Business Sector Weekly Telebriefing Recap - 8/26/20

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us for our weekly COVID-19 Business telebriefing. A special thank you to our telebriefing guests, Gary S. Johnston, Chief Resilience Officer / Agency Representative, San Diego Office of Emergency Services, Dr. Thomas R. Coleman, Medical Director, Maternal, Child and Family Health, Health and Human Services Agency, and Dr. Sayone Thihalolipavan, Medical Consultant, County of San Diego, for joining us to help inform and answer questions for the community about important COVID-19 topics.

To recap, we discussed the following highlights:

• There has been an increase of 3,837 cases in the past two weeks
• The 14-day average of new positive cases which is a County metric as well as an indicator from the State’s County Monitoring list should be less than 8 percent, yesterday it was 3.6 percent. 
• Metrics continue to be heading on the right direction and are trending down
• Last Tuesday the COVID-19 Watch site looked at underlying medical conditions per death and discovered that hypertension was seen in 50% of deaths, diabetes in 35%, cardiac/heart disease in 31%, and only 4% have no underlying medical conditions.
• Trigger number two – community outbreaks, is the only elevated trigger from the list
• As of yesterday, the case rate trigger remains green with 80.9 percent
• If triggers remain on track, all schools could reopen on September 1st
• There is still no guidance available for other industries to reopen
• Public Health officers have been working diligently with CDPH to figure out a plan for a reopening guidance

Followed by Questions asked from the community, and answers:

