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Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday directed more than $42 million in emergency funding to expand California’s health care infrastructure and secure equipment and services to support California’s response to COVID-19.
Of this amount, $30 million will allow the state to lease Seton Medical Center in Daly City and St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles for a three-month basis.
Seton Medical Center is currently operating and will expand capacity to provide care for up to 120 COVID-19 patients beginning as soon as next Wednesday. Verity will operate Seton Medical Center on the state’s behalf.
St. Vincent Medical Center closed in January, but California is readying the facility to begin providing care for up to 366 COVID-19 patients as soon as possible.
This builds on California’s previous work, in partnership with local officials, to reopen Community Hospital in Long Beach for the specific purpose of accepting patients transferred from other hospitals in the area. The hospital will begin accepting transfer patients on Saturday and has a capacity of 158 beds.
“California is mobilizing every part of government to support our health care delivery system, its workers, and those among us who are most vulnerable to COVID-19,” said Gov. Newsom.
California is making historic investments to strengthen the health care delivery system, including:
– $30 million to lease and operate two facilities and to expand the state’s hospital capacity: Seton Medical Center in Daly City and St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles.
– $1,420,000 to expand capacity of the state’s public health lab in Richmond.
– $8,647,000 to purchase new ventilators, as well as IV fusion pumps, and refurbish additional ventilators.
– $2 million to contract with American Medical Response to provide patient transportation.
This past week, California began receiving shipments from a prior request from the Strategic National Stockpile. The request included:
Personal protective equipment:
– 358,381 N95 masks;
– 853,730 surgical masks;
– 162,565 face shields;
– 132,544 surgical gowns;
– 678 coveralls;
– 471,941 gloves.
In addition, California this week requested the following additional supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile:
Personal protective equipment:
– 20 million N95 masks;
– 10 million surgical masks;
– 600,000 surgical gowns;
– 600,000 face shields;
– 600,000 gloves;
– 300,000 goggles;
– 100,000 coveralls.
Medical supplies:
– 10,000 ventilators.
Lab and diagnostic supplies:
– 2 million swabs;
– 200,000 RNA extraction kits.
California expands tele-health options
This week, California acted to remove barriers to telehealth services for 22 million Californians. Increasing access to medical and behavioral care through telehealth allows individuals to receive the care and treatment they need remotely, while isolating at home and practicing social distancing, thus limiting potential exposure to COVID-19 and unnecessary impacts to the health care delivery system during this time when we want to preserve the system for our sickest and most critically ill neighbors.
Commercial and Medi-Cal managed care plans were directed to allow members to obtain health care via telehealth when medically appropriate to do so.
Providers will be reimbursed at the same rate, whether a service is provided in-person or through telehealth.
For example, if a provider is paid $100 for an in person visit, they will be paid $100 for an equivalent visit done via telehealth.
Removing barriers to telehealth will improve access and help ensure that hospitals and health systems can focus on providing care to those who need it most.
Of this amount, $30 million will allow the state to lease Seton Medical Center in Daly City and St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles for a three-month basis.
Seton Medical Center is currently operating and will expand capacity to provide care for up to 120 COVID-19 patients beginning as soon as next Wednesday. Verity will operate Seton Medical Center on the state’s behalf.
St. Vincent Medical Center closed in January, but California is readying the facility to begin providing care for up to 366 COVID-19 patients as soon as possible.
This builds on California’s previous work, in partnership with local officials, to reopen Community Hospital in Long Beach for the specific purpose of accepting patients transferred from other hospitals in the area. The hospital will begin accepting transfer patients on Saturday and has a capacity of 158 beds.
“California is mobilizing every part of government to support our health care delivery system, its workers, and those among us who are most vulnerable to COVID-19,” said Gov. Newsom.
California is making historic investments to strengthen the health care delivery system, including:
– $30 million to lease and operate two facilities and to expand the state’s hospital capacity: Seton Medical Center in Daly City and St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles.
– $1,420,000 to expand capacity of the state’s public health lab in Richmond.
– $8,647,000 to purchase new ventilators, as well as IV fusion pumps, and refurbish additional ventilators.
– $2 million to contract with American Medical Response to provide patient transportation.
This past week, California began receiving shipments from a prior request from the Strategic National Stockpile. The request included:
Personal protective equipment:
– 358,381 N95 masks;
– 853,730 surgical masks;
– 162,565 face shields;
– 132,544 surgical gowns;
– 678 coveralls;
– 471,941 gloves.
