California Mayors Call for More Testing to Slow the Spread of Coronavirus

The mayors of California’s largest cities are nervously watching the spread of the coronavirus, and worrying about what will happen next.

On Monday in Sacramento, Gov. Gavin Newsom met with mayors from around the state. The mayors said they discussed the spread of coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. 

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo said to effectively contain the virus, thousands of people need to be tested every day. 

“That is not happening in California or anywhere in the country right now,” he said. “We critically need to scale up the number of tests.”

The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been sharply criticized for a lack of testing kits around the country.

Santa Clara County, where San Jose is located, currently has the highest number of confirmed cases in the state. On Monday, the county announced the first death from the virus, a woman in her 60s.

Oakland is also on edge after the cruise ship Grand Princess docked Monday, carrying at least 21 passengers who have tested positive for coronavirus. The ship and its roughly 3,500 passengers and crew had been waiting off the California coast for several days until it was given a place to dock.

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said she’s concerned for all the residents of her city.

“That actually starts with our most vulnerable residents, that is our unsheltered people,” she said.

Schaaf said Oakland is providing hand washing stations  and additional trash services in homeless encampments to try to prevent an outbreak. 

In Southern California, San Diego is taking similar steps. Mayor Kevin Faulconer said they are also focusing on educating people about how to stay safe.

“We’ve worked so hard to get so many individuals and families off the street,” he said. “We want to make sure that the environment that is being provided in all of our shelters is a safe [and] clean one.”

Schaaf, Liccardo, and Faulconer said their cities can currently handle the cost of dealing with the virus, but that that could change quickly if there were a dramatic increase in cases.

Copyright 2020 KQED