HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY
PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES

ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER
AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS
(Effective September 1, 2020)
Pursuant to California Health and Safety Code sections 101040, 120175, and 120175.5 (b) the
Health Officer of the County of San Diego (Health Officer) ORDERS AS FOLLOWS:
Effective 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, September 1, 2020 and continuing until further notice, the
following will be in effect for San Diego County (county):
1. All persons are to remain in their homes or at their place of residence, except for employees
or customers traveling to and from essential businesses or reopened businesses as defined in
sections 10 and 11, below, or to participate in individual or family outdoor activity as allowed
by this Order.
2. All public or private “gatherings,” as defined in section 15 below, are prohibited.
3. All public, charter, and private schools may hold classes and other school activities only

under circumstances permitted by the State and in compliance with the COVID-19 Industry
Guidance: Schools and School - Based Programs, and as may be updated or superseded by
further State guidance. Institutions of higher education may hold classes or other school
activities only under circumstances permitted by the State and in compliance with the COVID
– 19 Industry Guidance: Institutions of Higher Education and as may be updated or superseded
by further State guidance.
4. Child daycare and child care providers shall operate in compliance with the measures set forth
in State COVID-19 Updated Guidance: Child Care Programs and Providers and shall prepare
and post a Safe Reopening Plan pursuant to section 11c, below.
5. “Non-essential personnel,” as defined in section 15b below, are prohibited from entry into any
hospital or long-term care facility. All essential personnel who are COVID-19 positive or

 show any potential signs or symptoms of COVID-19 are strictly prohibited from entry into
hospitals or long-term care facilities. Notwithstanding the foregoing, individuals requiring
medical care for COVID-19 or related conditions may be admitted to hospitals or other
medical facilities if the hospital or medical facility is appropriate for treating COVID-19 and
has adequate precautions in place to protect its patients, medical personnel and staff.
6. Hospitals and healthcare providers, including dentists shall:
a. Take measures to preserve and prioritize resources; and,
b. May authorize and perform non-emergent or elective surgeries or procedures based on
their determination of clinical need and supply capacity, and where consistent with
State guidance.
c. Nothing in this Order shall prevent physicians and other healthcare providers from
conducting routine preventive care provided it conforms to any applicable State
guidance.
d. Nothing in this Order shall prevent dentists or dental hygienists from conducting routine
preventive care provided it conforms to any applicable State guidance.
7. Hospitals, healthcare providers, pharmacies and commercial testing laboratories shall report
all COVID-19 test results to the Public Health Officer immediately after such results are
received.
8. Face coverings shall be worn as described and required in California Department of Public
Health Face Covering Guidance issued on June 18, 2020, (available at:
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/COVID19/Guidance-for-Face-Coverings_06-18-2020.pdf).
9. All businesses not meeting the definition of essential business or reopened business in section

10 and 11 below are referred to in this Order as “non-essential businesses” and shall be and
remain closed for the duration of this Order. All essential businesses and reopened businesses
must comply with the requirements of this Order. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any business
may remain open if its employees and owners can provide its services from home, including
by telecommuting, without direct contact with the public.
10. ESSENTIAL BUSINESSES
a. “Essential business” is any business or activity (or a business/activity that
employs/utilizes workers) designated by the State Public Health Officer as “Essential
Page 2 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 Critical Infrastructure Workers” set forth in: https://covid19.ca.gov/img/Essential
CriticalInfrastructureWorkers.pdf) as that list may be updated from time-to-time, and
referenced in Executive Order N-33-20 issued by the Governor of the State of
California.
b. All essential businesses that allow members of the public to enter a facility must prepare
and post a “Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol” on the form available at:
https://www.sandiegocounty
.gov/content/dam/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/Epidemiology/covid19/SOCIAL_DISTANC
ING_AND_SANITATION_PROTOCOL_04022020_V1.pdf ), or on a form required
by another governmental entity requiring substantially similar information, for each of
their facilities open to the public in the county. The Social Distancing and Sanitation
Protocol must be posted at or near the entrance of the relevant facility, and shall be
easily viewable by the public and employees. A copy of the Social Distancing and
Sanitation Protocol must also be provided to each employee performing work at the
facility. All essential businesses shall implement the Social Distancing and Sanitation
Protocol and provide evidence of its implementation to any authority enforcing this
Order upon demand. The Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol must describe all
measures required in section c below. Any business that fails to prepare and
successfully implement a Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol shall immediately
close.
c. When the State of California has issued an industry guidance, or any subsequent
amendments thereto, with mandatory or suggested restrictions and/or measures to be
implemented by a particular sector of essential business, every essential business in that
sector must comply with the guidance and shall include in its Social Distancing and
Sanitation Protocol (prepared pursuant to section d, below) all of the measures listed
in the industry guidance. Any mandatory measures required by this Order must also be
included in a Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol.
11. REOPENED BUSINESSES
a. “Reopened business” is a business that is not an essential business as defined in section

