Southern California to Lockdown Sunday at Midnight

December 5, 2020, 10:47 am 49.8k Views 110 Comments

By edhat staff

The state’s lockdown orders will take effect for all of Southern California on Sunday at midnight.

Late Friday evening, state officials noticed the Santa Barbara County Public Health Director that the Southern California Region has fallen below 15% intensive care unit (ICU) capacity triggering the Regional Stay at Home Order.

This is effective for Santa Barbara County on Sunday, December 6, 2020, at midnight. The Order will be in place for at least 3 weeks and re-evaluated the week of December 28.

As of Friday, the Southern California region was calculated to have 13.1% remaining ICU capacity. The San Joaquin Valley region also fell below the threshold at 14.1% where Northern California, Bay Area, and Greater Sacramento regions have over 20% remaining.

“I am dismayed, but not surprised, that the ICU capacity decreased so drastically and quickly in the Southern California region. The sharp decrease in ICU capacity is a consequence of the increasing case rates we have been seeing throughout the state and region, shared Van Do-Reynoso, Public Health Director for Santa Barbara County.

The following industry sector changes will go into place on Sunday at midnight:

In any region that triggers a Regional Stay Home Order because it drops below 15% ICU capacity, the following sectors must close: 

  • Indoor and outdoor playgrounds

  • Indoor recreational facilities

  • Hair salons and barbershops

  • Personal care services

  • Museums, zoos, and aquariums

  • Movie theaters

  • Wineries

  • Bars, breweries, and distilleries

  • Family entertainment centers

  • Cardrooms and satellite wagering

  • Limited services

  • Live audience sports

  • Amusement parks

The following sectors will have additional modifications in addition to 100% masking and physical distancing:

  • Outdoor recreational facilities: Allow outdoor operation only without any food, drink or alcohol sales. Additionally, overnight stays at campgrounds will not be permitted.

  • Retail: Allow indoor operation at 20% capacity with entrance metering and no eating or drinking in the stores. Additionally, special hours should be instituted for seniors and others with chronic conditions or compromised immune systems. 

  • Shopping centers: Allow indoor operation at 20% capacity with entrance metering and no eating or drinking in the stores. Additionally, special hours should be instituted for seniors and others with chronic conditions or compromised immune systems.

  • Hotels and lodging: Allow to open for critical infrastructure support only.

  • Restaurants: Allow only for take-out, pick-up, or delivery.

  • Offices: Allow remote only except for critical infrastructure sectors where remote working is not possible. 

  • Places of worship and political expression: Allow outdoor services only.

  • Entertainment production including professional sports: Allow operation without live audiences.

Additionally, testing protocol and “bubbles” are highly encouraged.

The following sectors are allowed to remain open when a remote option is not possible with appropriate infectious disease preventative measures including 100% masking and physical distancing:

  • Critical infrastructure 

  • Schools

  • Non-urgent medical and dental care

  • Child care and pre-K

Sheriff Bill Brown, who is the Chairman of the Santa Barbara County Law Enforcement Chiefs, said the following, “When Santa Barbara County becomes subject to the state’s new Stay-at-Home Order, the police chiefs and I have committed to continuing our direction and intent that our agencies’ approach to health order violations will be to make every effort to use discretion, education and encouragement to achieve voluntary compliance, but enforcement options will remain a tool to be used in cases of repeat or egregious violations that endanger public safety.”

Effective Monday, street sweeping enforcement on City of Santa Barbara streets will be suspended for the duration of the Stay Home Order due to the cancellation of street sweeping. This also includes timed parking downtown. All other parking violations can be cited.

The public is instructed to stay at home as much as possible to limit the mixing with other households that can lead to COVID-19 spread. It allows access to (and travel for) critical services and allows outdoor activities to preserve physical and mental health. 

Additionally, Cottage Health is temporarily reducing the number of elective inpatient procedures scheduled at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. This is to help ensure hospitals remain safe as staff carefully balance bed and staffing capacity for COVID care as well as the ongoing health care needs in the community. 

More details on the lockdown will be available at https://publichealthsbc.org/regional-stay-at-home-order/.

