latimes--2020-04-30--Reopening California by summer will be an arduous task requiring vast changes — and it won't be quic

Reopening California by summer will be an arduous task requiring vast changes — and it won't be quick

Despite the enthusiasm of people desperate to get back to work , California officials still have a lot to do before they can meet the technological benchmarks that Gov .
Gavin Newsom set to reopen the economy and lift restrictions on daily life .
Much of the four-stage plan Newsom released this week relies on vast changes in the state ’ s ability to both test and track new cases of coronavirus infection .
To this point , California , a global center of high-tech innovation and capital , has lagged behind other states in building up those most basic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials said they were testing more than 20,000 people a day — a third of the minimal daily tests needed to reopen .
Newsom said a Minnesota healthcare company , OptumServe , would open 86 new testing sites by Monday , mainly in inland and poorer urban communities that have had much less testing than more affluent areas .
But he has declined requests from The Times to release details about the sites , including their locations .
One expected site in Humboldt County probably won ’ t be operational for weeks , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full-scale testing will probably be easier to accomplish than the second key benchmark : having widespread contact tracing in place to follow the chains of infection and isolate them .
This will require an army of trained volunteers to find out where an infected person caught the virus and to whom they might have passed it .
In a state of 40 million , this would be a massive undertaking , relying on residents ’ willingness to cooperate with the new intrusion into their privacy — an already controversial notion , as Google @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as they waded in with tracing apps .
Kimon Drakopoulos , professor of data science and operations at USC , said quick adaptation of cellphone contact tracing programs that have been used in South Korea and other countries would be critical to reopening society .
“ I would say it would be an order of magnitude safer , ” he said .
The other key elements of the plan : hospitals must have the capacity for a surge of new cases , and the supply of personal protective equipment needs to ramp up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ masks a month , not just for healthcare workers but also for teachers , students and workers .
With all that hypothetically in place , California ’ s strategy to get to Stage 2 is essentially like stepping into a pool with the water up to your knees before taking a plunge .
Schools , day-care centers , retail businesses , offices , factories and certain public places open first , with modified hygiene and social distancing measures .
This is going to mean major changes in the way merchants do business .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ reduce the number of tables , and retailers may need to limit how many people go into the store at one time or offer curbside pickup for nonessential items .
Barbershops may need to keep every other chair empty .
Bonnie Subnick , who owns a beauty salon in Huntington Beach , said that she will do whatever it takes to reopen but that the social distancing requirements will bring changes .
“ It ’ ll be a totally different world for us going back , ” she said .
“ I think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s just going to be not as personable.
” When this will happen is not clear .
Newsom has talked about “ weeks , not months.
” He said the new school year could start as early as July but has given no definitive timeline other than that .
Once the initial reopening occurs , public health officials then need time to assess whether the measures are working .
If coronavirus cases rebound and public health officials can not trace and isolate outbreaks , the state gets out of the pool @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the current stay-at-home order .
If officials can keep the virus from running rampant , the state moves to Stage 3 , opening up hair and nail salons , gyms , movie theaters , in-house church services , weddings and sporting events without live audiences .
Big in-person events such as crowded Dodgers games , concerts and conventions come last , in Stage 4 , once effective treatment for the virus and/or a vaccine is developed .
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley , a medical epidemiologist and infectious-disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2 to occur in mid-June through July , after a significant decline in cases .
Kim-Farley expects Stage 3 to occur around August or September , and Stage 4 may not come until the middle or latter part of 2021 .
Loosening of the rules may come earlier or later , depending on the number of coronavirus cases , he said .
But just getting to stages 2 and 3 is what many business owners and employees are eager for .
Alex Maslansky , co-owner of Stories Books & Cafe in Echo Park @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ really only a couple of weeks ” left before being forced to permanently close .
His desperately needed loan from the Paycheck Protection Program , or PPP , has not arrived .
“ I ’ m done counting on anymore outside help , ” Maslansky said .
“ If we don ’ t get those PPP funds , it ’ s over.
” The bookstore continued to receive and fill online orders since it closed in mid-March .
On Monday , the cafe reopened for to-go orders as a way to generate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believes his business has survived this long only because of the generosity of patrons .
“ The support from everyone has been extremely touching and incredibly helpful , ” he said .
“ Even with that , it ’ s just not enough.
” Subnick , 54 , expects demand will be high when she reopens her salon in Huntington Beach after more than a month off from styling her clients ’ hair .
Two days before the salon ’ s reopening , Subnick said , her cleaning crew will go in to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also be asked to clean out their stations and to sanitize their equipment .
Capes and smocks will immediately be placed in the salon ’ s washer and dryer after every client .
The salon has already spent about $ 700 on disposable masks , hand sanitizer , disinfectant and a plastic shield that will be installed at the front desk , Subnick said .
Subnick said she ’ s determined to hold on to her dream business , refusing to even consider closing for good .
“ I ’ ll die before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I finally got to this point .
I ’ m just hanging on by a thread , but I ’ ll be the last man standing.
” Another big question is whether some parts of California will reopen before others .
Some rural areas have seen relatively few cases and are clamoring for Newsom to allow them to ease restrictions .
Other harder-hit areas , such as Los Angeles County and the San Francisco Bay Area , are urging more caution .
And some counties are pushing to move forward on their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Newsom ’ s order .
Modoc County , one of California ’ s least populated , with fewer than 9,000 residents in the northeast corner of the state , plans to allow all businesses , schools and churches to reopen starting Friday , as long as people inside them can stay six feet from one another , according to a statement signed by county officials .
Restaurants and bars would be allowed to host diners , but only at half of capacity .
Modoc County is one of four California counties to not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Chabria reported from Sacramento , Mozingo and Campa from Southern California , and Lin from San Francisco .
Times staff writer Priscella Vega contributed to this report .

