted by phone.
Robin Steinberg, chief executive of The Bail Project, called on Villanueva and Lacey to work to immediately release any defendants who are being held solely because they cannot pay their bail, unless that person has been deemed a danger to the public.
“We’re really thinking about this as these are our community members and we can’t leave these people behind as California braces for the full scale of this pandemic,” she said. “Policing has to radically change in response to this crisis that we’re facing and the police should refrain from arresting people on the kinds of offenses that they have all too easily arrested people on over the last few decades. It’s an opportunity for them to only make an arrest when absolutely necessary.”
Times staff writer James Queally contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-03-19--More than half of Californians could become infected with coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom says to Tru

More than half of Californians could become infected with coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom says to Trump

Gov .
Gavin Newsom on Thursday asked Congress for $ 1 billion in federal funds to support the state ’ s medical response to the novel coronavirus , which he expects will infect more than half of all Californians .
The state projects that 25.5 million people in California will be infected with the coronavirus over an eight-week period , Newsom said in a letter sent to President Trump on Wednesday requesting the deployment of the USNS Mercy Hospital Ship to the port of Los Angeles through Sept. 1 .
In a separate letter sent to the leaders of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Newsom said the financial aid is critical to the state ’ s ability to procure ventilators and other medical supplies , activate state-run hospitals , deploy mobile hospitals and meet other healthcare needs .
The Democratic governor also requested an expansion of unemployment insurance benefits beyond the 26-week maximum and more funding for Medicaid , federal food assistance , housing and homelessness , state-subsidized early learning and childcare and several other safety net programs .
“ The economic disruption caused by this public health crisis will have immediate and devastating effects on our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in California , ” Newsom wrote .
“ The magnitude of this crisis is extraordinary and federal-state-local government coordination will be more critical than ever before.
” So far , 19 people have died from the coronavirus in California and 958 have tested positive for the disease .
The governor ’ s request for federal funds come three days after lawmakers at the state Capitol approved a plan to spend as much as $ 1 billion on the state ’ s emergency medical response to the pandemic in anticipation of a surge of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Congress also requested support for small businesses , including rental assistance , zero-interest loans and direct cash assistance , and the creation of a new U.S. Treasury Authority to provide guaranteed loans .
With schools shuttered across the state and teachers struggling to implement online and alternative learning programs , the governor also asked for an expansion of technology investments for schools , an increase in Title 1 funding for schools with a high concentration of poverty , broadband Internet upgrades , grants for teachers to adapt to digital age instruction and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Child Nutrition Programs .
“ The challenges we face as elected leaders in this crisis are immense , ” Newsom wrote .
“ Working together , I am confident that we can meet this moment and take the necessary and immediate steps to address our economic and societal needs as we continue to address — and begin to recover from — this unprecedented crisis .
”

One day after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced extraordinary measures directing all Californians to stay at home amid the coronavirus outbreak, Los Angeles County confirmed 61 new coronavirus cases, including 12 people in Long Beach and two in Pasadena. The new cases bring the county’s total to 292 amid the growing outbreak.
The median age for the total of those who have been infected is 47, county Public Health Department Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said. There are 138 people between the ages of 18 and 65 who have tested positive.
“The risk is spread across everyone,” Ferrer said at a briefing Friday.
