- LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said that the city is “on the brink” of another stay-at-home order on Sunday.
- During an appearance on CNN, Garcetti criticized a lack of national leadership on stopping COVID-19.
- Last week, Los Angeles County broke its record for a single day, with more than 4,500 new coronavirus cases on Thursday.
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Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti told CNN’s Jake Tapper Sunday that Los Angeles is “on the brink” of another stay-at-home order.
Los Angeles County has seen a surge of cases recently, with new record high hospitalizations and infections. The city has more than 150,000 cases.
“A lot of things went wrong,” Garcetti said. He pointed out that cases haven’t increased as quickly in LA as in some cities, but said there is “no national leadership” in efforts to slow or stop the pandemic. “It was politicized when it should have been unified.”
Garcetti also mentioned that many people are “just exhausted,” after the length of the pandemic, and have stopped social distancing, mask-wearing, and practicing diligent hand washing. He said that the city previously opened too quickly.
While LA isn't under stay-at-home orders just yet, many measures to fight the coronavirus resurgence have been reinstated. On June 28, Governor Gavin Newsom closed bars in several counties, including Los Angeles, and indoor dining at restaurants was put on hold on July 1. Garcetti mentioned that mayors don't necessarily have much power in coronavirus shutdowns, which primarily happen at the county and state levels.
Last week was the worst week for new cases in LA since the pandemic started, with several record-setting days for cases and hospitalizations. Thursday remains the record for infections, with more than 4,500 new cases.
Officials are warning residents about the danger for people under 40, who are seeing higher hospitalization rates than earlier in the pandemic. LA County is home to more than half of all the coronavirus deaths in California, The LA Times reported.
