Washington (CNN) — California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday unveiled his state’s plan for the “next phase” of the Covid-19 pandemic, which focuses specifically on learning to live with the coronavirus.
“What we’re announcing here today is about turning the page,” the Democratic governor said in a speech in San Bernardino County on Thursday. “We have all come to understand what was not understood at the beginning of this crisis, that there is no end date, that there is no moment when we declare victory despite so many metaphors that were used during this pandemic: the metaphors where we said, ‘We will beat this virus.
“In that sense, we’ve come up with a plan that we coined the ‘SMARTER’ plan because we’re smarter two years later. We’re more adaptable. We’re better able to understand the nature of this disease,” Newsom added.
The plan is an acronym for the state’s seven priorities for the future: Vaccines, Masks, Awareness, Preparedness, Testing, Education and Prescription Drugs.
California Governor Gavin Newsom (center) during a bill signing ceremony at Nido’s Backyard Mexican restaurant on February 9. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The shift in focus comes as the wave of omicrons that hit the United States this winter recedes, and as other Democratic-led states move to relax restrictions. New York and Rhode Island have lifted their mask mandates in recent days; Illinois, New Jersey and Oregon will do so in the coming weeks.
California has long been among the strictest states in imposing Covid-19 health mandates. Newsom was the first governor to implement a statewide stay-at-home order in March 2020. But he and other Democratic governors who have imposed public health measures are adjusting their approaches as risk-bearing Americans seek to return. back to normal somehow.
With California’s new plan, Newsom said, “we’re out of the pandemic phase and into a phase that should allow you to have confidence that we’re not walking away. That we’re taking the lessons learned and leaning into the future.”
In recent interviews, Newsom anticipated a change in strategy to treat Covid-19 like any other virus, including lifting the state’s mandate on masks in schools. California’s mask mandate for indoor businesses expired this week, though local governments can still impose their own mandates.
“In that endemic plan, we’ll be able to answer a lot of questions that a lot of you have about the world that we live in and where we’re going with this virus and where we can create criteria as we transition into the endemic phase,” Newsom said last week. passed, anticipating the announcement.
He said the plan will take into consideration what has and hasn’t worked in the past two years and how to address potential surges and new variants.
California’s governor could find himself at odds with Democratic lawmakers who control the state legislature and are pushing for strict vaccination requirements. The proposals include one that would require vaccinations for all students except those granted medical exemptions, and would allow those 12 and older to get vaccinated without parental consent. Another would require companies to require all employees and contractors to get vaccinated.
As Democratic lawmakers consider going further than Newsom has done, Republicans have long claimed their mandates have gone too far, using photos of Newsom rubbing shoulders without a mask at a November 2020 indoor dinner at The French Laundry to make their case.
Pointing to that divide Thursday, Newsom acknowledged: “There are those who prefer to walk away, to deny the realities of the last few years, to let the virus in all its forms and manifestations run its course. That is not the approach we are advocating. It is not the approach we are taking. We are taking a more sensible, and I would say more sustainable, approach to healthcare based on lessons learned to prepare for the unknown.”
An attempt to unseat Newsom last year, with Republican radio host Larry Elder emerging as the leading candidate to replace him, failed in the overwhelmingly Democratic state. Newsom won the recall election in September, when 62% of California voters said he should not be removed from office.
California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said Monday that “California’s plan will, of course, talk about data and data elements and their importance, but it will be very much about how we stay prepared.” and set and what can Californians expect.
“I think it’s really important that we not only talk about the endemic phase, but how to continue to live with a virus that changes and throws up obstacles at different times,” Ghaly said, noting the unpredictability of the virus. “So for California and our future, it’s about being ready and prepared.”