State Rolls Back Santa Clara County Reopening As COVID-19 Surges

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — Many Santa Clara County gym-goers hoping to get back into a routine for the first time in nearly four months won’t even make it to leg day.

The same day a new county health order went into effect allowing for the reopening of certain high-risk business such as gyms and hair and nail salons, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced state orders shutting them down.

Newsom’s announcement Monday shuttering nearly all indoor activities comes amid a surge of COVID-19 cases throughout much of the state and most of the country.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, said Monday he attributes the escalation of the coronavirus crisis in recent weeks to a failure to shut down entirely and reopenings that have occurred too rapidly.

The closure of gyms, nail and hair salons, shopping malls and worship centers, among other indoor business operations in 30 California counties goes into effect Wednesday.

All indoor dining, movie theaters, indoor and outdoor bars and museums throughout the state were shut down on Monday.

Gyms and nail and hair salons are among a category of high-risk businesses that hadn't opened since shelter-in-place orders went into effect March 17.

Santa Clara County was added to the state’s monitoring list on Sunday, requiring it to shut down indoor businesses.

The state cited a rise in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations for rolling back reopening plans, such as the one that went into effect in Santa Clara County Monday.

“All businesses in the community must follow this directive from the State,” the Santa Clara County Public Health Department announced in a statement Monday.

“All businesses, including those operating solely outdoors, must also continue to follow the requirements of the local order, including by creating and posting a Social Distancing Protocol. We will provide additional information to the community as soon as it becomes available.”

In the past week, the state has confirmed an average of 8,211 new coronavirus cases per day, Newsom said, while the percentage of tests coming back positive has risen from 6.1 to 7.5 percent over the past two weeks.

Roughly 60 percent of the state's hospital beds are currently full, and state officials are concerned by rising ICU admissions, especially in rural counties. Meanwhile, the number of counties on the state's watch list has risen from 23 last week to 30 by Monday, with another two expected to be added within a day or two, Newsom said.

Santa Clara County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody called on local residents to remain vigilant to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“The fight against COVID-19 is unfortunately far from over, but our residents and businesses have shown how we can collectively make an extraordinary difference in saving lives and safeguarding our community,” Cody said in a statement.

“We strongly urge everyone to rigorously and consistently follow the State and local health orders.”

— Patch Editor Nick Garber contributed to this report.

Full coronavirus coverage: Coronavirus In California: What To Know

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