Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday said there is no date to ease coronavirus shelter-at-home restrictions and reopen California's economy, as the six indicators he initially outlined for reopening the state have yet to be realized.
Newsom, however, did indicate progress has been made with his detailed playbook for reopening the state. The governor said he had a phone conversation with President Donald Trump, and the two agreed to significantly increase testing across California, with hundreds of thousands of new swabs coming and 86 new testing sites opening.
Newsom also announced that some hospitals are now able to get scheduled surgeries up and running again, due in part to the number of alternative medical sites that have been opened.
In his remarks about testing, which is the first of the six indicators, Newsom said the state has set a goal to test 60,000 to 80,000 people a day. Currently, about 16,000 coronavirus tests are being conducted daily, he said.
Newsom has made it clear that when it happens, it will be a slow reopening, most likely not similar to Georgia, which has allowed all nail salons, barbershops, massage and tattoo parlors to reopen starting Friday and dine-in restaurants and movie theaters starting Monday.
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Meanwhile, officials with the Santa Clara County Public Health Department told NBC Bay Area they’ve noticed a number of people already starting to resume their normal routines in spite of the order not to.
"We can see (Highway) 101, and there are way too many cars on there," county spokeswoman Marianna Moles said. "And unless a lot more people just became essential workers, you all are bending the rules a little bit."
The latest projection from the University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation shows the total number of COVID-19 deaths in California will peak at 1,743 on May 13.
UCSF epidemiologist Dr. George Rutherford believes the shelter-in-place restrictions have saved between 34,000 and 44,000 lives.