In addition, California this week requested the following additional supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile:
Personal protective equipment:
– 20 million N95 masks;
– 10 million surgical masks;
– 600,000 surgical gowns;
– 600,000 face shields;
– 600,000 gloves;
– 300,000 goggles;
– 100,000 coveralls.
Medical supplies:
– 10,000 ventilators.
Lab and diagnostic supplies:
– 2 million swabs;
– 200,000 RNA extraction kits.
California expands tele-health options
This week, California acted to remove barriers to telehealth services for 22 million Californians. Increasing access to medical and behavioral care through telehealth allows individuals to receive the care and treatment they need remotely, while isolating at home and practicing social distancing, thus limiting potential exposure to COVID-19 and unnecessary impacts to the health care delivery system during this time when we want to preserve the system for our sickest and most critically ill neighbors.
Commercial and Medi-Cal managed care plans were directed to allow members to obtain health care via telehealth when medically appropriate to do so.
Providers will be reimbursed at the same rate, whether a service is provided in-person or through telehealth.
For example, if a provider is paid $100 for an in person visit, they will be paid $100 for an equivalent visit done via telehealth.
Removing barriers to telehealth will improve access and help ensure that hospitals and health systems can focus on providing care to those who need it most.
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover recently set a record for the steepest terrain it's ever climbed, cresting the "Greenheugh Pediment," a broad sheet of rock that sits atop a hill. And before doing that, the rover took a selfie, capturing the scene just below Greenheugh.
In front of the rover is a hole it drilled while sampling a bedrock target called "Hutton." The entire selfie is a 360-degree panorama stitched together from 86 images relayed to Earth. The selfie captures the rover about 11 feet (3.4 meters) below the point where it climbed onto the crumbling pediment.
Curiosity finally reached the top of the slope March 6 (the 2,696th Martian day, or sol, of the mission). It took three drives to scale the hill, the second of which tilted the rover 31 degrees – the most the rover has ever tilted on Mars and just shy of the now-inactive Opportunity rover's 32-degree tilt record, set in 2016. Curiosity took the selfie on Feb. 26, 2020 (Sol 2687).
Since 2014, Curiosity has been rolling up Mount Sharp, a 3-mile-tall (5-kilometer-tall) mountain at the center of Gale Crater. Rover operators at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California carefully map out each drive to make sure Curiosity will be safe.
The rover is never in danger of tilting so much that it would flip over – Curiosity's rocker-bogie wheel system enables it to tilt up to 45 degrees safely – but the steep drives do cause the wheels to spin in place.
How are selfies taken?
Before the climb, Curiosity used the black-and-white Navigation Cameras located on its mast to, for the first time, record a short movie of its "selfie stick," otherwise known as its robotic arm.
Curiosity's mission is to study whether the Martian environment could have supported microbial life billions of years ago. One tool for doing that is the Mars Hand Lens Camera, or MAHLI, located in the turret at the end of the robotic arm. This camera provides a close-up view of sand grains and rock textures, similarly to how a geologist uses a handheld magnifying glass for a closer look in the field on Earth.
By rotating the turret to face the rover, the team can use MAHLI to show Curiosity. Because each MAHLI image covers only a small area, it requires many images and arm positions to fully capture the rover and its surroundings.
"We get asked so often how Curiosity takes a selfie," said Doug Ellison, a Curiosity camera operator at JPL. "We thought the best way to explain it would be to let the rover show everyone from its own point of view just how it's done."
Located in Pasadena, California, Caltech manages JPL for NASA, and JPL, which built Curiosity, manages the project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. MAHLI was built by Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego.
For more about Curiosity, visit https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/home/ and http://nasa.gov/msl .
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Saturday, Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace reiterated the need to close down nonessential businesses and to cancel in-person activities and gatherings across the county as part of a shelter in place order meant to protect the community against the threat of COVID-19.
Earlier this week, Pace issued the mandatory countywide shelter in place order. It went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
However, local officials have been concerned that many Lake County residents and businesses are not following the order, the violation of which constitutes a misdemeanor.
Pace’s Saturday message included a list of businesses and activities that need to close immediately and the warning that enforcement of the order will be stepping up in the days ahead.
Pace’s full message is below.
Public Health orders in-person activities and gatherings to be canceled
The risk from coronavirus continues to escalate in our region and across the country. We have taken strong measures to try to slow the spread – issuing emergency orders, closing schools, and on March 19, Lake County began following “shelter in place” orders. These actions are very disruptive to people’s lives and financial security, yet they are necessary to prevent the spread of this potentially devastating illness.