• Trends of Companies Reporting Positive Cases
  • We cannot provide specific data related to company cases or outbreaks; qualitatively, it appears that the number of community outbreaks is going down slowly with respect to the 7-day period, but the types of outbreaks look very similar (e.g., Restaurant/Bar, Business). [Posted 8/26/20]
• Cardroom Operations
  • Allowed to operate cardrooms outdoors. Per the State Public Health Order Section 6. -- Outdoor operations may be conducted under a tent, canopy, or other sun shelter but only as long as no more than one side is closed, allowing sufficient outdoor air movement. Further, per the County Public Health Order, you are required to develop a Safe Reopening Plan. Please see State Reopening Guidance for Cardrooms. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Employee and Shopper Compliance with Wearing Face Covering
  • If you see employees and/or shoppers not wearing a face covering, notify the business owner or manager of the store. The general public may also report businesses or organizations that are open and have been ordered to close, or are otherwise not following health order, by calling (858) 694-2900 or emailing SafeReopeningComplianceTeam@sdcounty.ca.gov. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Trampoline Park and Family Entertainment Center Reopening
  • Trampoline centers are not permitted to open according to the CDPH guidance. State guidance for Family Entertainment Centers states: “this guidance is not intended for ice rinks, roller rinks, laser tag arenas, etc., where guests are less able to maintain physical distancing of at least six feet, where a central part of the activity is circulating in the space, and which can accommodate a large number of guests who are mainly from different households. It is not intended for amusement, theme, or water parks; however, these types of parks that have stand-alone bowling alleys, miniature golf, arcades, movie theaters, etc., may open those operations provided they adhere to applicable state and local guidance and keep other attractions closed including amusement park rides”. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Indoor Movie Theaters
  • There is no guidance yet on the reopening of indoor movie theaters. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Outdoor Christmas Tree Lots and Pumpkin Patches
  • If there is money exchange happening at a pumpkin patch or tree lot, the retail guidance protocols must be followed. Employees and patrons must follow the 4 requirements - physical distancing, face covering, sanitation/disinfection, and temperature screening. Posted 8/26/20]
• Private Sports Lessons 
  • One-on-one instruction is allowed, but they must be following the 4 requirements of physical distancing, face coverings, sanitation/disinfection, and temperature screening. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Indoor Gymnastics Lessons
  • Youth sports are permitted - must follow the 4 requirements and refer to the day camps guidance. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Pools
  • Public pools are allowed to stay open but they must follow the protocols listed in the “swimming pools and aquatic venues” section on pages 14-15 of the Fitness Facilities Guidance. Employees and patrons must follow physical distancing, sanitation, face covering and temperature screening protocols. Employees operating pool must be aware of Safe Reopening Plan and rules must be posted in plain sight. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Employers “promptly notifying” the county of positive employee cases
  • There is no specific time period requirement, but notification should be done as quickly as is feasible (e.g., once the requisite information has been determined for the employee). [Posted 8/26/20]
• COVID-19 PCR Testing and Returning to Work before Isolation is Over
  • As stipulated in the Health Officer Order for Isolation - and as noted on the diagram posted on the County Coronavirus website - a person would need to isolate at least 10 days (or 20 days, if severe to critical illness or if the person is immunocompromised) before returning to work, irrespective of the results of the PCR test. If an employee is symptomatic and tests negative, they still have to isolate. If an employee has a fever of 100, ensure they are isolated and get them to their healthcare provider, if they have one, or contact 2-1-1. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Liability, Privacy and Confidentiality of Employer Reporting Positive COVID-19 Cases
  • Both California and Federal law have provisions that pertain to the reporting of communicable diseases, so the employer would not have any liability (unless they were fabricating information) as long as it is reported and transmitted securely. The County is currently in the process of putting together a secure online process as an alternative to the current secure phone line - (888) 950-9905. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Using a Canopy in Schools
  • Per the State Public Health Order that closed indoor operations for specific businesses, it states: ”Outdoor operations may be conducted under a tent, canopy, or other sun shelter but only as long as no more than one side is closed, allowing sufficient outdoor air movement.” It is prudent to provide the maximum amount of air flow for any/all outdoor activities where tentage or cover is going to be required or desired. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Weekly Unemployment in California
  • Lost Wages Assistance Program: the LWA supplemental payment of $300 per week will be available for a limited period of time, a minimum of three weeks, for claimants who are: currently eligible to receive at least $100 per week in benefits, and who have provided a self-clarification that they are unemployed or partially unemployed due to disruptions caused by COVID-19. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Childcare and COVID-19 Testing for Children
  • No requirement for a child to be tested and have negative test before coming back to daycare. However, must wait at least 10 days since symptoms first appeared for a child to come back. Please see the second page of the Childcare Facility Guidance. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Employers Recording Employees’ Temperatures who are Working from Home
  • Employees that are teleworking are not required to record temperatures. If an employee is working amongst others in the field, an employer should at least have employees do self-screening temperature checks. [Posted 8/26/20]
• Testing Discrimination and Inappropriate Workplace Testing
  • As modifications are made to public health directives and more sectors of the economy open with adaptations, it is important that employers do not use testing to impermissibly discriminate against employees who have previously tested positive for COVID-19 (such as by preventing them from resuming work after they can do so in a manner consistent with public health and safety). This does not mean an employer must allow an employee who currently has COVID-19 to return to work before the employee's infection is resolved. Further, because PCR tests can remain positive long after an individual is no longer infectious, proof of a negative test should not be required prior to returning to the workplace after documented COVID infection. Rather, symptom- or protocol-based criteria should be used in determining when an employee is safe to return to the workplace. See the COVID-19 Testing Guidance.
• Face Coverings for Children
  • For children aged 2+, it is strongly recommended that they wear face coverings when indoors or when 6 ft distance cannot be maintained. For children younger than 2, it not recommended for them to wear face covering. Children may use a face shield instead of a face mask but this must be for special cases. See CDC and California Department of Public Health Childcare Guidance. [Posted 8/26/20]

Websites/Resources mentioned:

• State Public Health Order
• County Public Health Order
• County of San Diego Triggers Dashboard
• COVID-19 tests and cases by race and ethnicity
• COVID-19 tests and cases by zip code
• Phone line for employers to notify San Diego Public Health Services about an employee who tests positive with COVID-19: (888) 950-9905
• Safe Reopening Plan
• General public: to report businesses or organizations that are open and have been ordered to close, or otherwise not following health order, call (858) 694-2900 or email SafeReopeningComplianceTeam@sdcounty.ca.gov.
• Lost Wages Assistance Program
• CDPH State Childcare Facility Guidance
• COVID-19 Testing Guidance
• Study on Preventing and Mitigating Spread of COVID-19 in Overnight Camps

 
We will be meeting again Wednesday, September 9th from 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM. To request resources, ask questions, or address concerns, please contact COVID-Business@sdcounty.ca.gov.