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1 / 29 Workers at the Ralphs grocery store in Westchester measure out social distancing guidelines for its customers with markers every six feet and limiting the number of customers it allows in to shop. (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times) 2 / 29 At Echo Park Lake, friends gather with their dogs and enjoy a Sunday afternoon in the park. Social distancing and home isolation remain in effect due to the coronavirus. (Carolyn Cole/Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times) 3 / 29 During the coronavirus pandemic, people continue to walk and ride their bikes along the path at Junipero Beach in Long Beach. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) 4 / 29 People run and walk on the Veterans Parkway in Manhattan Beach even with signage saying the space is closed to help minimize the spread of the coronavirus. (Dania Maxwell/Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times) 5 / 29 Jesus Mendoza sells roses on the sidewalk in downtown Los Angeles. Mendoza said his business was overwhelmed by hundred of boxes of roses they could not sell. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) 6 / 29 Riverside County medical personnel administer a coronavirus test to a driver at a drive-though testing facility at Diamond Stadium in Lake Elsinore. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 7 / 29 Drivers line-up to get a coronavirus test administered by Riverside County medical personnel at a drive-though testing facility at Diamond Stadium in Lake Elsinore. Those tested have symptoms or have had a risk of exposure. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 8 / 29 Xiao Ping, holding a tray of eggs, looks back at the long line of egg buyers on Saturda morning in Chino. Spooked by coronavirus people from nearby Inland Empire cities started lining up early morning at Maust’s California Poultry in Chino. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 9 / 29 Spooked by coronavirus fears, people from nearby Inland Empire cities lined-up to buy eggs at Maust’s California Poultry in Chino. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 10 / 29 The sparsely trafficked intersection of the 101 and 110 freeways in downtown Los Angeles is seen in a drone image. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 29 School buses sit idle since all schools have been closed in Los Angeles County. The image was taken by drone. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 29 In this drone image, the Westfield Topanga mall parking lot sits empty, as new regulations have closed all indoor shopping centers in Canoga Park. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 29 Vehicles flow smoothly along Interstate 5 and the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles in this drone image. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 29 The city of Santa Monica has closed the Santa Monica Pier, and few people were on the beach Friday. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 29 Shops are shuttered on historic Olvera Street in downtown Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 16 / 29 The intersection of the 101 and 110 freeways in downtown Los Angeles. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times) 17 / 29 Hollywood Blvd. is devoid of the usual crowds as most shops are closed. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) 18 / 29 Hollywood Blvd. is devoid of the usual crowds as most shops are closed. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) 19 / 29 On the first day of L.A.’s ‘Safer at Home,” most major avenues and streets in downtown Los Angeles have very little traffic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 20 / 29 Empty streets in downtown Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 21 / 29 The main entrance to Union Station is closed. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 22 / 29 Union Station was restricted to only ticketed passenger and main entrance closed. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 23 / 29 Commuter protect themselves with a face mask while riding a bus at El Monte Metro Station. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 24 / 29 Salvation Army volunteer Christina Cuevas sets up cots for homeless at Westwood Recreation Center in Westwood. (Brian van der Brug/Brian van der Brug/Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) 25 / 29 Popular shopping destination Rodeo Drive is all but deserted as retail shops are shuttered in Beverly Hills. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) 26 / 29 The Apple store is among all the stores which have closed during the coronavirus outbreak in Newport Beach. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 27 / 29 With all the stores closed, Fashion Island is a ghost town except for an occasional customer getting food for take-out Newport Beach. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 28 / 29 People walk the beach, but maintain “social distancing” during the coronavirus outbreak at Crystal Cove in Newport Beach. (Gina Ferazzi/Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 29 / 29 During the coronavirus epidemic people continue to walk, ride thier bikes, and play basketball at Junipero Beach in Long Beach. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
So far, about 2,400 people have been tested in L.A. County. Roughly 10% of those have tested positive, health officials said.
Asked why someone would be denied testing for the coronavirus and who ultimately makes the decision in L.A. County, Ferrer said an individual would need to go to a medical provider, who would then authorize a test.
“Don’t go to a hospital to get tested,” she said.
Officials also announced that the Sheraton Fairplex in Pomona will serve those who need to be quarantined. More than 200 rooms will be available for people who will be provided space on a first-come, first-served basis. Individuals who have tested positive for the virus, are showing symptoms or have been exposed to someone with the virus will be given priority.
Additional deaths were reported Friday across the state. Contra Costa County announced its first death related to the virus: a person in their 70s who had an underlying medical condition and had recently traveled to Europe. The patient died Thursday in an undisclosed hospital.
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And Riverside County reported its fourth death, the 21st in California since the coronavirus outbreak began. Information about the person who died wasn’t immediately available.
Santa Clara County announced two additional deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, bringing its total to eight.
The number of reported cases continues to rise across the state. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation confirmed Friday that an employee at California State Prison in Sacramento and an employee at San Quentin State Prison have both tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. But the agency said there are no confirmed cases among inmates.
Some 1,800 prisoners at San Quentin have been on lockdown most of the week after several inmates developed flu-like symptoms. The Corrections Department has not released the results of testing of those, or any other, prison inmates.
