March 15: Governor's Guidance Advises All Seniors (65+) To Self-Isolate; All Bars/Breweries/Nightclubs To Close And All Restaurants To Implement Deep Social Distancing (Half Capacity); City Issues Parallel LB Guidance; No Indication By Sac'to Or Long Beach Officials Of Plans To Begin Drive-Through Testing Locally
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(March 16, 2020, 1:50 a.m.) -- On March 15, 2020, LBREPORT.com flashed the stories below on our front page as well as on our Facebook platform.
LBREPORT.com reported that the City of Long Beach isn't currently planning to offer drive-through COVID-19 testing but said it may work with local healthcare providers to do so in the future. Jennifer Rice Epstein, a spokesperson in the City's Joint Information Center, told LBREPORT.com:
The City of Long Beach has not been required by the State or Federal government to conduct drive-through testing here. In the future, we may work with local healthcare providers to offer drive-through testing, but we are not planning to offer it to the public at this time. As you know, local labs now also have the ability to test, so people can be referred from their healthcare provider to the testing facility if they meet the criteria for COVID-19 screening.
At a Sunday afternoon (March 15) press briefing, CA Governor Gavin Newsom announced a "Guidance" recommending home isolation for all seniors (65+) [a population of roughly 5 million persons], the closure of all bars, breweries and nightclubs and deep social distancing (half capacity) for restaurants. The Governor said the measures are a recommended Guidance noting widespread compliance with the state's previous Guidances but said his office has authority to make measures mandatory with enforcement if necessary. LBREPORT.com linked to video of the Governor's March 15 press briefing below (livestream begins at 13:01 into video below)
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Regarding drive-through testing, the Governor said a website will go online in the coming days, coordinated with Verily, allowing individuals to learn if they do or don't qualify to receive drive-through COVID-19 testing in a "pilot" test in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. (LBREPORT.com coverage here including on-demand audio of the Governor's words on his drive through testing plan at this link.
As previously reported by LBREPORT.com (here, initial report and here with detailed transcript), on March 13 President Donald Trump told a Rose Garden press conference that a new drive-through testing procedure will be rolled out nationally to enable widespread testing and faster results. Governor Newsom made no explicit mention of this in his March 15 press conference.
(As of March 15, drive through testing is available in at least six other states, plus two Bay Area cities -- San Francisco (at a Kaiser-Permanente location) and Palo Alto (at a separately run hospital) -- offered on by private industry healthcare providers on terms described in news stories here and here.
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A few hours after Governor Newsom issued his Guidance, the City of LB issued a parallel local Guidance for LB bars/restaurants:
[City release text] A list of bars will be provided on www.longbeach.gov/COVID19. Bars include, but are not limited to, taverns (including bars, pubs, cocktail lounges, and similar establishments) and alcoholic beverage manufacturing facilities. A list of defined restaurants will be provided on www.longbeach.gov/COVID19. Restaurants include, but are not limited to, establishments engaged in the preparation and sale of food for immediate consumption with seating for customers to consume on-site. Restaurants are encouraged to practice social distancing when serving customers, with spacing 6 feet apart wherever possible, including when standing in line or waiting for food. Restaurants are encouraged to create areas for pickup of food that are separated from areas to provide for 6 feet of social distancing Per the Governor’s announcement to reduce occupancy by half, Long Beach recommends restaurants only admit half as many patrons as its posted occupancy allows per the Long Beach Fire Department. Additional guidance or changes will be issued as needed in the future as the City evaluates this situation with our state and local partners. The safety of the public will remain at the forefront of the City’s decision-making process.
Support really independent news in Long Beach. No one in LBREPORT.com's ownership, reporting or editorial decision-making has ties to development interests, advocacy groups or other special interests; or is seeking or receiving benefits of City development-related decisions; or holds a City Hall appointive position; or has contributed sums to political campaigns for Long Beach incumbents or challengers. LBREPORT.com isn't part of an out of town corporate cluster and no one its ownership, editorial or publishing decisionmaking has been part of the governing board of any City government body or other entity on whose policies we report. LBREPORT.com is reader and advertiser supported. You can help keep really independent news in LB similar to the way people support NPR and PBS stations. We're not non-profit so it's not tax deductible but $49.95 (less than an annual dollar a week) helps keep us online.
