Coronavirus updates: Sac City Unified worker who tests positive handled food, union says

As the coronavirus continues to spread throughout Northern California with increasing rapidity, a Sacramento school district said that one of its employees tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19.

In a message sent out to the community on Friday, Sacramento City Unified School District leadership said that an employee who worked at Rosemont High School and Golden Empire Elementary was confirmed infected.

SEIU Local 1021 chapter president Karla Faucett said that the district told the union Friday morning that the infected employee was a food service worker.

Although students have been out of school for weeks, schools in the district are still handing out meals to students on a daily basis.

SCUSD schools have been closed due to the pandemic since March 13, but the employee last reported to work on March 20, according to the district.

Most school district staff have been working from home, but some staff, including those in food service, still show up for essential services.

Faucett said that the district has not provided adequate protective gear for food service employees who are still in contact with the student body despite repeated pleas for face masks from union leadership.

Food service workers have not received anything beyond their normal allotment of plastic gloves, Faucett said, and often during meal handouts workers are not six feet apart from other people.

“We’ve been asking since the onset of this, ‘are you going to provide our people with face masks, gloves?’ ” Faucett said. “It’s unacceptable.”

The district refused to provide masks, saying they were not necessary, according to Faucett.

A district representative said the district could not release information regarding the employee due to privacy concerns, but said that gloves are provided to employees and social distancing measures are in place.

“Sac City Unified is taking proactive measures to protect the health and safety of our community and is in frequent consultation with Sacramento County Public Health on these matters,” the district said in a prepared statement. “District custodial staff continue to disinfect high-touch areas at all district sites on a daily basis. Additionally, a dedicated team has also been assigned to routinely deep clean all schools and departments throughout the district on a rotating basis.”

Staff members who still report for work in-person are directed to wash their hands every hour and must maintain social distancing during work, according to SCUSD officials.

SCUSD board approves layoffs

On Thursday night, hours before joining others around the region in physically closing campuses through the end of the academic year, Sacramento City Unified’s board approved to a motion to lay off classified employees.

The 46.5 full-time equivalent positions, which include bus drivers, clerks, campus monitors, yard duty employees and instructional aides are scheduled to be eliminated effective July 1. A number of those positions were vacant, and several were tied to one-time funds and 17 grants that were expiring. It would cost nearly $1 million for the district to cover the positions that were initially paid for by grants, officials said.

Several of the board members called the decision “heartbreaking” and difficult as concerns continue to rise over an economic crisis as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Several community members and teachers were critical of the decision, making comments through messages that were read aloud by the district clerk. People were upset that the district was planning to move forward with the layoffs during an economic crisis as people stay home to help slow the coronavirus outbreak.

All but one board member approved the motion. Mai Vang opposed it, and suggested an alternative motion to only approve layoffs for vacant positions and positions paid for by grants.

While the district expects some savings in utility and supply costs as schools remain closed, officials said there are several unplanned expenses to supplies, labor and food distributed during school closures. The distance learning program, which will be implemented by April 13, was also be an added expense.

Classified employees will begin receiving pink slip notices on April 13 and layoffs will occur by June.

How many people are infected?

The coronavirus has now infected almost 1.2 million people worldwide, with more than 308,000 cases across the United States, according to data maintained by Johns Hopkins University.

In California, more than 12,700 have been infected and at least 288 have died of the virus that causes the disease COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins.

California Department of Public Health figures lag slightly, reflecting more than 12,000 cases and 276 deaths as of Saturday.

While case numbers and death totals are rising at exponential rates, the crux of the crisis remains the same for Californians. Experts have for weeks stressed the importance of physical distancing, a critical tool to mitigate spread of the highly contagious virus and “flattening” its growth curve to a manageable level. It was for this reason that Gov. Gavin Newsom on March 19 issued a mandatory stay-at-home order that barred residents from leaving the house for nonessential reasons.

The California Department of Public Health was officially reporting 10,701 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Thursday and 237 deaths. Since then, more than 1,000 new cases were confirmed.

Although COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by coronavirus, has an increased mortality rate among elderly patients, the 18-49 age group is leading in California cases, accounting for 5,917 of the total number.

Men also lead somewhat, accounting for 6,202 of the more than 12,000 coronavirus cases.

As of Saturday, more than 1,500 people either suspected or confirmed to have coronavirus were being treated in intensive care units across the state, while more than 5,000 were hospitalized, according to the CDPH.

Sacramento region by the numbers

▪ There are currently 390 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Sacramento County. 49 of these cases were announced Friday as county health officials reported its 10th death from the virus. The latest death came from the city of Sacramento, which has reported the majority of the county’s cases. Seven of the county’s deaths have occurred in the city, while the other three were in Elk Grove, the next largest municipality. County officials maintain that all deaths have been in patients 65 or older or those with underlying health conditions.

