San Mateo County on the path to reopening

Until Morrow’s mandate — expected later this week — clarifies which businesses can open and the guidelines for operations, San Mateo County remains in the early stages of the state’s road map to recovery, according to county spokeswoman Michelle Durand.

San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa lauded the state’s decision in a prepared statement.

“For our restaurants and other small businesses crippled by the economic impacts of this pandemic, this is the best news imaginable,” said Canepa, who balanced that position against a recognition that many health standards must continue to be observed to assure the reopening advances safely.

Warren Slocum, president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisor, shared a similar perspective.

“This is great news for so many of the thousands of small businesses that are truly the backbone of our local economy,” he said in a prepared statement, recognizing those in his district which have been hit hard economically by the shelter-in-place order.

In statement issued Monday, June 15, Morrow said his intent was to be in alignment with the state on reopening and the variance, requested last Friday, will allow that. Moving beyond Phase 2, which the county is in now, will begin to allow businesses including hair salons, gyms, theaters and restaurants with indoor dining to reopen with proper social distancing protocol.

Looking ahead, Slocum urged locals to remain vigilant in observing safe practices to assure reopening advances smoothly.

“It’s up to all of us to continue to wear face coverings and to maintain social distancing so we can continue to reopen both the economy and our social lives in a safe manner,” he said in a prepared statement.

There were 2,625 confirmed coronavirus cases in San Mateo County reported Tuesday, with 99 deaths linked to the disease and 29 patients hospitalized, 10 of who are occupying intensive care beds. Of the confirmed cases, 1,215 are Latino, 391 are white, 385 are Asian and 565 are unknown.

As the fight against COVID-19 progresses, county District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe warned against the rising threat of scammers pretending to be contact tracers attempting to trick locals into divulging valuable, private information.

If caller ID shows “California COVID Team,” it is likely a verified contact tracer attempting to track potential exposure to coronavirus. Tracers will only ask about symptoms and contacts, but will never ask about financial and insurance information or request Social Security numbers, said Wagstaffe said in a prepared statement.

Any suspicious calls should be reported to the District Attorney’s Office at 363-4651 or to local police departments.