Napa County Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Relucio on Wednesday amended and extended the county's shelter-at-home order regarding face coverings, construction, religious services and other provisions to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
The amended and extended order strongly recommends that all members of the community, including essential services' workers, wear face coverings in public or in shared spaces. Other counties in the Bay Area have gone further, making wearing face masks mandatory in such instances.
The face coverings are not a substitute for complying with shelter-at-home orders, maintaining physical distancing and quality hand washing, the Napa County Public Health Division said in a news release.
Relucio said Napa County residents have followed past guidance and complied with orders provided by the Public Health Division.
"While public health orders are legally enforceable, and local law enforcement is charged with their enforcement, we are mindful that enforcement resources across the county are limited," Relucio said. "Our goal is to encourage behavior change to guidance related to physical distancing, handwashing and wearing of cloth face coverings when in public through collective action and mutual accountability," Relucio said.
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The amended shelter-at-home order requires continued compliance with orders issued on March 20 and amended on April 3, the Public Health Division said.
Wednesday's order also contains revisions in addition to the strong recommendation regarding face covering.
The revisions permit all construction, drive-in religious services and in-person real estate agent-client residential viewings with proper social distancing protocols.
Landscaping and gardening maintenance that are not purely cosmetic purposes are permitted, and the use of golf courses and driving ranges are allowed but owners or managers must provide security or patrolling to assure compliance with social distancing.
The order also restricts bocce ball and cornhole sports and empowers police chiefs and city attorneys to ensure compliance of all aspects of the order in their jurisdictions.
The order takes effect immediately and continues until rescinded.
"The amendments to this order were crafted after thoughtful discussions with State and Northern California public health officials and are based on modeling data and local epidemiological factors that have demonstrated the impact the shelter-at-home order has had on flattening the curve and preventing the mass spread of illness in Napa County," Relucio said.