Edhat Staff

Written by Edhat Staff

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110 Comments

  1. Have you spent anytime with kids?! They don’t follow the 6 ft apart rule very well because they’re generally very social creatures and want to interact. Kids under 2 aren’t required to wear masks and they are the group that slobbers, sneezes and coughs without covering, and wipe their faces with their hands then touch multiple surfaces. I’ve seen parents take their unmasked kids to the park and not enforce social distancing especially when it comes to playing on playgrounds/play equipment. Kids can figure out how to play outdoors without needing to go to a playground. That’s what I did as a child.

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  4. I completely agree! Newsom is KILLING our State’s economy over a “pandemic” with a 99% survival rate. The PCR tests used to “diagnose” this give false positives. These lockdowns will cause tens of thousands of deaths due to despair.

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  5. The fact, pure and simple, is that kids do not die of COVID. Out of 100 kids 100 survive. Out of 1000 a 1000 survive. For the general population, in fact, there is a 99% survival rate. These lockdowns are so incredibly detrimental to everyone.

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  8. Current SB County ICU availability = 38%. This is with just 99 ICU beds, and only 61 occupied. At one point not long ago the county opted to make 150 ICU beds available, and if they activated those additional beds then right now we’d have 59% ICU availability for SB County! Yet we’re being shut down. The very fact that our county is not opting to activate these additional beds suggests Ansorg and Do-Reynoso aren’t that concerned about the current number of infections, or they are totally incompetent and unprepared. The latter possibility would be quite disturbing, as Ansorg just received Physician of the Year for his distinguished leadership through the pandemic. Does he know something Newson doesn’t?

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  10. I understand the concern, but if parents are taking their children to the playground it is because they are willing to take the risks. For some of us, the cure is worse than the disease with this pandemic. Children have been out of school for far too long and are being asked to not be children so that others can be feel comfortable. If you are in a vulnerable demographic when it comes to the covid, than it is YOUR responsibility to take the necessary precautions to protect yourself. Do not expect the rest of us to stop our lives for you. I know quite a few people who have had covid and they all had a cold like symptoms and were fine a few days later.

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  15. Perhaps, but what do you mean by “other areas”? We’re grouped in with Mono County, which is 400 miles away. Do you think they’ll be caravans of ambulances transporting patients between SB and Mono? A more realistic scenario would be to determine the counties most at need, shut them down and direct resources to those areas. For example, shut down LA, reactivate USNS Mercy and send it to San Pedro Harbor. If SB has not activated those additional 51 ICU beds (and who knows if they could have activated even more using the Sears location), then other counties may also have additional reserve resources that they are currently not employing. One thing that was clear from the first shut down is that a lot of reserve resources, such as hospital ships, PPE, and ventilators were never touched despite all the hand-wringing and pleas for help—and the fact that our local health care system was never overwhelmed. The worst SB County had in terms of COVID ICU use was July 30, when testing positivity was 8.9%, the 7-day unadjusted case rate was 20.3, there were 89 COVID positives in the hospital, 29 of which were in the ICU. On that particular day the ICU availability was still 52%! We’re not even close to these numbers in terms of COVID positivity and case rates. There is no reason to lump SB County in with the 1/3 of California that is having a tough time. Despite some bad behavior, most of the people is SB County have been behaving themselves and we shouldn’t be punished.

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  16. Now that hospitals are full, people that don’t have covid won’t get critical care causing more death. I saw a small hospital in Utah with 18 ICU beds was turning away non covid critical care patients – they were averaging 4 covid deaths per 12 hour shift. Maybe look outside the box a little and read what is going on in the rest of our country?

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  18. The myopic view that there are not enough healthcare workers to staff additional ICU beds suffers from a fatal flaw. It results from failure to recognize that there is a surplus of medical staff because many elective procedures have been deferred during the pandemic. In fact, during the initial shutdown, some healthcare workers traveled to other states to assist with COVID cases because they needed the work. A pessimistic attitude and poor critical thinking skills are a dangerous combination.

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  22. Gosh, on the one hand you complain that we’re too prepared, and didn’t use emergency equipment, and on the other hand, you complain that we’re not ramping up ICU beds and staff. Make up your mind! Or, are you just interested in complaining?

