LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday got an update from Public Health about the county’s COVID-19 situation and later in the meeting decided against closing its chambers to the public once again in response to concerns about an Omicron-driven case surge.
Dr. Gary Pace, who continues to serve as interim Public Health officer, gave the board its first COVID-19 update of the year.
“The situation’s really changing quickly,” said Pace, noting the large spike in cases due to the Omicron variant across the state and nationwide.
He said questions revolve around how protective the vaccine will be, how bad the hospitalization and death rates could be from the variant and how society will be impacted.
Schools and businesses are struggling with staffing; Pace said no lockdowns are being considered in Lake County due to Omicron.
Pace said that so far Omicron hasn’t been identified in Lake County through genetic sequencing. However, he said that’s a function of not doing a lot of sampling and having a testing lag.
Elsewhere around the region, however, Pace said he believes the spiking case numbers are due to Omicron. “It’s incredibly contagious” and the spread is “remarkable.”
Because of that spread, which is unlike that seen in previous variants, “You can’t really rely on your previous habits to keep you safe,” Pace said.
He urged people to continue to use masks — in particular, N95s — and to take part in fewer gatherings.
“There’s a lot of worry, there’s a lot of concern about what may be coming in the coming weeks,” he said, explaining that people who are vaccinated can get the variant and spread it.
Since July 1, 85% of people hospitalized for COVID-19 in Lake County were not vaccinated while 15% had received the vaccine, said Pace.
He told the board he expects to see case numbers rising, noting that 200 cases are now being processed.
Looking at previous case increases, particularly in the late summer and fall due to the Delta variant and a year ago due to the original virus, Pace believes Lake County will surpass those totals in the coming weeks.
“This is not something to ignore or minimize,” he said.
Case data shows the highest case numbers now are in the 18 to 34 and 35 to 49 age groups. The middle and high school age groups also are seeing increases, Pace said.
He said 60% of Lake County residents, or 36,500 people, are fully vaccinated. Of that group, 36% have had boosters. Another 32%, or 19,500, remains unvaccinated and 8%, or 4,500 people, are partially vaccinated, Pace said.
From the public health viewpoint, Pace said the big question is, are enough people in Lake County vaccinated to keep the hospitals from being overwhelmed.
While people feel it’s their right to protect themselves in their own way, Pace referred to a “community responsibility” in protecting against the virus.
In addition to being vaccinated, he encouraged people to wear N95 masks, stay home when sick and not participate in large gatherings.
He noted that on Monday night, Sonoma County announced it was shutting down large gatherings and asking people to stay at home for the next few weeks.
While Pace said he didn’t see the same thing happening in Lake County, “This is the level of concern that we’re seeing in the area.”
He said Sonoma County is where a lot of Lake County patients go when hospitalized. “They’re kind of raising the red flag right now.”
The question, said Pace, is how to live life in this surge. “It’s a good time to lay as low as possible for the next four to six weeks,” especially if you have underlying health conditions or are unvaccinated.
Pace said there is a lot of interest in looking back now to see how useful the lockdowns were and how well vaccinations have helped fight the pandemic. “It seems like it has helped quite a bit” and more death and misery were avoided.
He said moving forward, the longer-term approach is living with COVID-19 like the flu, but it’s too early to make that shift.
Jennifer Baker, interim deputy director for Lake County Health Services, reported to the board during the update that they are working with the California Department of Public Health on sewage testing for COVID-19.
The testing will begin at the county’s wastewater treatment facility in Clearlake, the most populous area, and will take place three days a week starting at the end of this month. They expect to get the data in early February, Baker said.
She said other wastewater facilities are on a list of sites to be added as the testing is expanded.
Supervisors decide against closing chambers
In a later discussion, due to concerns of an impending Omicron surge, such as Pace described, County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson asked the board to consider closing the board chambers to the public again as it had last year, having the public participate virtually.
“I wish we weren’t back having this conversation. I have to start by saying that,” said Huchingson, noting they took action to close the board chambers at this time last year due to a growing number of cases in county facilities.
She recounted having more employees do work remotely in order to reduce in-office density, with the board chambers reopening later in the spring and summer months, at which time most county offices returned to work full time once conditions improved.
“In light of the impending Omicron surge, I’m asking you to look at that again,” she said, and to ask department heads to have employees work remotely to the amount that it’s reasonable.
Huchingson was concerned that if they wanted until things were out of control, they'd have waited too long.
She said she’s aware of 17 employees who have tested positive since Jan. 4, with the most recent positive test coming in on Tuesday morning.
The county’s workforce also has a low vaccination rate of less than 50%, which is less than the general public, she said. “We’re probably more susceptible to transmission.”
Huchingson said the vast majority of participation through board meetings — at 90% — is coming through Zoom.
As such, she recommended the board close the chambers to the public and reevaluate the action in 30 days.
She said they were planning to have 21 department heads in the chambers — which now has a COVID-related capacity of 24 — for a Jan. 20 governance workshop. “Bringing a lot of people into one room is a big concern.”
Huchingson said one county department now has six or seven employees who have tested positive and they had attended a large meeting or training together.
At the very least, Huchingson asked the board to remind department heads of their authority to have staff work remotely as much as possible to keep offices open.
Ultimately, board members decided against closing the chambers.
“It’s not a perfect situation, but it’s as safe as it can be,” said Supervisor Jessica Pyska, who added that staff is likely getting infected when not at work.
Supervisor Tina Scott suggested limiting the number of people who could come in the chambers at any one time, including having some supervisors attend virtually. She also wanted department heads to do their due diligence with staff and explore who could work from home.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he felt it would be a mistake to close the chambers and that it would send the community a message that they haven’t learned anything over the course of the last two years.
Board Chair EJ Crandell said he supported the remote work policy as long as it was productive and there’s a way to measure it. He also worried about the impact if staff get the fast-moving variant and are unable to work.
Supervisor Moke Simon suggested moving the date of the governance workshop, which Huchingson said had been scheduled early in the year, before department heads start formulating their budgets, which are due around April 15.
Simon said that in every other year he would agree with that, and in 2023 it would be the plan to be on a normal schedule. “Fingers crossed.”
The rest of the board agreed to postpone that meeting. Huchingson said they will plan to determine a new date for the workshop at the board’s Jan. 25 meeting.
The board also reached consensus to have Huchingson write a message to department heads encouraging them to use the remote work policy based on their own judgment.
There also won’t be a special requirement for management — which Huchingson said had arisen during informal discussions — to be in the office a larger portion of the time when compared to other staff, due to the surge.
In other COVID-related business, the board on Tuesday voted unanimously to update the county’s COVID-19 workplace protocols to be in line with the latest state and federal rules.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.