Anita Chabria, Joe Mozingo, Rong-Gong Lin II, Andrew J. Campa

Storefront businesses in downtown Los Angeles’ garment district remain closed Wednesday. California’s unemployment rate has skyrocketed since the statewide coronavirus shutdown took effect.
Despite the enthusiasm of people desperate to get back to work, California officials still have a lot to do before they can meet the technological benchmarks that Gov. Gavin Newsom set to reopen the economy and lift restrictions on daily life.
Much of the four-stage plan Newsom released this week relies on vast changes in the state’s ability to both test and track new cases of coronavirus infection.
To this point, California, a global center of high-tech innovation and capital, has lagged behind other states in building up those most basic elements of isolating the virus.
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State officials said they were testing more than 20,000 people a day — a third of the minimal daily tests needed to reopen.
Newsom said a Minnesota healthcare company, OptumServe, would open 86 new testing sites by Monday, mainly in inland and poorer urban communities that have had much less testing than more affluent areas. But he has declined requests from The Times to release details about the sites, including their locations. One expected site in Humboldt County probably won’t be operational for weeks, according to health authorities there.
And full-scale testing will probably be easier to accomplish than the second key benchmark: having widespread contact tracing in place to follow the chains of infection and isolate them. This will require an army of trained volunteers to find out where an infected person caught the virus and to whom they might have passed it.
California Tracking California’s progress toward reopening Trying to get a handle on how California is reopening and what it means for you? Our guide includes updates and tips for remaining healthy and sane.
In a state of 40 million, this would be a massive undertaking, relying on residents’ willingness to cooperate with the new intrusion into their privacy — an already controversial notion, as Google, Apple and other tech companies found as they waded in with tracing apps.
Kimon Drakopoulos, professor of data science and operations at USC, said quick adaptation of cellphone contact tracing programs that have been used in South Korea and other countries would be critical to reopening society. “I would say it would be an order of magnitude safer,” he said.
The other key elements of the plan: hospitals must have the capacity for a surge of new cases, and the supply of personal protective equipment needs to ramp up drastically to supply tens of millions of masks a month, not just for healthcare workers but also for teachers, students and workers.
1 / 83 Socially distanced bikers and walkers, against a backdrop of the Queen Mary, make their way along pedestrian and beach bike path on the first day that Long Beach reopened the path on Monday May 11, 2020. The city of Long Beach eased a few of its public health restrictions, allowing under certain guidelines the reopening of pedestrian and beach bike paths, tennis centers and courts. Beach bathrooms are also reopening, but the parking lots and beaches still remain closed. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times) 2 / 83 Traffic remains light on the southbound 110 Freeway headed toward downtown Los Angeles on April 28. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 83 Dominique Barrett, center, known as “King Vader” to his 2.4 million TikTok followers, prepares to shoot a video on April 30 in Glendora. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 83 Cody Purcell of Redondo Beach rides a wave, glowing from the bioluminescence, in Hermosa Beach, CA, after midnight Friday morning, May 8. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times) 5 / 83 Friends play spikeball, a game perfect for social distancing on an open but restricted San Buenaventura State Beach. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 6 / 83 The majority of golfers are wearing masks while hitting balls on the driving range at Van Buren Executive Golf Course in Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 83 Beaches including Harbor Cove Beach were open but beachgoers were not supposed to be sitting on the sand. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 83 Tango instructor Yelizaveta Nersesova leads a Zoom tango event from her Los Angeles home April 27 that brought together hundreds of dancers from around the world. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 83 Grocery store workers, joined by United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 770 representatives and community members, hold a rally in support of strict social distancing on May 1 at a Ralphs store in Hollywood where 19 employees have tested positive for COVID-19. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 83 Mostly masked commuters keep their distance from one another on a Metro bus in downtown Los Angeles on April 29. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 83 Gregory Kuhl, 69, heads home after a shopping trip in Hollywood on April 28. Big cracks in the street, cars parked in driveways blocking sidewalks and uneven pavement levels make navigating his route difficult. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 83 Tenants and their supporters from across Los Angeles gather at city hall to call on L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, the L.A. City Council and California Gov. Gavin Newsom to cancel rent and mortgage payments during the COVID-19 crisis. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 83 Aerial view of over 100 vehicles lined up at the West Valley COVID-19 testing center at Warner Center in Woodland Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 83 Senior Mason Wise, left, helps his sister, Mackenzie, a sophomore, clean out her PE locker at El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills. School officials were allowing no more than five students at a time on campus to take home their belongings. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 83 Shuttered storefront businesses in the garment district of Los Angeles. California’s unemployment rate has skyrocketed since the statewide coronavirus shutdown took effect. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 83 Healthcare workers celebrate as Claudia Martinez is discharged from the ICU after she recovered from COVID-19 at Scripps Mercy Hospital in Chula Vista. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 17 / 83 Carson residents Kaeli Burks, 3, left, and her cousin Bailey Watson, 5, look out the window of their car after their mothers helped them with self-testing at a new drive-up testing site for COVID-19 in Carson. Free COVID-19 testing is available to all city residents thanks to a partnership between the city and US Health Fairs. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 18 / 83 Norm and Tracy Kahn enjoy eating dinner outside on a small cafe table sitting in blue chairs on their side yard during the coronavirus pandemic on April 27 in Riverside. “During this pandemic, eating outside offers us an opportunity to change surrounding and appreciate the calmness of being outdoors among trees, scents from nature and the sounds of birds,” she said. Also adding, “Mixing up where we eat puts variety into our days and takes away the sameness of feeling trapped at home.” (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 19 / 83 Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center nurses carry supplies outside the hospital. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 20 / 83 Tom Sean Foley pauses on a walk with his kids, Cathelen Claire, “C.C.,” 3, and Timothy Joseph, 4, to take a photo in front of the “Love Wall,” mural by artist Curtis Kulig, outside of Smashbox Studios in Culver City. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 21 / 83 Protesters stand along Mission Blvd. in Pacific Beach during A Day of Liberty rally on April 26. The protesters were against the government shutdown due to the coronavirus. (K.C. Alfred / San Diego Union-Tribune) 22 / 83 People make orders at a food truck along Shoreline Avenue in Long Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 83 Medical staff, wearing protective gear, work inside a COVID-19 isolation area inside the emergency department at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center in Los Angeles, where patients with the virus are being treated. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 83 Neighbors practice social distancing while enjoying the nice weather near The Strand in Hermosa Beach. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 83 Counter-protesters attend a protest to call on state and local officials to reopen the economy in downtown Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 26 / 83 A group of protesters cheer on cars during a vehicle caravan protest to call on state and local officials to reopen the economy in downtown Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 27 / 83 Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation staff member Navi Cavaltera waters a flower pot put up by the community to show their support for the nursing staff of the facility in Yucaipa. Eighteen of 20 coronavirus-related deaths in Yucaipa were residents of the skilled nursing facility. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 28 / 83 A pedestrian wearing a protective mask passes a mural on a store on Melrose Avenue in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 83 Jonte Florence, a freestyle dancer, does a handstand on a mostly empty Hollywood Walk of Fame. Florence said he normally performs for hundreds of tourists along the busy street. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 83 The Tyrannosaurus rex overlooking the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue wears a protective mask while practicing social distancing. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 31 / 83 Businesses are shuttered and pedestrians are few and far between on Hollywood Boulevard. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 32 / 83 Daniel Rogerson wears a vintage military gas mask while riding a bike along the beach path in Santa Monica, which is closed to enforce social distancing because of the coronavirus pandemic. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 83 A face mask seller in colorful dress appears to be part of a mural behind a bus stop on Soto Street in Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 83 Life around Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard and Soto Street has slowed down as California officials extended stay-at-home orders into May and residents entered Easter weekend with unprecedented limits on their movements. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 83 UC Irvine Medical Center health care workers return their gratitude as about 25 Orange County first responder vehicles participate in a drive-by parade of gratitude as they battle COVID-19 at the hospital. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 83 Billy Budd, 55, of Hollywood, walks along Hollywood Boulevard with a protective face covering. Budd is a scenic artist for movies and television who is currently out of work due to the coronavirus outbreak. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 37 / 83 Stuart Reyes and his sister, Stephanie, sell masks for $5 each on the 3000 block of West Century Boulevard in Inglewood. Stuart Reyes said he is selling masks to support his mother. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 83 A jogger runs on a closed trail past dozens of pieces of caution tape, torn off by hikers and mountain bikers at El Escorpion Canyon Park in West Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 83 Alex Herron and nurse Mercy Pineda at a blood drive sponsored by USC athletics and the American Red Cross at USC’s Galen Center. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 83 Los Angeles City Hall displays blue lights to show support for healthcare workers and first responders. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 83 After being indoors for several days because of rainy weather and coronavirus stay-at-home orders, Olivia Jacobs, 4, and her mom, Cia Jacobs, enjoy a warm and sunny afternoon making chalk drawings on the sidewalk in front of their home in West Hills. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 83 An Oceanview Plaza security guard sports a whimsical mask while on patrol. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 43 / 83 Jacob De Wilde, left, and Lesli Lytle load a car with food during a food distribution organized to mark Good Friday. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 44 / 83 As a late season storm continues to make its way across the Southland, a young basketball player dribbles along an alley through an Elysian Park neighborhood in Los Angeles. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 45 / 83 People are silhouetted in a window of an apartment building in Hollywood, where a stay-at-home order remains in effect to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 46 / 83 The Wilshire Grand Center display blue lights and a heart to show support for healthcare workers and first responders. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 47 / 83 Women wear masks as they stroll along Highland Avenue in Hollywood. Wearing masks while outdoors is mandatory in the city of Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 48 / 83 Patients are removed from Magnolia Rehabilitation and Nursing Center after 39 tested positive for the coronavirus and nursing staff was not showing up to work. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 49 / 83 A specimen is turned in at the new mobile testing site for people with symptoms of the coronavirus at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in South Los Angeles. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 50 / 83 Hippie Kitchen in Los Angeles hands out food, water and toiletries to homeless people and residents of skid row. Additionally, masks were offered to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) 51 / 83 Nurses pose for a fun photo during a break in drive-through public testing for the coronavirus at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 52 / 83 A woman shows a notice from her doctor that allows her to obtain a test for coronavirus at a new drive-up testing site in a parking lot at the South Bay Galleria in Redondo Beach. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 53 / 83 A person who wishes to remain anonymous strikes from her car to support McDonald’s employees who are demanding the company cover healthcare costs of any worker or immediate family member who gets sick from COVID-19 in Los Angeles. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 54 / 83 Cassidy Roosen, with Beach Cities Health District, holds up a sign that says, “We’re All in This Together,” while waiting to direct cars at a drive-through, appointment-only coronavirus testing location at the South Bay Galleria in Redondo Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 55 / 83 Juliann Hartman, center, and her husband, Butch, wave signs they created to cheer up people on Calabasas Road in Calabasas during the pandemic. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 56 / 83 Grace Carter, 15, of Riverside, practices a dance routine at home after dance classes and school were canceled. She has to use the Zoom app on her iPhone to practice with her dance group. “It’s hard,” she said. “My bedroom is a smaller space. I miss all my friends at the studio.” (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 57 / 83 A man works from his home in Long Beach. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 58 / 83 A San Bernardino County healthcare worker takes a sample at a coronavirus drive-through testing site at the county fairgrounds in Victorville. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 59 / 83 A Metro general service employee disinfects a bench in Boyle Heights. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 60 / 83 A runner jogs past the Pottery Barn in Pasadena. Some businesses in the area have boarded up their stores. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 61 / 83 Raquel Lezama and daughter Monica Ramos collect meals for their family at Manual Arts High School. Lezama was laid off from her $17.76-an-hour job at a Beverly Hills hotel. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 62 / 83 The Iron City Tavern in San Pedro tries an incentive to lure takeout customers. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 63 / 83 Healthcare workers gather outside UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center to call for further action from the federal government in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 64 / 83 Kristen Edgerle, of Victorville, collects information from a blood donor before drawing blood at The Richard Nixon Presidential Library blood drive during the coronavirus pandemic in Yorba Linda. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) 65 / 83 Shauna Jin, of Los Angeles, with her dog, Bodhi, practices social distancing with John Kiss, of Los Angeles, at the entrance of Runyon Canyon Park in Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 66 / 83 A lending library had some additional useful items, including a roll of toilet paper and cans of beans and corn, in a Hermosa Beach neighborhood. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 67 / 83 Protesters drive by the Getty House, the home of L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, in Hancock Park. Tenant advocates are demanding a total moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus crisis. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 68 / 83 Venice residents Emily Berry and Gavin Kelley take a break at Venice Beach. Berry, a cocktail waitress at Enterprise Fish Co., lost her job due to the coronavirus outbreak. Kelley, a manager at a performing arts school with a focus on music, said that he still has a job and that classes at the school will resume online this coming Monday. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 69 / 83 The JW Marriott at L.A. Live is sharing a message of hope with red lights in 34 windows, creating a 19-story display on the hotel’s north side. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 70 / 83 Juan Diaz Jr., a lifelong Dodgers fan, prays that the season will start by May in front of Dodger Stadium on what would have been opening day. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 71 / 83 Hayley, CEO and founder of Love My Neighbor Foundation, right, dances with Crystal Armster, 51, while she and her colleagues continue to feed the homeless on skid row amid the pandemic. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 72 / 83 A masked passenger on a Metro bus in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 73 / 83 Dede Oneal waits for a coronavirus test at the Crenshaw Christian Center in South Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 74 / 83 A man in a mask passes a closed restaurant along Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 75 / 83 Artist Corie Mattie paints a mural on the side of a pop-up store as a man takes a picture in West Hollywood. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 76 / 83 Medical assistant Zoila Villalta works with Rosie Boston, 32, of Glendale, who is donating blood for her first time at L.A. Care Health Plan downtown. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 77 / 83 A couple wait for a bus outside the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 78 / 83 With all Los Angeles schools closed until further notice, LAUSD buses sit idle in Gardena. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 79 / 83 A lone traveler makes his way to catch a flight in Tom Bradley International Terminal. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 80 / 83 Denise Young looks on as her daughter, Allison, 9, a fourth-grader at EARThS (Environmental Academy of Research Technology and Earth Sciences) Magnet School in Newbury Park, receives a Chromebook. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 81 / 83 Hollywood Boulevard is devoid of the usual crowds. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) 82 / 83 Michael Ray, 11, plays before a movie at the Paramount Drive-In. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 83 / 83 Isabella Leader, 15, counts how many flags have been left for World War II veteran Lt. Col. Sam Sachs who was celebrating his 105th birthday at the Mom & Dad’s House, an assisted living facility, in Lakewood. Lt. Col. Sachs appealed to the public for birthday cards after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of a big celebration and wound up receiving thousands, including a letter and photo from President Trump. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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With all that hypothetically in place, California’s strategy to get to Stage 2 is essentially like stepping into a pool with the water up to your knees before taking a plunge.
Schools, day-care centers, retail businesses, offices, factories and certain public places open first, with modified hygiene and social distancing measures. This is going to mean major changes in the way merchants do business. Restaurants are probably going to have to reduce the number of tables, and retailers may need to limit how many people go into the store at one time or offer curbside pickup for nonessential items. Barbershops may need to keep every other chair empty.
Bonnie Subnick, who owns a beauty salon in Huntington Beach, said that she will do whatever it takes to reopen but that the social distancing requirements will bring changes.
“It’ll be a totally different world for us going back,” she said. “I think between that and wearing gloves and masks it’s just going to be not as personable.”
When this will happen is not clear. Newsom has talked about “weeks, not months.” He said the new school year could start as early as July but has given no definitive timeline other than that.
Once the initial reopening occurs, public health officials then need time to assess whether the measures are working.
If coronavirus cases rebound and public health officials cannot trace and isolate outbreaks, the state gets out of the pool and returns to Stage 1, with the current stay-at-home order.
If officials can keep the virus from running rampant, the state moves to Stage 3, opening up hair and nail salons, gyms, movie theaters, in-house church services, weddings and sporting events without live audiences.
Big in-person events such as crowded Dodgers games, concerts and conventions come last, in Stage 4, once effective treatment for the virus and/or a vaccine is developed.
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, a medical epidemiologist and infectious-disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, said he expects Stage 2 to occur in mid-June through July, after a significant decline in cases.
Kim-Farley expects Stage 3 to occur around August or September, and Stage 4 may not come until the middle or latter part of 2021. Loosening of the rules may come earlier or later, depending on the number of coronavirus cases, he said.
But just getting to stages 2 and 3 is what many business owners and employees are eager for.
Alex Maslansky, co-owner of Stories Books & Cafe in Echo Park for 12 years, said he has “really only a couple of weeks” left before being forced to permanently close.
His desperately needed loan from the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, has not arrived.
“I’m done counting on anymore outside help,” Maslansky said. “If we don’t get those PPP funds, it’s over.”
The bookstore continued to receive and fill online orders since it closed in mid-March. On Monday, the cafe reopened for to-go orders as a way to generate more revenue.
Maslansky, 40, believes his business has survived this long only because of the generosity of patrons.
“The support from everyone has been extremely touching and incredibly helpful,” he said. “Even with that, it’s just not enough.”
Subnick, 54, expects demand will be high when she reopens her salon in Huntington Beach after more than a month off from styling her clients’ hair.
Two days before the salon’s reopening, Subnick said, her cleaning crew will go in to disinfect the entire area. Stylists will also be asked to clean out their stations and to sanitize their equipment. Capes and smocks will immediately be placed in the salon’s washer and dryer after every client.
The salon has already spent about $700 on disposable masks, hand sanitizer, disinfectant and a plastic shield that will be installed at the front desk, Subnick said.
Subnick said she’s determined to hold on to her dream business, refusing to even consider closing for good.
“I’ll die before that happens,” she said. “I finally got to this point. I’m just hanging on by a thread, but I’ll be the last man standing.”
Another big question is whether some parts of California will reopen before others. Some rural areas have seen relatively few cases and are clamoring for Newsom to allow them to ease restrictions. Other harder-hit areas, such as Los Angeles County and the San Francisco Bay Area, are urging more caution.
And some counties are pushing to move forward on their own timelines under plans at odds with Newsom’s order. Modoc County, one of California’s least populated, with fewer than 9,000 residents in the northeast corner of the state, plans to allow all businesses, schools and churches to reopen starting Friday, as long as people inside them can stay six feet from one another, according to a statement signed by county officials. Restaurants and bars would be allowed to host diners, but only at half of capacity.
Modoc County is one of four California counties to not report a single case of coronavirus infection.
Chabria reported from Sacramento, Mozingo and Campa from Southern California, and Lin from San Francisco. Times staff writer Priscella Vega contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-04-30--Column: Newsom could use some beach time. It's sad he's closing Orange County beaches amid coronavir

