Anonymous
Update by Santa Barbara County Public Health Department
August 4, 2021
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department has issued a Health Officer Order which requires the use of masks in indoor public settings. This order requires all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, to wear face coverings when indoors in public settings, with limited exceptions, starting at 5 p.m. on Friday, August 6, 2021
The Delta variant has been present in Santa Barbara County since April and is highly transmissible. While the risk for COVID-19 infection is highest among unvaccinated people, the incidence of infection among fully vaccinated people is increasing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed in preliminary data that fully vaccinated people who do become infected with the Delta variant can be infectious and can spread the virus to others.
“Hospitalizations have increased, primarily among unvaccinated people. The County of Santa Barbara is also seeing a concerning increase in cases among staff and residents in long-term care facilities and in other congregate living settings,” said Public Health Director Dr. Van Do-Reynoso. “Over the past two weeks, the County’s active COVID-19 cases have increased significantly with a case rate of 12.4 per 100,000 and a test positive of 6.8% which would have placed Santa Barbara County in the Purple Tier if the tier system were still active,” says Do- Reynoso.
“Requiring indoor masking is the least disruptive strategy and can make an immediate impact on limiting the spread of COVID-19, specifically the Delta variant,” said Public Health Officer, Dr. Henning Ansorg. “This Health Officer Order is intended to protect everyone to the greatest extent possible, from the substantial spread of the virus being seen now in our community. In addition, the order is intended to support the continued operations of local businesses, activities and schools,” says Ansorg.
The current Health Officer Order is consistent with the guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the California Department of Public Health, which recommend that fully vaccinated people wear masks while in indoor public settings. The full Health Officer Order can be read here: https://publichealthsbc.org/health-officer-orders/.
Visit https://publichealthsbc.org/vaccine to learn where you can find a vaccination site near you or call 2-1-1. If you missed your second dose, please find a vaccination clinic near you.
Source: County of Santa Barbara
August 3, 2021
- Recommendation for universal masking indoors Statewide
- Adds Adult and Senior Care Facilities to settings where all individuals must wear masks indoors
- References new requirements for unvaccinated workers in the State Health Officer July 26 Order
- Asymptomatic unvaccinated employees to be tested at least twice weekly with either PCR or antigen testing in acute care, long term care, and high-risk congregate settings. For additional testing requirements, visit: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/Order-of-the-State-Public-Health-Officer-Unvaccinated-Workers-In-High-Risk-Settings.aspx
- 1. General Acute Care Hospitals
- 2. Skilled Nursing Facilities (including Subacute Facilities)
- 3. Intermediate Care Facilities
- 4. Adult and Senior Care Facilities
- 5. Homeless Shelters
- 6. State and Local Correctional Facilities and Detention Centers
- 7. Acute Psychiatric Hospitals
- 8. Adult Day Health Care Centers
- 9. Adult Day Programs Licensed by the California Department of Social Services
- 10. Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) and PACE Centers
- 11. Ambulatory Surgery Centers
- 12. Chemical Dependency Recovery Hospitals
- 13. Clinics & Doctor Offices (including behavioral health, surgical)
- 14. Congregate Living Health Facilities
- 15. Dental Offices
- 16. Dialysis Centers
- 17. Hospice Facilities
- 18. Pediatric Day Health and Respite Care Facilities
- 19. Residential Substance Use Treatment and Mental Health Treatment Facilities
Former President Biden COVID-19 adviser and top epidemiologist Michael Osterholm admitted that typical paper masks are ineffective and suggested that Americans may need to switch to heavier duty N-95 masks to battle the new wave of cases in an interview on CNN Monday.
“We know today that many of the face cloth coverings that people wear are not very effective in reducing any of the virus movement in or out,” Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said.
“We need to talk about better masking,” he continued. “We need to talk about N-95 respirators, which would do a lot for both people who are not yet vaccinated or not previously infected.”
I’m surprised they lifted the mask orders for as long as they did. Now that we are about a year and a half into our covid restrictions, masks have finally become a permanent part of our lives. We will never be able to go without them again, unless something crazy happens in the election next month.
