Gyms, Museums, Sports Arenas to Reopen in LA County As Coronavirus Cases Continue To Increase
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Businesses including gyms, museums, zoos, film studios and spectator-free sports arenas will be allowed to open in Los Angeles County Friday, even as health officials warned that the rate of spread of COVID-19 was increasing in the county.
News of the latest round of businesses allowed to reopen came as the county Department of Public Health reported 61 new deaths related to the novel coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 2,768.
Public health director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said deaths were continuing a downward trend, with the average daily seven-day death rate at 23 as of Tuesday, down from 46 at the beginning of May.
However, the county's models showed a slight uptick in the rate of transmission — the number of people a person with COVID-19 infects.
The number, once averaging about three in the county, had dropped to below one before officials began relaxing health orders and authorized more businesses to reopen.
On Wednesday, Dr. Christina Ghaly reported that the transmission rate was once again above one as public health officials announced another 1,275 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 67,064.
Ghaly said the modeling, based on hospitalization numbers, predicts the spread of COVID-19 was likely to increase gradually overtime.
Mayor Eric Garcetti said more than 300 Los Angeles city workers would be collaborating with the county to conduct contact tracing in order to find out where COVID-19 was being spread from person to person.
And while Ghaly said the county still has adequate capacity in local hospitals to handle an increase in cases, the county may run out of beds in intensive care units in the next two to four weeks if the increase isn't reversed.
But, despite the warnings, county officials said they were confident enough to move forward with a new health order that would take effect Friday allowing an array of business sectors to reopen, including:
- gyms and fitness centers;
- professional sports venues without live audiences;
- day camps;
- museums and galleries;
- zoos and aquariums;
- campgrounds and RV parks;
- outdoor recreation such as swimming pools;
- music, film and television production; and
- hotels for leisure travel.
"As with all businesses that are permitted to reopen, the health officer order contains protocols for reopening to ensure that it's done as safely as possible for employees, customers and residents," Ferrer said.
Protocols include mandatory face coverings and physical distancing wherever possible.
Garcetti said the latest list of businesses allowed to reopen made him nervous, and he called on owners to reopen safely.
"Please be careful," he said. "You are legally required to go through those protocols before opening, whether it's enhanced cleaning and disinfecting procedures for your employees and spacing."
State officials earlier this week said that movie theaters and bars could reopen if counties felt it was safe to do so, but neither of those were included in Wednesday's announcement by the county.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