Column: Newsom could use some beach time. It's sad he's closing Orange County beaches amid coronavirus

Every Californian has an unalienable right to a day at the beach .
Or at least an hour or two .
OK , maybe just a few minutes daydreaming in a car while marveling at the foaming breakers .
Of course , most beach parking lots are now closed to you and me .
Going to the beach is our birthright as native Californians — and our promise to newcomers .
It ’ s our gift from the Creator — a trade-off for all the quakes , wildfires , mudslides and smog .
Yeah , I know : Every right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the right to free speech but shouldn ’ t wade into the surf and yell “ shark.
” And we shouldn ’ t be spreading germs to other sunbathers .
So hire some beach patrols and enforce the rule about plopping down no closer than six feet apart .
Maybe after a couple of warnings issue a citation for enough bucks to cover the administrative costs .
Although , honestly , I can ’ t envision a young couple adhering to the six-foot rule for more than five minutes .
And forget about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the ocean ’ s appeals is breathing in that salt air drifting in on a soft breeze .
My parents left Oklahoma and Tennessee in the 1920s searching for the California Dream .
They met at a Ventura beach party .
I practically grew up on beaches between Ventura and Santa Barbara — Hollywood Beach , the Rincon , Carpinteria , East Beach — while sheltering in Ojai .
At Ventura College , I often took my reading assignment down to a secluded beach on the Rincon .
Later at San Jose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most northern students were at summer ’ s end compared to Southern California beach worshipers .
In Santa Cruz , the sun shined less and the water was colder .
But it was still paradise .
Recently , it was reassuring to notice that Ventura politicians still get it .
Beaches are the substance of local peoples ’ lives .
The City Council decided to open them on the first spectacular weekend of the season “ in support of balancing residents ’ physical and mental health , ” it announced .
Yes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a little body surfing will do wonders for the mind , relaxing it and enabling the toleration of all manner of aggravations while sheltering at home .
You can ’ t find therapy like that good no matter the fee .
Of course , leaders of my old beach town weren ’ t very hospitable to outsiders .
They told Angelenos to stay out .
“ To our L.A. County brothers and sisters , normally we like you to come here , but not right now , ” county Executive Officer Mike Powers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which gave me my first daily newspaper job while at VC .
“ If you have to travel , keep it to essential travel where you live.
” Guess you can ’ t blame people in Ventura , which has avoided being hard hit by COVID-19 , for fearing being overrun by residents in more densely populated L.A. , where the coronavirus continues to spread .
L.A. has kept its beaches closed .
But they were opened in Orange County .
And the Newport Beach City Council rejected a proposal to close @ @ @ @ @ @ @ swarmed there on the hot weekend .
Unfortunately , city parking lots at the beach were closed , so beachgoers invaded nearby neighborhoods .
“ I think you should reopen them , ” state Sen. John Moorlach ( R-Costa Mesa ) said Tuesday .
He ’ s a former Orange County supervisor who represents some beach communities .
“ People should have access to facilities.
” Moorlach says he understands why people flocked there on a beautiful weekend .
“ You need to trust people , ” the senator says .
“ If @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ve got to let people be people .
If you ’ re part of a vulnerable group , shame on you for going to the beach .
For everyone else who ’ s sheltering in place , the beach may be the best medicine.
” “ We haven ’ t seen the ‘ surge ’ ” in virus contagion that was feared , he continues .
“ And I ’ m not seeing a wide band of people in ICUs .
I see hospitals in my district struggling because they don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ amiss .
Maybe people are seeing that too.
” What Gov .
Gavin Newsom saw — those crowded beach scenes — made him angry .
“ Those images are an example of what not to see…what not to do , ” the governor declared during his Monday virus briefing .
“ You didn ’ t see those images at L.A. beaches and San Diego beaches and [ in ] Northern California because we had strong guidelines that were not only adopted but were abided by.
” So amend the guidelines and loosen up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ announced Thursday he ’ s closing Orange County beaches .
Thankfully he backed away from closing all beaches in California .
“ The TV angles were bad ” and made the beaches look more crowded than they really were , Moorlach says .
“ Everyone did social distancing .
[ It ] was real cooperative and very respectful .
They just wanted to get out and get some sun , which is really healthy.
” If it ’ s unhealthy , if people are being infected with the virus by being drawn to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ show us some data .
Do people who go to the beach contract the virus more than people who don ’ t ?
Show us the numbers .
Until then , here ’ s my declaration of independence from shallow thinking : “ We hold these truths to be self-evident , that all Californians are endowed with certain unalienable rights .
Among these are sun , surf and a day at the beach.
” Newsom could use some beach time .

