COVID-19 Reopening Roundup: Potentially Toxic Hand Sanitizer Warning; Napa Set To Reimpose Restrictions; San Francisco Bars To Remain Closed
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The tsunami of news about the current coronavirus outbreak and now the reopenings can be overwhelming. To help you navigate through what you need to know -- KPIX.com/KPIX 5 News/CBSN Bay Area -- will be publishing a news roundup each morning of the top coronavirus and reopening-related stories so you can start your day with the latest updated developments.
Good News -- Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Warriors Partner With Uber Eats To Help Local Restaurants, Feed Essential Workers
SAN FRANCISCO -- The Golden State Warriors have partnered with Uber Eats to drive business to local restaurants and feed essential workers in the process. The program is called the Golden Giveback. Tuesday's beneficiaries were a hungry San Francisco firehouse. The crew enjoyed a lunch from this week's featured restaurant, Oakland's Home of Chicken and Waffles. Owner Derreck Johnson said the promotion couldn't have come at a better time. Read More
For Uplifting Stories Of Neighbors Helping Neighbors Visit Our Better Together Section
Yolo, Sutter, Yuba, Placer Counties Preparing To Reimpose Restrictions
SAN FRANCISCO -- Some northern counties, which saw few cases of the coronavirus and were the first to begin reopening their economies, are cracking down again as the state's rising tide of infections hits home. Supervisors in Yolo County, near Sacramento, passed a measure on Tuesday that allows fines of up to $10,000 for businesses that don't follow state and local health orders such as banning indoor dining areas and requiring clients to wear masks. Authorities will try to inform businesses about the rules and the fines would be a last resort, officials said. "It gives us an opportunity to work with that business, depending how many times we have to come back or how willfully they're not complying," Tan said. "We really want to push for education first." Read More
Majority Of COVID-19 PPP Loan Money Going To Only 15% Of Businesses Applying
CONCORD -- The federal Paycheck Protection Program was created to help small businesses struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, but data just released from the Small Business Administration shows that some unlikely businesses are getting the lion's share of the money.Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy. They employ more people and generate more tax revenue than large corporations. They are what the Paycheck Protection Program was supposed to help. But the Small Business Administration's data shows hundreds of billions of dollars have gone to wealthier, well-connected companies including the LA Lakers, which returned the money after it was revealed. Read More
Doctors Caution Against Relying On Air Filters, Purifiers To Help Stop COVID-19
SAN FRANCISCO -- Special filters for your furnace and air purifiers for selected rooms will certainly help your home feel more comfortable, but will it help protect you from the novel coronavirus? Some doctors are suggesting that COVID-19 may be spread by much smaller particles than the droplets caught by some face masks. There are dozens and dozens of air purifiers on the market that claim to filter and remove dust, pollen, mold and even viruses from the air. Experts say they are better than nothing but retired Air Force colonel and Stanford Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Dean Winslow is cautious. "I would be concerned that by just putting a few 'in-room' air purifiers in a large crowded room with lots of people would give a false sense of security," said Winslow. Read More
State Approves Santa Clara County COVID-19 Variance; Gyms And Salons To Reopen July 13
SANTA CLARA COUNTY -- Health officials in Santa Clara County confirmed Tuesday morning that the state had approved the county's variance application, allowing outdoor dining to continue and a number of new business sectors to reopen on July 13. The approval from state officials was for the variance that county officials had applied for when issuing a new health order on July 2nd. The new order will allow for the reopening of hair and nail salons, massage therapy and other body care services and gyms for the first time since the pandemic started. Small gatherings will also be allowed. "As a result, outdoor dining can continue in Santa Clara County," health officials said in the statement issued Tuesday morning. "This also means that the new local Health Order announced by the Public Health Officer last week, which puts in place across-the-board risk reduction measures, will now go into effect on Monday, July 13th." Read More
A's Pitcher Luzardo Reportedly Tests Positive For COVID-19; Diekman Expresses Doubts About Season
OAKLAND -- The A's worked out again at the Oakland Coliseum Tuesday, but pitcher Jesus Luzardo remained home in Florida after testing positive for COVID-19, according to reports. The 22-year-old pitcher told the San Francisco Chronicle he's feeling good and waiting for two negative tests so he can rejoin the team. Meanwhile, his A's teammate Jake Diekman has serious questions about Major League Baseball's ability to pull off a season given the issues everywhere getting timely test results, forcing delays and cancellations of workouts. For now, Diekman still plans to play. He must be extra careful given he has the autoimmune condition ulcerative colitis. Read More
FDA Warns About 5 Additional Potentially Toxic Hand Sanitizers Containing Methanol
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The FDA is expanding its list of potentially toxic hand sanitizers that it is warning consumers to avoid using. The warnings come at a time when hand sanitizers are in especially heavy demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, with public health officials urging consumers to frequently wash their hands and to use hand sanitizer. For instance, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and prevention recommends using sanitizers that contain at least 60% ethanol alcohol, as well as frequently washing hands. The FDA said Thursday that methanol, or wood alcohol, "is not an acceptable active ingredient for hand sanitizers and must not be used due to its toxic effects." The agency said it is aware of cases of adults and children who have ingested hand sanitizer made with methanol, which has led to blindness, hospitalizations and death. Read More
