California to End Covid-19 Emergency in Shift Back to Normal

(Bloomberg) -- California, the first state to impose a stay-at-home order at the outset of the Covid-19 outbreak, announced it will end the state of emergency on Feb. 28, three years after the pandemic began its rapid spread across the US.

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“This timeline gives the health care system needed flexibility to handle any potential surge that may occur after the holidays in January and February, in addition to providing state and local partners the time needed to prepare for this phaseout,” Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement on Monday.

Newsom, a Democrat up for re-election in November, first declared an emergency over the coronavirus outbreak on March 4, 2020. The proclamation bolstered his powers to stop the spread of the virus, with the ability to award contracts for items like medical supplies without competitive bidding and order hospitals and health centers to prioritize Covid patients.

As the spike in cases from the omicron variant eased earlier this year, Newsom announced a new phase in California’s fight against Covid that’s focused on managing the virus as an ongoing risk, while preparing for future outbreaks. The plan involves monitoring wastewater to spot new infections and variants, and building an arsenal of tests, masks and vaccines at the state’s disposal if another surge arrives.

Statewide, more than 95,000 people have died from Covid-19. Cases have fallen sharply since peaking in January, with California’s seven-day infection rate now at 7.5 cases per 100,000 people.

Newsom said his administration will seek to preserve two statutory changes to control the virus, including allowing nurses to dispense Covid treatments and lab workers to solely process tests.

The Biden administration said last week that the US public-health emergency over Covid will continue for another 90 days.

Republicans in Congress have been pushing the administration to relinquish its emergency powers in the wake of President Joe Biden’s remark in September that the pandemic is “over.”

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