Newport Beach on Tuesday. Newport Beach City Council members opted against closing the city’s beaches for the next few weekends despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s criticism of the large crowds and lack of social distancing.
Every Californian has an unalienable right to a day at the beach.
Or at least an hour or two.
OK, maybe just a few minutes daydreaming in a car while marveling at the foaming breakers. Of course, most beach parking lots are now closed to you and me.
Going to the beach is our birthright as native Californians — and our promise to newcomers. It’s our gift from the Creator — a trade-off for all the quakes, wildfires, mudslides and smog.
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Yeah, I know: Every right has limits. We’ve got the right to free speech but shouldn’t wade into the surf and yell “shark.” And we shouldn’t be spreading germs to other sunbathers.
So hire some beach patrols and enforce the rule about plopping down no closer than six feet apart. Maybe after a couple of warnings issue a citation for enough bucks to cover the administrative costs.
Although, honestly, I can’t envision a young couple adhering to the six-foot rule for more than five minutes.
And forget about wearing masks on the beach. One of the ocean’s appeals is breathing in that salt air drifting in on a soft breeze.
My parents left Oklahoma and Tennessee in the 1920s searching for the California Dream. They met at a Ventura beach party. I practically grew up on beaches between Ventura and Santa Barbara — Hollywood Beach, the Rincon, Carpinteria, East Beach — while sheltering in Ojai.
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At Ventura College, I often took my reading assignment down to a secluded beach on the Rincon. Later at San Jose State, I immediately noticed how pale most northern students were at summer’s end compared to Southern California beach worshipers. In Santa Cruz, the sun shined less and the water was colder. But it was still paradise.
Recently, it was reassuring to notice that Ventura politicians still get it. Beaches are the substance of local peoples’ lives. The City Council decided to open them on the first spectacular weekend of the season “in support of balancing residents’ physical and mental health,” it announced.
Yes, a warm sun, calm breeze and a little body surfing will do wonders for the mind, relaxing it and enabling the toleration of all manner of aggravations while sheltering at home. You can’t find therapy like that good no matter the fee.
Of course, leaders of my old beach town weren’t very hospitable to outsiders. They told Angelenos to stay out.
“To our L.A. County brothers and sisters, normally we like you to come here, but not right now,” county Executive Officer Mike Powers was quoted in the Ventura County Star, which gave me my first daily newspaper job while at VC. “If you have to travel, keep it to essential travel where you live.”
Guess you can’t blame people in Ventura, which has avoided being hard hit by COVID-19, for fearing being overrun by residents in more densely populated L.A., where the coronavirus continues to spread.
L.A. has kept its beaches closed. But they were opened in Orange County. And the Newport Beach City Council rejected a proposal to close down the beach in May after people swarmed there on the hot weekend.
Unfortunately, city parking lots at the beach were closed, so beachgoers invaded nearby neighborhoods.
“I think you should reopen them,” state Sen. John Moorlach (R-Costa Mesa) said Tuesday. He’s a former Orange County supervisor who represents some beach communities. “People should have access to facilities.”
Moorlach says he understands why people flocked there on a beautiful weekend.
“You need to trust people,” the senator says. “If they exercise proper social distancing, you’ve got to let people be people. If you’re part of a vulnerable group, shame on you for going to the beach. For everyone else who’s sheltering in place, the beach may be the best medicine.”
“We haven’t seen the ‘surge’” in virus contagion that was feared, he continues. “And I’m not seeing a wide band of people in ICUs. I see hospitals in my district struggling because they don’t have patients. Something’s amiss. Maybe people are seeing that too.”
What Gov. Gavin Newsom saw — those crowded beach scenes — made him angry.
“Those images are an example of what not to see…what not to do,” the governor declared during his Monday virus briefing. “You didn’t see those images at L.A. beaches and San Diego beaches and [in] Northern California because we had strong guidelines that were not only adopted but were abided by.”
So amend the guidelines and loosen up.
Instead, sadly, the governor announced Thursday he’s closing Orange County beaches. Thankfully he backed away from closing all beaches in California.
“The TV angles were bad” and made the beaches look more crowded than they really were, Moorlach says.
“Everyone did social distancing. [It] was real cooperative and very respectful. They just wanted to get out and get some sun, which is really healthy.”
If it’s unhealthy, if people are being infected with the virus by being drawn to the ocean as humans always have, show us some data. Do people who go to the beach contract the virus more than people who don’t? Show us the numbers.
Until then, here’s my declaration of independence from shallow thinking:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Californians are endowed with certain unalienable rights. Among these are sun, surf and a day at the beach.”
Newsom could use some beach time.


latimes--2020-05-01--Rural California is demanding to reopen now even as Newsom urges patience

For Bob Williams , the chairman of Tehama County ’ s Board of Supervisors , the numbers don ’ t justify the reality .
The rural Northern California community of 65,000 has had only one case of the coronavirus , but it continues to face the same restrictions from the state as denser cities such as Los Angeles , which has had more than 23,000 cases .
That ’ s why Williams has joined elected officials from the Central Coast , Central Valley , Northern California and elsewhere who have asked Gov .
Gavin Newsom to let them gradually lift @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that their infection rates are incomparable to hot spots in the state and that the coronavirus appears under control .
Tehama County will already suffer from the cancellation of the 99th annual Red Bluff Round-Up , a rodeo that generates $ 4 million to $ 7 million for a local economy that only has a sales tax revenue of about $ 2 million a year .
By reopening , Williams hopes to lessen the harm .
“ Is it fair to treat Tehama the same as L.A. County ?
” he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ dealing with the problem here are better suited to understand what ’ s needed in rural California than folks in Sacramento or L.A. ” Six weeks into the governor ’ s order , pressure has mounted for officials to begin phasing out restrictions .
Nineteen counties from Humboldt to Tuolumne have recorded no fatalities from the virus .
Moderately populated counties such as Fresno and Santa Barbara have single-digit death tolls .
Last Friday , a letter from elected officials in Northern California ’ s Butte , Glenn , Tehama , Yuba , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to “ allow our counties to exercise local authority to implement a careful and phased reopening of our local economies , ” noting they had only one coronavirus patient in intensive care .
An earlier letter signed by cities in Stanislaus County proposed steps to loosen restrictions and San Luis Obispo County , which has recorded one death , has also requested permission to reopen .
One region is moving forward without the governor ’ s blessing .
Modoc County , which has fewer than 9,000 residents and reported zero coronavirus cases , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ businesses , schools and churches to reopen starting Friday , as long as people stay six feet apart .
“ Our businesses are dying and people need to be able to feed their children and pay their rent , ” said Heather Hadwick , the deputy director of the county ’ s Office of Emergency Services .
“ We live a different life than the rest of California .
We ’ re very rural and naturally socially distanced in our everyday lives.
” Newsom has acknowledged the differences , stating that not all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shutdown rules at once .
He ’ s presented a plan that requires that the state ’ s 58 counties be able to perform robust contact tracing so they can track potential spread of the coronavirus .
“ The state is not one-sized but nor is rural versus urban one-sized as well , ” he said this week .
“ I want to come out together with a certain baseline of expectation … and then make accommodations for variance.
” Jeffrey Martin , an epidemiologist at UC San Francisco , said counties should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infection , adequate testing , and the ability to address stigma associated with a positive case .
“ The decision to shelter in place was maybe easy , ” he said .
“ We saw a mounting number of infections and there was really only one thing to do.… In contrast , this opening-up one is a lot harder .
We ’ re not forced to make the decision in a second.
” Mayor Kerri Warren of the city of Willows in Glenn County is among those who have urged for reopening early @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pointed out , has had five positive cases .
Willows used to receive substantial tax revenue from a car racetrack in the area , she said .
Hundreds of visitors would fill up hotels on weekends .
Now , the hotels are nearly empty and only several businesses are open downtown .
“ Though we sympathize with what ’ s going on in Southern California , to hold Northern California to those restrictions , it ’ s not right , because we don ’ t have the issues they ’ re having down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Whenever we reopen , if the curve is not staying flat or getting flatter , by all means we will do what we have to do and pull back.
” Jared Garrison , the county ’ s health officer , agreed that it ’ s time to gradually reopen .
Four of the coronavirus cases , he said , were contracted outside the county , while the fifth is unknown .
“ We ’ ve got everything shut down for one case , ” he said .
The county ’ s only hospital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beds , building the base for a mobile field hospital , and adding video monitors so nurses could watch patients remotely , among other steps .
It has had no coronavirus hospitalizations .
With a reduced number of patients generally , nurses are being asked to work fewer shifts — raising fears they might leave .
“ That is the big thing that we really fight in these rural hospitals — it ’ s staffing , and good , competent staff , ” Garrison said .
“ When someone leaves , they don @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Other officials who signed the letter are reassured by the fact that the surges they prepared for never came .
Yuba and Sutter counties have had more than 40 cases , with eight hospitalizations and three deaths .
The counties , which will soon expand testing and have a plan for contact tracing , had secured two high school gyms as alternate medical sites .
“ The surge hasn ’ t materialized , ” said Ricky Samayoa , the mayor of Marysville , a city of about 12,000 in Yuba County .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ are doing the right thing.
” Sandee Drown , who runs the Happy Viking Sports Pub and Eatery in Sutter County ’ s Yuba City with her husband , favors reopening soon .
Their revenue has dropped by about 70 % and they ’ ve had to lay off dozens of employees .
Drown acknowledged that they might only have every other table in the restaurant available to ensure social distancing .
But seating customers , she said , would probably increase revenue by 20 % .
“ Having customers come in — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” she said .
“ We ’ re barely able to keep our doors open .
It ’ s very stressful.
” In their letter , seven mayors from Stanislaus County in the Central Valley asked Newsom to pursue “ an aggressive strategy ” to reopen their county .
The region has had more than 300 coronavirus cases and 11 deaths , and recently saw an outbreak in a nursing center .
So far , more than 90 residents and staff members at the Turlock Nursing and Rehabilitation Center have tested positive .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive have died .
Raj Singh , a spokesman for the county ’ s Office of Emergency Services , said that the county has 33 full-time contact tracers .
It recently began offering up to 200 tests a day at a community site but has only been conducting about half of that , and is in the process of investigating whether the lower number is due to transportation issues or other barriers .
Patterson Mayor Deborah Novelli chose not to sign the letter .
She said she ’ s still hearing that residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and that cases in her city , which has a population of 22,000 , have been increasing .
“ I empathize with the business community .
We need to have the county up and going and functioning , but right now I don ’ t think it is the time , ” she said .
“ We can ’ t open up the economy to the detriment of the people.
” But Stanislaus County has already formed a task force with leaders from various business sectors to come up with guidance for reopening @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Opportunity Stanislaus , an organization that supports economic development , said the group is also preparing a virtual workplace safety training .
Participating businesses would receive a sticker they could then display to boost the public ’ s confidence .
“ We ’ re not going to move ahead of the state , ” White said .
“ What we ’ re trying to do is provide a safe initiative that could be a model for the state for counties like ours that want to open up cautiously and carefully .
”

