Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, March 07, 2023
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
COVID-19 UPDATE AND TERMINATION OF LOCAL EMERGENCY DECLARATION (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
COVID-19 Positive Case Information by the Numbers
Los Angeles County Department of Public Health COVID-19 case data as of 2/24/2023 listed below.
• New Cases: 1,418*
• Total Cases Reported: 3,701,570*
• 7-Day Daily Average Positivity Rate: 6.12%
• Carson Total Confirmed Cases: 34,552
*includes cases reported by Long Beach and Pasadena Public Health Departments
Additional COVID-19 testing information can be found at <https://dhs.lacounty.gov/covid-19/testing/>.
On January 18, the Disaster Council held a meeting in response to a workplace COVID-19 outbreak. At that meeting staff were directed to resume mandatory testing for all employees. Subsequently, staff solicited bids from several providers, identified the lowest responsive bid, and drafted a contract under City Manager authority for the first mandatory testing session which is scheduled to take place on March 7, 2023.
On February 28, 2023, the California State of Emergency ended. The City’s declaration of local emergency, which was adopted on March 17, 2020 through resolution 20-053, remains in effect until its termination is proclaimed by the City Council. Given that the City’s COVID-19 cases have decreased significantly in recent weeks, and after careful consideration of the safety of City residents and employees, staff is respectfully asking that the City Council proclaim an end to the City’s local emergency by rescinding Resolution No. 20-053.
County/City of Carson Vaccination Status
As of the date of this report, 84.2% of Carson residents 6+ months of age and over have received at least one vaccine dose.
Additional COVID-19 vaccine information can be found at <https://carsonca.gov/vaccine/>.
City of Carson specific updates:
• The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to affect many city employees. Employees who were unable to work due to being ill with the virus or for being contact traced were provided leave benefits under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA); Supplemental Paid Sick Leave of 2021 (SPSL) and Supplemental Paid Sick Leave of 2022 (SPSL22).
o Number of employees who tested positive since start of Pandemic: 386
o Number of employees who tested positive since January 1, 2022: 248
o Number of FFCRA, SPSL and SPSL22 benefit recipients: 345
• Please note: California’s 2022 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (SPSL 22) ended on 12/31/22.
Public Health updates:
• Three out of four people who reported symptoms lasting four weeks or more also reported that long COVID symptoms had limited them in going about their daily activities, such as going to work or school, socializing with loved ones or taking care of their personal needs. Of those, 25% reported significant limitations.
• The best way to prevent long COVID is to avoid getting infected or reinfected. The bivalent booster has been shown to reduce the likelihood of a severe infection, in turn potentially lowering the risk of developing long COVID.
Mpox Information:
In alignment with the World Health Organization (WHO), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health transitioned to using "mpox" when referring to monkeypox disease in all documents and public facing communications. Starting with this report, the City will use the more inclusive Mpox term when referring to the disease.
As of February 15, there were 30,193 reported cases and 32 deaths in the U.S., 2,441 cases and 2 confirmed deaths in LA County. In response to the increasing numbers, LA County Public Health has made vaccination available to certain high-risk groups. To date, 72,936 first dose vaccines have been administered within the County.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. RESCIND Resolution No. 20-053 and proclaim an end to the City’s local state of emergency in response to COVID-19.
Body
III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate.
IV. BACKGROUND
On February 28, 2023, the California State of Emergency ended. The City’s declaration of local emergency, which was adopted on March 17, 2020 through resolution 20-053, remains in effect until its termination is proclaimed by the City Council. Given that the City’s COVID-19 cases have decreased significantly in recent weeks, and after careful consideration of the safety of City residents and employees, staff is respectfully asking that the City Council proclaim an end to the local emergency and terminate resolution 20-053.
Moving forward, the City will follow guidelines established by Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LADPH) and Cal/OSHA. Under the LADPH guidelines, masking is by “individual preference” for most. Masking is required if a person has COVID-19 symptoms or were exposed to someone with COVID-19. Accordingly, the City is ending its masking mandate for employees and participants in its programs/services. Individuals may continue to wear masks at work, if that is their preference. Other COVID-19 protocols, such as social distancing, will be based on safety considerations and individual preference. Staff are encouraged to use sound judgement to stay safe and to avoid spreading diseases at the workplace.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
The Disaster Council has approved costs relating to the COVID-19 Surveillance Testing program up to $100,000. All costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic are being tracked separately by staff who will continue to pursue all available reimbursements for eligible City costs incurred from FEMA or other sources.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Resolution No. 20-053 (pages 4 - 10)
Prepared by: Nora Garcia, Emergency Services Manager, and Roobik Galoosian, Risk Manager