In Irvine, a firefighter at Station 4 tested positive for the coronavirus, leading the Orange County Fire Authority to place 24 additional firefighters with whom he had contact in self-isolation.
The firefighter had no known contact with a positive individual and is already feeling better, Fire Chief Brian Fennessy said.
Having 25 firefighters out could impact the department, but should not have a huge effect on a department of 1,100, Fennessy said.
A veteran tested positive at the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs Medical Center on Wednesday. The person, who was admitted after coming into the emergency room, is being cared for in isolation, and the risk of transmission to other patients and staff is low, said Steve Ruh, chief of communications for the VA Greater L.A. Healthcare System. The VA is screening veterans and staffers and isolating those found to be at risk, Ruh said.
In San Diego County, a third cluster of COVID-19 patients was announced Thursday, as the local count of virus cases jumped from 80 to 105 and efforts to house vulnerable people in local hotels progressed.
To deal with a possible surge in coronavirus patients, the state plans to lease beds at a Northern California hospital and skilled nursing facility that were facing closure. California will lease the 357-bed Seton Medical Center in Daly City and 116-bed Seton Coastside in Moss Beach, the National Union of Healthcare Workers said in a news release.
In the meantime, Yosemite National Park shut down to all visitors on Friday. No access to the park will be permitted until further notice.
Amid the continuing spread, Newsom on Thursday ordered Californians to stay at home, marking the first mandatory restrictions placed on the lives of all 40 million residents in the state’s fight against the novel coronavirus.
Top federal officials applauded the decision at a White House press briefing Friday.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that he “strongly” supported the move by Newsom, as well as a similar directive by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and urged residents of the two hard-hit states to heed the new orders.
President Trump also praised Newsom and Cuomo, saying, “I applaud them” for “taking very bold steps” to limit activities in their states.
Newsom’s action comes at a critical time in California, where more than 1,000 people have tested positive for the disease, and it appeared to be the most far-reaching directive of any issued by states battling the epidemic.
The mandatory order allows Californians to continue to visit gas stations, pharmacies, grocery stores, farmers markets, food banks, convenience stores, takeout and delivery restaurants, banks and laundromats. People can leave their homes to care for a relative or a friend or seek healthcare services.
It exempts workers in 16 federal critical infrastructure sectors, including food and agriculture, healthcare, transportation, energy, financial services, emergency response and others.
1 / 44 The City of Santa Monica closed the Santa Monica Pier in an attempt to prevent the further spread of the Coronavirus. Very few people were on the beach in Santa Monica as the epidemic continues. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times) 2 / 44 Volunteer Nagma Shakur, 16, left, hugs her “Grannie” as she helps senior shoppers with their carts at the Grocery Outlet Bargain Market in Altadena. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times) 3 / 44 People walk up the ramp, exiting the secure area at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at LAX. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times) 4 / 44 David Barker, 56, is visiting with his friend living in a tent on skidrow in Los Angeles. Barker, who is not homeless, works in the area. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) 5 / 44 Dr. Dallas Weaver, 79, and his wife, Janet Weaver, 75, of Huntington Beach, walk on the Huntington pier. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times) 6 / 44 Seniors, including Eileen Oda Leaf, 67, left, and her husband Dave Leaf, 67, right, both wearing protective masks, line up outside Gelson’s Market in Manhattan Beach early on Wednesday, March 18, 2020. (Christina House/Los Angeles Times) 7 / 44 Roberta Tabor, 66, of Hermosa Beach, has her ID checked by store director Dennis Sullivan at Gelson’s Market in Manhattan Beach on Wednesday. The store is doing a “seniors shopping hour” where seniors 65+ can go grocery shopping before anybody else. (Christina House/Los Angeles Times) 8 / 44 Seniors shop at Gelson’s Market in Manhattan Beach on Wednesday. The store is doing a “seniors shopping hour” where seniors can go grocery shopping before the store opens to the general public. (Christina House/Los Angeles Times) 9 / 44 Dr. Mark V. Morocco oversees testing at UCLA Medical Center where people can drive up and get tested if they have the symptoms. Morocco listens to a female patient’s lungs through the car window. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times) 10 / 44 HOPICS outreach worker Ralph Gomez tosses a clipboard for a signature to homeless client Davis Soto, right, taking care to stay at least six feet away during outreach in Los Angeles. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times) 11 / 44 Medical personnel screen patients outside the emergency room at Loma Linda University Health during the coronavirus pandemic. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) 12 / 44 A nurse takes the vital signs of a woman in a medical tent outside the hospital on Catalina. (Francine Orr/Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) 13 / 44 An employee of the Trader Joe’s store in Monrovia tells customers waiting in line that it would open doors to everyone at 9 a.m., not just seniors, who arrived believing doors would open earlier to older residents, as some of the people were told by employees and it was reported. Some grocery outlets were offering special morning hours of shopping to accommodate older residents. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times) 14 / 44 Kevin Ezeh, protected with face mask and gloves, addresses the Los Angeles City Council meeting standing under a tent erected outside City Hall. A television livestreamed video of the meeting and the public offered comments remotely. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 15 / 44 Orange County Undersheriff Bob Peterson listens during a board of supervisors discussion on combating the coronavirus in Santa Ana. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times) 16 / 44 Dr. Mark V. Morocco oversees the testing at UCLA Medical Center. Testing for Covid-19 is going on at UCLA Medical Center, where people can drive up and get tested if they have the symptoms. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times) 17 / 44 A large tent is installed for public attendance at Tuesday’s Los Angeles City Council meeting. The public was not allowed in the council chamber. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 18 / 44 Shoppers queue up ahead of the Los Feliz Costco opening for business on Tuesday, March 17, 2020 in Los Angeles. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times) 19 / 44 Muhammad Faruq, an Uber driver, picks his ride Sotero Reyes, left, and Cristian Eguia, visitors from Houston, all in protective masks, from downtown Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 20 / 44 Volunteer Rachel Figueroa, serves a free lunch to go to Destiny Mendez, with her mother, Estefany, at the Dream Center in Los Angeles. LAUSD students can get free breakfast, lunch and dinner at the Dream Center, Monday through Friday. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times) 21 / 44 Emma Bradley, left, and her husband, Samuel Bradley, of Palmdale are walking up the ramp to catch the Metrolink in Union Sation in Los Angeles. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) 22 / 44 Medical personnel surround a car that is going through a coronavirus drive-thru test clinic at the San Mateo County Event Center. Drive-thru test clinics for COVID-19 are popping up across the country as more tests become available. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 23 / 44 From left, Josh Akamine, of Oahu, Hawaii; Madison Shine of Oahu; Matthew Valencia of Los Altos and Dani Ikeda visit L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times) 24 / 44 Normally bustling Grand Central Market in downtown L.A. is open only for take out. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 25 / 44 L.A. has banned restaurants from offering seating at places such as Grand Central Market. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 26 / 44 Carlos Perez, a worker at Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles sits in the empty restaurant. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times) 27 / 44 A line at the Martin B. Retting gun store in Culver City on Sunday extends out the door and around the corner. (Francine Orr / The Times) 28 / 44 A guest wears a mask in front of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland on Thursday. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 44 Students hug as they are let out of school at Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, Calif., on March 13, 2020. The school has 2,623 students who live in 94 different zip codes, some of whom travel upwards of 30 miles to school on 24 different school bus routes. 221 school staff live in 88 zip codes. Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner announced that schools will be closed due to the coronavirus. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times) 30 / 44 Blake Anderson, left, a freshman, walks with his father Oree Anderson, as school is let out at Hamilton High School in Los Angeles. LAUSD announced that schools will be closed due to the Coronavirus. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times) 31 / 44 Students leave John C. Fremont High School in Los Angeles at the end of the school day on Friday, Mar. 13, 2020. LAUSD announced it will shut down beginning Monday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times ) 32 / 44 Alexandria Casserly crosses the street while looking for toilet paper in downtown Los Angeles. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 44 A crew member stands on the stern of a cruise ship docked at the Port of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 34 / 44 Two children look at movie posters in the lobby of the Arclight theater Thursday in Manhattan Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 44 Disneyland guests wearing ponchos pass the Marketplace inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge on Thursday. Disneyland and California Adventure will temporarily close in response to the coronavirus pandemic. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 44 People shop at the Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 37 / 44 Disneyland guests take photos in front of the Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 44 Airline workers take precautions at Tom Bradley International Terminal in Los Angeles on Thursday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 44 An airport worker cleans a railing at Tom Bradley International Terminal. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 44 Two people arrive at Knott’s Berry Farm on Thursday in Buena Park. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 44 Cab drivers wait for riders at the Long Beach Airport. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 42 / 44 The Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 43 / 44 A woman claims her luggage at he Long Beach Airport. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 44 / 44 The Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
Newsom asked Californians to practice social distancing when performing such “necessary activities.”