A pair of bicyclists ride past closed businesses on Plumas Street in Yuba City, Calif., in late April during the coronavirus outbreak.
For Bob Williams, the chairman of Tehama County’s Board of Supervisors, the numbers don’t justify the reality. The rural Northern California community of 65,000 has had only one case of the coronavirus, but it continues to face the same restrictions from the state as denser cities such as Los Angeles, which has had more than 23,000 cases.
That’s why Williams has joined elected officials from the Central Coast, Central Valley, Northern California and elsewhere who have asked Gov. Gavin Newsom to let them gradually lift their stay-at-home order. They have argued that their infection rates are incomparable to hot spots in the state and that the coronavirus appears under control.
Tehama County will already suffer from the cancellation of the 99th annual Red Bluff Round-Up, a rodeo that generates $4 million to $7 million for a local economy that only has a sales tax revenue of about $2 million a year. By reopening, Williams hopes to lessen the harm.
“Is it fair to treat Tehama the same as L.A. County?” he said. “I think the locals that are dealing with the problem here are better suited to understand what’s needed in rural California than folks in Sacramento or L.A.”
Six weeks into the governor’s order, pressure has mounted for officials to begin phasing out restrictions. Nineteen counties from Humboldt to Tuolumne have recorded no fatalities from the virus. Moderately populated counties such as Fresno and Santa Barbara have single-digit death tolls.
Last Friday, a letter from elected officials in Northern California’s Butte, Glenn, Tehama, Yuba, Sutter and Colusa counties asked the governor to “allow our counties to exercise local authority to implement a careful and phased reopening of our local economies,” noting they had only one coronavirus patient in intensive care. An earlier letter signed by cities in Stanislaus County proposed steps to loosen restrictions and San Luis Obispo County, which has recorded one death, has also requested permission to reopen.
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One region is moving forward without the governor’s blessing. Modoc County, which has fewer than 9,000 residents and reported zero coronavirus cases, has announced it plans to allow all businesses, schools and churches to reopen starting Friday, as long as people stay six feet apart.
“Our businesses are dying and people need to be able to feed their children and pay their rent,” said Heather Hadwick, the deputy director of the county’s Office of Emergency Services. “We live a different life than the rest of California. We’re very rural and naturally socially distanced in our everyday lives.”
Newsom has acknowledged the differences, stating that not all regions would be allowed to loosen the shutdown rules at once. He’s presented a plan that requires that the state’s 58 counties be able to perform robust contact tracing so they can track potential spread of the coronavirus.
“The state is not one-sized but nor is rural versus urban one-sized as well,” he said this week. “I want to come out together with a certain baseline of expectation … and then make accommodations for variance.”
Jeffrey Martin, an epidemiologist at UC San Francisco, said counties should have a low and manageable level of infection, adequate testing, and the ability to address stigma associated with a positive case.
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“The decision to shelter in place was maybe easy,” he said. “We saw a mounting number of infections and there was really only one thing to do.… In contrast, this opening-up one is a lot harder. We’re not forced to make the decision in a second.”
Mayor Kerri Warren of the city of Willows in Glenn County is among those who have urged for reopening early. The county of 28,000, she pointed out, has had five positive cases.
Willows used to receive substantial tax revenue from a car racetrack in the area, she said. Hundreds of visitors would fill up hotels on weekends. Now, the hotels are nearly empty and only several businesses are open downtown.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom discusses an outline for what it will take to lift the coronavirus restrictions during an April news conference at the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services in Rancho Cordova, Calif. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)
“Though we sympathize with what’s going on in Southern California, to hold Northern California to those restrictions, it’s not right, because we don’t have the issues they’re having down there,” Warren said. “Whenever we reopen, if the curve is not staying flat or getting flatter, by all means we will do what we have to do and pull back.”
Jared Garrison, the county’s health officer, agreed that it’s time to gradually reopen. Four of the coronavirus cases, he said, were contracted outside the county, while the fifth is unknown.
“We’ve got everything shut down for one case,” he said.
The county’s only hospital had prepared for a surge by expanding beds, building the base for a mobile field hospital, and adding video monitors so nurses could watch patients remotely, among other steps.
It has had no coronavirus hospitalizations. With a reduced number of patients generally, nurses are being asked to work fewer shifts — raising fears they might leave.
“That is the big thing that we really fight in these rural hospitals — it’s staffing, and good, competent staff,” Garrison said. “When someone leaves, they don’t usually come back, unfortunately.”
Other officials who signed the letter are reassured by the fact that the surges they prepared for never came.
Yuba and Sutter counties have had more than 40 cases, with eight hospitalizations and three deaths. The counties, which will soon expand testing and have a plan for contact tracing, had secured two high school gyms as alternate medical sites.
“The surge hasn’t materialized,” said Ricky Samayoa, the mayor of Marysville, a city of about 12,000 in Yuba County. “That gives me optimism that we are doing the right thing.”
Sandee Drown, who runs the Happy Viking Sports Pub and Eatery in Sutter County’s Yuba City with her husband, favors reopening soon. Their revenue has dropped by about 70% and they’ve had to lay off dozens of employees.
Drown acknowledged that they might only have every other table in the restaurant available to ensure social distancing. But seating customers, she said, would probably increase revenue by 20%.
“Having customers come in — that’s huge for us,” she said. “We’re barely able to keep our doors open. It’s very stressful.”
In their letter, seven mayors from Stanislaus County in the Central Valley asked Newsom to pursue “an aggressive strategy” to reopen their county. The region has had more than 300 coronavirus cases and 11 deaths, and recently saw an outbreak in a nursing center. So far, more than 90 residents and staff members at the Turlock Nursing and Rehabilitation Center have tested positive. Six current and former residents who tested positive have died.
Raj Singh, a spokesman for the county’s Office of Emergency Services, said that the county has 33 full-time contact tracers. It recently began offering up to 200 tests a day at a community site but has only been conducting about half of that, and is in the process of investigating whether the lower number is due to transportation issues or other barriers.
The Yuba Sutter Mall remains closed due to the coronavirus-caused mandatory shelter-in-place orders in Yuba City, Calif. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)
Patterson Mayor Deborah Novelli chose not to sign the letter. She said she’s still hearing that residents with mild symptoms are not being tested and that cases in her city, which has a population of 22,000, have been increasing.
“I empathize with the business community. We need to have the county up and going and functioning, but right now I don’t think it is the time,” she said. “We can’t open up the economy to the detriment of the people.”
But Stanislaus County has already formed a task force with leaders from various business sectors to come up with guidance for reopening.
David White, the CEO of Opportunity Stanislaus, an organization that supports economic development, said the group is also preparing a virtual workplace safety training. Participating businesses would receive a sticker they could then display to boost the public’s confidence.
“We’re not going to move ahead of the state,” White said. “What we’re trying to do is provide a safe initiative that could be a model for the state for counties like ours that want to open up cautiously and carefully.”


latimes--2020-05-01--Too many 'shiny objects': Why it's risky to promise a coronavirus vaccine and cure

