As the first COVID-19 vaccinations continued across California Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom made a grim announcement — he has activated the state’s mass fatality program.
Newsom said the state is in the worst COVID-19 surge since the beginning of the pandemic, with an average of 163 people dying every day during the past week.
“We just had to order 5,000 additional body bags they just purchased for the state,” he said.
In the Bay Area, intensive care unit beds at hospitals are filling up fast. As of Tuesday morning, there were just 35 ICU beds left in all of Santa Clara County.
But it’s the hospital staffing shortage that is the biggest concern.
“We are actually looking overseas, interestingly, to potentially recruit some staffing,” Newsom said.
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