“We’re going to keep the grocery stores open,” he said. “We’re going to make sure that you’re getting critical medical supplies. You can still take your kids outside, practicing common sense and social distancing. You can still walk your dog.”
No time frame was set for when the order would end. It was unclear exactly how far the order would reach in communities where some operations, such as schools, have not been closed down.
Officials hope telling people to stay home and restrict social interactions will slow the spread of the virus and ultimately prevent hospitals from being overrun with sick patients. The demand of all residents to stay at home marks the strongest escalation of the Newsom administration’s response to the virus and an unprecedented action in modern California history.
“A state as large as ours, a nation-state, is many parts, but at the end of the day, we’re one body. There’s a mutuality, there’s a recognition of our interdependence that requires of this moment that we direct a statewide order for people to stay at home,” Newsom said. “That directive goes into force and effect this evening and we are confident that the people of the state of California will abide by it, will do the right thing.”
Those who don’t abide by the order, administration officials said, could be subject to a misdemeanor citation.
Ventura County issued its own “stay well at home” order Friday, with certain exceptions for essential activities.
Like Newsom’s mandatory statewide stay-at-home order, the Ventura County order emphasizes that people may leave their homes to exercise. The Ventura County order is more specific, however, and says residents can engage in physical activity by themselves or with members of their household, such as walking, running, bicycling or working around their places of residence, including gardening, but they should keep six feet away from anyone outside of their household.
The order prohibits all travel except for essential reasons, such as caring for family or household members, obtaining medical supplies or visiting a healthcare professional, or obtaining food.
Those working for healthcare operations or essential infrastructure, such as utilities, military bases, roads and highways and those constructing housing, are exempt.
And the city of Los Angeles issued its own restrictive order, requiring all nonessential businesses to close, with companies able to operate only through work-at-home arrangements. The order also bans all public gatherings of any size outside homes.
“All businesses, including museums, malls, retail stores, for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations, must stop operations that require workers to be present in person,” Mayor Eric Garcetti said. “No public and private gatherings of any size that would occur outside of a single home will be allowed, with clear exceptions.”
Garcetti said residents should leave home only for essential activities and needs, including getting food; caring for a relative, friend or child; getting necessary healthcare; or going for a walk in the neighborhood.
The extraordinary action comes as Newsom offered a grim projection about the toll the novel coronavirus might take on California. He asked Congress on Thursday for $1 billion in federal funds to support the state’s medical response to COVID-19, which he said he expects will infect more than half of all Californians.
The state projects that 25.5 million people in California will be infected over an eight-week period, Newsom said in a letter sent to Trump on Wednesday requesting the deployment of the U.S. Navy’s Mercy hospital ship to the Port of Los Angeles through Sept. 1.
In a separate letter sent to the leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, Newsom said the financial aid is crucial to the state’s ability to procure ventilators and other medical supplies, activate state-run hospitals, deploy mobile hospitals and meet other healthcare needs.
“The economic disruption caused by this public health crisis will have immediate and devastating effects on our entire country, including too many families in California,” Newsom wrote. “The magnitude of this crisis is extraordinary and federal-state-local government coordination will be more critical than ever before.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s letter to President Donald Trump on coronavirus assistance Gov. Gavin Newsom sent a letter to President Trump on March 19 seeking assistance with the fight against coronavirus.
The governor’s office declined to provide to The Times an explanation of the state’s projection that 25.5 million Californians will be infected with this virus. Instead, a spokesman for the governor said the state’s mitigation efforts could lower that estimate.
