California residents who feel coronavirus restrictions have greatly impeded their livelihood are likely in for even further impediment. In fact, California Governor Gavin Newsom himself said on Monday that “drastic actions” may be necessary to curb the spread of coronavirus. Newsom is not referring to the already “drastic actions” that have been imposed; he wants new ones.
On Monday, Governor Newsom tweeted out a ‘CA Health Systems Projections’ which suggests the percentage of ICU beds occupied by 12/24 will be over 100%. With the projections, Newsom tweeted the caption, “This is the tipping point. CA has worked hard to prepare for a surge- but we can’t sustain the record high cases we’re seeing. Current projections show CA will run out of current ICU beds before Christmas Eve. Please stay safe & stay at home as much as you can for the next few weeks.”
Also, on Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported “of particular concern is California’s intensive care capacity. Currently, about 75% of the state’s 7,733 ICU beds are occupied – with 1,812 of them filled by coronavirus patients.” The LA Times also reported on Governor Newsom’s briefing, during which he said, “If these trends continue, we’re going to have to take much more dramatic – arguably drastic – actions.”
Those “actions” include “the potential for a stay-at-home order” for areas in California’s purple tier of California’s coronavirus reopening road map. Of the state’s 58 counties, 51 are considered to be in the strictest purple tier. L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer stated, “we are at the most difficult moment in the pandemic…the increases we’re seeing now are not sustainable. They’re going to overwhelm not just our healthcare system, but the entire state’s healthcare system. So we’re going to have to do everything we can, and hopefully everyone gets on board with this.” Feel like complaining? “It’s three weeks” added Ferrer. “We’ve done this for much longer in the past and with many more restrictions.”