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  24. I just want to have my dang knee replacement done that’s scheduled for December 28!
    My feeling is if the anti mask, anti vax, crazy right wing nut cases shouldn’t have anything at all to say, and if they, or anyone who traveled during the Thanksgiving holiday when they were being told not to……….get sick, then they should be refused medical service. It would serve them right.

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  25. Uhm….all those kids would be touching everything! Hello…..with their snotty hands and goodness knows what else……certainly a cootie infested place….keep the dang parks closed……let them play in their own back yard.

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  26. EXACTLY!!!! I agree 100%. The Covid who probably didn’t wear masks, traveled, shopped, ate out all the time, are now sick as dogs and taking up space in the hospital. Damn them. There needs to be an interview process before they get admitted. If they didn’t follow the rules, send them home with an aspirin bottle and a thermometer. Good luck.

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  33. Hey Chem-we may not agree on everything but at least you post things as you see them and you sound like a sane person. It’s getting harder to find people like that these days. I don’t always like the truth because sometimes it’s all bad news but you always seem to have a fair dose of truth and you don’t have shitty attitude about all this! I appreciate your optimism 🙂

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  35. Newsome’s blowing it.
    “Snotty kids” are not the spreaders ( but they’re the ones getting shafted most here)
    Our businesses and economy are being screwed hard.
    We have a plenty of hospital capacity around here, and we always have.
    Not saying we shouldn’t be all doing our best (masks, distancing, no groups). We have been. I think there about 2% of people who are screwing up, and the lockdown won’t change that – they’re “the clueless”, and they always will be so. The lockdown will just hurt the rest of us even more.

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  37. First, not every ICU patient is on a ventilator. Second, I’m sure those specifically trained for the ICU would appreciate some help, even if it’s just switching out IVs, taking vitals, etc. I already mentioned the many healthcare workers that that traveled to the other side of the country to help out in a hospitals they were completely unfamiliar with. That help was totally appreciated by the local staff, even if there was an adjustment period where the recruits required a bit of training. I had undergraduate assistants in grad school. They couldn’t do everything that I could, but I was certainly capable of training them enough that they could help me.

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  39. My numbers and recommendations come from the CDC and real epidemiologists, not social media and people playing on their laptops with spreadsheets. In other words, they’re not my recommendations, they’re the recommendations of experts in the field. I realize that Trumpism sees no value in that.

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  40. @ 8:54 – Of course, you and your grad students were dealing with people’s lives, so it stands to reason that not much training was required. If they were just futzing around in a lab, why, then things would be much different.

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  44. OK; can someone explain the technical, scientific basis for closing playgrounds? I’m afraid I don’t understand that, any more than I understood the prior closing of beaches to casual use. Doesn’t pass the smell test to me.

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  47. Isn’t it great that the governor gets to take home his full salary, send his kids to private school so they are not set back by distance learning, and so he doesn’t get distracted by them at home, and he can attend private events in posh restaurants with friends and colleagues to solve the problems facing SBYRSA. When he gets a little overwhelmed he can chill at his Dacha in the wine country, Mendocino, Tahoe or wherever so that he can run the state more effectively.

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  48. The goalpost keeps moving and some people are ok with that. Let’s take their paycheck away and see if they feel the same. It’s so easy to say lock it up when you work from home are retired or have inheritance like so many do in Santa Barbara but unfortunately, thousands of people don’t and I don’t think it’s unfair to take away from them for the “safety” of a few. Especially when we’re told repeatedly that covid has been spreading in homes not at small businesses.

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  50. sbrysa, don’t know what service you provide but can you do private in home stuff? At some point, barbers, stylist, manicurist and more were doing “back door” stuff to save their businesses and you’d be surprised how much support they receive from clients. Remember, these are not LAWS so at this point you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do to feed your family. I’ll support any business that breaks these fake laws if it helps. Any pubs out there operating as a church?

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  53. If places with a lesser infection rate & more available hospital beds were with the surrounding area, people would flee their immediate areas and arrive in droves. This would help spread the disease to that area. Some of that is already happening, check the increasing numbers of RVs in household drives and out-of-state license numbers & increasing numbers in homeless camps.

