Mono County COVID-19 News and Updates: March 20
Californians ordered to stay at home, Mono County testing updates, and a heart-felt plea from Mammoth Hospital
Californians ordered to stay at home, Mono County testing updates, and a heart-felt plea from Mammoth Hospital
Updated: March 21 at 9:30 a.m.
Mono County is currently reporting one presumptive positive cases of coronavirus, five negative, 30 tests pending, and 36 tests given. Mono Couty Public Health statement:
“Mammoth Hospital has identified a patient who is presumptively positive for COVID-19 Presumptive positive means the patient is likely positive, but we are waiting for California state laboratory confirmation. The patient is a male who was hospitalized March 15, 2020. The positive COVID-19 lab result was received this morning, March 21. The patient is in good condition.”
“The patient was recognized as a suspect case on the day of admission and he has been in isolation. In addition, the Mono County Public Health Department has been identifying contacts of this patient and these individuals and these people are self-quarantining at home with health department supervision. The investigation and monitoring is ongoing.”
By Monica Prelle
Gov. Gavin Newsom yesterday ordered all Californians to stay at home, the most sweeping restriction yet, in the state’s ongoing effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. The directive, which affects the state’s 40 million residents, comes with no end date.
State projections released yesterday suggest that 56 percent of Californians, or roughly 22 million people, could be infected within eight weeks. It’s an alarming worst-case scenario projection that in actuality would exceed hospital capacity state-wide.
“The numbers we put out today assume that we are just along for the ride — we’re not,” Gov. Newsom said. “We want to manipulate those numbers down, that is what this order is about.”
“We are not victims of fate or circumstance the future is something is inside of us; it is our decisions that will determine those projections and that is why we decided today to make this directive.”
The stay at home order allows for essential trips like food shopping, medical appointments, or to care for a relative or friend. Additionally, the governor said outdoor activities like walking are okay, however not in groups, and with deep social distancing. Gatherings including dinner parties or other social events are not allowed. Critical services like banks, grocery stores, gas stations, and pharmacies will stay open.
“A state as large as ours, a nation-state, is many parts, but at the end of the day, we’re one body,” Gov. Newsom said. “There’s a mutuality, there’s a recognition of our interdependence that requires of this moment that we direct a statewide order for people to stay at home.”
Just hours before the state’s new stay at home order, Mono County Public Health Officer Dr. Tom Boo directed the closure of hotels, motels, and short-term rentals in Mammoth Lakes with exceptions for non-tourism use. The lodging order was later rescinded and is expected to be reissued today. On Tuesday, Mammoth Lakes Tourism asked non-residents to stay away.
“A lot of thoughtful people are putting a lot of time into discussing this, it is a life or death situation versus economic hardship,” Dr. Boo said. “We believe we have to air on the side of saving lives, protecting the hospital and trying to decrease the number of vulnerable people in our community that die.”
With 17 hospital beds, Mono County has limited medical facilities and lacks the capacity to handle a widespread outbreak of COVID-19. The public health task force is planning for surge capacity, working to identify sites to use beyond Mammoth Hospital for worst-case scenario situations, and has put in a request for additional ventilators. According to Dr. Boo, the pattern in Mammoth and Bishop is to transfer critically ill patients to Reno or Southern California for higher levels of care.
“What we fear is that when we have people that have respiratory failure and doctors are calling looking for a place to transfer them to there won’t be any beds available,” Boo said.
To expand the state’s health care system, the governor requested the deployment of the U.S. Navy Mercy hospital ship to the Port of Los Angeles through September 1 and asked congress for $1 billion in federal assistance. He also announced two new hospitals, one each in Northern and Southern California, and is working on procuring hotel and motel sites, as well as university dormitories for hospital surge facilities. The state is also working with a number of entrepreneurs to manufacture and procure more ventilators.
In order to alleviate pressure on Mammoth Hospital, all elective surgeries and wellness visits like routine check-ups are suspended until further notice. Other specialtiy visits that cannot be postponed will be done by phone or Facetime.
Mono County is currently reporting one positive cases of coronavirus, five negative, 30 tests pending, and 36 tests given. State-wide, California has 1,039 positives and 19 deaths. Analysis suggests that the number of cases is likely far above confirmed numbers due to lack of testing and undetected mild cases. Dr. Boo believes that coronavirus is here in Mono Couty and some pending tests will turn out positive.
Results are currently taking 5–6 days, which Dr. Boo admits is frustrating for everyone, however he expects as additional labs open up that results should be returned in 2–3 days. The public health department is working to get a lab opened at Mammoth Hospital within the next month, hopefully.
Both Gov. Newsom and Dr. Boo, and just about every other medical expert around the world, say what is most important right now — is flattening the curve. The governor has great expectations that Californians will do their part by following new directives, and hopes that the state does not have to use law enforcement. He encourages social pressure between friends and family to stay at home.
“We will meet this moment in time together,” Gov. Newsom said. “Let us be criticized for taking this moment seriously, for going full force and meeting this head on.”
In case you missed it:
Watch this heart-felt plea from Dr. Craig Burrows, Chief Medical Officer of Mammoth Hospital.
“Please listen to me when I tell you this is a big deal, all you have to do is look around the world,” Dr. Burrows said. “This is huge as far as preventing a major health catastrophe for our entire community. Please believe me.”
Monica Prelle is a Mammoth Lakes-based freelance journalist.