California guidance against gatherings likely to be extended

SACRAMENTO - Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that sweeping guidance for Californians to avoid unnecessary gatherings to avoid the spread of the new coronavirus will likely extend beyond March.

The statewide guidance applies to sporting events, concerts and even smaller social gatherings in places where people can't remain at least 6 feet (2 meters) apart.

Newsom said he expects it to affect the Major League Baseball season that begins at the end of the month. But so far, the guidance has not been extended to theme parks like Disneyland or casinos and card rooms.

There are nuances when it comes to larger businesses such as amusement parks and theaters, Newsom said, and the state is in contact with them about how to put distance between people.

The guidance is not an official ban - like in the Seattle's metro area and San Francisco have instituted - and Newsom said California's legal authority is limited when it comes to enforcement.

“I have all the expectation that it will be advanced and will be adopted. Invariably, what happens if it isn't? I'm not concerned about that,” the Democratic governor said, adding that the state has ways it can step up enforcement if necessary.

Newsom said 21 more Californians tested positive for the COVID-19 virus Wednesday, bringing the total to 198 infections. Four people have died.

The California Department of Public Health advisory says events with 250 people or more should be postponed or canceled and gatherings of people at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should be limited to no more than 10.

“Not holding that concert or community event can have cascading effects - saving dozens of lives and preserving critical health care resources that your family may need a month from now,” Newsom said in a statement.

The guidance vastly expands California's response to the outbreak as cities and others have instituted ever-increasing methods to curtail the spread of the virus. San Francisco, Oakland and Santa Clara County, which includes Silicon Valley, banned gatherings of 1,000 or more people.

The Los Angeles City Council announced it would hold just one public meeting a week instead of the usual three for the remainder of the month.

Corrections officials canceled daily visits at all state prisons until further notice. There are no suspected or confirmed cases of the virus at any lockups.

Meanwhile, officials in Oakland will continue the painstaking process of removing nearly 500 passengers remaining on the cruise ship hit by the virus, all of them non-California residents and foreigners. About 2,000 passengers have been moved off the Grand Princess and transported to military bases around the U.S. for a two-week quarantine.

More than 20 passengers have been diagnosed with the virus, as well as 19 crew members. After being forced to idle off the coast for days and then docking Monday, the ship was originally slated to leave Thursday, but California will allow it to remain through Sunday, Newsom said.

Princess Cruises announced a two-month pause of global operations on Thursday that will gradually sideline all 18 of its cruise ships.

Meanwhile, health officials defended a decision not to quarantine a senior living facility near Sacramento where a woman in her 90s died of the coronavirus, even as a dispute arose over whether Sacramento County officials were getting a sufficient number of kits to test for the virus.

Carlton Senior Living, which has 13 assisted living facilities in Northern California, said the Elk Grove resident died at a hospital Tuesday.

Tyler Cooke of Sacramento, whose mother lives at the facility, said he hasn't gotten updates on what is being done to help his mother, who is 71 and has “a plethora of health issues."

A Carlton spokesperson did not return calls and emails seeking additional information.

County public health spokeswoman Brenda Bongiorno said the facility is limiting visitor access, freezing new admissions, closing common areas and enhancing cleaning measures. She would not release information on other residents in quarantine or whether any residents or employees were showing symptoms or tested positive.

Sacramento County health director Peter Beilenson indicated frustration at the pace of testing. Under federal guidelines, the county can only process 20 tests per day.

The state has provided Sacramento County “with enough testing supplies to test 300 specimens, so that the county can address any testing backlog it may have, including people at the assisted living facility,” California Health and Human Services Agency spokeswoman Kate Folmar said.

The question is not so much having enough kits as how fast they can be processed, Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said.

Newsom and Ferrer said they expect more supplies to be delivered soon, but she said in the meantime, the county lab could still perform “hundreds and hundreds” of tests.

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Associated Press writers Don Thompson and Adam Beam in Sacramento, Olga R. Rodriguez in San Francisco, and Christopher Weber and Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles contributed to this story.