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  54. BENE, the following article discusses how patients have been delaying health care in order to avoid hospital visits. The consequences are summed up by the following quote: “When elective surgeries were postponed or canceled in the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic response, “we were probably doing about 25 percent” of the normal surgery volume, Zerey said.” So, what do you think happens to the staff that’s normally there to handle the 75% of surgeries that are not currently being performed? They probably get furloughed and then look for work in hospitals overburdened with COVID, if they’re qualified.
    Link: https://www.noozhawk.com/article/delayed_medical_care_due_to_pandemic_20200701

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  60. People are dying, everyday, a lot of people. Instead of complaining, whining & NOT cooperating, try sucking it up. I don’t like it either, kids to care for same problems. the Governor is not responsible for the spread of this virus we are!! If the people in the US stopped being complete selfish, self indulgent assholes we won’t be locked down. Take personal responsibility because it’s OUR FAULT. DO YOUR PART FOR THE NEXT 3 WEEKS SO WE CAN LIVE AGAIN.

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  63. I’m sorry, BASICINFO805, but it’s not Newsome who is “blowing it” it’s us. WE are the problem. If we cannot find it in ourselves to control the spread, we are the ones causing more lockdowns and Trump, who politicized wearing masks, so all of his ignorant followers can act horribly.

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  64. Thank you, MACPUZL. The experts in the field aren’t trying to pull one over on us. Injecting that kind of thinking into the mainstream of society, where in some people education seems to be lacking and conspiracy theories hide out in the far right corners is dangerous and stupid. Trump has to answer for that.

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  65. Well, ok, CHEMICALSUPERFREAK, when you end up in the hospital, or one of your loved ones, I hope you’ll have a lot of faith in the pediatric nurse or gastro unit doctor that is called over to handle your lung issues as you choke and gasp on a ventilator.

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  67. Thanks Chem. Yes, I used to work in a multi-specialty clinic and some of my former colleagues in certain specialties have mentioned this. But I had thought there was an inference that the E.R., ICU staff was being cut, but from what I understand they are not.

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  68. The businesses being shutdown with this latest order WERE doing their part, they WERE following the recommendations and they WERE NOT the “self indulgent a-holes” contributing to greater spread. The only “selfish” behavior are people like you, imposing known harms and risks on others, forcing others to forgo paychecks not knowing when the next one might come, forcing others to shutter businesses years in the making, to mitigate a small theoretical risk to oneself so you can feel safe going to Target and Costco. People like you, who are okay with throwing others directly under the bus for your own protection, disgust me. It’s a good thing this comments board is anonymous because many of you here would not be welcome back at our local restaurants. The actions of our state politicians and people like you make it clear the slogan “all in this together” is a load of crap.

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  69. It’s just about closing places where people come into close contact with others. Kids playing on equipment will encounter other kids, and will touch the same surfaces a lot. I doubt there are any specific studies on this.

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  70. Newsom is killing out economy? So you are saying that you would prefer that there is no lockdown and the virus runs rampant and thins the herd? 99% survival rate? Are you f’ning kidding me? Tell that to the 240K people that died from it this year. Sorry but that sort of mentality is what got us here in the first place. I prefer my health and the health of my children over some kid at starbucks whos mad because he can’t work for three weeks.

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  71. interesting how a lot of you think you know better and know more than those who know better and know more…than you. i don’t have a medical degree…do any of you? If so, please speak up and help with some information

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  72. Zero, the response doesn’t require a medical degree but it does require the input from someone with a medical degree. The medical experts will focus on the virus above all else, however there many facets to the response where preventing covid infections need to be weighed against the consequences of the measures taken. The response seems generally okay with many on this board and is typical for the coastal elitists who keep getting a paycheck while they work safely at home and put the burden of this pandemic squarely on the backs of the working class. But out of sigh out of mind as long as those elites feel safe.