A surge of optimism has followed each recent announcement about possible cures and vaccines for COVID-19 , including this week ’ s disclosure of a treatment that was first developed for the Ebola virus .
But there is a price to pay for promising too much as the economy reels and the world anxiously awaits even a marginally effective therapeutic .
Some promising announcements have been followed by reality checks , further muddling the picture about which ones will come to the rescue .
The latest came this week after Dr. Anthony Fauci , the chief of the federal government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , indicated that an anti-viral drug developed by Bay Area biotech giant Gilead Sciences sped up by several days the recovery of about half the people with COVID-19 .
Within 24 hours , however , the celebration was tempered by news that China had tested the same drug , used effectively against Ebola , and had found no benefit against the disease .
In addition , both tests apparently showed little or no improvement in the fatality rates of those infected .
Research chiefs and health experts around the world said in interviews @ @ @ @ @ @ @ treat the sick will be available within this year , with an effective vaccine coming by next year .
But the research is still far too early to decide which set of drugs will work .
“ We can ’ t move day to day and press conference to press conference to the next shiny object , ” said Peter Pitts , a University of Paris visiting professor and former FDA associate director .
Gilead ’ s drug , known as remdesivir , “ is not a game-changing proposition for any person or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seriously ill people and lord knows some good news is appreciated these days.
” Ultimately , a successful drug to treat infected people would have to result in significantly fewer deaths , said Wayne Chanon , chairman of United Kingdom-based Stabilitech Biopharma Ltd. , which is developing its own novel treatment .
With more than 100 organizations working on vaccines and drugs to prevent or cure the disease , there are bound to be a large set of failures and a number of possible winners .
Scientists say it is vital to have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the disease .
“ What we want is not to put all our eggs in one basket , ” said Kate Broderick , research director at the San Diego lab of Inovio Pharmaceuticals , the second drug company to begin human testing of a drug .
“ We need to try many different options , because we need a solution as soon as possible.
” Fauci said he disclosed the early test results of remdesivir before rigorous peer review because he was concerned the data were leaking out , while Gilead defended the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he suggested that hundreds of millions of doses of a potential COVID-19 vaccine could be available by early next year , The virus , formally known as SARS-CoV-2 , is both highly infectious and lethal , a combination unlike any respiratory disease in the last 100 years .
When a healthy person walks into a mucous cloud left by an infected individual , hundreds or thousands of individual viruses are inhaled into the respiratory system .
A single virus can initiate the disease , but thousands of them will hamper the body @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speedy attack on the virus .
It is one metric that determines how sick a person will get .
Within hours , the virus begins to replicate itself and release copies to infect other nearby lung cells .
Quickly , possibly within a day , a single infected cell can release potentially millions of copies of the virus to begin assaulting the respiratory system .
When sick people go to the hospital , little can be done for them beyond making sure they are hydrated and provided oxygen .
Some experts say the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a great investment , because death rates of patients on those machines are so high .
Despite all that is known about the virus , great mysteries remain , even exactly how it causes death .
In some cases , the infection travels from the sinus and bronchial tubes into deep lung tissue , triggering severe pneumonia that drowns the victim .
But in other cases , the virus triggers an immune overreaction known as a cytokine storm that begins to attack healthy tissue and can lead to organ failure throughout the body @ @ @ @ @ @ @ options in combating COVID-19 .
Research teams are attempting to help individual cells use their innate self-defense capabilities to fight the initial entry of the virus .
Others teams are trying to give coded information to the body ’ s immune system to understand how to produce antibodies that can fight the disease .
And others still are trying to find molecules that can be put into the human body that will bond to the virus and disable it .
The researchers are attacking the problem with myriad cutting-edge techniques , genetic sequencing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ super-computers in the world .
Jacob Glanville , chief executive of Bay Area-based Distributed Bio and a scientific adviser to Stanford University and UC San Francisco , is pursuing both a vaccine and an antibody drug that could be ready by August , he said .
The company took five known antibodies that were effective against severe acute respiratory syndrome , the SARS epidemic of 2002 , and ran computations of billions of mutations to find a structure that could attack the new coronavirus , he said .
The potent molecules were recently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world .
“ Our feeling is that the crisis is sufficiently resolved when you have an antibody treatment , ” Glanville said .
Inovio is taking a different approach , creating segments of genetic code from the coronavirus and fabricating it into pills .
The code would tell the human immune system how to create antibodies that would fight the virus when it appears , said Broderick , the research chief .
The entire package was synthesized within a day after the research team had examined the genetic code of the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second treatment in the U.S. to enter human trials .
“ I like to think of our DNA medicine like an FBI wanted poster , ” she said .
“ If you see this bad guy , attack it.
” The Inovio approach uses the coronavirus DNA , while Moderna , another U.S. biotech firm that was first to start testing , uses the generic code RNA .
Meanwhile , Oxford University , Johnson & Johnson and several Energy Department laboratories that conduct bioterrorism research are looking at other approaches .
Thousand Oaks-based @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well .
Another team of academic experts is looking at how individual cells defend themselves against a virus , before the human immune system can mobilize .
Research by Charles Brenner of the University of Iowa , Anthony Fehr of the University of Kansas and Michael Coehn of Oregon Health & Science University are examining the role of a substance central to cell metabolism , known as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide , or NAD .
When a cell is attacked by a coronavirus , the NAD is used up in the fight , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to assess whether a dietary supplement known as niagen can boost NAD and help fight the virus .
Niagen is produced by Los Angeles-based ChromaDex .
“ The type of immunity we are investigating is innate to the cell , not depending on antibodies , ” Brenner said .
“ The cell has an immune defense system that gets turned on that uses up the NAD.
” In the United Kingdom , Stabilitech Biopharma Ltd. Is investigating a treatment that targets the body ’ s mucous membranes , the first line of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wayne Channon .
The company has taken a harmless virus common in the human body and modified its genetic structure to include two genes that are responsible for the now famous spikes in the coronavirus .
It is formulated into a pill that , when digested , would prompt the immune system to produce antibodies to attack the coronavirus spikes .
The approach requires small amounts of the drug , meaning it would be easier to manufacture for universal consumption .

Rubber stoppers are placed on filled vials of the drug remdesivir at a Gilead Sciences manufacturing plant.
A surge of optimism has followed each recent announcement about possible cures and vaccines for COVID-19, including this week’s disclosure of a treatment that was first developed for the Ebola virus.
But there is a price to pay for promising too much as the economy reels and the world anxiously awaits even a marginally effective therapeutic. Some promising announcements have been followed by reality checks, further muddling the picture about which ones will come to the rescue.
For the record: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that the novel coronavirus has DNA; the virus’s genetic information is encoded in RNA.
The latest came this week after Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief of the federal government’s top institute for infectious diseases, indicated that an anti-viral drug developed by Bay Area biotech giant Gilead Sciences sped up by several days the recovery of about half the people with COVID-19.
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That same day, however, the celebration was tempered by news that China had tested the same drug, used effectively against Ebola, and had found no benefit against the disease. In addition, both tests apparently showed little or no improvement in the fatality rates of those infected.
Research chiefs and health experts around the world said in interviews that they are confident drugs to help treat the sick will be available within this year, with an effective vaccine coming by next year. But the research is still far too early to decide which set of drugs will work.
“We can’t move day to day and press conference to press conference to the next shiny object,” said Peter Pitts, a University of Paris visiting professor and former FDA associate commissioner. Gilead’s drug, known as remdesivir, “is not a game-changing proposition for any person or any nation, but it could help seriously ill people and lord knows some good news is appreciated these days.”
Ultimately, a successful drug to treat infected people would have to result in significantly fewer deaths, said Wayne Chanon, chairman of United Kingdom-based Stabilitech Biopharma Ltd., which is developing its own novel treatment.
With more than 100 organizations working on vaccines and drugs to prevent or cure the disease, there are bound to be a large set of failures and a number of possible winners. Scientists say it is vital to have more than one drug type to fight the disease.
“What we want is not to put all our eggs in one basket,” said Kate Broderick, research director at the San Diego lab of Inovio Pharmaceuticals, the second drug company to begin human testing of a drug. “We need to try many different options, because we need a solution as soon as possible.”
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The virus, formally known as SARS-CoV-2, is both lethal and highly infectious, a combination unlike any respiratory disease in the last 100 years.
When a healthy person walks into a mucous cloud left by an infected individual, hundreds or thousands of individual viruses are inhaled into the respiratory system.
A single virus can initiate the disease, but thousands of them will hamper the body’s immune system to mount a speedy attack on the virus. It is one metric that determines how sick a person will get.
Within hours, the virus begins to replicate itself and release copies to infect other nearby lung cells. Quickly, possibly within a day, a single infected cell can release potentially millions of copies of the virus to begin assaulting the respiratory system.
When sick people go to the hospital, little can be done for them beyond making sure they are hydrated and provided oxygen. Some experts say the rush to build respirators was probably not a great investment, because death rates of patients on those machines are so high.
Despite all that is known about the virus, great mysteries remain, even exactly how it causes death. In some cases, the infection travels from the sinus and bronchial tubes into deep lung tissue, triggering severe pneumonia that drowns the victim. But in other cases, the virus triggers an immune overreaction known as a cytokine storm that begins to attack healthy tissue and can lead to organ failure throughout the body.
Scientists see a wide range of options in combating COVID-19.
Research teams are attempting to help individual cells use their innate self-defense capabilities to fight the initial entry of the virus. Others teams are trying to give coded information to the body’s immune system to understand how to produce antibodies that can fight the disease. And others still are trying to find molecules that can be put into the human body that will bond to the virus and disable it.
The researchers are attacking the problem with myriad cutting-edge techniques, genetic sequencing, sophisticated mathematical models and the fastest super-computers in the world.
Jacob Glanville, chief executive of Bay Area-based Distributed Bio and a scientific adviser to Stanford University and UC San Francisco, is pursuing both a vaccine and an antibody drug. The latter could be ready by August, he said.
The company took five known antibodies that were effective against severe acute respiratory syndrome, the SARS epidemic of 2002-03, and ran computations of billions of mutations to find a structure that could attack the new coronavirus, he said. The potent molecules were recently sent for animal tests in labs around the world.
“Our feeling is that the crisis is sufficiently resolved when you have an antibody treatment,” Glanville said.
Inovio is taking a different approach, creating segments of genetic code from the coronavirus. The code would tell the human immune system how to create antibodies that would fight the virus when it appears, said Broderick, the research chief. The entire package was synthesized within a day after the research team had examined the genetic code of the virus, she said, and was the second treatment in the U.S. to enter human trials.
“I like to think of our DNA medicine like an FBI wanted poster,” she said. “If you see this bad guy, attack it.”
Meanwhile, Oxford University, Johnson & Johnson and several Energy Department laboratories that conduct bioterrorism research are looking at other approaches. Thousand Oaks-based Amgen is working on an antibody therapy as well.
Another team of academic experts is looking at how individual cells defend themselves against a virus, before the human immune system can mobilize.
Research by Charles Brenner of the University of Iowa, Anthony Fehr of the University of Kansas and Michael Cohen of Oregon Health & Science University are examining the role of a substance central to cell metabolism, known as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD.
When a cell is attacked by a coronavirus, the NAD is used up in the fight, weakening the cell. The team is trying to assess whether a dietary supplement known as niagen can boost NAD and help fight the virus. Niagen is produced by Los Angeles-based ChromaDex.
“The type of immunity we are investigating is innate to the cell, not depending on antibodies,” Brenner said. “The cell has an immune defense system that gets turned on that uses up the NAD.”
In the United Kingdom, Stabilitech Biopharma Ltd. Is investigating a treatment that targets the body’s mucous membranes, the first line of defense against infections, said company chairman Wayne Channon.
The company has taken a harmless virus common in the human body and modified its genetic structure to include two genes that are responsible for the now famous spikes in the coronavirus. It is formulated into a pill that, when digested, would prompt the immune system to produce antibodies to attack the coronavirus spikes.
The approach requires small amounts of the drug, meaning it would be easier to manufacture for universal consumption.


