Riverside County Supervisor: “We cannot act as though nothing has changed.”
A common theme from those who spoke during Wednesday mornings news conference in Moreno Valley is taking the steps necessary to "flatten the curve", in terms of the rising number of people testing positive for coronavirus.
Several times while speaking Wednesday, County Supervisor V. Manuel Perez emphasized the importance of taking the crisis seriously.
"As a society we cannot act as though nothing has changed. Things are different today than a few weeks ago and we need for everyone to make changes in their daily lives, this for the protection of everyone," said Perez.
Perez and others are now referring to the Coachella Valley as "ground zero" for coronavirus in Riverside County because of the number of cases in the valley relative to the rest of the county.
A health care official also spoke about what's being done to protect patients and staff, with hospitals restricting visitors, cancelling non-urgent procedures and moving toward consulting with patients via email and video conferencing when possible.
"Social distancing as we've described it is not a joke. It is not a small tool. It's the greatest weapon we have to kill this virus," said Dr. Michael Mesisca who works in the Medical Center at Riverside University Health System in Moreno Valley.
Mesisca also says so far, Riverside County has tested 800 people for the virus and expects that number to double next week before tripling two weeks from now.