Sadly, yesterday, Sonoma County had their first death from Coronavirus. They now have 11 known cases and presumed community transmission. Marin County has 38 known cases, and many of those were found in people with less severe symptoms. Many hospitals in the Bay Area are preparing for severely increased demand on their facilities. Lake County continues to have no known cases.
I issued Public Health orders for the County beginning on March 19, 2020, similar to orders issued by many neighboring counties that mandated people stay home and stop all non-essential visitation and gatherings, except to conduct “essential business.” What constitutes “Essential” businesses are well-outlined in the order, and FAQs that can be found on our webpage. Governor Newsom issued similar orders for the whole state the following day. Reportedly, 25 percent of the US population has been placed under some form of these isolation orders.
Most people have honored this order, because they realize the safety of our community is at stake. We have approximately 50 hospital beds in Lake County, with 11 ventilators (potentially able to scale to 16 if needed), for a population of 65,000. We easily see the vulnerability of the system, so a strategy of interfering with the entrance of the virus into the county and slowing the spread is essential. Countywide, health facilities are actively engaged in planning for the next phase of the outbreak, but resources are limited.
We need your cooperation to stop any unnecessary activity. Please do not ignore the Order to stay at home with your family. Mixing with other people, ignoring social distancing, having out of town guests, and traveling around because you are restless are ways this virus will get a foothold in the community.
In reality, most stores should be closed, except for grocery stores – and social distancing and strong disinfecting is mandatory.
To close immediately:
● Churches need to cancel their in-person services and go to Facebook streaming or some other online strategy.
● Restaurants with indoor or outdoor dining. (Take out, delivery, curbside and drive-through are allowed.)
● Bars and nightclubs with or without food.
● Small convenience or other stores selling mainly chips and candy are not essential and should be closed.
● Entertainment venues including golf courses, gun ranges, bowling alleys, movie theaters, swimming pools, skating rinks, skate parks, batting cages indoor and outdoor, all youth or adult sports events.
● Thrift stores, second-hand stores, consignment and antique stores.
● Gyms and fitness studios, including yoga, Thai Chi, boxing, karate, gymnastics, etc.
● Public events and gatherings, including recreational outdoor events like disk golf, golf, boating, fishing (fishing for food is OK), skate parks, basketball courts, tennis courts, etc.
● Convention centers and centers that provide any live entertainment.
● Hair and nail salons, including spas, massage parlors and tattoo parlors.
Be responsible to the people of Lake County and SHUT DOWN. We understand these actions are extremely inconvenient and bring on severe hardship; these have not been easy decisions to make, and are not taken lightly. Watching the progress of this outbreak has been alarming, and I want to let people of the county know just what is at stake here.
Local law enforcement, Health Department inspectors, and your neighbors will be monitoring the situation. Enforcement activities will be increased in the coming week.
If you have questions, look on the website http://health.co.lake.ca.us .
If you still have questions, send an email request:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
You can also call during business hours: 707-263-8174
Thank you for your cooperation.
Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace, MD, MPH
Earlier this week, Pace issued the mandatory countywide shelter in place order. It went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
However, local officials have been concerned that many Lake County residents and businesses are not following the order, the violation of which constitutes a misdemeanor.
Pace’s Saturday message included a list of businesses and activities that need to close immediately and the warning that enforcement of the order will be stepping up in the days ahead.
Pace’s full message is below.
Public Health orders in-person activities and gatherings to be canceled
The risk from coronavirus continues to escalate in our region and across the country. We have taken strong measures to try to slow the spread – issuing emergency orders, closing schools, and on March 19, Lake County began following “shelter in place” orders. These actions are very disruptive to people’s lives and financial security, yet they are necessary to prevent the spread of this potentially devastating illness.
Sadly, yesterday, Sonoma County had their first death from Coronavirus. They now have 11 known cases and presumed community transmission. Marin County has 38 known cases, and many of those were found in people with less severe symptoms. Many hospitals in the Bay Area are preparing for severely increased demand on their facilities. Lake County continues to have no known cases.
I issued Public Health orders for the County beginning on March 19, 2020, similar to orders issued by many neighboring counties that mandated people stay home and stop all non-essential visitation and gatherings, except to conduct “essential business.” What constitutes “Essential” businesses are well-outlined in the order, and FAQs that can be found on our webpage. Governor Newsom issued similar orders for the whole state the following day. Reportedly, 25 percent of the US population has been placed under some form of these isolation orders.
Most people have honored this order, because they realize the safety of our community is at stake. We have approximately 50 hospital beds in Lake County, with 11 ventilators (potentially able to scale to 16 if needed), for a population of 65,000. We easily see the vulnerability of the system, so a strategy of interfering with the entrance of the virus into the county and slowing the spread is essential. Countywide, health facilities are actively engaged in planning for the next phase of the outbreak, but resources are limited.
