California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks on lifting virus home stay orders



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California lifted regional stay-at-home orders statewide on Monday in response to the improvement coronavirus conditions, reducing the state to a county-by-county system of restrictions, public health officials said. CBS San Francisco reports that the move paves the way for a return to limited restaurants, church services and other activities. Governor Gavin Newsom responded to the lifted order Monday afternoon.

The order had been in place in the San Francisco Bay Area, the San Joaquin Valley and Southern california, covering the majority of counties in the state. The change will allow businesses such as restaurants to resume outdoor activities in many areas, although local authorities may choose to maintain stricter rules. The state is also lifting a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew.

“Together, we changed our business knowing that our short-term sacrifices would lead to longer-term gains. COVID-19 is still here and still deadly, so our work is not done, but it is important to recognize that our collective actions have saved lives and are taking us a critical turn ”, said Dr Tomas Aragon, director of state public health, in a statement.

This move is accompanied by improved trends in the rate of infections, hospitalizations and the capacity of intensive care units as well as vaccinations.

Viral epidemic in California
Visitors wear masks at a point of view at a COVID-19 vaccination site at Dodger Stadium Friday, January 15, 2021, in Los Angeles.

Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP


Newsom imposed the stay-at-home order in December as coronavirus cases worsened. Under this system, a multi-county region had to shut down most businesses and order people to stay in their homes if ICU capacity fell below 15%. An area of ​​11 counties in Northern California was never under order. The Greater Sacramento area left the order last week. The state makes the decisions based on four-week projections showing improvement in ICU capacity, but officials have not disclosed the data behind the forecast.

Over the weekend, the capacity of intensive care units in the San Francisco Bay Area jumped to 23% while the San Joaquin Valley increased to 1.3%, its first time above zero. The vast, most populous region of Southern California remains at zero intensive care capacity.

Dr Monica Gandhi, infectious disease specialist at UCSF, told CBS San Francisco that she is encouraged by the availability of the ICU in the region. She sees hospitalizations drop firsthand at Zuckerberg San Francisco General, where she also works.

“We didn’t see the push that was planned. We did it from Thanksgiving, and then it wasn’t as bad on Christmas and New Years at all as we expected,” she said. .

Early last year, the state developed a color tier system that dictated the level of restrictions on businesses and individuals based on viral conditions in each of California’s 58 counties. Most counties will now revert to the most restrictive purple level, which allows for open-air dining, hair and nail salons, and outdoor church services. Bars that only serve drinks cannot be opened.

A supervisor in Los Angeles County, which has 10 million people, expressed support for opening more businesses in the country. Republican Supervisor Kathryn Barger said the state must balance public health with “the devastating social, emotional and economic impacts of this virus.”

“I support adherence to the governor’s recommended guidelines for Southern California and the reopening of outdoor restaurants, personal care services and other industries that were previously closed by these orders,” she said. declared.

The county-by-county-level system uses a variety of metrics to determine the risk of community transmission and apply a color code – purple, red, orange, or yellow – that are widespread, substantial, moderate, and minimal, respectively.

Over the weekend, California had recorded more than 3.1 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 36,790 deaths, according to the state’s public health website.

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