Recent increases in cases and hospitalizations for the new coronavirus have erased Riverside County’s progress against the disease and “the curve is no longer flat,” the county public health official said Tuesday, warning that they could there are more closings on the horizon. if the residents do not cover their faces and practice social distancing.
Dr. Cameron Kaiser also defended his order issued on Monday, June 29, closing bars and breweries until further notice unless they sell alcoholic foods, a move that came on the recommendation of Governor Gavin Newsom. The cases began to “escalate substantially” several days after county bars and other businesses were authorized to reopen June 12, he told the Riverside County Board of Supervisors.
Bars are among the most difficult places for county workers known as contact trackers to track infections because people come and go so often, Kaiser said during a video conference meeting of the board after several county employees tested positive for COVID-19.
Kim Saruwatari, the county’s director of public health, also mentioned reports of behavior in bars that could spread the virus, such as people crowding together, lack of social detachment, and bar patrons who don’t cover their faces and speak in loud voice “because it is a noisy environment. “
The bar’s closing order will be enforced, Kaiser said, and those who violate it risk losing their liquor license.
Like much of California, Riverside County has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations since early June. The county is now on the state’s coronavirus watch list, and across the county, nearly 100% of licensed intensive care unit beds are full: COVID-19 patients fill about one in four of those beds, forcing some hospitals to convert regular beds to handle the increase.
Saruwatari said the county has approximately 202 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents. The state alerts counties with rates above 100 per 100,000. Since the beginning of June, the county’s rate of testing for coronavirus testing positive has been consistently higher than the state threshold of 8% and the positive rate reached 12.3% on June 26, Saruwatari said.
In May, the county made enough progress that the state was on track to reopen more quickly as part of a plan to reopen closed businesses since Newsom imposed a state order to stay home on March 19 to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Now, “We are now at the point where our hospitalizations and ICU rates are higher than they have ever been during this pandemic, which has erased all of our gains and the curve is no longer flat,” Kaiser said.
In addition to the bars, Kaiser mentioned recent protests and private gatherings since Memorial Day as a factor in the recent surge. “Many (protesters) wore face and distance covers appropriately as recommended, but many did not,” he said.
Saruwatari said that while there have been some COVID-19 groups in restaurants, department stores, and plants that pack salads and dates, “Most of our cases are actually groups of people coming together. They are not social distancing. They do not have facial covers. They are together for more than 15 minutes at a time. “
Many of these people show no symptoms, he said.
“So it’s family barbecues, it’s having friends because it’s been a long time since you saw them. And it is that close contact with people that is really driving: what we feel is leading to the increase in the cases that we are seeing now ”.
While the county continues to hire contact trackers to track down those who came into contact with an infected person, “we are not behind in terms of contact tracking work,” Saruwatari said.
Kaiser urged the public to do their part to control the disease, including complying with a state mandate that covers the mandate and practices social distancing.
“In his comments yesterday, the governor made a clear statement that other closings are being considered,” Kaiser said. “And if we fail … to do what needs to be done safely, we can be in a position where if we don’t shut things down ourselves, the state will do it for us.”
Kaiser added: “We already have the tools to make our businesses safe and continue to do our business as safely as possible and not put more people at risk. We need to continue doing it, and if we can do it, I have full confidence that we can beat COVID-19. “
Tuesday’s hearing also gave county officials a chance to address rumors about the spread of the virus in the county, including what they called the falsehood that Imperial County COVID-19 patients are overwhelming county hospitals. and they are transported at night.
Bruce Barton, the county’s director of emergency management, noted that as of Monday, only five of the 365 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Riverside County are from Imperial County. Riverside County hospitals only accept Imperial County patients if there is space, he said, and most of those patients are transferred during the day by ground ambulance.
