Edhat Staff
Governor Gavin Newsom leading a press conference (Photo: Office of the Governor)
By edhat staff
Governor Gavin Newsom revealed his four-part plan to reopen California including a possibility for schools to start as earlier as July.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Newsom rolled out his staged reopening approach while stating schools might resume in July or August to make up for lost learning this spring.
The stay-at-home order will be modified in stages until the public is able to freely move about. These modifications are based on science, health, and data, according to the Governor’s Office.
The stages are provided below, beginning with the most restrictive stage:
Stage 1: Safety and Preparedness
(This is the stage we are currently in)
- Continue to build out testing, contract tracing, PPE, and hospital surge capacity
- Making essential workforce environments as safe as possible
- Prepare sector-by-sector safety guidelines for expanded workforce
Stage 2: Lower Risk Workplaces
Gradually opening lower risk workplaces with adaptations
- Retail (eg. curbside pickup)
- Manufacturing
- Offices (when telework is not possible)
- More Public Spaces
Stage 3: Higher Risk Workplaces
Open higher risk environments with adaptations and limits on size of gatherings
- Personal care (hair and nail salons, gyms)
- Entertainment venues (movie theatres, sports without live audiences)
- In-person religious services (churches, weddings)
Stage 4: End of Stay-at-Home Order
Re-open highest risk environments and venues once therapeutics have been developed
- Concerts
- Convention Centers
- Live audience sports
Newsom stated we could move into the second stage in a matter of weeks if social distancing efforts continue to decrease the number of new cases.
Moving into Stage 3 is still months away, and the final stage of fully reopening is dependent on COVID-19 treatment, which could equal several months or over a year.
Reopening Schools
While it’s possible students may return to school in July, Newsom stated an official decision has not been made since modifications to classroom settings and staggered attendance may be needed.
He acknowledged school districts and families have struggled to adapt to online learning environments, especially with homes that have people in essential job functions.
“We recognize there’s been a learning loss because of this disruption,” Newsom said. “We might want to consider getting that school year moved up a little bit … That learning loss is very real.”
As California gradually moves into Phase 2, reopening lower-risk businesses, school year changes would be part of a larger effort to expand childcare, he said.
Statewide Numbers
As of Monday, the California Department of Health reported 45,031 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state with 1,809 fatalities. Of that total, there are 3,455 hospitalizations with 1,181 in the Intensive Care Unit that are confirmed COVID-19 cases. There’s an additional 1,528 hospitalizations including 304 in the ICU that are suspected COVID-19 cases.
Hospitalizations and ICU admissions have stabilized over the last few weeks, according to Dr. Sonia Angell, director CA Department of Public Health. If the stabilization continues, manufacturing facilities and some retail businesses and offices could re-open.
“When the data tells us that the moment is right, those environments can start to open,” Angell said.
Additionally, Newsom stated governments and public health departments on a local level have the power to impose stricter guidelines. This announcement followed the statement from public health departments in the Bay Area extending the shelter-in-place through May.
“Newsom stated we could move into the second stage in a matter of weeks if social distancing efforts continue to decrease the number of new cases. ” —– OK people, so STAY HOME! I don’t care if you think it’s illegal, but if your stubborn butts keep playing at the beach and hi fiving your bros, we are going to be shut down during the summer! Stay home and let’s get it done so we can move on. Stiff upper lip, do social duty and do what it takes to get our summer back!
Let’s get the schools up and running this Summer. Most family vacation spots will be limited anyways – no one needs to go anywhere. Send the kids to school, get caught up on work, and take some time off later when places are open and travel is encouraged.
5:27 Stop blaming the beach for the spread of the virus when you have not heard one report that someone contracted it there.
420722 – You misread it, or I wasn’t clear enough. I’m talking about the kids playing volleyball and partying at the beach, not the people like me who walk a safe distance from everyone. I have no issue with the beach and have been constantly advocating here for it to stay open. I DO take issue with the droves of out of towners coming up and crowding our beaches this past weekend. And no, we don’t have a report yet, because it has just recently in the past few days been happening. Go to the beach, just don’t be stupid about it!
What exactly is the school plan? Open in July to finish the 2019/2020 school year or to get an early start on the 2020/2021 year? The latter would require teachers to stretch out their curriculum, the former would make more sense, but then they lose the break between the grade levels. Oh well though.
please… what this shows is that … our governors policy will be based around the actions of San Fran and Los Angeles. our grand total of 7 countywide deaths isn’t even a blip on the statewide stats…..
