Dr. Melanie Burkholder recently spoke out on city and statewide developments regarding the COVID-19 situation, covering reopening efforts as well as steps to take moving forwards.
Gov. Newsom recently approved the San Diego Couty Board of Supervisors plan to resume in-store dining with modifications and retail shopping—a huge step on the road to recovery. Additionally, a recent announcement made San Diego one of 47 counties allowed to reopen barbershops and hair salons with safety protocols in place. Burkholder is happy to see this progress, but is pushing for further restrictions to be lifted as soon as possible, warning against the adverse effects on unemployment and the economy.
“Unemployment in our San Diego region stands at 30.1% now. Two zip codes in my district are among the hardest hit in the county,” said Burkholder. “The latest SANDAG report states that in order to take a significant turn for the better, the region must move into phase 3 of opening.”
She’s right, of course. The SANDAG report documents the adverse effects of this pandemic on our economy. “Jobless claims continue to rise as the economy stays in lockdown mode for the ninth week. New job formation is slow, with businesses making tough decisions including claiming bankruptcy or choosing not to reopen after stay-at-home orders are lifted,” the report states. However, there’s hope. The report also notes that “the phased reopening signals that the pandemic curve may start flattening, and economic improvement may occur in the next few weeks.”
Like Burkholder said, it’s absolutely essential for San Diego to quickly move into the third phase of reopening as soon as possible to spearhead economic improvement efforts and save our county before it’s too late.