▪ Placer County has the next most cases in the Sacramento area, with 101 cases and two deaths confirmed by health officials. As of Wednesday, the county was reporting 78 infected, but by Saturday morning the number had jumped up by almost 30 cases. Placer County health officials suspect that 31 percent of its cases were acquired via community transmission, while travel accounts for 32 percent of cases.

▪ Most of the Yolo County’s 37 cases stem from West Sacramento, which accounts for 19 cases. The next leading vector area in the county is Davis, with 8 confirmed cases. Only one death has been reported in the county.

▪ El Dorado County, a sparsely populated, largely rural area, has reported 22 confirmed cases and no deaths. A plurality of cases were reported in the Lake Tahoe region, with nine confirmed in the area, followed by El Dorado Hills, which has confirmed five cases.

Lake Tahoe travel ban

Despite that relatively small number of cases, the El Dorado County health chief ordered a residents and tourists to immediately cease all travel to Lake Tahoe, saying the popular Northern California destination was attracting too many people eager for respite from stay-at-home order.

El Dorado County’s no-travel order came in response to a surge in visitors to their vacation homes by the lake.

“Visitors whom we enthusiastically welcome during normal times are further impacting an already decreased availability of essential supplies and food, and putting the entire Lake Tahoe population at greater risk of being able to receive proper health care,” El Dorado County Public Health Officer Dr. Nancy Williams said in a prepared statement.

The county cited a dearth of hospital beds and medical supplies insufficient to treat a large number of patients as rationale for the order.

“It’s time to take this very strong message to those who are not already residing in South Lake Tahoe,” Williams said. “If you have no essential function and you are here, please go home.”

Sacramento police roust homeless against CDC advice

The Sacramento Police Department continued to roust homeless campers and direct them toward the downtown area this week against guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control.

Campers in front of Sacramento City Hall and elsewhere were dispersed by officers who may be exacerbating the spread of coronavirus, according to the CDC.

“Unless individual housing units are available, do not clear encampments during community spread of COVID-19,” the CDC said. “Clearing encampments can cause people to disperse throughout the community and break connections with service providers. This increases the potential for infectious disease spread.”

City leadership maintained that its camping ordinance allows for rousting at City Hall during the day, but said that rule changes may be in order, given the pandemic.

“The City of Sacramento last year passed an ordinance that allows for people to sleep outside of City Hall at night but keeps the building safe and accessible for employees and anyone who needs to use the facility during the day,” Sacramento City Manager’s spokesman Tim Swanson told The Sacramento Bee. “In light of the COVID-19 outbreak and the recent guidance regarding unsheltered people experiencing homelessness, the City is currently examining the rules of usage for the building to determine if they need to be modified.”

Sacramento homeless advocates said that disrupting homeless who are safely encamped makes it more difficult for outreach workers to find symptomatic people.

Bethany Slavic’s checkered past

Members of Bethany Slavic Missionary Church, who recently were accused by Sacramento County health officials of breaking stay-at-home orders by holding private fellowship meetings at congregants’ homes, has a history of controversy.

The Pentecostal megachurch, located near Rancho Cordova, has entered the political fray over the years, speaking out against gay rights and pushing for anti-vaccination policy.

Jerry Sloan, a co-founder of the Sacramento LGBT Center, told The Sacramento Bee that many among the local Slavic Christian community had been vocal protesters of a 2006 gay pride parade.

In response, he and others picketed at Bethany Slavic, and were met with mixed results.

“They came out and threatened to kill us, or some of their members did,” Sloan told The Bee. “Other members came out and offered us food.”

Church members also lobbied against SB 276, a bill written to strengthen state vaccination laws that was passed and signed into law by Gov. Newsom.

As of now, members of Bethany Slavic or those connected to the church account for nearly a fifth of Sacramento County’s coronavirus cases. At least 71 people linked to the church have tested positive with the virus, including one person who died.

Church officials said Bethany Slavic shut down a day before Governor Gavin Newsom issued his stay-at-home directive and transitioned to online-only worship services.

Patients say tests results slow as symptoms intensify

Californians displaying symptoms of COVID-19 want to be tested to determine treatment options — but then they are forced to wait for results as their condition deteriorates.

Berenice Dominguez told The Sacramento Bee that she had developed pneumonia and some symptoms of the virus, and spent days in a bed at the Colusa Medical Center as she waited for test results.

“It’s the most frustrating part of this, honestly,” Dominguez told The Bee. “It’s the not knowing.”

Five days after a nasal swab, she was eventually notified that her results came back positive for coronavirus.

These testing delays make it difficult to track the virus and allocate medical resources in response.

But for those who test negative, that means wasted hospital resources spent toward keeping patients isolated and protective equipment for caretakers.

Governor Newsom acknowledged the strain put on spread-thin testing labs as nearly 60,000 test results were still pending as of Thursday.