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  74. You’re despicable Zero: “some kid at starbucks whos mad because he can’t work for three weeks.” What if that was your “kid”? What is he supposed to do especially with the states EDD failure? If you’re working at Starbucks or a restaurant you’re probably living paycheck to paycheck even before the pandemic. You, Zero, certainly sound like someone who hasn’t missed a paycheck this pandemic, who isn’t worried about how they’re going to pay for groceries this week, who isn’t worried where they’re going to live when the eviction moratorium ends and they’re evicted, but go ahead and order that DoorDash so you can continue binging on Netflix tonight… all YOU have to do to stay safe is stay home. You are a zero.

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  75. ZERO: What makes you think the people who are in charge actually “know better and know more”? For many of them, this is their first rodeo with respect to a major pandemic. I don’t have a medical degree. I do have a PhD in Biochemistry and lots of experience with DNA, RNA, pathogens, etc., but that doesn’t stop people on Edhat from declaring that I don’t know anything. If I don’t know, then why do the other PhD/MDs know? One of the issues I have is that the degreed individuals making policy decisions have largely left the laboratory behind in favor of administrative positions, and are nothing more than bureaucrats (e.g., Fauci).

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  76. Don’t look for common sense Winter. That sailed long ago when liquor and cannabis were declared an essential service. Can you believe that? In an “all about health and safety” world liquor and cannabis are essential, fast food and junk food are essential, gyms and play grounds are closed.

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  77. VOR – You’re not looking at this correctly. Liquor stores are “essential” only in that they also provide food, which is essential, whether it’s “healthy” or not. Businesses that serve solely alcohol (ie, bars), have been deemed “unessential,” which is why they started serving food. They can’t assess every liquor store to determine the healthiness of food provided. As for cannabis shops, they provide medication to millions of Americans, whether or not you agree with the effectiveness of medical cannabis. Cancer patients, HIV sufferers, and many other hurting people rely on cannabis and it’s medicinal uses for quality of life. So yeah, it may appear from a knee jerk view that it’s ridiculous to allow booze and pot, but if you look at it with a little more attention, it makes sense.

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  81. That is incorrect Sac. Liquor stores are specifically exempt/”essential”, whether they sell food or not. Liquor stores sell booze for offsite consumption only vs. bars which is for on-site consumption only, completely different permits and business uses as far as the government is concerned. Also, the state has a very clear distinction between medical marijuana and recreational marijuana. Stores locally sell one or the other but not both. The state specifically deemed “recreational” marijuana essential.

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  83. VOR – Nope, cannabis shops sell both, trust me 🙂 Some just don’t have the recreational licensing, and therefore remain as “medical dispensaries” only. As for liquor stores, even if they sell candy bars, it’s considered food. Here’s a comprehensive list:
    https://covid19.ca.gov/essential-workforce/#:~:text=Workers%20and%20contracted%20vendors%20who,stations%2C%20police%20and%20law%20enforcement
    Specifically:
    “Workers supporting groceries, pharmacies, convenience stores, and other retail that sells food or beverage products…..”
    “Employees of companies engaged in the production, storage, transport, and distribution of chemicals; medicines, including cannabis….”

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  85. Newsom said “at least 3 weeks” and I’ve heard that it’s likely and/or possible this will remain for a month or more. As many have pointed out, people are going to gather for the holidays and no one, including the cops, is going to do anything about it. That’s why we are seeing what we are seeing now, not from restaurants/outdoor dining [otherwise the jumps would have happened long ago]. I still don’t understand why I can sit on a crowded plane, which they will be over these holiday weeks, but not outside at a restaurant or inside a hair salon with only a few others? It really does baffle me.

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  87. Sac, the actual order includes recreational cannabis stores, which is why several recreationally only dispensaries have bee open the entire time. I’m not sure where you’re going with the “they also sell food” as that is correct. If they only sold liquor they would remain open. Even from from your quote, “beverage products” is booze. Many retailers shifted to also sell TP so they could be an “essential” businesses. This whole thing is a pile of B.S. government bureaucracy and ineptitude no longer based on science.

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  89. I’d like to add Andrea, we’re allowed to sit in a completely full plane, inches from others, and take down your mask to eat and drink. But outdoors….so dangerous… Remember 15 days to slow the spread and how long that lasted? This isn’t ending in 3 weeks, it’s only ending when enough people have had enough of this nonsense. unfortunate , too many here still have their jobs so they continue to let others carry the burden of the pandemic.

