Los Angeles County's stay-at-home orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic will likely be extended for another three months, a local health official said on Tuesday.
Barbara Ferrer, director of the county's Department of Public Health, said at a Board of Supervisors meeting that some form of the county's stay-at-home restrictions will most likely remain in place for the next three months unless there is a "dramatic change" in the fight against COVID-19, reported City News Service, a local news outlet.
Such "dramatic change" would have to include a reliable vaccine, at-home daily testing for COVID-19 and treatment for the infection, Ferrer noted, without specifying what types of restrictions might remain in place.
"Later this week, we will be issuing a new Health Officer Order that continues to lay out directives that need to be followed as we continue on our recovery journey," said Ferrer in a statement.
"Our journey will be slow and we will be looking closely at key indicators to make sure we are continuing to slow the spread of COVID-19," she added.
Under California Governor Gavin Newsom's four-phase guidelines, Los Angeles County is moving to reopen sectors of its economy, rolling back restrictions on certain types of businesses and public sites. Some lower risk businesses, such as clothing stores, bookstores, florists, and sporting goods stores, in the most populous U.S. state were allowed to reopen on Friday.
Parks and hiking trails in the Los Angeles county have been reopened since Saturday and beaches in the county are set to open to the public on Wednesday with mandatory face coverings and social distancing.
"As more people are out, it will be easier for the virus to spread," warned the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Tuesday in a Twitter.
"We want to remind everyone, both residents and businesses, that we all have to do our part to slow the spread of COVID-19, and it is very important to follow Health Officer Orders and Directives," the department tweeted.
Los Angeles County officials reported 961 new COVID-19 cases and 45 more virus-related deaths on Tuesday, raising the countywide total to 33,180 cases and 1,613 deaths.
