State officials warn Bay Area's stay-at-home order likely to be extended

Stay-at-home orders currently in effect in the Bay Area and three other California regions likely will remain in place past the minimum three-week duration, state officials affirmed Friday.

The state's stay-at-home order is triggered when a region's average intensive care unit capacity falls below 15 percent. The Bay Area, greater Sacramento, the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California are under the order at present, the California Department of Public Health said.

The earliest date the Bay Area may become eligible to exit the order is Jan. 8, the state department said. Greater Sacramento could become eligible to exit the order as early as Jan. 1, while San Joaquin and Southern California could possibly become eligible this coming Monday, Dec. 28.

Aerial view of Oakland, Emeryville, the Oakland Bay Bridge, the San Francisco Bay, and the city of San Francisco, from the Berkeley Hills in Berkeley, California, June 9, 2017. (Photo via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images).

The available ICU capacity in the latter two regions is down to a grim 0 percent, according to the department. In the Bay Area, ICU capacity is at 9.8 percent, and in greater Sacramento, ICU capacity is 16.7 percent, the department said.

The state department's prediction was in line with a Monday announcement from Gov. Gavin Newsom. The governor said at that time that skyrocketing COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations would probably keep the stay-at-home orders in effect for multiple regions across the state.

The health department Friday said California has 2,042,290 confirmed cases to date, though numbers may not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed. There were 39,144 newly recorded confirmed cases Thursday and the 7-day positivity rate is 11.9 percent, while the 14-day positivity rate is 12.4 percent, the department said.