Los Angeles County Under New Stay-At-Home Order Will Go In Effect Monday

Los Angeles reported new coronavirus cases topping 4,500 for the fifth consecutive day causing public health officials to issue a new stay-at-home order that will go into effect Monday.

The order will last until December 20 and will prohibit all public and private gatherings of people outside a single household, Deadline reports. However, people are allowed to attend church and public protests.

The county grapples with fighting the novel virus that continues to surge across the nation. On Friday, the county reported 4,544 new cases. The average for the last five days stands at 4,751 new cases.

The county vowed to put the new stay-at-home order into effect if the five-day average went over 4,500. The county has placed restrictions on non-essential workers as well as those securing essential services to leave their homes.

If you live in the county or plan on traveling, take heed to the new restrictions set by county officials:
*
* Gatherings: all public and private gatherings with individuals not
* in your household are prohibited, except for church services and protests,
* which are constitutionally protected rights.
* Occupancy limits at various businesses; all individuals at these
* sites are required to wear face coverings and keep at least 6 feet of distance:
* Essential retail: 35% maximum occupancy;
* Nonessential retail (includes indoor malls): 20% maximum occupancy;
* Personal care services: 20% maximum occupancy;
* Libraries: 20% maximum occupancy;
* Fitness centers operating outdoors: 50% maximum occupancy;
* Museums galleries, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens operating outdoors: 50% maximum occupancy;
* Mini-golf, batting cages, go-kart racing operating outdoors: 50%
* Maximum occupancy;
* Outdoor recreation activities, all which require face coverings (except for swimming) and distancing: Beaches, trails, and parks remain open; gatherings at these sites with members outside your household are prohibited.
* Golf courses, tennis courts, pickleball, archery ranges, skate parks, bike parks, and community gardens remain open for individuals or members of a single household. Pools that serve more than one household may open only for regulated lap swimming with one person per lane. Drive-in movies/events/car parades are permitted provided occupants in each car are members of one household.
* Schools: All schools and day camps remain open, adhering to reopening protocols. K-12 Schools and Day Camps with an outbreak (3 cases or more over 14 days) should close for 14 days.
* Closed nonessential businesses/activities:
* Playgrounds (with the exception of playgrounds at childcare and schools;
* Cardrooms;
* Restaurants, bars, breweries, and wineries remain closed for in-person dining and drinking because of the high rates of transmission in the community, as customers are not wearing face coverings, which results in an increased chance of transmission of the virus. Restaurants, wineries, and breweries remain open for pick-up, delivery, and take-out. Breweries and wineries remain open for retail sales at 20% occupancy

“These targeted measures are in effect for the next three weeks and still allow for many essential and nonessential activities where residents are always masked and distanced,” L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said today. “We know we are asking a lot from so many who have been  sacrificing for months on end, and we hope that L.A. County residents continue following Public Health safety measures that we know can slow the spread.”

The county now believes that one of every 145 people residing in the county is infected. The transmission rate is the highest it’s ever been—every COVID-19 patient is transferring on average to 1.27 people.

As of Friday, there were 1,893 people with the coronavirus hospitalized in the county. Nearly a quarter of those patients were in intensive care units. I’m October, 747 people were hospitalized with the virus in Los Angeles County — a drastic increase of 253%.