It was simple really. If you’re not vaccinated please wear a mask. NO ONE wore a mask from what I could see except the workers. Now, the government has to step in once again and then they’ll be temper tantrums. Who didn’t see this coming? You can’t win with some people so you have to make them comply. When will they learn.
We’ve known this from the beginning, that cloth masks are next to useless. If we’re going to have a mask mandate that is actually effective rather than performative, why isn’t it a N95 or KN95 mask mandate. Didn’t Newsome order a billion $ worth from China? Where are those? We mobilized national resources to mass produce ventilators that went unused, mobilized hospitals ships and field hospitals outside major cities that went nearly unused, mobilized to mass produce hundreds of millions of vaccine doses in record time, why, if masks (that work, i.e. N95) are so important why doesn’t everyone have a supply of N95’s? Using the simply cloth or paper surgical masks don’t provide much benefit, and worse, provide many with a false sense security. How many times have your heard “but I always wore a mask and still got it” comments the past 18 months?
can’t refute the argument.
What a joke. Hopefully businesses do not comply
I agree with VOR. If we’re going to have mask mandates, it should be for masks that actually do something. Frankly, the government should have mobilized to manufacture and distribute these freely to the community and they should be the required wear if we’re actually going to do this again. Otherwise it’s hygiene theater.
The “mask theater” wouldn’t even be that bad if it didn’t spill over into requiring our kids to be masked (because they’re excellent at PPE protocol) or provide a false sense of security for some at-risk / living with at-risk leading to them engaging in activities they probably shouldn’t.
@METTERNACHT Actually I think you can refute the argument. What, in the long run, will masking actually achieve? If rates go down, then people who have resisted getting vaccinated will have even less reason to do so. And whenever the masks come back off, nothing in the world will have changed. COVID delta, epsilon, lambda, etc., will still be around and we will be right exactly in the same place, with rates starting to rise again. The only answer is mandatory vaccination. Everything else is delay and theater.
Wait so when Biden said he was going to shut down the virus he was lying?
No. No he wasn’t. He is following the science Conservative SB
I agree that Trump was wrong. Not sure where your argument is. He was also right about the vaccine coming by the end of 2020 and everyone said he was a crackpot for it. I agree about politicians, they’re a bunch of hacks who should get out of the way
We need a VACCINE MANDATE not a MASK MANDATE.
LOOSE – Yes. 10000% yes. I believe New York City just imposed a vax mandate for indoor dining and gyms. It’s about time we follow suit. If you refuse to mask, that’s one thing, but the people refusing to get the vaccine AND refusing to mask up are the ones putting our friends and families at risk. Time to treat them like the outcasts they are.
Sac – it wasn’t that long ago that you were telling us to stop complaining about masks as we’re vaccinated and we’d never have to wear masks again…
I’m starting to get the feeling we might be waking up one day not too far in the future and find ourselves here arguing with pit about how crazy it is that schools are closed again…
Time may truly be a flat circle…
I kind of enjoyed the novelty of wearing colorful cotton masks, but now I’m wearing N95s. Not messing around anymore.
The scientific consensus is that it will become endemic…
At the beginning of July I predicted there would be a mask mandate, regardless of vaccination status. My data analysis on the delta variant is quite straight forward, accurate, and based on actual numbers that are freely available.
TERNST – you are the reason people are dying. Take your lies elsewhere.
I agree 100% with you and LOOSE! Vaccine mandate is needed!
Ternst, I am sorry you suffer from all of those ailments. But unless you can clearly and scientifically link all of those fairly common ailments directly to the vaccines you received, you are just speculating as to the cause of your ailments. Which does not contribute to a helpful dialogue on the current situation.
The “just like the common cold” or ” just the flu” ideology about Covid has been thoroughly disproved by peer reviewed medical journals.
“Get off your ass and exercise and eat healthy” is 100% an awesome message and I will shout it from the peaks as the best thing to do to help stave off ANY health ailments. But it just isn’t anywhere as high of a protection level against needing hospital care if you contract Covid than if you are vaccinated.
Thanks a lot anti-vaxxers!
This is lame and unfair for those of us who believe in science, did the right thing, got vaccinated, and don’t believe in bs conspiracy theories. Not surprised. Agree with the others calling for a vaccination mandate, for those who want to be going out and living again that is. If you don’t want the shot, keep yourself at home for the foreseeable future. That’s your choice.