We need your cooperation to stop any unnecessary activity. Please do not ignore the Order to stay at home with your family. Mixing with other people, ignoring social distancing, having out of town guests, and traveling around because you are restless are ways this virus will get a foothold in the community.
In reality, most stores should be closed, except for grocery stores – and social distancing and strong disinfecting is mandatory.
To close immediately:
● Churches need to cancel their in-person services and go to Facebook streaming or some other online strategy.
● Restaurants with indoor or outdoor dining. (Take out, delivery, curbside and drive-through are allowed.)
● Bars and nightclubs with or without food.
● Small convenience or other stores selling mainly chips and candy are not essential and should be closed.
● Entertainment venues including golf courses, gun ranges, bowling alleys, movie theaters, swimming pools, skating rinks, skate parks, batting cages indoor and outdoor, all youth or adult sports events.
● Thrift stores, second-hand stores, consignment and antique stores.
● Gyms and fitness studios, including yoga, Thai Chi, boxing, karate, gymnastics, etc.
● Public events and gatherings, including recreational outdoor events like disk golf, golf, boating, fishing (fishing for food is OK), skate parks, basketball courts, tennis courts, etc.
● Convention centers and centers that provide any live entertainment.
● Hair and nail salons, including spas, massage parlors and tattoo parlors.
Be responsible to the people of Lake County and SHUT DOWN. We understand these actions are extremely inconvenient and bring on severe hardship; these have not been easy decisions to make, and are not taken lightly. Watching the progress of this outbreak has been alarming, and I want to let people of the county know just what is at stake here.
Local law enforcement, Health Department inspectors, and your neighbors will be monitoring the situation. Enforcement activities will be increased in the coming week.
If you have questions, look on the website http://health.co.lake.ca.us .
If you still have questions, send an email request:
You can also call during business hours: 707-263-8174
Thank you for your cooperation.
Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace, MD, MPH
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – In a special Friday video event, local officials gathered to help answer Lake County children's and youth's questions about COVID-19.
The “kids-only press conference” event, hosted by First 5 Lake, discussed COVID-19, sheltering in place, and school closures.
Lilly Wiser, an eighth-grader at Konocti Christian Academy, asked the questions sent in earlier this week from Lake County youth via social media and email.
County officials and community leaders who were on hand to answer the questions as part of a panel included community health nurse Lynn Brookes, Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg, Sheriff Brian Martin, District 4 Supervisor Tina Scott and preschool teacher and owner Terrie Sullivan.
The half-hour press conference can be viewed in the video above.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – At its meeting on Thursday, the City Council unanimously voted to enact an urgency ordinance imposing a moratorium on residential evictions until at least May 19.
The city reported that it has been heavily impacted by the health crisis created by COVID-19 and many workers are expected to stay home for extended periods.
While this ordinance does not waive a tenant’s obligations to pay back rent owed once the COVID-19 emergency is over, providing tenants with short-term protection from eviction due to the inability to pay rent will help avoid increasing the homeless population and stabilize the rental housing market by reducing displacement, city officials said.
City officials said the ordinance is not intended to allow tenants to skip rent payments arbitrarily. The moratorium is intended to assist tenants only if they are affected by the COVID-19 emergency and can provide proof in writing to their landlord prior to rent being due.
Key points of the ordinance include:
• Residential tenants shall not be evicted for nonpayment of rent if the tenant demonstrates that the inability to pay rent is due to COVID-19, the state of emergency regarding COVID-19, or following government-recommended COVID19 precautions.
• Covered reasons for delayed payments include: the tenant was sick with COVID-19 or caring for a household or family member who is sick with COVID-19; the tenant experienced a lay-off, loss of hours, substantial decrease in business income caused by a reduction in the opening hours or consumer demand, or other income reduction resulting from COVID-19 or the state of Emergency; the tenant’s compliance with a recommendation from a government agency to stay home, self-quarantine, or avoid congregating with others during the state of emergency; the tenant’s need to miss work to care for a home-bound school-age child; and the tenant’s extraordinary medical cost resulting from COVID-19 related medical expenses.
• The tenant must notify the landlord in writing on or before the day rent is due that the tenant has a covered reason for delayed payment. Verifiable documentation includes, but is not limited to, a letter from the tenant’s employer stating that the tenant’s income is reduced or eliminated due to the effects of COVID-19, or a letter from the tenant’s health care provider indicating the tenant or a member of the tenant’s household is infected with COVID-19.
