Business Sector Weekly Telebriefing Recap — 9/2/20

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us for our weekly COVID-19 Business telebrief. 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, Public Health Services, Health and Human Services Agency, for joining us to help inform and answer questions for the community about important COVID-19 topics.

To recap, we discussed the following highlights:

• September 1st cases and trends in San Diego County: 38,871 total cases, 3.7% 14-day average, 688 deaths, and 16 community outbreaks in the last 7 days. View the daily status updates for County of San Diego here.
  • 9 in businesses, 2 in food processing, 1 in a healthcare setting, 1 in a restaurant, 2 in restaurants and bars, and 1 in a nail salon.
• Effective September 1st, section 11b on page 4 and section 11g on page 5 have been added to the Public Health Order with new sign in requirements and changes for dining indoors.
• Announced Friday, August 28th, Blueprint for a Safer Economy replaces the County Data Monitoring List with new colored tier state monitoring metrics.
  • State monitoring is now based on two metrics: Number of new cases and percent of positive cases.
  • San Diego County is currently in red tier, substantial.
  • Blueprint Activity and Business Tiers offers an overview of how the tiers are laid out and what limitations are in effect for each entity.
  • The county can only move through 1 tier at a time. When in a specific tier, the county will need to be in the same tier for a 3-week period. For the last 2 weeks, the next tier’s data would need to be maintained to prove next tier requirements.
  • To operate under the new guidance, businesses and organizations will need to update their Safe Reopening Plan.

Followed by Questions asked from the community, and answers:

• Temperature Screening for Employees
  • The temperature check and symptom screening requirements are currently in Sections 5, 11 and 12 of the Public Health Order as well as the Employer Playbook for a Safe Reopening. Please continue to conduct temperature and symptom screenings, and include these in your Safe Reopening Plan, to protect your staff and San Diego residents. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Allowance of Employee Temperature Wrist Screenings
  • Yes, wrist temperature checks are valid when screening a person’s temperature. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Temperature Limit of 100.0˚F
  • 100.0˚F is the limit for temperature checks – see the Safe Reopening Plan. While limits set by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control may be different, the county has set the temperature limit at 100.0˚F to account for varying readings of touch/no-touch thermometers. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Live Entertainment at Restaurants
  • Live entertainment is currently still prohibited by the state, due to their ability to be catalysts for COVID-19 spread. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Requirement for Gathering Customer Name and Phone Info at Airport Businesses
  • Industries included in Section 11bi of the new Public Health Order are required to gather each customer’s name and phone number, even if they are located within an airport. This is important for contact tracing, because even if an individual leaves the San Diego area, the county still wants to notify an individual who was in close contact with a positive case. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Permits for Bars Serving Food 
  • Any meal provider/“food operator” needs to be permitted through San Diego County Department of Environmental Health (DEH). The food must be provided by a DEH-approved vendor. To find out if a vendor is approved, visit www.sdfoodinfo.org. For questions about logistics like ventilation and sanitation, call the DEH technical line: 858-505-6659. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Clean Shopping Carts at Retail Stores
  • Be prepared to clean your own cart, but you may also request to speak to a manager. If there is an egregious sanitation violation you feel needs to be reported, you can call (858) 694- 2900 or email [email protected]. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Philanthropic Women's Club Facility Considered an 'Office Workspace'
  • These types of facilities are considered a “Non-Essential Office”, which are required to operate remotely where possible. If employees cannot work remotely, conduct indoor operations with physical distancing, sanitation, face coverings and temperature checks. They can also operate outdoors, if possible, with physical distancing. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Employee’s Close Contact with Adult Child who Tested Positive for COVID-19
  • If an employee was within 6 ft for at least 15 minutes (considered close contact), then the employee would need to quarantine. Section 14 of the Public Health Order contains definitions of isolation and quarantine, and instructions that can be given to a person if they have had close contact. If the employee developed symptoms, then the suggestion is to work with the San Diego Department of Epidemiology (619) 692-8499) to determine if the employer would need to notify Public Health Services. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Plans for Winter Holiday Events or Alternatives
  • Retail operations are permitted for Pumpkin Patch lots. Currently, events like Alpine Tree Lighting, Christmas Parade & Festival of Lights will not be permitted especially if they constitute a “gathering” per County Public Health Order/State Public Health Order. These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis to determine which types of holiday events will be permitted. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Safe Reopening Plan Requirements
  • Businesses need to review their Safe Reopening Plan if they are moving back indoors or reopening, and update it with any changes. The Safe Reopening Plan needs to include how they will maintain the capacity requirements in their business/facility, and it will need to be reviewed with employees. There is no requirement to submit the Safe Reopening Plan to the county. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Community Outbreak Definition
  • A Community Cluster Outbreak is three or more laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases from different households in a cluster of COVID-19 associated acute respiratory illness (ARI) occurring in a community setting and has been assessed by the local health department as having public health importance. Outbreak is determined by case investigation of multiple common exposures, and for COVID-19 includes 3 or more positive cases in a 14-day period. See the COVID-19 Outbreak Definition and Reporting Guidance for more information. [Posted 9/2/20]

