Dec. 7: Plumas reports 15 new coronavirus cases
The Plumas County Public Health Agency announced this evening, Dec. 7, that there are 15 additional coronavirus cases. Following is a breakdown of today’s announced cases:
Two residents from the Northern Region (Greenville/Indian Valley)
Three residents from the Eastern Region (Graeagle/Portola)
Four residents from the Western Region (Chester/Lake Almanor)
Six residents from the Southern Region (Quincy/American Valley)
When asked if any of these cases are related to prior cases, Public Health said that it’s certainly possible, but the contact tracing team hasn’t had the opportunity to break down that information as of yet. If an exposed resident is identified during the investigation, the resident will be contacted by a member of the Public Health COVID-19 Response Team for further screening.
There are now 294 total cases; 73 of those are active cases. Plumas News is interested in talking to anyone who has/had coronavirus and is willing to share their experience. They can remain anonymous if desired. Contact Debra Moore at [email protected].
Plumas County remains in the purple, most restrictive tier. It is also part of the Greater Sacramento Region — one of five regions in the state — when it comes to determining new stay-at-home orders. As to why Plumas County is in that region, rather than the Northern California region, Public Health Director Andrew Woodruff said, “The regions were looked at closely to determine which made the most sense from a hospital system perspective. When Plumas has patients who need a higher level of care, we often transfer them to Sacramento, Tahoe Forest, Reno, or Enloe. In addition, the state was interested in grouping counties whose health officers have existing relationships, so that inter-coordination of the COVID-19 response would be a smooth as possible. The overall goal of the Regional Stay Home Order is to help stop the surge and prevent overwhelming regional ICU capacity.”
The stay-at-home decision will be made on ICU capacity. If a region has less than 15 percent of ICU beds available, the notice will go into effect.
This means that bars, wineries, hair salons, barbershops and personal service providers will close. Additionally, a travel ban will go into effect with all nonessential travel prohibited and individuals told not to gather with those who are not in their immediate household.
