Coronavirus updates: 1,800 dead in California as national toll surpasses Vietnam War casualties
Californians have been credited with doing a relatively good job staying home and practicing social distancing in efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus, but residents of the nation’s most populous state are facing greater temptations as the weather warms.
Gov. Gavin Newsom during Monday’s daily news conference scolded crowds seen in photos taken at Orange and Ventura county beaches this past weekend.
“Those images are an example of what not to see,” Newsom said.
Newsom said that he is meeting with state and local law enforcement to discuss “more aggressive enforcement” of the stay-at-home order, though he said his preference was to educate people, not to issue them citations.
The United States on Tuesday reached 1 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, according to data maintained by Johns Hopkins University. Only about 45,000 of those infections have been reported among California’s 40 roughly million residents — about 4.5 percent of the cases in a state that makes up about 12 percent of the nation’s population.
Still, the death toll from COVID-19, which rose above 58,300, reached another milestone Tuesday, surpassing the total number of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. According to the National Archives, 58,220 Americans were killed in the decade-long conflict.
California has been under Newsom’s mandatory stay-at-home order, which restricts residents from going out except for purposes deemed essential, since March 19. The unprecedented effort is a measure intended to slow the spread and flatten or “bend” the growth curve of COVID-19, the disease caused by the highly contagious coronavirus, which as of Tuesday had killed more than 1,860 statewide, according to a Sacramento Bee survey of counties’ public health departments.
There is no set end date, but Newsom on Tuesday outlined four phases or “stages” for the state’s gradual loosening from the stay-at-home restrictions.
Four stages of reopening in California, Newsom says
The governor during Tuesday’s daily news briefing gave a more detailed version of his “roadmap” for reopening California’s economy, and for the first time formally described the planned order in which types of businesses will be allowed to reopen.
“We believe we are weeks, not months away from making meaningful modifications,” Newsom said.
Newsom on Tuesday described four “stages” of modifying the stay-at-home order.
▪ Stage 1 is the current stage, in which officials are continuing to work toward expanding testing and contract tracing, while increasing hospital surge capacity and safety measures at essential workplaces
▪ Stage 2 will include the reopening of “lower-risk workplaces,” and will see the gradual opening of some workplaces, “with adaptions.” Retail and manufacturing will be among the first to reopen, Newsom said. Public spaces could also reopen and offices in which telework is not possible may reopen.
▪ Stage 3 calls for the reopening of higher-risk businesses and personal services that include close physical contact, which salons, gyms, theaters, sports without live audiences, weddings and other in-person religious services.
▪ Stage 4 would be the end of the stay-at-home order, which would see concerts, live-audience sports and other large events and venues able to reopen.
The governor said Tuesday that Stage 2 is “weeks” away, Stage 3 is likely “months” away and that Stage 4 won’t arrive until treatments for the coronavirus have been developed
Newsom also said schools may reopen for an earlier school year that could start in July or August to make up for lost learning time because of the coronavirus pandemic, though he stressed no final decisions have been made regarding education.
State coronavirus deaths centered in senior care homes
More than 30 percent of COVID-19 deaths in California have come in long-term care homes for the elderly, new public health data shows, making skilled nursing and assisted living facilities by far the deadliest hot spots in the coronavirus pandemic.
At least 578 nursing home residents in California have died of complications from the coronavirus, according to state health department data published Tuesday morning, approximately one-third of the more than 1,800 confirmed COVID-19 deaths in the state.
As of last Friday, at least 144 residents in California assisted living facilities, which do not provide the same level of medical care as nursing homes, died of the virus, according to the most recent report from the California Department of Social Services.
Tuesday marked the first time state officials disclosed numbers relating to deaths at nursing homes from COVID-19. The true death toll could be higher because the current figures only include those “known by the facility,” meaning those that occurred after a resident was transferred to a hospital or private home may not be included.
Fewer than 11 employees at nursing homes have also died, according to the data. The state did not provide a precise number of employee deaths and is not yet providing the number of fatalities linked to specific facilities.
Elderly populations have, throughout the outbreak, been considered the population that is most vulnerable to the respiratory disease and for whom the virus is deadliest.