Stage 3: “Moving into Stage 3 is still months away.” So I guess that means getting your hair cut, going to a movie, or going to church for a long time.
Stage 4: “several months to over a year” and “once therapeutics have been developed”? Translate that to as long as Newsom is governor. So forget baseball or any sporting events, concerts, and who knows what else this year. Since he’s a multi-millionaire, what the heck does he care if the economy is completely destroyed in his own state and he can move on to running for POTUS? Pure tyranny.
I think people of all political inclinations want their lives back to normal as soon as possible, we just vary as to how to accomplish as much. The two main schools of thought seem to be ‘lets get the economy back open before millions of people are financially ruined’ and, ‘if we open the economy back up too early an increased wave on infections will cause more damage in the long run than a prolonged closure’. I can empathize with both but i can’t convince myself that the latter isn’t the wiser of the two.
Salon and spa business owners can’t afford it to keep going on much longer while paying for our storefronts. We’re in many year leases! If your going to ruin our businesses u need to let us get out of our leases without legal problems! It’s not worth paying for as many months as we’re going to need to to survive this!
people who pride themselves on being wise, tend to forget that “the public” still lives in reality. no matter how hard you make your “we’ll blow up with cases” argument.. it is still, at it’s root, imaginary. society as a whole will not gain wisdom until the effect is truly seen. ESPECIALLY after the “initial reports were totally overblown, hundreds of thousands in the US will die even with distancing” issue..
What Republican governor is going to open up movie theaters and sporting events in the next month?
Fortunately, in the blip I was able to catch on the radio he’s going to allow county PHD officials to determine how things ease open in each county. HOPEFULLY, our PHD leaders realize we are NOT New York or Los Angeles and have proven, for the most part, are very conscious of our social distancing.
A lot of people will run out there and try to act like everything is ok and will become a statistic in the fall when the second wave hits.
I met “the public” today on a park bench with his belongings next to him. He was trying to convince me “better days were coming” as he was openly weeping. He’d lost his job and home. This wasn’t some random homeless but a guy who I know who’s lived here for years. Newsom deserves to be taken to task for just blithely assuming all of California can just suck it up. No, it can’t. Many of the businesses we love in this city are going to be shuttered forever and people will be financially ruined.
Make your voice heard! Let our local officials know you’re perfectly capable of opening your business with appropriate safety measures in place. This isn’t the middle ages and the plague, we know how it spreads and how to prevent it from spreading (without the draconian lock down). With the most basic of preventive measures we can get back to work!
Even the ones without air conditioning? Require my kid to be in a 90 degree classroom and I will sue.
“Grand total”? Show some respect for those who have passed, may they Rest In Peace.
By the fall hopefully they will have discovered more medicines, therapeutics and have more knowledge. If I’m going to get it I’d rather get it then though I’d rather not get it at all. Except not sure if I already did. We can’t stay inside forever. Antibody studies are showing now this is way , way more widespread than initially thought anyway and chances are it’s been here since December.
“Even the ones without air conditioning? Require my kid to be in a 90 degree classroom and I will sue.”——Oh, puh-lease. Plenty of us went to school in Santa Barbara for decades w/out air conditioning and survived. Not one loss of life. And in September the temp outside sometimes got up to 101ºF.
No joke. This is real and it’s happening now. Maybe we can figure something out. Please let me know how.
DW200: BS
Sensationalism. Very simple – if you are high risk – then take extra precaution and avoid situations where getting infected is more likely. Anyone coming into contract with high risk people (i.e. your elderly relatives, unhealthy friends, elderly care facilities, etc..) should follow a protocol that eliminates risk of spread. Everyone else just use common sense. If you are healthy and do get it, then most likely you will be fine albeit not feel well for a bit – just like a common flu. If you are very risk adverse and do not fall into the high risk category, then see what a high risk person should do.
Google the virus with some actual data. Nothing like the flu. Do you read?
WaPo is fine if your a liberal and ok with living in a liberal bubble then yes. If your moderate, a truth seeker, or a conservative then no, most of its reporting is twisted facts, supplied by political activists and politically motivated groups, it has no problems editing, cutting or out and out lying about the facts knowing most people will not care or bother to verify them.
SBLOCAL – “Sensationalism?” Wait, aren’t you the same person advocating that we should have been required to wear masks weeks ago? If you think we should have been wearing masks this whole time and that our hospitals are at their knees, how can you say it’s “sensationalism?”
