As part of the second phase of California’s reopening plan, certain businesses across the state will be able to reopen with some restrictions as early as Friday, but don’t expect those businesses to reopen in Santa Clara County.
Santa Clara County Public Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody told supervisors Tuesday that more work needs to be done before businesses such as florists, bookstores and some clothing stores can open up their doors.
“The areas where we still have more work to do are one, ensuring a 30-day supply of PPE,” Cody said.
Cody said the county also still needs to significantly beef up its testing capacity and increase contact investigations.
“We are evaluating of course in our own community what we can and can't do to ensure that we protect our residents, and we're also of course looking to learn more about the proposal and the changes in the state order," she said.
Cody did not outright answer when more restrictions will be eased in the county, but the county is getting closer to reopening. Coronavirus cases are down and there are currently enough available hospital beds.
Supervisor Mike Wasserman on Tuesday voiced concerns about the need to get people back to work.
“We do know if we don’t let more people go back to work sooner than later, our economy will effectively go on life support,” he said.
Some business owners say they don’t know how many more weeks they can survive without customers.
