California plots a coronavirus reopening. Trump insists it's up to him
The Chronicle's ALEXEI KOSEFF: "California will put forward a strategy Tuesday for gradually releasing residents from stay-at-home orders and allowing public life to resume amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that he has been developing a framework for the past week with the governors of Oregon and Washington that will allow the three states to incrementally reopen their economies as the spread of the virus appears to slow.
Their plan will be driven by facts, evidence and public health advisers, Newsom said. Notably not mentioned as a consideration was President Trump, who wants a quick reopening and emphatically restated Monday his belief that it is up to him, not individual states or cities, to decide when society gets moving again."
Trump stokes up his blame game for the pandemic
LA Times's ELI STOKOLS: "Repeatedly declaring his authority over states is “total,” President Trump let loose a tirade of grievances and accusations Monday even as governors on both the West and East Coasts made clear they weren’t following White House cues and began making plans to ease restrictions to the coronavirus pandemic on a regional basis.
After a weekend fuming and tweeting about what he saw as negative news coverage, Trump staged one of the strangest yet of his near-nightly White House briefings, angrily claiming he had been “brutalized” by the media and playing a White House-produced campaign-style reel of selectively edited video clips of officials effusively praising his efforts.
The often-testy briefing underscored the dissonance between beleaguered state and local officials and medical authorities on the front lines of a public health catastrophe and a president in the throes of a legacy-defining crisis who continues to use a prism of unwavering self-regard, insisting that he “calls the shots” even as he scapegoated others — especially the media — for any problems or delays."
Exiting shutdown? Hire an army of public health workers
From California Healthline's ANNA MARIA BARRY-JESTER in Capitol Weekly: "Last month, facing the prospect of overwhelmed hospitals and unchecked spread of the novel coronavirus, seven Bay Area county and city health departments joined forces to become the first region in the nation to pass sweeping regulations ordering millions of people indoors and shuttering the local economy.
It shocked people, but health experts around the country applauded the bold step, which since has been broadly replicated.
They also say it can’t go on forever. And so Bay Area leaders, along with others around the nation, are trying to figure out how we can resume something akin to normal life without triggering a catastrophic wave of illness and death."
Trump administration seeks months-long delay to complete 2020 census due to pandemic
LA Times's SARAH D WIRE: "The Trump administration is asking Congress to give it four additional months to complete the 2020 Census, blaming the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Census Bureau had previously halted its in-person outreach because of the virus’ spread, but it had maintained it would still be able to meet its legal obligation to present results to the president and Congress by Dec. 31.
In a conference call with members of Congress Monday, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross asked for legislation giving the bureau an additional 120 days to present the results."
Pandemic is making Medicare for All look a lot better, backers say
The Chronicle's JOE GAROFOLI: "Medicare for All didn’t die when Sen. Bernie Sanders suspended his presidential campaign. Far from it.
Its advocates predict that support for government-funded health care will grow because of a force more powerful and unpredictable than politics — the coronavirus pandemic. It’s already contributed to presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s decision to propose a significant expansion of Medicare, though he still opposes Sanders’ idea of having the government plan cover everyone.
“The pandemic is the game changer. It is the X factor,” said Michael Lighty, an Oakland resident who advocated for Medicare for All across the country as the Sanders campaign’s health care constituency director. The health care industry “can no longer control the political process,” he said."
Rep. DeSaulnier improves, is moved out of ICU
The Chronicle's TRAPPER BYRNE: "East Bay Rep. Mark DeSaulnier has made progress in his month-long fight against pneumonia and has been moved out of a hospital intensive care unit, his sons said Monday.
DeSaulnier, D-Concord, has been hospitalized since March 13 with pneumonia that grew out of complications from a broken rib he suffered when he fell while running. The pneumonia was not related to the coronavirus pandemic — his office and family say the 68-year-old DeSaulnier tested negative.
DeSaulnier was initially listed in serious condition after being hospitalized, but within days was downgraded to critical condition."
California pastors sue Gov. Newsom over pandemic restrictions on gatherings
Sac Bee's ANDREW SHEELER: "A group of Inland Empire pastors is suing California Gov. Gavin Newsom in federal court, alleging that his administration is “criminalizing the free exercise of religion” with stay-at-home directives that have prevented people from attending church services.
The Dhillon Law Group, which is led by conservative attorney Harmeet Dhillon, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, on behalf of four plaintiffs, three of whom are pastors.
One of the plaintiffs is Dean Moffatt, a Riverside County pastor who was fined $1,000 for holding a Palm Sunday church service, according to the complaint filed."