4:04 PM – An amusing example of projection, though grammatically ugly.
Projection, ha. You just described yourself to a tee.
3:58: It is VERY MUCH like the flu. I know, I had it, so did my wife, and so have numerous friends and neighbors from a period running January to early April. Maybe that’s why none of us who have had it are afraid of it. If you haven’t had it, then that is the category of people that falls into the “scared silly” status with all the sensationalized “news” that comes out of the MSM.
That’s why it’s referred to as the “Washington Compost”. It’s hard to believe anyone with a shred of intelligence would believe anything that is printed there. But we digress. Santa Barbara and elsewhere are on the mend, the peak has passed, yet we still have government both locally and statewide reacting as though the fear of this must go on for a very long time.
5:05 – Were you, you’re wife and your friends and neighbors all tested? If so, tested positively? If not, then please stop.
5:15; we had it too early to be tested and probably no reason to be since the symptoms we experienced were exactly as the three main symptoms that have been seen throughout this pandemic, namely, headache, high fever, dry cough that lasted for some time. Does every one get tested when they get the “flu” or a cold – no. So there is no reason to “stop” as you suggest. All of the panicked posts here seem to forget this has caused death in less than two percent of the U.S. population with roughly 95% of those suffering from per-existing conditions – and that number is high only because half of the deaths occurred in NY and its extension state, NJ. A few neighbors we have spoken with who contracted the same symptoms later did get tested and were proven positive. Everyone who either thinks they had or did have it is actually relieved they did get and because they quickly recovered within a few days, other than the irritating cough. At least it enabled us to be fear-free and healthy and I’d like to think that the antibodies we developed helped other people around us who contracted the virus and either showed mild or no symptoms.
Xantus, And of those 7 deaths, 6 had underlying existing health conditions. One was even in hospice care.
It would seem to make sense that if our state’s capitol building is not open to the public, the rest of the state is not ready to open. If Santa Barbara’s courthouse and mayor’s office isn’t open for business, then our city probably isn’t.
If the governing body and lawmakers aren’t ready to take those risks, then what does that tell you?
GRETYFULL apples and oranges. Courthouses, etc. are enclosed spaces where people sit for long periods of time. There is also the problem of criminal jury trials – how they are going to conduct those with proper social distancing. Checking in with court clerk. Over the counter filings which cannot be contactless. Public buildings which usually require longer visits and courts have very unique issues to address that are going to take awhile to work out – nothing to do with whether or not they are willing to take a risk. Other venues like a restaurant, etc. where they can limit things better, the risk is much more manageable.
No one loses their home over one missed payment. I call BS
AC was unheard of in my time in school…guess what, we survived! And we actually got educated.
are you really trying to make this argument that THE MOST RISK AVERSE GROUP of all…. “politicians” should somehow be our barometer for behaviour?
Time for AG Barr to take a look at California. Please! Originally we were told to stay at home so our medical facilities would not be over run. Done! Now Newsome is moving the goal posts to any number of things, up to, and including the development of a vaccine. Taking the rights away from every citizen in California for a virus with a mortality rate less than 1% violates all of our constitutional rights. Tonight it was announced our beaches will be closed tomorrow. Our founding fathers must be rolling over in their graves. Wake up Santa Barbara before our economy and way of life is destroyed forever.
Show some respect? ~400,000 county pop. divided by 7 deaths. means 57,142 people are each “showing their respect” for the dead every day.
seems a little blown out of proportion, donchya think?
From Washington Post article 22 hours ago as of this post:
“Epidemiologists have said somewhere between 40 to 70 percent of the population will likely become infected in the next couple of years if there is no vaccine and the public does not take aggressive measures to limit the spread of the virus.
“Do the math!” said Jeffrey Shaman, a Columbia University epidemiologist who has been studying the coronavirus since early in the outbreak.
Shaman and his colleagues have developed a model of the coronavirus spread that estimates that only 1 in 12 infections in the United States have been documented in official counts. That leads to an infection fatality rate of 0.6 percent, he said — a figure that roughly matches what has been seen in New York City.
At that rate, the United States could potentially experience 1 million deaths if half the population became infected and no efforts were made to limit the contagion through social distancing, a vaccine or proven therapeutics, Shaman said.
the beach closing order coming one day after they “urge people not to protest” …. yeahhh that’s really not going to go well. amazing.