latimes--2020-05-01--Californians broadly trust state government on coronavirus, mistrust Trump, poll finds

California voters give broad approval to Gov .
Gavin Newsom amid the coronavirus crisis , and despite widely felt economic pain , large majorities want to go slow on ending stay-at-home orders , a new statewide poll finds .
The poll from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies documents the hardship caused by the pandemic and the economic disruption surrounding it .
The poll found 16 % of California voters already reporting that they were unemployed when the survey was taken , April 16-20 .
Nearly 4 in 10 expect they may lose their job as a result of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ among the state ’ s African American and Latino populations and those without a college education .
Nearly 7 in 10 voters fear the possibility of getting sick with COVID-19 , the illness caused by the coronavirus .
Nine in 10 voters say they see the pandemic as a threat to their personal or family health , with 52 % calling it a major threat ; 83 % call it a threat to their personal finances .
Amid that widespread anxiety and disruption , voters want officials to take their time about ending @ @ @ @ @ @ @ By 70 % to 30 % , the state ’ s voters say they ’ re more worried that shelter-in-place orders will end too soon , causing the illness to spread more , than they are that such orders will continue for too long and damage the economy .
Voters express considerable confidence in the state government , which , along with local officials , have imposed orders banning public gatherings and closing many businesses .
Newsom benefits from that , with 70 % of California voters approving of how he ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The governor ’ s high standing and the priority voters put on keeping restrictions in place to protect health could give him considerable leeway to take controversial decisions , such as his order Thursday to keep Orange County beaches closed .
The governor ’ s standing is up 10 points from the last time the Berkeley IGS poll asked about it , in September .
The increase reflects significant upticks in the share of Republicans and self-described moderates who say they approve of the job the liberal Democratic governor is doing .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ which governors of both parties who have ordered aggressive measures to combat the spread of the virus have seen a positive response from voters .
“ That ’ s what we ’ d normally expect to see , ” said UC Berkeley political science professor Eric Schickler , co-director of the Institute of Governmental Studies .
Across the country , “ governors are benefiting ” from the tendency of voters to rally around their leaders , at least initially , “ during a time of national crisis.
” President Trump , Schickler noted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rule , a head of government who has not had a significant rallying moment as a result of the crisis .
The poll bears that out .
California voters have much less confidence in the federal government and Trump , whom many of them blame for problems with the national response to the virus : 61 % , for example , say the president is mostly or completely responsible for the shortages of tests and medical supplies that have dogged efforts to combat the virus .
Only about 2.5 % of the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ve been tested , with an additional 6 % saying they have tried to get a test and were unable to do so .
About one-third say they know someone who has been tested , and about half of those say they know someone who has tested positive .
Slightly less than 4 in 10 state voters say they have confidence in the federal government ’ s response to the pandemic .
A similar share say they trust national leaders to provide accurate information about the disease , compared with 6 in 10 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaders rank slightly below television news ( 49 % ) and considerably below newspapers ( 60 % ) as a source of information that voters at least somewhat trust , the poll found .
By contrast , 77 % trust state and local leaders to provide accurate information , 87 % trust the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and 92 % trust scientific experts such as university researchers .
The UC Berkeley poll was conducted by email in English and Spanish among 8,800 registered voters statewide , an unusually large sample @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The results have an estimated margin of error of 3 percentage points in either direction .
Because the poll questioned registered voters , it may not completely capture the extent of economic disruption the pandemic has caused .
While about 82 % of eligible California adults are registered to vote , those who are not registered are , on average , younger and poorer .
The poll reveals the strong impact that partisanship , and views of Trump , have on how people view the pandemic .
Just 30 % of the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the president is handling his job , with 20 % approving strongly .
By contrast , 64 % disapprove , with 55 % doing so strongly .
The minority who strongly approve of Trump and those who identify themselves as conservative have notably different views of the pandemic than the rest of the state ’ s voters .
Just over half of voters statewide say they see COVID-19 as a “ major threat ” to their personal or family health .
That share falls to just over one-third among those who identify as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ illness as a major threat is also somewhat higher in Los Angeles County , which has had the most confirmed cases , than in some other parts of the state .
In L.A. County , 56 % say they see the illness as a major threat , while in the Central Valley , San Diego and Orange counties and the far northern parts of the state , concern is slightly below the state average , between 48 % and 49 % .
The level of concern in the Bay Area and the Inland @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Those who strongly support Trump are less likely to believe that social distancing measures are effective in combating the virus and oppose continuing them , although even among that group , 57 % say that staying home as much as possible is an “ extremely effective ” method of stopping the spread of the disease .
Among those who strongly disapprove of Trump , the share who see staying at home as extremely effective is much higher , 90 % .
Similar gaps showed up in questions about the effectiveness of wearing masks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people .
Strong supporters of Trump are also somewhat more likely than the rest of the state ’ s voters to say that eating a healthful diet or taking vitamins are effective ways to stave off the illness .
Medical experts say that ’ s not the case .
The numbers show the power that partisanship has to affect people ’ s opinions , said IGS co-director G. Cristina Mora , associate professor of sociology at UC Berkeley .
“ When it hits at your everyday behaviors , that ’ s particularly striking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vacillated in his support for social distancing .
The White House coronavirus task force has repeatedly urged Americans to stay at home , maintain distance from other people and wear masks in public .
At times , Trump has backed that message .
At other times , he has called for quickly ending restrictions on commerce and public gatherings and has supported protesters who have demonstrated in California and other states to call for rolling back the rules .
He has also publicly said that he won ’ t wear a mask .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ they fear the damage to the economy from closures outweighs the injury caused by the virus .
Strong Trump supporters embrace that view , in sharp contrast with the rest of the state ’ s voters : By 78 % to 22 % , Trump ’ s strong backers say they worry more that the restrictions will be kept in place too long and damage the economy than that they ’ ll be ended too quickly .
By contrast , African American and Latino voters , although they report more economic distress , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end to the stay-at-home restrictions .
By a wide margin , 70 % to 8 % , with 22 % unsure , California voters say they believe that the economic damage is leading to more inequality in the U.S .
The poll provides extensive evidence to back that belief , finding that the cost has fallen most heavily on people of color and those with the lowest incomes .
About 30 % of Latino voters say the pandemic has caused them to lose income because of reduced hours at work , and an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them to be laid off .
That ’ s almost twice the share of white voters who say they ’ ve suffered from lost hours or a layoff .
African American and Asian American voters fall between the other two groups .
White voters and those with incomes greater than $ 100,000 a year are far more likely than others to say that the pandemic has caused a loss of money in the stock market or retirement funds , reflecting their greater likelihood of having investments in the first place .
Just over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 20,000 a year see the pandemic as a major threat to their employment , more than twice the level among those earning $ 200,000 or more .
Latinos , at 49 % , and African Americans , at 44 % , are more likely than whites , 30 % , to see a major threat to their employment .
Asian Americans , at 42 % , fall close to the statewide average .
Similarly , 37 % of Latinos said they faced a “ very serious ” risk of being unable to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , compared with 16 % of whites , 26 % of African Americans and 28 % of Asian Americans .
Just over half of the state ’ s voters say they are currently working , with 23 % retired and 9 % students in addition to the 16 % who are unemployed .
Of those who are working , just over half say they are able to work from home , and about 1 in 5 say they leave home to go to work but that their work involves minimal contact with other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state ’ s workforce , or about 1 in 8 voters , working in jobs that require regular contact with other people .
That share is highest among those with no more than high school or trade school degrees and lowest among those with college or graduate degrees , the poll found .
Also among those who are working , 37 % said they expected they would not get paid or would lose their jobs if they got sick and couldn ’ t work for two weeks or more , while 53 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be paid and 10 % were unsure .
Not surprisingly , those with the lowest incomes and least education were most likely to be at risk of not being paid .
Among those earning $ 200,000 or more , 72 % said they expected their pay would continue if they couldn ’ t work ; that fell to 24 % among those earning less than $ 20,000 .
A large share of California voters say they worry they might inadvertently spread the illness to others .
Contrary to the stereotype of young people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concern is most widespread among voters between 18 and 35 , with nearly 6 in 10 saying they are “ very concerned ” about infecting others .
Despite such worries , however , only 19 % of the state ’ s voters said that since the coronavirus outbreak , they were “ rarely ” feeling happy or satisfied with their lives .
Just over one-third said they were “ sometimes ” happy or satisfied , while most , 45 % , said they remained happy or satisfied “ often ” or “ very @ @ @