Napa Health Officials Set To Reimpose COVID-19 Restrictions
NAPA -- In all of the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa County has been the most aggressive at easing COVID-19 restrictions, but a sudden rise on new cases has officials rethinking that strategy. County officials reported on Monday that there had been 60 new cases over the past 72 hours for a total of 291 active cases among local residents. Since the outbreak began, Napa County has had 436 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and four confirmed deaths. In reaction to the sudden surge, officials said they were considering reimposing several restrictions on Thursday. Those would include closing down restaurant indoor dining, indoor winery tasting rooms, movie theaters, museums, card rooms and indoor entertainment venues. If they take the action, officials said those closures would remain in place for the rest of the month. Napa officials are trying to avoid being placed on Gov. Gavin Newsom's COVID-19 county watch list. Read More
Levi's Cutting 700 Office Jobs Due To Coronavirus-Related Slump
SAN FRANCISCO -- Levi's said Tuesday that it will cut 700 office jobs, or about 15% of its worldwide corporate workforce, as the San Francisco-based company deals with a sharp drop in sales due to the coronavirus pandemic. The jeans maker said the layoffs will save it about $100 million a year and won't affect workers at its stores or factories. Like other clothing companies, Levi's had to temporarily close its stores due to the virus. Many of the department stores that sell its jeans were also shut. Levi Strauss & Co. said its second quarter revenue sank 62% to $497.5 million. It reported a loss of $363.5 million, after reporting a profit a year ago. Adjusted losses came to 48 cents per share, beating Wall Street expectations, according to Zacks Investment Research. Read More
Berkeley Restaurant Chez Panisse Files Suit Over Business Interruption Insurance Claim Denial
BERKELEY -- Famed East Bay restaurant Chez Panisse filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming its insurance company wrongfully denied coverage for losses resulting from government-mandated public health shutdowns related to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the restaurant. The lawsuit filed by the notable Berkeley restaurant founded in 1971 by chef Alice Waters alleges that AMCO Insurance Company has denied an insurance claim for business interruption losses, despite Chez Panisse having paid premiums for business interruption insurance. The suit claims AMCO acted in bad faith by categorically denying the claim. "The servers, cooks, farmers, ranchers and other hard-working people in the Chez Panisse family are seeing their livelihoods in jeopardy because AMCO has declined to live up to its responsibilities as our insurer," said Chez Panisse founder Waters in the press release. Read More
Giants Suspend Workouts At Oracle Park, Await COVID-19 Test Results
SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco Giants suspended all team workouts Tuesday, joining a growing number of MLB teams that have paused working out while awaiting coronavirus test results. According to a Giants statement, the team is waiting on results of tests conducted this past weekend. Giants players had been working out at the ballpark since late last week, in anticipation of a 60-game season that is expected to begin later this month. It was not immediately clear when workouts would resume. During a Zoom chat Tuesday afternoon, Giants Manager Gabe Kapler said the team expects test results sometime Tuesday and planned to resume workouts as soon as possible. Read More
San Francisco Officials Forced To Delay Reopening Indoor Dining, Outdoor Bars
SAN FRANCISCO (-- Citing an uptick in new COVID-19 cases, San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced Tuesday that she was delaying the scheduled July 13th reopening of outdoor bars and indoor restaurant dining. It was the second time San Francisco's financially strapped bar owners have been dealt a setback. Initially, they were told they could begin serving patrons outside on July 1st, but that was delayed. They were not alone -- hair salons, barbers, nail salons and other business were also prevented from reopening. On Tuesday, there was more bad news. The July 13th date for bars and indoor dining reopening would be pushed back. "As of today we must announce that on July 13th we will not be able to allow restaurants to operate indoors as we had planned," the mayor said. "Nor will we be able to allow bars to open outdoors. Read More
The Dangers Of Skipping Routine Vaccinations During COVID-19
STANFORD -- Across the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting a decline in vaccination rates as some families are choosing to forgo or delay their children's routine pediatric well-visits during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, in some states, the rate of immunization in children 5 months and younger fell to less than 50 percent between March and May. Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, recently spoke about the dangerous public health implications of this trend. "We really want to make sure that children are continuing to receive the required immunizations, because we already have one pandemic, and we would not want to see more infectious disease outbreaks on top of this one. With flu and respiratory virus seasons coming, we do not want to see more children getting sick with other organisms in addition to COVID-19." Read More
Monterey Bay Aquarium Delays Reopening; County On COVID-19 Watch List
MONTEREY -- The Monterey Bay Aquarium has delayed its highly-anticipated reopening scheduled for later this week, due to the county being placed on the state's COVID-19 watch list. "While this postponement is disappointing, following this guidance from the state and Monterey County Health department is in the best interest of public health and safety," the aquarium said in a statement posted Monday. No reopening date has been announced. Read More
