County Order - 3-16-20 - Cancelling Gatherings Above 10 Individuals

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ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER OF THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE CANCELLING ALL GATHERINGS WITH EXPECTED PRESENCE ABOVE 10 INDIVIDUALS DATE OF ORDER: MARCH 16, 2020 Please read this Order carefully. Violation of or failure to comply with this Order is a crime punishable by fine, imprisonment, or both. (California Health and Safety Code § 120295; County Ordinances 533 and 556.) UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF CALIFORNIA HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE SECTIONS 101040, 101085, AND 120175, TITLE 17 CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS SECTION 2501, AND RIVERSIDE COUNTY CODE SECTION 533.6, THE HEALTH OFFICER OF THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE ("HEALTH OFFICER") ORDERS: 1. All gatherings within the jurisdiction of the Public Health Officer of the County of Riverside with an expected presence of at least 10 individuals taking place between March 16, 2020 and April 30, 2020 inclusive are hereby prohibited, regardless of venue. If a venue is subdivided into multiple spaces separated by physical walls or sufficient airspace, the limit per subdivision of space is 10. This order supersedes the Order of March 12, 2020 regarding mass gatherings. 2. It is further ordered that even for gatherings below this size, if a minimum social distance of six feet between attendees cannot be maintained in the venue or a subdivision thereof, the gathering is prohibited. 3. This Order does not apply to courts of law, medical providers, public utilities, critical county, city, and special district operations, critical school operations such as nutrition programs, continuity of business operations, logistics/distribution centers, congregate living settings, daycare and childcare, shelters, public transportation, airport travel, or necessary shopping at fuel stations, stores or malls. However, these settings are instructed to observe all applicable state and federal guidelines for infection control. 4. To the extent possible, daycare and childcare facilities must operate under the following mandatory conditions: A. Childcare must be carried out in stable groups of 12 or fewer ("stable" means that the same 12 or fewer children are in the same group each day). B. Children shall not change from one group to another. C. If more than one group of children is cared for at one facility, each group shall be in a separate room. Groups shall not mix with each other. D. Childcare providers shall remain solely with one group of children. 5. This Order is issued as a result of the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 disease, also known as "novel coronavirus," which has infected at least 128,000 individuals worldwide in 116 countries and is implicated in over 4,700 worldwide deaths, including fifteen (15) cases in Riverside County. 6. This Order is issued based on evidence of increasing transmission of COVID-19 both within the County of Riverside and worldwide, scientific evidence regarding the most effective approach to slow transmission of communicable diseases generally and COVID-19 specifically, as well as best practices as currently known and available to protect the public from the risk of spread of or exposure to COVID-19. 7. This Order is intended to reduce the likelihood of exposure to COVID-19, thereby slowing the spread of COVID-19 in communities worldwide. As the presence of individuals increases, the difficulty and magnitude of tracing individuals who may have been exposed to a case rises