• The tenant shall provide updated documentation as stated above every 30 days to the landlord.
• If a tenant complies with the ordinance, landlords shall not serve a notice pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure sections 1161 or 1162, file or prosecute an unlawful detainer action based on a three-day pay or quit notice, or otherwise endeavor to evict the tenant for nonpayment of rent, and the ordinance place into effect March 19 by the Clearlake City Council shall be an affirmative defense to any such eviction action.
• Tenants who were afforded eviction protection under this ordinance shall have up to 180 days after March 19, 2020, to pay their landlord all unpaid rent. Tenants are encouraged to pay as much as they can toward any rent payment during the state of emergency to prevent further financial hardship later when repayments become due.
For additional questions on this ordinance, please contact City Hall at 707-994-8201.
City Hall offices are still currently closed to walk-in visits by the public, but city staff are maintaining office hours and answering phones, emails and can set up video conferencing for citizen needs.
The city reported that it has been heavily impacted by the health crisis created by COVID-19 and many workers are expected to stay home for extended periods.
While this ordinance does not waive a tenant’s obligations to pay back rent owed once the COVID-19 emergency is over, providing tenants with short-term protection from eviction due to the inability to pay rent will help avoid increasing the homeless population and stabilize the rental housing market by reducing displacement, city officials said.
City officials said the ordinance is not intended to allow tenants to skip rent payments arbitrarily. The moratorium is intended to assist tenants only if they are affected by the COVID-19 emergency and can provide proof in writing to their landlord prior to rent being due.
Key points of the ordinance include:
• Residential tenants shall not be evicted for nonpayment of rent if the tenant demonstrates that the inability to pay rent is due to COVID-19, the state of emergency regarding COVID-19, or following government-recommended COVID19 precautions.
• Covered reasons for delayed payments include: the tenant was sick with COVID-19 or caring for a household or family member who is sick with COVID-19; the tenant experienced a lay-off, loss of hours, substantial decrease in business income caused by a reduction in the opening hours or consumer demand, or other income reduction resulting from COVID-19 or the state of Emergency; the tenant’s compliance with a recommendation from a government agency to stay home, self-quarantine, or avoid congregating with others during the state of emergency; the tenant’s need to miss work to care for a home-bound school-age child; and the tenant’s extraordinary medical cost resulting from COVID-19 related medical expenses.
• The tenant must notify the landlord in writing on or before the day rent is due that the tenant has a covered reason for delayed payment. Verifiable documentation includes, but is not limited to, a letter from the tenant’s employer stating that the tenant’s income is reduced or eliminated due to the effects of COVID-19, or a letter from the tenant’s health care provider indicating the tenant or a member of the tenant’s household is infected with COVID-19.
• The tenant shall provide updated documentation as stated above every 30 days to the landlord.
• If a tenant complies with the ordinance, landlords shall not serve a notice pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure sections 1161 or 1162, file or prosecute an unlawful detainer action based on a three-day pay or quit notice, or otherwise endeavor to evict the tenant for nonpayment of rent, and the ordinance place into effect March 19 by the Clearlake City Council shall be an affirmative defense to any such eviction action.
• Tenants who were afforded eviction protection under this ordinance shall have up to 180 days after March 19, 2020, to pay their landlord all unpaid rent. Tenants are encouraged to pay as much as they can toward any rent payment during the state of emergency to prevent further financial hardship later when repayments become due.
For additional questions on this ordinance, please contact City Hall at 707-994-8201.
City Hall offices are still currently closed to walk-in visits by the public, but city staff are maintaining office hours and answering phones, emails and can set up video conferencing for citizen needs.
MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – The USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region, which includes the Mendocino National Forest, announced that all new ignitions for prescribed fire have been postponed until further notice.
Potential smoke impacts to the public are considered in all prescribed fire and wildfire management.
As always, the Mendocino National Forest will work in coordination with local and state health organizations and make any necessary changes as the need arises.
This decision to temporarily postpone ignitions will prevent any effects from smoke that might further worsen conditions for those who are at risk in our communities, while reducing exposure for employees who might not otherwise need to travel, and creating social distancing for resources working on the fire.
Potential smoke impacts to the public are considered in all prescribed fire and wildfire management.
As always, the Mendocino National Forest will work in coordination with local and state health organizations and make any necessary changes as the need arises.
This decision to temporarily postpone ignitions will prevent any effects from smoke that might further worsen conditions for those who are at risk in our communities, while reducing exposure for employees who might not otherwise need to travel, and creating social distancing for resources working on the fire.