SLO County, it’s time to hunker down. Sheltering is our best defense against coronavirus

What a difference a week makes.

Seven days ago, San Luis Obispo County had yet to report its first confirmed case of COVID-19.

Seven days ago, we hoped some semblance of normal life could continue, provided people kept a social distance and followed other health guidelines.

But as cases continue to rise and we become better informed about how ill-prepared we are in the United States — along with much of the world — to handle a health crisis of this magnitude, it’s time we in San Luis Obispo County joined many other communities and shelter in place.

Or, to put more simply, it’s time we all stayed home except for doctor appointments, grocery shopping and other truly essential errands — regardless of our age and our health status. (That doesn’t apply to all those unsung heroes among us: medical professionals, emergency service workers, home health care providers, grocery clerks, truck drivers and other whose work is truly indispensable in a situation like this.)

As anticipated, San Luis Obispo County issued a “shelter in place” order on Wednesday, to take effect at 5 p.m. Thursday.

Some may argue that it came too late or too soon, but that’s not important now.

What matters most is that we take this order seriously.

Sure, it would be easy enough to cheat. Who’s to know if we go spend some time over at our neighbor’s or host a small dinner party or a game night?

But why chance it?

Is it worth worrying that those contacts may make us sick — or lead to us infecting someone else?

Yes, most of us will make it out of this just fine.

But we need to protect those who are more at risk.

According to the U.S. Census, 20% of San Luis Obispo County’s population is over 65. That’s roughly 57,000 people.

That’s not including younger people who have pre-existing health conditions that make them more vulnerable to falling seriously ill if they catch coronavirus.

Our medical care system simply can’t handle that many seriously ill patients, on top of its normal case load.

Local health care providers already are struggling to keep up, and we’re only at the start of this crisis.

There have been heartbreaking reports coming out of hard-hit places like Italy that have been forced to ration ventilators, prioritizing treatment for younger patients with the best chance of survival.

We must do all we can to avoid a repeat of that here, which is why a shelter-in-place order was necessary now. Not a few days or a week from now.

The economic consequences will be severe.

Government at every level — federal, state, county and city — must take every possible step to help our financial survival.

That includes guaranteed basic income. It includes a ban on evictions and utility shutoffs. It includes subsidized medical care. It includes grants and loans for small businesses. It includes deadline extensions not just for federal income taxes, but for state taxes and local property taxes as well.

And it includes getting people without homes off the street and into decent shelter now.

For the foreseeable future, protecting the health of San Luis Obispo County residents must come first.

That includes mental health as well as physical health, which is why it’s so important during this time of hunkering-down to communicate as best we can through phone calls and texts, social media, virtual performances, online learning.

We welcome your ideas on how to connect, and we wish every one of our readers the best.

Keep in touch and, please, stay safe.

This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 12:43 PM.