Message From County Administrator

Dear County Employees,

We made it through a month of sheltering in place, and while challenging, it is clear that our social distancing efforts have had noticeable success in slowing the spread of COVID-19 in our County. We begin month two with continued County emergency response efforts and public health guidance for how to protect ourselves against exposure to COVID-19.

New Health Order Requiring Use of Facial Coverings

Last week, the Public Health Officer issued a new Health Order requiring that everyone wear facial coverings to stop the spread of Coronavirus. Effective April 17, 2020, facial coverings must be worn by an individual before entering an indoor facility (except their home), any enclosed space, or an outdoor space where they cannot keep a distance of six feet away from others at all times. This Order applies to employers who require their employees to leave their residence to work and must make sure that their employees comply with this the following:

• Supplying employees with facial coverings, or
• Making sure that employees have access to facial coverings, or
• That their employees are using their own facial coverings.

Facial coverings means any fabric or cloth that covers the mouth and nose such as scarves, bandanas, t-shirts, sweatshirts, or other fabric. The County has acquired cloth face coverings to provide to departments for employees performing essential services. Please contact your supervisor or manager for questions and/or to request a face covering.

Other County Response Updates

The Department of Health Services has begun an enhanced COVID-19 Contact Tracing project. Contact tracing is a systematic process of interviewing people who have been exposed to an individual who tests positive for COVID-19 and determining the need for quarantine to decrease or stop the spread of the virus in our community. All contacts directly exposed to a COVID-19 positive person are now being tested regardless of whether they show symptoms.

CARES Act Deferred Compensation Changes

The recent passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, includes three provisions that modify the County Deferred Compensation Plan. These provisions allow early withdrawal and loan changes that can be helpful for participating employees affected by COVID-19 that meet qualification defined by the CARES Act. For more details, please review communication sent to all employees last week.

County and Employee Resources:

• Visit the Employee Information for Novel Coronavirus webpage to obtain employee specific information and resources.
• SoCoEmergency.org and Sonoma County’s Facebook and Twitter pages are updated daily with information to help keep our community safe during the coronavirus emergency.
• The Virtual Local Assistance Center provides a resource listing of government and support services to help residents.

We can all relate to the restrictions of staying at home and social distancing. While this is the best thing we can do right now, it is just as important that we focus on finding balance during this unparalleled time. Stay connected by reaching out to family and friends through alternate means such as Skype, Zoom, phone or text. Be present and focus on activities you need to accomplish today or this week. Take care of yourself by maintaining healthy habits around eating, sleep and exercise. Our community can only be as strong as every one of us are, so let’s take the time we need to seek balance as best we can.

Stay safe, stay strong,

Sheryl

Sheryl Bratton
County Administrator