People listening outside the chambers of the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors erupted in cheers as Public Health Officer Peter Beilenson announced he's dropping the emergency ordinance that would fine businesses up to $10,000 a day for violating public health guidelines.
“It will be addressing only gatherings in terms of enforcement against gatherings rather than businesses,” Beilenson said
Large gatherings are one of the main causes of COVID-19 transmission, which is why Beilenson said he plans to use an educational approach with businesses and bring another ordinance to the table next week on stricter enforcement for people who are caught at large gatherings.
“One of the ways we are looking to enforcing it is having it being referred to us by the police. The public health department goes in with police backup, if necessary, to the gathering,” Beilenson said.
This all with Public health officers trying to prevent new COVI-19 cases, as greater Sacramento county’s ICU bed capacity hits 18%, the region tiptoeing into a stay-at-home order, and another holiday approaching where many will be tempted to gather.
“We are bait for the next two weeks. Thanksgiving has supplied us with all the cases that are going to be coming. There’s nothing we can do about them. Two weeks later they will end up in the hospital -- 12% of them, two weeks after that, they will die,” Beilenson said.
But not everyone is on board with the educational approach. Supervisor Patrick Kennedy said there are “bad actors” who, no matter how much education, refuse to follow the rules.
“You have these others that are sometimes coming outside Sacramento County who are holding irresponsible events. They aren’t following the guidelines. We need another tool in our tool chest to deal with those circumstances,” Kennedy.
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