• Allowance of Drive-in Concerts
  • Drive-in concerts are allowed, but vehicles must contain only members of the same household and individuals must remain in their vehicles. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Retail Store Recording of Customer’s Name and Number
  • Retails are not required to record a customer’s name and phone number upon entering. This is only required for industries in Section 11bi of the new Public Health Order (hair salons and barbershops, personal care services, gyms, restaurants, wineries, breweries and bars). [Posted 9/2/20]
• Treating Contractors as Employers for Temperature and Symptom Checking
  • Anyone working in your area should have their temperature screened. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Occupancy Limits Includes Employees
  • Industries with a 10% capacity requirement must count employees in that 10% calculation, as the capacity refers to the total “occupancy” or individuals in that particular setting. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Bank Branch Occupancy
  • Banks are considered essential, so they not required to abide by the 50% retail capacity requirements. They still must follow protocols for physical distancing, sanitation, temperature checks and face coverings. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Limit to Number of People Gathering Outdoors
  • No set limit to number of people allowed to gather outdoors. Use the natural setting space to determine the capacity, taking into account the ability of individuals to physically distance. [Posted 9/2/20]
• COVID-19 Nasal Swab Switching to Saliva Testing
  • There is no plan to switch to saliva tests at this point. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Use of Case Rate vs. Percentage of Positive Cases in New State Blueprint for a Safer Economy
  • Both adjusted case rate and the percentage of positive cases have been incorporated in the new Blueprint for a Safer Economy, and each gives a different snapshot of what’s occurring. The case rate helps to track the number of laboratory-confirmed cases at a point in time (or, in the case of this particular metric, a particular interval of time, as it’s a 7-day average), while the test positivity statistic is helpful in determining whether enough testing is occurring within a region (and if it’s elevated, may be a sign that the actual number of cases within the area is considerably higher than what’s being seen just by the case rate). Please read more about the state monitoring metrics. [Posted 9/2/20]
• No Longer Using Metric Regarding Hospitalizations and ICU Beds in the Blueprint for a Safer Economy Metrics
  • During press conferences, the Governor has mentioned wanting to simplify the process but it appears from the state site that hospital and other measures will be developed and tracked as well. Locally, we’re still tracking both COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU use—as well as 3 other “Healthcare (Hospital Capacity)” metrics—in our 13 Triggers, which can be used to determine if we need to take actions at the County level separately from what the State is currently prescribing. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Accuracy of Rapid Testing Results
  • Rapid antigen tests tend to have a lower sensitivity than the traditional PCR test and to date have only been authorized by the FDA for symptomatic individuals; that decreased sensitivity can lead to false negative results, which are results that incorrectly show up as negative but should have indicated positive instead. The FDA  recommend following these tests with a PCR if they are negative and symptomatic. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Refusing Service to Customer Not Wearing a Mask for Medical Reasons
  • Prioritizing the community's health when a business encounters a patron that states they qualify for a face covering exemption, the business reserves the right to refuse service as long as they have provided reasonable accommodations for that patron (i.e., drive-thru service, curbside pick-up, delivery). Substitutions to face coverings can also be suggested such as a non-restrictive alternative, like as a face shield with a drape on the bottom edge, as long as their condition permits it. Additional information on state recommended, less restrictive, face-covering alternatives can be found here. [Posted 9/2/20]
• Cases of the Normal Cold/Flu Annually
  • CDC: The burden of influenza disease in the United States can vary widely and is determined by a number of factors including the characteristics of circulating viruses, the timing of the season, how well the vaccine is working to protect against illness, and how many people got vaccinated. [Posted 9/2/20]
• What to Do if COVID-19 Positive Employees Push Back About Reporting of their Information
  • Assure patrons the reason behind this information is for contact tracing and for the health and safety of the community. [Posted 9/2/20]
• CDC Statistics on Nationwide Deaths
  • The CDC has reported 184,083 nationwide deaths due to COVID-19 as of 9/2/20. [Posted 9/2/20]

• Day Camp Age Range
  • The definition of a day camp is a daytime program offering supervised recreational and sporting activities for children, especially in summer and during school vacations. Please review Day Camp state guidelines for further guidance. [Posted 9/2/20] 
• Essential Business Sanitation Protocol
  • According to the Public Health Order section 10b, essential businesses must prepare and post a “Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol”. “All essential businesses shall implement the Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol and provide evidence of its implementation to any authority enforcing this order upon demand” and implementing 1) Physical Distancing, 2) No congregating, 3) Temperature Screening, and Hygiene, and 4) Sanitation Protocols. [Posted 9/2/20] 

Websites/Resources mentioned:

• Public Health Order
• Employers must notify County of San Diego Public Health Services about an employee who tests positive with COVID-19 by calling (888) 950-9905. Leave a message with your name and contact number, name of business, and employee’s name, date of birth, and contact information.
• Business Sector Website
• Business Sector email address: [email protected]
• State COVID-19 page
• Blueprint for a Safer Economy
• Safe Reopening Plan
• To report health order violations, call (858) 694-2900 or email [email protected].
• COVID-19 Employer Playbook for Safe Reopening
• CDC page for COVID-19 deaths currently in the U.S.
• California Department of Public Health Outbreak Definition and Reporting Guidance

We will be meeting again next Wednesday, September 9th from 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM. To request resources, ask questions, or address concerns, please contact [email protected].