Riverside County officials amended local health orders Saturday, rescinding guidelines put in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic that were more restrictive than the state’s.
The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on easing restrictions Friday after nearly seven hours of debate and the new order was signed the next day.
Here’s what’s different:
While the county was previously mandating face coverings, they are now “strongly recommended” starting Saturday, mirroring the state’s guidelines on facial coverings.
Social distancing is now also recommended “whenever practical and within reason,” whereas before the practice was required to curb the spread of the coronavirus, authorities said in a news release.
Riverside County had previously placed limits on short-term rentals, only allowing the homeless, essential workers and those who need to self-isolate or quarantine to seek the lodging.
Now, that order has been lifted.
California hadn’t restricted short-term rentals amid the pandemic and companies like AirBnb have been referring customers to lodging restrictions and advisories set in place by local governments.
Golf courses were also allowed to reopen, which also mirrors the state’s guidelines as it moved into the first phase of reopening certain “low-risk” locations, including the golf courses, some trails and other “low-risk” locations.
The courses will have to follow state safety and infection control guidelines.
And while the board voted to keep local orders in place for primary schools, they removed
local restrictions for universities, colleges and vocational schools.
The amended county health order can be found here.
With 4,992 known coronavirus cases, Riverside County has the second highest number of cases in the state after Los Angeles County. As of Saturday, 204 people had died of COVID-19 in Riverside County and another 188 were hospitalized for the respiratory illness.