California voters give broad approval to Gov. Gavin Newsom amid the coronavirus crisis, and despite widely felt economic pain, large majorities want to go slow on ending stay-at-home orders, a new statewide poll finds.
The poll from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies documents the hardship caused by the pandemic and the economic disruption surrounding it. The poll found 16% of California voters already reporting that they were unemployed when the survey was taken, April 16-20.
Nearly 4 in 10 expect they may lose their job as a result of the pandemic, with that concern heaviest among the state’s African American and Latino populations and those without a college education. Nearly 7 in 10 voters fear the possibility of getting sick with COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus.
Nine in 10 voters say they see the pandemic as a threat to their personal or family health, with 52% calling it a major threat; 83% call it a threat to their personal finances.
Amid that widespread anxiety and disruption, voters want officials to take their time about ending restrictions on business and public gatherings. By 70% to 30%, the state’s voters say they’re more worried that shelter-in-place orders will end too soon, causing the illness to spread more, than they are that such orders will continue for too long and damage the economy.
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Voters express considerable confidence in the state government, which, along with local officials, have imposed orders banning public gatherings and closing many businesses.
Newsom benefits from that, with 70% of California voters approving of how he’s doing his job, the poll finds. The governor’s high standing and the priority voters put on keeping restrictions in place to protect health could give him considerable leeway to take controversial decisions, such as his order Thursday to keep Orange County beaches closed.
The governor’s standing is up 10 points from the last time the Berkeley IGS poll asked about it, in September. The increase reflects significant upticks in the share of Republicans and self-described moderates who say they approve of the job the liberal Democratic governor is doing.
That increase fits a nationwide pattern in which governors of both parties who have ordered aggressive measures to combat the spread of the virus have seen a positive response from voters.
“That’s what we’d normally expect to see,” said UC Berkeley political science professor Eric Schickler, co-director of the Institute of Governmental Studies. Across the country, “governors are benefiting” from the tendency of voters to rally around their leaders, at least initially, “during a time of national crisis.”
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President Trump, Schickler noted, is the great exception to that rule, a head of government who has not had a significant rallying moment as a result of the crisis.
The poll bears that out. California voters have much less confidence in the federal government and Trump, whom many of them blame for problems with the national response to the virus: 61%, for example, say the president is mostly or completely responsible for the shortages of tests and medical supplies that have dogged efforts to combat the virus.
Only about 2.5% of the state’s voters report that they’ve been tested, with an additional 6% saying they have tried to get a test and were unable to do so. About one-third say they know someone who has been tested, and about half of those say they know someone who has tested positive.
Slightly less than 4 in 10 state voters say they have confidence in the federal government’s response to the pandemic. A similar share say they trust national leaders to provide accurate information about the disease, compared with 6 in 10 who do not trust them.
National leaders rank slightly below television news (49%) and considerably below newspapers (60%) as a source of information that voters at least somewhat trust, the poll found.
By contrast, 77% trust state and local leaders to provide accurate information, 87% trust the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and 92% trust scientific experts such as university researchers.
The UC Berkeley poll was conducted by email in English and Spanish among 8,800 registered voters statewide, an unusually large sample that allows detailed analysis of sub-groups. The results have an estimated margin of error of 3 percentage points in either direction.
Because the poll questioned registered voters, it may not completely capture the extent of economic disruption the pandemic has caused. While about 82% of eligible California adults are registered to vote, those who are not registered are, on average, younger and poorer.
Politics How the Berkeley IGS poll is done The UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll that The Times is publishing uses a method that differs from traditional phone-based surveys.
The poll reveals the strong impact that partisanship, and views of Trump, have on how people view the pandemic. Just 30% of the state’s voters approve of the way the president is handling his job, with 20% approving strongly. By contrast, 64% disapprove, with 55% doing so strongly.
The minority who strongly approve of Trump and those who identify themselves as conservative have notably different views of the pandemic than the rest of the state’s voters.
Just over half of voters statewide say they see COVID-19 as a “major threat” to their personal or family health. That share falls to just over one-third among those who identify as “very conservative.”
Perception of the illness as a major threat is also somewhat higher in Los Angeles County, which has had the most confirmed cases, than in some other parts of the state.
In L.A. County, 56% say they see the illness as a major threat, while in the Central Valley, San Diego and Orange counties and the far northern parts of the state, concern is slightly below the state average, between 48% and 49%. The level of concern in the Bay Area and the Inland Empire is at the state average.
Those who strongly support Trump are less likely to believe that social distancing measures are effective in combating the virus and oppose continuing them, although even among that group, 57% say that staying home as much as possible is an “extremely effective” method of stopping the spread of the disease.
Among those who strongly disapprove of Trump, the share who see staying at home as extremely effective is much higher, 90%.
Similar gaps showed up in questions about the effectiveness of wearing masks and staying six feet away from other people.
Strong supporters of Trump are also somewhat more likely than the rest of the state’s voters to say that eating a healthful diet or taking vitamins are effective ways to stave off the illness. Medical experts say that’s not the case.
The numbers show the power that partisanship has to affect people’s opinions, said IGS co-director G. Cristina Mora, associate professor of sociology at UC Berkeley.
“When it hits at your everyday behaviors, that’s particularly striking,” Mora said.
Trump has vacillated in his support for social distancing.
The White House coronavirus task force has repeatedly urged Americans to stay at home, maintain distance from other people and wear masks in public.
At times, Trump has backed that message. At other times, he has called for quickly ending restrictions on commerce and public gatherings and has supported protesters who have demonstrated in California and other states to call for rolling back the rules. He has also publicly said that he won’t wear a mask.
Those who want commerce reopened quickly say they fear the damage to the economy from closures outweighs the injury caused by the virus. Strong Trump supporters embrace that view, in sharp contrast with the rest of the state’s voters: By 78% to 22%, Trump’s strong backers say they worry more that the restrictions will be kept in place too long and damage the economy than that they’ll be ended too quickly.
By contrast, African American and Latino voters, although they report more economic distress, are less likely to support a quick end to the stay-at-home restrictions.
By a wide margin, 70% to 8%, with 22% unsure, California voters say they believe that the economic damage is leading to more inequality in the U.S. The poll provides extensive evidence to back that belief, finding that the cost has fallen most heavily on people of color and those with the lowest incomes.
About 30% of Latino voters say the pandemic has caused them to lose income because of reduced hours at work, and an additional 18% say it has caused them to be laid off. That’s almost twice the share of white voters who say they’ve suffered from lost hours or a layoff. African American and Asian American voters fall between the other two groups.
White voters and those with incomes greater than $100,000 a year are far more likely than others to say that the pandemic has caused a loss of money in the stock market or retirement funds, reflecting their greater likelihood of having investments in the first place.
Just over half of those who earn less than $20,000 a year see the pandemic as a major threat to their employment, more than twice the level among those earning $200,000 or more. Latinos, at 49%, and African Americans, at 44%, are more likely than whites, 30%, to see a major threat to their employment. Asian Americans, at 42%, fall close to the statewide average.
Similarly, 37% of Latinos said they faced a “very serious” risk of being unable to work remotely or working under dangerous conditions, compared with 16%of whites, 26% of African Americans and 28% of Asian Americans.
Just over half of the state’s voters say they are currently working, with 23% retired and 9% students in addition to the 16% who are unemployed.
Of those who are working, just over half say they are able to work from home, and about 1 in 5 say they leave home to go to work but that their work involves minimal contact with other people.
That leaves 23% of the state’s workforce, or about 1 in 8 voters, working in jobs that require regular contact with other people. That share is highest among those with no more than high school or trade school degrees and lowest among those with college or graduate degrees, the poll found.
Also among those who are working, 37% said they expected they would not get paid or would lose their jobs if they got sick and couldn’t work for two weeks or more, while 53% said they expected they would still be paid and 10% were unsure.
Not surprisingly, those with the lowest incomes and least education were most likely to be at risk of not being paid. Among those earning $200,000 or more, 72% said they expected their pay would continue if they couldn’t work; that fell to 24% among those earning less than $20,000.
A large share of California voters say they worry they might inadvertently spread the illness to others. Contrary to the stereotype of young people not taking the virus seriously, that concern is most widespread among voters between 18 and 35, with nearly 6 in 10 saying they are “very concerned” about infecting others.
Despite such worries, however, only 19% of the state’s voters said that since the coronavirus outbreak, they were “rarely” feeling happy or satisfied with their lives. Just over one-third said they were “sometimes” happy or satisfied, while most, 45%, said they remained happy or satisfied “often” or “very often.”