Kern County Health Officer rescinds local order

Kern County Public Health announced that the Order of the Kern County Health Officer dated April 2, has been rescinded as of May 2 at 6:30 p.m.

This order was originally instituted to garner additional tools to assist with Kern County’s compliance with Governor Gavin Newsom’s stay at home order and California Department of Public Health’s gathering guidance.

Over the past several weeks, Kern County Public Health has been working with local businesses to provide education and resources during the Governor’s stay at home order. We have responded to complaints from our residents and have been pleased with the cooperation from our local business community.

On May 5, the Governor announced that the state is “days, not weeks” away from changes to the stay-at-home order. In anticipation of the Governor’s transition of re-opening of the economy, we want the county to be positioned so we can quickly maximize our local response and clear the way for the changes ahead.

Additionally, on April 21, the Kern County Board of Supervisors voted to establish an ad hoc committee to review and interpret the Governor’s orders and lists of essential businesses and to provide best practices, guidance and recommendations for implementing necessary changes locally for safely reopening businesses when the Governor’s orders are lifted.

We want businesses to open safely and responsibly and as quickly as possible when the Governor lifts or modifies his orders. Kern County Public Health looks forward to working with the Kern County Board of Supervisor’s newly established ad hoc committee as we implement our plan to safely re-open local businesses.

We continue to ask the community to adhere to the Governor’s order to stay at home and practice social distancing. These actions have been determined to have a significant impact on flattening our curve and helping slow the spread of COVID-19.