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  92. SBDUDE – so right! I’ve been spending FAR more than normal over the past year buying take out meals from local, small restaurants. This all sucks and it’s lame, but it’s what we do to persevere and help our fellow humans that matters. All this crying about having to stay home and wear masks out in public is useless.

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  93. Meanwhile, 45% of our ICUs and 89% of ventilators sit completely unused. That, despite a massive surge in cases 7-days after the Thanksgiving weekend. Obviously, people got together privately and will continue to do so despite the Newsom SoCal Shutdown. According to Dr. Ansorg, et al., 35% of positive cases resulted from “Community Close Contact Transmission”—in other words, family and friends getting together. How will the Newsom SoCal Shutdown address this??? Ansorg is oddly silent and uninterested in challenging our inclusion into the SoCal region…probably home polishing his new award.

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  94. I respect educated people. But I don’t know many who have gone from posting your typical science-based take to addressing people in posts as “pet” or “love” or some other crazy, silly things that I object to. Be well and carry on.

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  95. Scrambled Eggs-I am so sorry I caused you to have a short circuit meltdown. Maybe the internet isn’t a healthy place for you at the moment. Sure buddy, I hate people so much I’m fighting for their right to earn an income and feed their children. Smh. Places that are currently shut down we’re not causing the spread of covid yet you want them closed anyway. Who’s the bad person here?

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  96. Most of the deaths occurred while we were in lockdown. We couldn’t even get out of the first lockdown until it showed signs of getting better. People were out of work for months, restaurants doing takeout only for months and the thing was out of control still. Did you forget so quickly?

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  102. Eggs, these new measures you’re supporting don’t address where the spread is occurring, force businesses that were complying with all the new regulations to close, and will prevent many people in dire circumstances from getting a paycheck this week. In fact, these new restrictions will only increase situations where the spread is occurring, at homes and private gatherings. All you have to do is stay home to stay safe, how are all these people not getting a paycheck this week going to do that? Yet 420722 is a waste of humanity? At lease they have some humanity as you only seem to care about self preservation at the expense of others.

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  103. 8:07 PM :
    I don’t think you understand the severity of the pandemic.
    Do you think 290,000 deaths in the USA alone are faked?
    International death totals are faked?
    Other countries are in on the conspiracy?
    Too little thinking behind such a comment.

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  105. The restaurant owners should sue the SB County to demand the proof ( the science that all these officials always reference but never produce) that outdoor dining and even limited indoor capacity spreads the virus….
    Hoping LA County goes down tomorrow in front of the Judge!!

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  106. Yeah, I want to see them prove that a virus that is spread from person to person will not do just that in a restaurant setting. Personally, I haven’t been to a restaurant since March except to pickup takeout. Keeps the restaurant in business, keeps me safer. Win, win.

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  108. I’m wondering what will happen on Dec. 28th, if the numbers do not go down appreciably. Will Newsom conclude that his regional shutdowns were ill-conceived and based only on a hunch? Or will Newsom double down and extend it another 3 weeks? From the Thanksgiving traffic, and subsequent spike in cases, it’s clear that people were gathering. Since no one is going to physically prevent people from gathering throughout the remainder of holidays, what is this shutdown accomplishing apart from devastating our economy? From the initial shutdown and reopening, to the subsequent tiered-system that Newsom quickly abandoned in favor of a ridiculous regional system, it’s crystal clear that Newsom has no clue what he’s doing. The man is in way over his head.

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  110. Ah yes, blame bad orange man.they bought millions of doses of a vaccine they didn’t even know yet would work. Why do I feel if he did buy more you would have criticized him for wasting resources on a vaccine that they didn’t even yet know would be effective. What should be criticized is Pelosi intentionally holding up COVID relief to help Biden (her own words) Yes everything orange man does is bad so anything, including holding up relief for hundreds of millions of Americans, is good if it hurts bad orange man. I recall a back forth on whether it was Repubs or Dems holding up covid relief, Pelosi and Bernie both cleared that up for us in the past week.

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