Riverside County officials have outlined a plan starting after Labor Day to gradually open businesses and places of worship forced to close after a spike in coronavirus cases.
In a Aug. 12 letter to public health officials, County Executive Officer George Johnson said the three-phase plan, which requires state approval, builds on steps the county has taken to prevent the spread of To combat COVID-19. The letter also spells out the tension of the virus and the next economic closure has put provincial residents and public services.
“The intent of this Advocacy Platform is to actively engage with (the California Department of Public Health) in a serious discussion about the steps we can take together to achieve positive outcomes and plan for the slow reopening of our society. and economy in a measured and safe way, one that balances the many aspects of public health that we need to address collectively, “Johnson wrote in the letter.
Johnson outlined the province’s Community Action Plan, launched July 24, to contain the virus, including a “Masks for Medicine” campaign to distribute 10 million free masks to residents.
Under the province’s opening plan, beginning Sept. 8, enjoy restaurants, wineries and breweries; places of worship; non-essential indoor offices; and “personal care companies” – hair salons, nail salons and tattoo parlors, for instance – would be allowed to reopen in accordance with state COVID-19 guidelines.
The second phase, beginning September 22, would give the green light to weddings, group meetings and events, and shopping center inside. Phase three, with effect from 6 October, would reopen gyms, cinemas and bars.
Health metrics would be measured to see if it is safe to move forward with each recovery phase.
“Having a plan that sets goals and expectations will provide a viable goal for our residents and create a foundation for achieving the realistic metrics within the 30 day time frame,” Johnson wrote. “A commitment by the state will provide clarity to our residents that the sacrifices they make have a common goal of achieving both a more stable and sustainable spread of the disease and reopening parts of our society and economy.”
The California Department of Public Health did not respond to a request for comment on the letter on Monday, August 17th. Since the state ordered the current restrictions, Sacramento’s state reshuffle plan is needed.
It is not the first time the province has pushed for reopening businesses stunted by a statewide stay-at-home order and other steps being taken to curb COVID-19 infections. After the province of Sacramento received permission to participate in a new highway opening, malls, retail stores and din-in restaurants were given the privilege of reopening at the end of May, followed by a larger scale of businesses, because the turnout in cases and hospitalizations was equal.
Cases across the county and throughout California nailed down Memorial Day, prompting County County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser on June 30 asked to close bars.
A day later, Govin Newsom ordered a wide range of counties businesses on the COVID-19 review list – including Riverside, Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties – to close operations, including indoor dining, to combat an exacerbation in coronavirus hospitalizations.
When it comes to confirmed cases, the current picture is a bit expensive.
Riverside County numbers fell in early August when the state encountered problems with its reporting system, and have risen again to near peak levels when the backlog is removed, but it is unclear how many of the new cases occur each day are reported are recent.
Information on hospitalizations and deaths was not affected by the same problems. Hospitalization is down significantly – for the first time since June, there are currently less than 300 people hospitalized with coronavirus in Riverside County. However, death rates are still high, with about 13 deaths reported in August per day, against an average of less than eight per day in July.
The state, like the rest of California, is also subject to a state coverage mandate issued June 18, just over a month after the Board of Supervisors appointed the public health official to enter its Countywide face coverage.
Johnson’s letter contains charts and figures showing how the province’s economy and public health have deteriorated since the pandemic began.
From January to May, the province saw a 16% increase in drug overdoses compared to the same period in 2019, one chart read. The province lost more than 100,000 jobs in March and April, close to 40% of tenants are not confident in their ability to pay next month’s rent and the number of county residents served by CalFresh – food stamps – grew 22% between March and June.
“We need to work on a way to gradually open up our economy and society while still maintaining the focus on safe practices for our long term,” said Brooke Federico, spokeswoman for the county via email.
“The current environment of closures was never intended to be long-term, and is not sustainable, so we need to engage the state in a conversation about how we can scale these back slowly, and safely.”
Brandon Brown, a UC Riverside associate professor in the School of Medicine’s Department of Social Medicine, Population and Public Health, has reservations about the county’s redevelopment plan.
“We had the highest peak death toll from COVID-19 in the past 2 weeks in Riverside County,” Brown said via email. “This is not a big impetus to push for a phase reopening plan, especially that it is accelerated every 2 weeks, where we would not be able to see the impact of each reopening phase.”
He added: ‘Large numbers of people entering without making enough physical distance such as in restaurants, houses of worship, weddings, cinemas and bars will lead to the spread of infection. We have already moved to reopen and had to step back and close again due to insufficient preparation. ”
By re-opening a phase, “there will be more opportunities to assess the effects of the opening before proceeding,” Federico said.
“We also note that the second round of closures began in early July. This plan would take us at least 90 days in early October before we return to where we were before July 2 when the last shutdowns were ordered … the province is busy providing guidance and training to our business community around them to help restore with proper safety procedures in place. ”
The province also wants the state to change its standards for positivity figures, as the percentage of the province COVID-19 tests that return positive. Currently, anything above 8% lands a county on the state watchlist; the province wants that changed to 14%.
Federico said there has been a greater focus “though not as much in Riverside (County)” on testing people with COVID-19 symptoms.
“In those cases, one can expect the positivity rate to be higher,” she said, adding that asymptomatic people are less likely to retest, which also increases the rate because there are more tests of people with symptoms.
Staff Writer Nikie Johnson contributed to this report.