“Gov. Newsom has been honest about the threat of the virus and its impact on the health and welfare of Californians,” said Nathan Click, a spokesman for Newsom. “This projection shows why it’s so critical that Californians take action to slow the spread of the disease — and those mitigation efforts aren’t taken into account in those numbers. The state is deploying every resource at its disposal to meet this challenge, and we continue to ask for the federal government’s assistance in this fight.”
In a briefing Wednesday, the governor said the Navy hospital ship and two mobile hospitals would help the state care for an anticipated surge in patients. The governor said the state would need roughly 20,000 more beds if more than half of Californians come down with the coronavirus.
“That’s just one scenario plan. There’s others that are more modest. Some may, some cases [may] be more extreme,” Newsom said. “When you’re looking at getting an additional [19,000] to 20,000 beds in your system, you have to look at your existing surge capacity within the healthcare delivery system, and you have to look at procuring additional assets.”
The governor’s secretary of health and human services, Dr. Mark Ghaly, offered only a brief explanation Thursday of the methodology that went into the state’s projection of 25.5 million infected Californians, saying it was arrived at in consultation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and was developed a few weeks ago.
“We feel like we are well prepared because of that planning,” Ghaly said.
The tens of millions of COVID-19 cases the Newsom administration is modeling represent an exponentially faster rate of spread than has been seen in other countries. Worldwide, there are about 245,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus infections since the outbreak began late last year.
Though testing in California and the United States is still in its beginning phases, reaching 25.5 million positives in eight weeks would exceed even Italy’s rate of infection, where about 600 people per each 1 million have tested positive, though that rate is still in flux.
Dr. Karen Smith, a communicable disease expert and former director of the California Department of Public Health, said it’s difficult to determine how many people will be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 because so much remains unknown about the novel coronavirus.
But Smith, who is advising the response to the pandemic in Santa Clara and Mendocino counties, said the virus is spreading so rapidly that it’s time for Newsom to mandate statewide closures of businesses that go beyond actions some counties have taken.
Before Thursday, Newsom had recommended that bars, restaurant dining rooms and other businesses shutter and left legal orders up to the discretion of county officials, who he has argued are in the best position to determine the appropriate response in their communities.
Smith said the patchwork approach no longer works at this stage in the fight against the virus.
“I personally think that it will be more effective if it is done statewide than if it is done county by county,” Smith said. “There are some counties that aren’t doing anything, but it’s going to leak and it’s going to leak faster if the mitigation stops at some arbitrary boundary.”
She said even some counties that have adopted mandatory closures are allowing too many types of businesses to stay open. Absent mandatory requirements, she said, residents aren’t taking recommendations seriously enough.
“One way to get their attention is to mandate that all of those businesses close and they stay home,” Smith said. “It’s hard and it’s going to hurt people and it’s going to hurt our most vulnerable people a lot, but so will not doing anything. This is unprecedented, and it takes a long time for people to really get it.”
The governor’s request for additional federal funds came three days after lawmakers at the state Capitol approved a plan to spend as much as $1 billion on the state’s emergency medical response to the pandemic in anticipation of a surge in sick patients.
The Democratic governor also requested an expansion of unemployment insurance benefits beyond the 26-week maximum and more funding for Medicaid, federal food assistance, housing and homelessness, state-subsidized early learning and child care and several other safety net programs.
Newsom’s letter to Congress called for support for small businesses, including rental assistance, zero-interest loans and direct cash assistance, and the creation of a new U.S. Treasury Authority to provide guaranteed loans.
With many schools closed across the state and teachers struggling to implement online and alternative learning programs, the governor also asked for an expansion of technology investments for schools, an increase in Title I funding for schools with a high concentration of poverty, broadband internet upgrades, grants for teachers to adapt to digital-age instruction and more money for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Child Nutrition Programs.
“The challenges we face as elected leaders in this crisis are immense,” Newsom wrote. “Working together, I am confident that we can meet this moment and take the necessary and immediate steps to address our economic and societal needs as we continue to address — and begin to recover from — this unprecedented crisis.”
Times staff writers John Myers, Anita Chabria, Matt Stiles, Soumya Karlamangla and Emily Baumgaertner contributed to this report.