Los Angeles County passes new stay-at-home order as Covid-19 cases rise

Health officials in Los Angeles County, the nation’s most populous, on Friday announced a new Covid-19 stay-at-home order that will ban most public and private gatherings.

The new restrictions, which take effect Monday and remain in place at least until December 20, will ban public and private gatherings except for people already living together. Religious services and demonstrations will be exempt.

“Residents are urged to stay at home as much as possible and always wear a face covering their nose and mouth when outside their homes and around others,” the health department said Friday. Los Angeles County Public Service in a statement.

New rules affecting the county’s 10 million residents will limit the capacity of essential retailers to 35% and non-essential stores to 20%. Fitness centers and open-air museums will be limited to 50% of their normal capacity and beach gatherings are prohibited. The playgrounds will remain closed.

The restrictions follow a new outdoor dining ban on Wednesday (indoor dining was already banned), leaving restaurants to only offer take-out and deliveries.

The tougher rules come after the five-day average for new cases surpasses 4,500, a threshold set by the county on November 17. Public health officials then said if the county reached that threshold, new restrictions would be put in place.

On Friday, the health department reported a five-day average of 4,751 cases and 24 deaths over a 24-hour period.

The health department said the number of cases “remains at alarming levels” while hospitalizations “continue to rise”.

Liza Torres contributed.