El Dorado County to let stay-home order expire
Citing a low volume of confirmed coronavirus cases and saying that the “vast majority” of residents and businesses have done well in adhering to state and local orders, El Dorado County’s public health officer on Tuesday morning announced the countywide stay-at-home directive will not be extended, allowed to expire this Thursday.
Residents will remain “guided primarily by the Governor’s Order,” the county said in a news release.
Public health officer Dr. Nancy Williams on March 19 issued a stay-at-home order for El Dorado County that was set to expire April 30. Hours later, Newsom instituted his statewide stay-at-home order, which continues to have no set end date.
“I am extremely pleased with how cooperative the vast majority of El Dorado County residents, businesses and California residents in general have been in complying with state and local health orders and directives,” Williams said in a prepared statement. “This cooperation has resulted in very positive results, with only 43 confirmed and five active cases in the County as of April 27, 2020.”
No fatalities from COVID-19 have been reported in El Dorado County as of Tuesday morning, according to its public health website.
Williams said, however, the county’s order to restrict nonessential travel to the unincorporated portion of the Lake Tahoe Basin will remain in effect. The county’s emergency ordinance allowing for fines to visitors at short-term rental housing will also stay in place, she said.
El Dorado appears to be the first county in California to announce that it is letting its stay-at-home order expire ahead of Newsom’s statewide order. Local officials among numerous rural counties in Northern California, though, have in recent weeks called on Newsom to allow them to begin gradually reopening, pointing to the economic damage suffered by several weeks of shutdown.
Placerville, the seat of El Dorado County, made a similar plea to the governor in mid-April, writing to Newsom that the community should be allowed to reopen, perhaps with some restrictions remaining in place.
Newsom, over the past week or so, has countered that rural parts of California face a different set of risks from the coronavirus than more densely populated urban hubs like Los Angeles County, where more than half of the state’s COVID-19 fatalities have come as of Monday. But they do still face danger from the disease, Newsom maintains.
“So if you’re living in a community where you think, ‘Well, we’re immune, we’re OK, we’ve got this. We’re not LA, we’re not some of these other counties in the state of California,’ I hope you’ll disabuse yourself of that and consider the fact that some of the most challenging parts of the state remain some of our rural parts of our state,” Newsom said early last week.
He pointed to “testing deserts” in rural parts of California, as well as lower hospital capacities, as the challenges those areas face.
Hot weather drawing more Californians outdoors
California is amid a heat wave that’s undoubtedly attracting more people to beaches and waterways than may be typical for late April.
Los Angeles and Sacramento each soared to 93 degrees last Friday, which is almost 20 degrees hotter than the latter city’s average for this time of year. But LA beaches remain closed, and the capital region’s typical weekend getaway spot to escape the heat — South Lake Tahoe — has effectively suspended tourism, the subject of a county-issued no-travel order.
The heat is continuing early this week. The National Weather Service forecasts Sacramento to hit 92 degrees Tuesday, before gradually cooling to the low 80s or high 70s by the weekend.
Newsom’s stay-at-home order does allow for some outdoor activity for exercise purposes, including jogging or running, but Californians are still required to keep six feet of distance from anyone not in their household..
At the local level, some counties and cities, including Sacramento, have closed areas like park playgrounds, basketball courts and tennis courts, while golf courses have stayed open. Placer County initially closed sports courts, but allowed for those and golf courses to reopen earlier this month in an amendment to its county-level order.
State’s roadway, highway improvement plans face uncertainty
The cororonavirus outbreak is jeopardizing California’s recent efforts to improve road conditions, which had been boosted by a gas tax that passed at the ballot in 2018.
Traffic volume on state highways has plunged dramatically in California since Newsom’s stay-at-home order went into effect. As a result, Californians are buying much less gas and paying less tax. Suddenly the state’s ambitious program to improve roads faces an uncertain future.
“This could cause some problems. There could be some delays if regions across the state don’t take advantage of quieter streets and lighter public transit schedules to work on improvement projects,” said Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, who leads the Senate’s transportation committee.
In California, fuel taxes help pay for the plan enacted in Senate Bill 1 in 2017, a program to raise $5.4 billion annually on the state’s highway, bridge and transit systems as well as local roadways. State transportation officials have not yet commented on how the COVID-19 crisis could impact revenue, but are expected to update their projected figures next month.
