Watch: Gavin Newsom meets with Sacramento business as stores prepare initial reopening
.JPG "Gov. Gavin Newsom discusses California’s efforts to convert hotels and motels into isolation housing for the homeless threatened by the coronavirus during a news conference at a hotel in West Sacramento on April 3, 2020.")
For his Tuesday COVID-19 update, California Gov. Gavin Newsom met with a Sacramento small business owner as retailers prepare for initial reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Watch a replay of the livestream by clicking on the video above.
Newsom has said retailers including bookstores and clothing stores can start to reopen Friday for curbside pickup. His administration will release specific guidance Thursday on how retailers can reopen safely, he said.
Counties will submit reopening plans based on how prepared they are to prevent further spread of COVID-19 and to handle a surge in coronavirus patients that could be triggered by reopening. The reopening criteria include hospital capacity, supply of protective equipment like masks, and testing rates.
One of the criteria will be contact tracing, California Department of Public Health Director Dr. Sonia Angell said Monday. Counties will need to have a large enough staff of contact tracers to determine how far infected people have spread the virus.
Counties will do “self-certification” of their own reopening plans, but the state will intervene if they see cases spike, indicating they reopened too quickly, Newsom said.
He acknowledges people won’t start to go out and shop again until they know they’re safe, which the reopening guidelines are designed to ensure.
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 11:40 AM.