Our own Nostradamus, Dok Elmer FUD, shooting out predictions like “TWENTY NINE PERCENT OF FULLY VACCINATED PEOPLE HAVE DIED FROM THE DELTA VARIANT!” in the UK.
To cover for disastrous covid policies that promised to “defeat the virus” with “science”, while yielding no discernible benefit for its population than policies that took a more supportive vs. authoritarian role emphasizing personal responsibility over strict mandates, the failed policy makers have simply turned us on each other by blaming an entire swath of the population for why their policies failed to stop covid. We’re not going to stop covid, we never were, but because of real science, we have a vaccine that anyone can get if they want, and brings the risk of a serious or deadly case of covid well below many other risks we customarily face every day.
I agree SBSB. The normalization of imposing your will and beliefs on others has been the most terrifying aspect of this pandemic. Hopefully it is not a long-term affliction.
Yeah, we should still have the option to experience things like polio and smallpox.
FREEDUMB!
I applaud this. Vaccine mandates should begin immediately. Your kids shouldn’t come to school unless they have been vaccinated for Covid. Let’s include the flu shot as well. No more patience for the ignorant anti vaxxers and anti maskers promoting domestic terrorism. Those who don’t comply should be arrested and heavily fined. The terrorism of the far right on public health stops now. You can’t follow basic public health rules then stay home or fear arrest and heavy fines. Businesses that dont comply should be forced to close immediately. All patience lost for the willingly-ignorant who continue this vicous cycle – your time has passed.
Domestic terrorist
Those that don’t comply should be imprisoned.
2:36 – Yeah, great point, but you’re barking up the wrong tree on that one. Old VOICE OF SOMETHING NO REASON is not one for critical thinking or facts.
Yeah, what a lame “prediction”. After repeated cycles of surge, shut down, open too early, surge, shut down, open too early…
Even the densest of freedumbers should get the message.
How do you keep getting exposed? Are you around lots of people all the time?
My compassion has worn thin for people who double down on intentional ignorance.
Masks off, brain never on.
It’s terrifying how many of you are in favor of driver’s licenses and vaccines for childhood diseases. And taxes. And democracy. I think I will move to Texas or Florida, just a soon as some space opens up in their ICUs.
It’s too good!!! Is this original or Where do you get your material???
GINGER1 – great points. The vaccine is really the only reliable way of slowing this variant down. I was really pro vax mandate until I chatted last night with a wise old friend, who brought up some great points. 1) the mandate is not feasible. We can’t really force other people to get a shot. 2) it’s easy to get around. Plenty of fake or forged vax cards out there. Just not reliable. 3) Masks are the only visibly verifiable option we have to slow this down, even if they’re not 100% effective. Mask mandates are far easier to enforce and as such, maybe me more effective than a vax mandate. Interesting points, I think.
yeah thanks Ginger. I’ve got a double dose and am just fine with my bandana and or neck gaitor, thanks. enjoy your theater, pass the popcorn please.
The time for mask mandates is over. 6 months ago it made sense, but not anymore. The answer is clearly vaccination. This back and forth peddling by the CDPH is not the right strategy. I get why they’re doing it (easy to enforce, visible, mildly effective, etc.). But it’s sending the wrong message. It’s clear to anyone that knows anything that vaccines are the answer here. While I don’t support a blanket vaccine mandate I support a smart and well targeted vaccine campaign. The stubborn antivaxxers will not be persuaded by force or even by logical arguments. We need a strong campaign from the medical community. Each and every family practitioner needs to be actively reaching out to their patients and documenting their vaccine status and encouraging their patients to get vaccinated. The messaging from our Government and scientists is not getting through (It’s even making it worse), it has to be grass roots from trusted medical providers. We have asked a lot of our medical community over the last year but we need them again. We need our trusted Doctors, RNs, PAs, etc. to actively seek out their patients and get this done.
SBMOM – problem is, no matter how well you protect yourself, others are putting you and your kids in harm’s way by refusing to vax and refusing to mask.
Agreed! So we simply can’t allow our school boards to go down the same ridiculous path that they did last year. There is absolutely no reason to even consider schools closing.