California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is implementing new lockdowns in the state for regions impacted by rising hospitalizations due to COVID-19.
The governor's order divides the state into five regions, with each region falling under a stay-at-home order that will last at least three weeks. The lockdowns will take effect when ICU hospital capacity in a region dips below 15 percent.
Currently, four out of five California regions are expected to meet the governor's new threshold for a lockdown in the coming days, although no regions are currently affected. The four regions include Northern California, Greater Sacramento, San Joaquin Valley and Southern California. The fifth region, the Bay Area, is on track to fall below 15 percent capacity later this month, ABC 7 News reported.
Under the new stay-at-home order, non-essential businesses will be ordered to close down. Restaurants can remain open for takeout and delivery services only, and schools will close down unless they have received a waiver to stay open.
Announcing the lockdowns via Twitter, the governor assured Californians the measures were only temporary and said a vaccine for the virus is forthcoming with doses expected to arrive in the next few weeks.
Our ICUs are climbing quickly toward their capacity. Our death rate is rising.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 3, 2020
To slow the surge of #COVID19 and save lives, CA is introducing a Regional Stay-At-Home Order.
Regions where ICU capacity°fall below 15% will be placed into this Stay-at-Home Order °for 3 weeks.
Sectors that will be temporarily closed when a region is placed into the Stay-At-Home include:
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 3, 2020
- Bars
- Wineries
- Personal Services
- Hair Salons / Barbershops
No regions have been placed into this Regional Stay-At-Home Order at this time.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 3, 2020
Remember: this is temporary. Hope is on the way. Relief is on the way. A vaccine is coming -- with first doses arriving in the next few weeks.
We can get through this -- together.
Of course, it was President Trump that prioritized the development and approval of a vaccine for the Wuhan coronavirus and Democrats who questioned the effectiveness of a vaccine developed so quickly. Now, Democrats are using the fruits of Operation Warp Speed to reassure their constituents while stripping them of their freedoms one last time.
One wonders if the governor and Speaker Pelosi will obey the latest coronavirus measures since they and other Democrats haven't in the past.
Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court handed down a win, at least a temporary one, to a California church that claimed Newsom's coronavirus restrictions earlier this year were discriminatory against places of worship.