Monthly Archives: January 2021

California, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Intensive Care Units (ICUs), Solano County CA

Why the sudden improvement in our ICU bed numbers?

By Roger Straw, January 25, 2021

The surge hasn’t slowed in Solano and some other California locations, but more ICU beds don’t get us out of the “purple tier”

B.C. clears more acute hospital beds as COVID-19 case growth slows – Surrey Now-Leader

Something changed dramatically and suddenly in Solano County on Thursday, January 14, and the State seems to have followed suit lately.

Solano County reported the following percentage of ICU beds available during January.  Note the remarkable jump on January 14:

Date Total Confirmed Cases Daily or Weekend Δ ICU Beds Available
Monday, January 4, 2021 20,953 90 17.0%
Tuesday, January 5, 2021 21,223 270 20.0%
Wednesday, January 6, 2021 21,520 297 15.0%
Thursday, January 7, 2021 21,855 335 12.0%
Friday, January 8, 2021 22,232 377 4.0%
Monday, January 11, 2021 23,314 1,082 20.0%
Tuesday, January 12, 2021 23,554 240 5.0%
Wednesday, January 13, 2021 23,889 335 1.0%
Thursday, January 14, 2021 24,291 402 23.0%
Friday, January 15, 2021 24,654 363 23.0%
Tuesday, January 19, 2021 25,806 1,152 24.0%
Wednesday, January 20, 2021 25,983 177 28.0%
Thursday, January 21, 2021 26,191 208 20.0%
Friday, January 22, 2021 26,494 303 26.0%

According to the Fairfield Daily Republic on 1/14/21, Solano County Public Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas said in a phone interview, “‘NorthBay has opened up additional ICU space and Kaiser and Sutter plan to.’”

My worst fear is that the COVID surge will rage on here in Solano County, and with more ICU beds now available, we will only fill them with those who become seriously ill with the virus.  It seems the State of California could do the same.  We may be lifting the strict stay-at-home order, but the purple tier restrictions are incredibly important.  We don’t want to fill those additional ICU beds!

California, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Intensive Care Units (ICUs), Vaccine

What Is Happening With the Virus in California? For Now, Many Mixed Signals

Monday: Hospital capacity is increasing in some areas. The vaccine rollout is still chaotic.

People waiting in line at a super vaccination station set up in an empty department store in Chula Vista.
People waiting in line at a super vaccination station set up in an empty department store in Chula Vista. Mike Blake/Mike Blake

New York Times, By Jill Cowan, 1/25/21, 9:07 a.m. ET  (This article is part of the California Today newsletter. Sign up to get it delivered to your inbox.)

Good morning.

If you’re confused about the state of the virus in California, you’re not alone.

While California’s overall case numbers have been on the decline, hospitals in Southern California are still overwhelmed and experts worry that new variants of the virus — including one that researchers recently found in more than half of samples collected in Los Angeles — could threaten progress curbing Covid-19’s rampant spread.

[Compare coronavirus case numbers, hospitalizations and deaths across California with this map.]

In the Bay Area, intensive care unit capacity has risen to 23.4 percent, according to the state as of Sunday — well above the 15 percent threshold that triggered the stay-at-home order for the region. Yet the Sacramento area has just 11.9 percent intensive care unit capacity, and was allowed to exit the strict order more than a week ago.

Although The San Francisco Chronicle reported on Saturday that officials in the region were feeling hopeful that the order would be lifted soon, the state’s department of public health reported on Sunday that the Bay Area wasn’t eligible to have restrictions loosened based on its projections.

[See how full hospital intensive care units are near you.]

Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to make an announcement about lifting some restrictions in the state on Monday.

The Associated Press reported that Mr. Newsom’s administration has refused to disclose key data that would help explain the difference in approaches between the Bay Area and Sacramento.

In any case, the state hinted in a news release on Sunday that Sacramento may be required to re-enter the stay-at-home order, which would force many businesses to shut back down. (We can expect to get an update from state officials in coming days.)

And even after President Biden unveiled what experts have long said is a desperately needed national strategy for finally controlling the pandemic, there are still major hurdles in the vaccine rollout, which in California has contributed to continuing chaos, in which vaccine eligibility rules have been implemented differently county by county.

As CalMatters reported, the state quietly rolled out a promised clearinghouse website to help people find vaccination appointments. But it’s still a work in progress.

[Track the vaccine rollout in California and other states.]

