SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The County of Santa Cruz on Monday announced that it will use two facilities to care for 100 people who have tested positive for COVID-19 – and need to be isolated – but are not critically ill.
County officials are also looking to slow the spread of coronavirus by temporarily housing homeless people in the Santa Cruz County Veterans Memorial Building in Santa Cruz and the Veterans Memorial Building in Watsonville.
The sites – 1440 Multiversity in Scotts Valley and Simpkins Family Swim Center in Live Oak – are part of the county’s “surge care planning,” said spokesman Jason Hoppin.
The move is an attempt to ease the burden on local hospital capacity by treating patients who need hospitalization but do not have complex medical needs.
The county-owned buildings are available because the events planned to be held there were canceled, Hoppin said. The agreement will last through the shelter-in-place order.
Hoppin said that the county is working on securing other sites, should the need arise for more.
“Alternate care sites are a key aspect of our surge planning as we build out our capacity in order to assure that we can continue safely meeting the medical needs of our residents,” Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel said. “While hospitals in the county are able to meet the current need, things can change quickly so we’re getting ready now.”
The agreement with 1440 Multiversity includes using staff and resources to prepare hundreds of meals to be delivered from the organization’s 75-acre private campus three times daily to vulnerable residents in shelters throughout Santa Cruz County.
The alternative care sites are not open to the public, and are not walk-up medical facilities, county officials said.
Santa Cruz County currently has 69 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including one death.
For local information on COVID-19, go to www.santacruzhealth.org/coronavirus, call 211 or text “COVID19” to 211211. Residents may also call 454-4242 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., seven days a week.