READ MORE related to Pandemic: Army lab developing COVID-19 test for people without symptoms, key to 'normal' return -- Sac Bee's TARA COPP/MICHAEL WILNER; Sacramento region hits 1,000 cases -- Sac Bee's MICHAEL MCGOUGH/ROSALIO AHUMADA; Sailor from coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier dies of disease--1st Navy service member to fall victim to the pandemic -- The Chronicle's TAL KOPAN/MATTHIAS GAFNI; Sonoma County residents ordered to wear masks starting Friday to fight coronavirus -- The Chronicle's MATT KAWAHARA
Auburn mayor to 'hand the gavel' over after sharing meme comparing Trump supporters to KKK
Sac Bee's MICHAEL MCGOUGH/SAM STANTON: "The mayor of Auburn is facing backlash and calls for his removal from office following posts and comments he made last week on Facebook, which appeared to compare supporters of President Donald Trump to the Ku Klux Klan amid criticism of the president’s response to the coronavirus.
Dr. Bill Kirby, the mayor of Placer County’s seat and a urologist, announced Monday evening that he intends to hand over the mayoral duties to a fellow council member, Auburn Journal reported.
Kirby allegedly shared a reposted meme last Thursday from his personal Facebook account. The image depicted a hooded KKK member and included the text: “Good news for Trump supporters is that most of them already have masks,” a reference to an increasing number of state and federal guidelines recommending the general public wear face coverings to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which causes the deadly disease known as COVID-19."
California orders car insurance rebates due to pandemic. Many carriers already cut rates
Sac Bee's ANDREW SHEELER: "If you haven’t already, you could soon see a refund from your car insurance carrier.
California Insurance Comissioner Ricardo Lara has ordered carriers to return premiums paid for at least the months of March and April for insurance lines where the risk of loss has fallen substantially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
If Gov. Gavin Newsom’s extends the state’s shelter-at-home order extend through May, Lara’s directive will apply to that month as well."
READ MORE related to Economy: Reopening the economy in the west? California partners on post-shutdown plan -- Sac Bee's HANNAH WILEY; 'National security issue': What Congress wants to give farmers for coronavirus downturn -- Sac Bee's KATE IRBY; Kaiser, health care unions agree on child care, housing benefits for workers in coronavirus fight -- The Chronicle's MATT KAWAHARA
Emergency room doctor, near death with coronavirus, saved with experimental treatment
LA Times's RICHARD READ: "As critically ill, elderly patients streamed into his emergency room outside Seattle, Dr. Ryan Padgett quickly came to understand how deadly COVID-19 could be.
Of the first two dozen or so he saw, not a single one survived.
It took longer for Padgett and his colleagues at EvergreenHealth Medical Center — the first hospital in the country to treat multiple coronavirus patients — to learn how easily the disease could spread."
California prison employees getting help with coronavirus gear from inmates
Sac Bee's WES VENTEICHER: "Inmates are making 10,000 masks a day for use inside California’s state prisons, where the coronavirus outbreak has spread to dozens of staff and inmates.
The California Prison Industry Authority, which trains inmates for work after prison, has set its fabric program to making the reusable cotton masks, according to a news release.
Seventy-seven correctional officers and 55 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state’s prisons, according to the most recent numbers posted by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation."
Some California tenants who are deferring rent payments being asked about savings
The Chronicle's JK DINEEN: "California renters who have lost income because of the coronavirus shutdown are protected from eviction for 90 days after the health emergency is over, California’s courts have ruled — giving tenants tacit permission to defer paying rent for three months.
But what about tenants who have lost income but can pay rent from their savings or investments? Are landlords permitted to ask that tenants dip into their savings or 401(k) accounts in order to meet their rent obligations?
The answer is no, according to real estate attorneys. But property owners may still pressure tenants to dip into assets that might help pay the bills until the health emergency order is over, according to tenants’ rights groups."
Caltrans is speeding up highway projects while coronavirus keeps Californians off the road
Sac Bee's WES VENTEICHER: "As state and local officials extend stay-at-home orders, road construction crews across California are taking advantage of reduced traffic to speed up projects.
Contractors said they are working during the day instead of at night, extending work hours and closing longer stretches of road at a time under temporary agreements with the state Department of Transportation and local agencies.
“There’s recognition that we can get more done with less traffic for sure, and that’s happening,” said Ed Herrnberger, an executive vice president at Teichert, a Sacramento-based construction company. “I’d say that’s consistent industrywide."