Though gas tax revenue will fall, the shutdown creating unusually favorable circumstances for road improvement and repair. Less traffic means less disruption, and, as Beall said, “delaying projects makes everything cost more.”
Because of the lighter traffic, lane closure hours have been expanded in Sacramento County, giving contractors more time to work.
Raley’s workers get increased wages, health benefits
Grocery workers represented by UFCW 8-Golden State have ratified a contract agreement with Raley’s that contains wage increases and expanded health care benefits for thousands. Raley’s has more than 11,000 employees at its stores in California and Nevada.
Union leader Jacques Loveall described pay raises as significant over the life of the three-year deal, but did not provide a percentage increase. The contract also provides that active employees will not have to pay premiums for their health care coverage.
The UFCW in a news release said West Sacramento-based Raley’s also agreed to the following:
▪ expand funding for the defined-benefit pension plan and re-activate a supplemental 401(k) plan called an Individual Account Plan;
▪ extend health care coverage for up to nine months during disability leave; and
▪ shorten the waiting period for health benefits for new hires.
Supermarkets have been classified as essential businesses during the stay-home orders, meaning they remain open for the public. But union leaders and grocery workers have repeatedly expressed concerns about exposure to people who have COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.
In response, many supermarkets have taken a number of steps such as limiting the number of customers in the store at one time, emphasizing social distancing in store signage, asking shoppers not to bring in reusable bags and installing acrylic barriers to protect workers.
Latest Sacramento-area numbers: 65 dead
As of Tuesday, the four-county Sacramento region had reported a total of 65 COVID-19 fatalities and 1,400 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, of which more than 1,000 cases and over 40 deaths have come in Sacramento County.
Four deaths in Yolo County have been reported since late last week: one Friday, one Sunday and two more Monday.
Sacramento County now reports 41 deaths among 1,053 confirmed coronavirus cases, last updated 8 a.m. Tuesday. The infection total increased by just eight cases in each of Monday and Tuesday’s updates are among the lowest reported in a single day this month. The county on Thursday announced five additional fatalities, representing the second-deadliest day of the pandemic so far. No more new deaths have been reported since then.
Yolo County reported two more deaths Monday afternoon, raising the total number of people killed by the virus to 16. A total of 162 people have been infected. One new case was reported Tuesday afternoon. At least six fatalities and 64 confirmed cases have come at Stollwood Convalescent Hospital, a skilled nursing facility that is part of St. John’s Retirement Village, a senior living campus in Woodland. A total of 31 residents and 33 staff had tested positive for COVID-19 as of early last week, the county announced April 21. All six deaths were residents. The convalescent hospital has 48 beds.
Placer County stands at eight deaths and has reported 145 total cases, last updated Tuesday morning. The county has not reported a death since April 16, and has reported just 13 new infections since then.
El Dorado County reported one additional case Tuesday afternoon, bringing the total number of people infected there to 44. There have been no deaths reported.
Over 3 million confirmed cases worldwide, 1 million in US
Approximately 3.11 million people worldwide have tested positive for COVID-19, according to a data map by Johns Hopkins University, and nearly 217,000 have died. Over 1.01 million of the infections and more than 58,000 of the fatalities have come in the United States.
Within the U.S., New York state accounts for close to 300,000 confirmed cases and more than 22,500 deaths, New Jersey has reported over 6,000 coronavirus fatalities, Michigan reports more than 3,400 deaths and Massachusetts has surpassed 3,000 dead. Another roughly 2,000 have died in each of Connecticut and Illinois, about 1,900 in Pennsylvania, close to 1,900 in California, over 1,700 in Louisiana and almost 1,100 in Florida, according to the Johns Hopkins map.
The U.S. is followed by Italy at more than 27,000 confirmed coronavirus fatalities, then Spain and France at over 23,000; the United Kingdom at 21,000, Belgium at about 7,300; Germany at more than 6,100; Iran at close to 5,900; and China, the Netherlands and Brazil ranging between 4,000 and 5,000 dead.
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 28, 2020 at 8:12 AM.
