SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — As Southern California's ICU capacity now hovers just above 10 percent, the entire region remains under the governor's new stay-at-home order.
A critical, and at times confusing, part of this directive is a travel ban that extends to hotels, motels and short-term vacation rentals in our area.
Unlike the previous travel guidance issued before Thanksgiving, this new travel ban is definitively not a recommendation, but instead a requirement for all residents in the Southern California region, including San Diego County, where collectively the region-wide capacity currently remains at 10.1 percent.
"The point is to stay home during this critical time to bring transmission rates down, to help us bring this under control," said California Health Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly.
While the state has not clarified exactly how it plans to enforce this ban, it's identified the exceptions, including any essential workers who are required to travel as part of their critical work.
"The protocols that the state has put out is that it is essential only," Governor Gavin Newsom said on Monday.
This key exception also applies to all forms of lodging in regions now under the new stay-at-home order, including hotels, motels and short-term housing rentals.
"Lodging can be for essential workers only," Newsom added, "not for tourists, not for leisure for those areas that have fallen into those categories."
"[Essential workers] can spend a night in a hotel to do business, and then hopefully return to their homes as soon as it is safe to do so," Ghaly said.
Hotels and motels providing rooms specifically for COVID-positive residents to quarantine and isolate from others in their household, perhaps because of cramped quarters at home, are also still permitted under this order, "to reduce transmissions for their household, their community, and statewide," Ghaly clarified.
The entire Southern California region will remain under this travel ban for a minimum of three weeks. After that point, if San Diego County can demonstrate its county-wide ICU capacity is above 15 percent, then he stay-home order will be lifted county-wide as well.