The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed on Thursday the news announced by Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday that movie theaters can open indoors with a 25% capacity “with reserved seats only where each group is sitting at least 2 meters away in all directions between any other groups. “
Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said on Wednesday that the county planned to launch its own operational guidelines for restaurants, cinemas, gyms, live outdoor events and theme park reopenings as the county expects to move to the less restrictive “red” level of the California reopening project.
The LA County press release confirming the decision does not mention another warning from the state order, but county officials cannot be more lenient than the state, so both must apply.
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The state restrictions are as follows: “Capacity must be limited to 25% or 100 people, whichever is less”. Thus, not only is the new Los Angeles County Health Order in place, theaters will also be limited by the 100-person limit mentioned in the state order.
Although Governor Gavin Newsom announced the easing of state restrictions on Wednesday, local health officials have the authority to be more restrictive than the state, if they so wish. LA health officials have exercised that option in the past.
In restaurants, for example, LA officials banned outdoor TV screens, although state guidelines allowed it. On Wednesday, Ferrer said he did not have a definitive answer on whether indoor meals will be allowed in Los Angeles, despite being an activity permitted at the “red” level of the state’s Blueprint for the Safer Economy. Thursday’s announcement clarifies this.
The county health officials’ announcement on Thursday is more restrictive to indoor meals than state rules. Although LA allows indoor meals by 25%, the customers at each table must be from the same house and the tables must be spaced not 6 feet but 8 feet.
The morning after the non-stellar state of the state speech, Governor Gavin Newsom gave good news to some 15 million Californians. Newsom said the state will reach the administration limit of 2 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine on Friday in low-income and hard-hit communities, triggering a change in the State Plan for a safer economy that will promote Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties in the “red” layer of this matrix and pave the way for more companies to reopen. LA has been at the most restrictive level of the governor’s plan since August.
Here is the entire list of reopening guidelines issued by LA county officials on Thursday:
-Museum, zoos and aquariums can open indoors with a 25% capacity.
-Gyms, gyms, yoga and dance studios can open indoors with a 10% capacity, with a mask requirement for all indoor activities
– The cinemas can open indoors with 25% capacity with reserved seats only, where each group sits at least 6 feet apart in all directions among any other groups.
– Retail and personal care services can increase capacity to 50% with the necessary mask at all times and for all services.
-Restaurants can open indoors with a maximum capacity of 25% under the following conditions: distance of 8 feet between tables; one household per table with a limit of 6 people; the HVAC system is in good working order and has been evaluated and, to the maximum, the possible ventilation has been increased. Public Health strongly recommends that all restaurant employees who interact with customers indoors receive additional masking protection (over and above the face protection currently required on face masks); this may be suitable for tested N95 masks, KN95 masks or double masks and a face shield. In addition, Public Health strongly recommends that all employees working in closed environments be informed and have opportunities for vaccination. Outdoor dining can accommodate up to six people per table, from 3 different families.
– Indoor malls can increase capacity by 50%, keeping the common areas closed; food courts can open at 25% capacity according to the restaurant’s guidelines for indoor dining.
– Institutes of Higher Education can reopen all permitted activities with the necessary security modifications, except for residences, which remain under the current restrictions for the spring semester. Schools can reopen for face-to-face classes for students from 7th to 12th grade, in compliance with all state and municipal guidelines.
-Private meetings can take place indoors with up to 3 separate families, with the necessary masking and distance at all times. Fully vaccinated people can meet in small numbers indoors with other fully vaccinated people, without the need for masking and detachment.
Public Health Director Ferrer said earlier this week that it will take 48 hours after the state announces that the vaccination threshold has been reached for the county to officially move to the red level. If the goal is met by Friday, as Newsom announced, the county could theoretically advance through Sunday. But the LA announcement says that “the red level rules will go into effect, the red level that allows for additional reopening between Monday, March 15 at 12:01 pm and Wednesday, March 17. The exact date depends on when 2 million doses of the vaccine were administered to people in the poorest communities across the state. “
State officials recently announced that theme parks would be allowed to reopen on April 1 with 15% of their capacity, with visitors only in the state. With LA and Orange Counties likely entering the red level on Friday, that schedule has been moved forward by about two weeks. Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced on Tuesday that Disneyland would reopen in “late April”.
Live outdoor events, such as sports and concerts, can reopen at 20% capacity. This includes suites with 25% occupancy per suite and no more than three families gathered in each suite.
On Tuesday, two members of the LA County Board of Supervisors said they supported full alignment with state guidelines as soon as possible.
Ferrer cautioned the council that while the number of cases and the rate of positivity for the test has dropped sharply in recent weeks, things could easily get worse if residents became negligent about infection control measures.
“This is the month I would say – the month of March, the beginning of April – when we have to be extraordinarily cautious,” she said. “Because we’ve been here before. We have already been here with reopenings. We were here on Thanksgiving and Christmas trips. We have already seen what happens on vacation if we are not very careful. … We have to keep everyone alive now so they can be vaccinated and stay alive. So this would be a time for extreme caution. “
She specifically pointed to the spread of variants of the virus that causes Covid-19, which can spread more easily from person to person. Ferrer said the variant first identified in the UK has increased its reach in Los Angeles County, and is now believed to be responsible for 10% of all COVID cases in the county. The so-called West Coast variants are even more prevalent, according to state data.