Read more:

  • One of the biggest contributors to Los Angeles County’s surge is its overcrowded housing. [The New York Times]

  • Mandatory masking for interstate travel. Ramped up manufacturing. Here’s more of what’s in President Biden’s pandemic executive orders. [The New York Times]

  • Experts believe as many as thousands of coronavirus deaths have not been counted in San Bernardino County, giving a false sense of the disease’s deadliness. [The Riverside Press-Enterprise]

  • Fear over testing positive for Covid-19 and not being able to return to work, as well as worries over the vaccines, are hurting the eastern Coachella Valley. [The Desert Sun]

  • A coalition of more than 50 Bay Area restaurants and wineries sued Governor Newsom over the state’s outdoor dining ban. [The San Francisco Chronicle]

  • Getting millions of people vaccinated will help reduce infections. But vaccines alone won’t end the pandemic. [The New York Times]

  • The governor’s $2 billion school reopening fund could actually cost districts money. [CalMatters]

 

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Solano County remains in purple tier as California stay home order is lifted

By Roger Straw, January 25, 2021

This was posted on Solano County Public Health facebook page around 10am January 25, 2021

Solano Public Health – sharing a COVID-19 Update.

Services and activities, such as outdoor dining and personal services, may resume immediately with required modifications.
See the county map to find the status of activities open in each county:
For more information: http://bit.ly/NR21-030

 

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Intensive Care Units (ICUs), Regional regulation, San Francisco Bay Area, Stay-at-home

Newsom reopens California, with most counties going to ‘purple’ tier. Here’s what it means

Elias Gambaccini brings in a propane heater as he shuts down his restaurant's outdoor seating at Pizzeria Trattoria in North Beach in San Francisco. Across California, some counties will begin allowing some business activities to resume, including outdoor dining, after Gov. Gavin Newsom rescinded regional stay-home orders.
Elias Gambaccini brings in a propane heater as he shuts down his restaurant’s outdoor seating at Pizzeria Trattoria in North Beach in San Francisco. Across California, some counties will begin allowing some business activities to resume, including outdoor dining, after Gov. Gavin Newsom rescinded regional stay-home orders. Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle
Vanessa Arredondo and Michael Williams Jan. 25, 2021 Updated: Jan. 25, 2021 9:18 a.m.

Gov. Gavin Newsom lifted mandatory stay-home orders across California Monday as the surge of coronavirus cases that followed the holiday season begins receding.

The move will shift counties back into the color-coded reopening system and reopening will no longer be tied strictly to the number of available beds in intensive care units.

Now, with most counties statewide poised to reenter the purple tier, some activities like outdoor dining and personal-service businesses like nail salons will be allowed to resume. Individual counties can still impose stricter requirements, despite the relaxed mandate from the state.

“California is slowly starting to emerge from the most dangerous surge of this pandemic yet, which is the light at the end of the tunnel we’ve been hoping for,” said California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly.

“Seven weeks ago, our hospitals and front-line medical workers were stretched to their limits, but Californians heard the urgent message to stay home when possible and our surge after the December holidays did not overwhelm the health care system to the degree we had feared,” he said.

Mayor London Breed tweeted Monday morning that she expects San Francisco to return to the state’s purple tier. “We will be moving forward with some limited re-openings, including outdoor dining and personal services,” she said. More details on San Francisco’s reopening plans were expected to emerge during a news conference Monday afternoon.

Following a post-holiday surge, coronavrirus cases and hospitalizations have been decreasing across the state. ICU capacity in regions that remained under the stay-at-home orders as of Sunday — including the Bay Area and Southern California — are projected to rise above the 15% threshold that triggered the lockdown measures.

The decision comes more than six weeks after the Bay Area and nearly all of the state was placed under stringent stay-at-home orders due to the explosive spread of the virus in late November and early December.

Though the Dec. 3 stay-at-home order was statewide, it was not triggered unless ICU projections fell below 15%. Because of this, the state’s northernmost counties were never affected. Most Bay Area counties voluntarily moved into the lockdown condition on Dec. 6. But as of Saturday’s report from the state, the Bay Area’s ICU capacity was 23.4%.

News of the change first began circulating Sunday evening after the California Restaurant Association sent a letter to members saying it had received word from Newsom’s administration that the stay-at-home orders would be lifted. Several members passed the letter along to media outlets including The Chronicle.

Vanessa Arredondo and Michael Williams are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers.