California scrambles to shelter homeless before the coronavirus floods hospitals By Anita Chabria, Susanne Rust, Maura Dolan
March 19, 2020
8:39 PM
SACRAMENTO — Novel coronavirus and homelessness are colliding, forcing California leaders to launch the unimaginable — a massive effort to move those on the streets into hotels, motels and shelters within days to protect both them and a healthcare system that COVID-19 could soon overwhelm.
State models show that 60,000 homeless people could be hit by the novel coronavirus in the next eight weeks, with up to 20% of them needing hospitalization.
That would mean California would need 12,000 hospital beds just for those living on the streets — a formidable task for a state that is already struggling to find extra capacity to manage the pandemic before it’s too late and hospitals become overcrowded and unsafe with too many patients.
To avoid that prospect, the governor has directed local governments to procure hundreds of facilities statewide — hotels, motels, recreation centers — to house the most vulnerable. Some cities and counties are already moving forward. ...
To help accomplish that, Newsom on Wednesday announced $150 million in emergency funding. The governor said $100 million will go directly to local jurisdictions — including Los Angeles — to boost shelter capacity and increase emergency housing.
An additional $50 million will be aimed at buying travel trailers and leasing hotels, motels and other facilities in an effort to provide space for those without homes to practice social distancing or be quarantined if they test positive for the virus or have symptoms of COVID-19. ...
L.A. TimesThe article goes on to address the question of how to force people into shelters, considering so many are mentally ill, have substance issues or simply don't trust authority.
