Coronavirus updates: New SLO County job resource, Paso Robles schools extend closure
San Luis Obispo County had 181 coronavirus cases as of Wednesday, adding eight new cases.
Of the four San Luis Obispo County cases confirmed Tuesday, one was an employee at a skilled nursing facility in Templeton.
With ongoing testing, personal protective equipment is essential and two Central Coast companies are helping repair damaged N95 masks for a Dignity Health hospital.
Here are your local updates for Wednesday:
Will SLO County require grocery shoppers to wear masks?
Local grocery store workers have asked the San Luis Obispo County public health officer to mandate customers wear masks, but Dr. Penny Borenstein said the county will not likely meet their requests.
Several local grocery stores require customers wear masks, including Costco, beginning May 4 — and that’s perfectly legal, according to the county’s attorney. But, despite some public requests, there is no countywide order legally requiring residents and visitors to mask up.
Low SLO County infection rate
A Sacramento Bee review of infection and death rates in each of the state’s 58 counties shows vast differences in the depth of the crisis, notably between lightly-hit rural and harder-hit urban spots.
California had 113 confirmed cases and 4.5 deaths per 100,000 residents, according to data from the California Department of Public Health.
San Luis Obispo County is faring even better than the state as a whole. In SLO County, there were about 59 confirmed cases and 0.36 deaths per 100,000 residents, as of Sunday.
New resource helps SLO County residents find jobs
Thousands of San Luis Obispo County residents have lost their jobs due to coronavirus. But, there’s a new online resource for job seekers and local employers.
The nonprofit Economic Vitality Corporation of San Luis Obispo County has created a new website, called the Employer-Talent Connection Resource, to “help organizations on the Central Coast to retain and attract employees from inside and outside of San Luis Obispo County.”
Paso Robles holds out hope to re-open schools before June
Paso Robles school campuses will remain closed through at least May 16 — but the district is not yet ready to completely cancel in-person classes for the year.
If county leaders announce they will continue the shelter-at-home order past May 16, the Paso Robles district will immediately announce that campuses will remain closed for the year.
However, if leaders indicate they may start re-opening the county on or about May 16, the district “will take steps to determine if it is feasible to reopen schools on or about May 18, 2020-June 4, 2020,” according to an email from Jennifer Gaviola, deputy superintendent.
Nearly 90% of SLO County businesses lost income due to coronavirus
Nearly 90% of San Luis Obispo businesses have lost income during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a business climate survey issued by the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce that includes responses from more than 230 business members.
Survey data shows that more than half of those businesses have canceled events and nearly a third have closed temporarily.
Of the 201 businesses that responded to a question about revenue, 37% said business revenue has decreased by more than 75%.
SLO County adds 8 coronavirus cases, 4 are CMC inmates
San Luis Obispo County added eight new coronavirus cases Wednesday, bringing the total to 181 people who have tested positive for COVID-19, according to ReadySLO.org.
Eight inmates from the California Men’s Colony are among those who tested positive, SLO County confirmed Wednesday. Five of the eight cases reported Wednesday are inmates, and the additional new cases are from Paso Robles and Atascadero.
This is the fourth time since last Wednesday that the county has had more than five new cases per day.
Second nursing home employee tests positive for coronavirus
A second employee at Vineyard Hills Health Center in Templeton has tested positive for coronavirus, but there was no known contact between the two employees, parent company Compass Health announced Tuesday.
Vineyard Hills Health Center is one of eight skilled nursing facilities in San Luis Obispo County, and the only local nursing facility to have any reported cases of coronavirus as of Wednesday.
County public health officials confirmed April 24 that the first employee had tested positive for COVID-19.
2 Central Coast companies are repairing defective face masks
Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria had received about 175,000 N95 masks from the Santa Barbara County Health Department with defective elastic bands used to hold the masks in place.
So the hospital, owned by Dignity Health Central Coast, turned to local businesses for help. Poor Richard’s Press in San Luis Obispo and Safran Seats Santa Maria are now helping repair the faulty straps.
Do Central Coast hospitals have enough protective equipment?
Medical facilities across the Central Coast have encountered challenges to maintain adequate personal protective equipment amid the coronavirus pandemic.
All local hospitals have held donation drives for medical-grade personal protective equipment, and say they are happy to accept more, although current PPE supplies are adequate.
4 new COVID-19 cases in Santa Barbara County
Four new COVID-19 cases were reported in Santa Barbara County on Tuesday, bringing the county’s total to 477, Noozhawk.com reported.
Of the active cases, 39 people were hospitalized Tuesday, including 12 in an intensive care unit. Another 99 people were recovering at home.
This story was originally published April 29, 2020 at 11:10 AM.