“This is a national problem,” Newsom said during a press conference. “Those commercial labs are overwhelmed by the demand… Every day we are increasing the number of tests that are being conducted but we do recognize the time delay.”

Newsom ‘owns’ testing, creates task force

By Saturday, however, Newsom had plans to address the state’s backlog of coronavirus testing.

In his daily briefing, Newsom announced a public-private partnership involving UC Davis, UC San Diego and Stanford University to reduce turnaround on testing results. Newsom also plans to open five to seven new lab hubs in the coming weeks.

“The testing space has been challenging for us, and I own that,” Newsom said. “I have a responsibility as your governor to do more and to better.”

As part of this partnership, Newsom said that Stanford has been developing a new coronavirus immunity test that detects antibodies spawned in response to the virus, indicating that a patient will be able to interact with others, even return to work, without fear of transmission.

The blood test is nearing the federal approval necessary for widespread use in the state, according to Newsom.

The state has already ramped up its testing capabilities and has made significant progress toward reducing the testing backlog, shrinking the number of pending tests from 60,000 on Thursday to 13,000.

Public defenders seek inmate release amid pandemic

Sacramento public defenders are seeking the release of seven Sacramento County inmates, arguing in a petition that judges failed to consider the health of inmates and the public.

“A failure to release petitioners during the present crisis risks their life and health (and) subjects their families to increased risk of infection or death,” Sacramento County Assistant Public Defender John W.H. Stoller said in a Thursday filing. “Rarely in the history of the state have individual decisions concerning custody or release posed such grave potential consequence to the community at large.”

Thus far, seven such petitions have been filed, accompanied by signatures of doctors who worked in Sacramento County jails.

Last week, a Sacramento County deputy public defender tested positive for COVID-19 after visiting a client in a jail.

“With our entire community at risk, this court must order the release of (the inmates), hold its own hearing, or at the least, require the lower court to act,” Stoller argued in the Thursday filing.

Among the seven who seek release are a felony auto theft suspect and an inmate facing misdemeanor charges, both of whom cannot afford bail. The other five are serving sentences and are scheduled to be released either in 2020 or early 2021, according to the petition.

A hearing date has not yet been set.

Stockton nurse dead of COVID-19

A registered nurse from Lodi who worked in a Stockton hospital died after contracting coronavirus.

Jeff Baumbach, 57, worked as a case manager at St. Joseph’s Hospital, where he coordinated care for Kaiser Permanente patients. He died on Tuesday.

“We are deeply saddened by the death of yet another of our RNs,” National Nurses United executive director Bonnie Castillo said in a Friday statement. “These deaths will continue without immediate response to the desperate need for protective equipment.”

Baumbach had been sick for a week before he died. His wife began showing symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus as well, but his case was severe, with evidence of pneumonia found in his lungs.

He collapsed on Tuesday after his condition worsened, and was taken to a Lodi hospital, where ventilator support was unsuccessfully attempted. He died in the hospital.

His family remembers him as a strong patient advocate and as a devoted father.

California Legislature extends break

The California Legislature delayed its scheduled return to the state Capitol by three weeks in response to the continued transmission of coronavirus.

Lawmakers previously voted unanimously to suspend its session until April 13, but announced on Friday that the legislature will reconvene on May 4 to give California health officials more time to combat the pandemic.

“Responding to the coronavirus is one of the biggest challenges to face the California Legislature in modern times,” Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, said in March. “The responsible thing for us to do is flatten the curve, reduce transmission, keep our health care system above water. That is the intent of the action we are taking.”

Latest world numbers: New York still U.S. epicenter

Roughly 61,000 people have now died from COVID-19 worldwide, according to the Johns Hopkins data map. Italy, where more than 119,000 infections have been confirmed, had reported more than 14,000 deaths as of Saturday morning, and Spain with a similar infection total surpassed 11,000 fatalities.

The United States on Saturday afternoon surpassed 8,000 fatalities, the Johns Hopkins map shows. New York state, where more than 103,000 people have been infected, accounts for nearly 3,000 of those deaths. Nearby New Jersey, where about 30,000 cases have been reported, has passed 600 dead.

France has reported more than 6,500 dead among just over 65,000 confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins.

China, where the rate of reported new cases and deaths has drastically slowed, stands at slightly more than 82,000 cases and 3,300 fatalities. Iran and the United Kingdom have each reported more than 3,000 dead. The Netherlands was approaching 1,500 dead, and Belgium and Germany are each just over 1,100 reported fatalities.

What is COVID-19? How is the coronavirus spread?

Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within 6 feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch the disease COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”

Symptoms of the virus that causes COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Most develop only mild symptoms, but some people develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease is especially dangerous to the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.

This story was originally published April 4, 2020 at 9:44 AM.