LA’s Covid ’tsunami’ : inside the new center of America’s raging pandemic | Los Angeles | The Guardian
▻http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/dec/26/los-angeles-coronavirus-surge-hospitals
▻https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2943816f67cd46a13bf0ba465afef8ead9043300/106_0_4588_2753/master/4588.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali
In March, LA and California issued some of the earliest shutdowns in the nation, which helped slow the spread and saved hospitals from becoming overwhelmed. But with the US government failing to provide a second round of stimulus amid mass unemployment, officials rushed to reopen in early summer – a move that had devastating consequences in LA.Large sectors of the economy reopened, but the economic crisis – and many restrictions – persisted, leading to severe fatigue among residents at the same time that Covid surged due to holiday travel and gatherings.
The response from local officials has been a confusing partial lockdown. Officials have issued emotional pleas for people to stay home but have allowed LA’s malls to remain open, leading to packed stores and infections among employees. The county shut down all dining but has allowed Hollywood to continue film shoots.
The data suggests the public health messaging is not working – and that LA’s essential workers are paying the price.“It’s just been really hard to reinforce what kind of dire situation we are in now,” said Dr Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, a UC San Francisco epidemiologist. “Ten months into the pandemic, individuals and businesses are hurting financially, and that is a drive for people to continue to be out.”LA’s affordable housing crisis, which forces many to live in crowded conditions, also makes the region vulnerable to spread, said Bibbins-Domingo. Her research found that early lockdowns did not protect Latinos or people without high school degrees, probably because they were forced to work.
#Covid-19#migrant#migration#etatsunis#californie#losangeles#sanfrancisco#latino#sante#systemesante#minorite#inegalite#economie#travailleurmigrant