The county estimated that vaccinations for those 65 and older (Phase 1B) could begin later this month, provided there are COVID-19 doses available.
Starting in February the county will begin to open three more “vaccination super stations”, one of which will be in North County (exact location is to be determined). The first one opened at Petco Park earlier this week and is currently being used to vaccinate health care workers.
Online vaccine tool coming soon
The governor also announced a new system is expected to launch next week that will let people know if they are eligible to receive a vaccine, and if not yet eligible, to register for notification via email or text when they are eligible. A second phase of the system will help counties, cities and others run mass vaccination events. This will include a way for eligible members of the public to schedule their vaccination appointments.
International travel testing
All international passengers heading to the United States will now be required to get tested for COVID-19 no more than three days before their flight departs. Passengers will need to show proof of a negative result or documentation of having recovered from COVID-19 to the airline before boarding their flight. The new order was issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this week and will take effect on Jan. 26, 2021.
The announcement came on the heels of news from the Japanese government Tuesday that four travelers from Brazil had imported another new variant of the virus into Japan. Two other so-called variants of concern are said to be circulating in South Africa and Brazil.
Enforcement
On Tuesday, the County Board of Supervisors voted to increase enforcement on businesses and operations that are not in compliance with the safe reopening plans. This will include bringing in additional staff to proactively look for violations and help enforce operating standards such as mask wearing and social distancing. The board also voted to ensure that enforcement efforts are being applied consistently based on scientific data around how and where COVID-19 spreads. Additionally, county staff were directed to look into whether it is possible to exclude businesses that have repeatedly violated public health orders from eligibility for COVID-19 financial assistance programs.
Next Tuesday, the Carlsbad City Council will consider a comprehensive approach to compliance with the health order, including incentives, disqualifying businesses that don’t comply with the health order from city COVID-19 assistance programs, and collaboration with other cities and the county.
The City of Carlsbad Police Department continues to respond to every report of a business or organization operating outside the health orders. When a business intentionally chooses to not comply, the Police Department works with the County of San Diego compliance team on the appropriate enforcement action. The county issues cease and desist orders, and the cases are reported to the San Diego District Attorney’s Office for review and potential prosecution.
Case numbers
The total number of cases countywide has now surpassed 200,000. An additional 54 deaths were reported yesterday, bringing the total just under 2,000. This was one of the highest daily totals for deaths since the pandemic began. An additional 42 cases were reported for Carlsbad yesterday and there are 598 active cases (the number of people who have COVID-19 right now).
Recent data also confirmed that sadly the City of Carlsbad has now had its first fatalities.
As someone who recently recovered from COVID-19, these numbers now have more meaning to me than ever before. I am one of them, and I’m so grateful I could recover at home and did not have a more severe case. Please remember that these are more than just numbers. These are people with families and friends. These are human lives, too many of which have been cut short.