10a above, and has reopened in conformance with the State of California’s Plan for
Reducing COVID-19 and Adjusting Permitted Sector Activities to Keep Californians
Healthy
and
Safe
(available
at
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID19/COVID19CountyMonitoringOverview.aspx
Statewide Public Health Officer Order, issued by the California Department of Health
Services on August 28, 2020, all portions of which are operative in San Diego County
Page 3 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 effective

immediately,

and

available

at

{

https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/COVID19/8-28-20_Order-Plan-Reducing-COVID19-Adjusting-Permitted-Sectors-Signed.pdf}. A

reopened business may open when the Public Health Officer has posted an
acknowledgement of the reopened status on the County of San Diego Coronavirus
website and the business has complied with the requirements of this Order.
b. The State of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy establishes a four tier system for
reopening business sectors. Those business sectors listed in the “Substantial/Tier2” column of
the Activities and Business Tiers chart are allowed to reopen under the conditions set forth in
the chart.
i. Every business in the following sectors listed in the Activities and Business Tiers
shall require all customers who receive services indoors or use indoor facilities to
sign in with their name and telephone number:
1. Hair Salons & Barbershops
2. Personal Care Services
3. Gyms & Fitness Centers
4. Restaurants, Wineries, Bars, Breweries, and Distilleries (where meal is
provided) as required in section g below.

c. All reopened businesses, with the exception of restaurants, bars, wineries, distilleries
and breweries which do not limit services to take-out or delivery, must prepare and
post
a
“Safe
Reopening
Plan”
on
the
form
available
at:https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/dam/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/Epidemiolog
y/covid19/Community_Sector_Support/BusinessesandEmployers/SafeReopeningPlan
Template.pdf for each of their facilities in the county. Restaurants bars, wineries,
distilleries and breweries which do not limit services to take-out or delivery, must
prepare and post a “COVID-19 Restaurant Operating Protocol” on the form found at
https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/dam/sdc/deh/fhd/food/pdf/covid19sdrestaur
antoperatingprotocol_en.pdf for each restaurant in the county.
d. The Safe Reopening Plan or COVID-19 Restaurant Operating Protocol must be posted
at or near the entrance of the relevant facility, and shall be easily viewable by the public
and employees. A copy of the Safe Reopening Plan or COVID-19 Restaurant
Operating Protocol must also be provided to each employee performing work at the
facility. All reopened businesses shall implement the Safe Reopening Plan or COVID19 Restaurant Operating Protocol and provide evidence of its implementation to any
authority enforcing this Order upon demand. The Safe Reopening Plan or COVID-19
Restaurant Operating Protocol must describe all measures required in section e, below.
Page 4 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 Any business that fails to prepare and comply with its Safe Reopening Plan or COVID19 Restaurant Operating Protocol shall immediately close.
e. When the State of California has issued an industry guidance, or any subsequent
amendments thereto, with mandatory or suggested restrictions and/or measures to be
implemented by a particular sector of reopened business, every reopened business in
that sector must comply with the guidance and shall include in its Safe Reopening Plan
or COVID-19 Restaurant Operating Protocol (prepared pursuant to section c, above)
all of the measures listed in the industry guidance. Any mandatory measures required
by this Order must also be included in a Social Distancing and Sanitation Protocol.
f. All restaurants, bars, wineries, distilleries and breweries shall be closed from 10:00 p.m.
until 5:00 a.m. every day. Guests already in the facility at 10:00 p.m. may remain in
the facility until 11:00 p.m. Only staff needed to close, open or clean shall be in the
facility between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m.
g. All restaurants, bars, wineries, distilleries and breweries which are allowed to provide
indoor service pursuant to the State of California Dine-in Restaurant Guidance shall
comply with the following additional requirements applicable only to persons dining
indoors:
i. Limiting persons sitting at a table to members of the same household is
strongly encouraged.
ii. The restaurant shall obtain the name of each guest seated at a table and the
telephone number of at least one guest and shall maintain the list of names
and telephone numbers for three weeks.
iii. Guests will be required to wear face coverings at all times while in the
facility, including when seated at a table before the meal is served and after
the meal is finished
12. Each essential business and reopened business shall take all of the following actions if
an employer becomes aware that an employee is diagnosed with COVID-19:
i. Promptly notify the County Department of Public Health that there is an
employee diagnosed with COVID-19, together with the name, date of birth,
and contact information of the employee.
ii. Cooperate with the County Department of Public Health’s COVID-19
response team to identify and provide contact information for any persons
exposed by the employee at the workplace.
iii. Provide notice of the exposure to any employees, and contractors (who
regularly work at the workplace), who may have been exposed to COVID19, as stated in the State’s COVID-19 Employer Playbook for a Safe
Page 5 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 Reopening, available at {https://files.covid19.ca.gov/pdf/employerplaybook-for-safe-reopening--en.pdf}.
13. Outdoor Recreation
a. Each public park and recreation area or facility, shall operate in compliance with the
measures set forth in the State COVID-19 Industry Guidance: Campgrounds, RV Parks
and Outdoor Recreation. The operator of the park shall prepare a Safe Reopening Plan
pursuant to section 11, above, indicating how the park or recreation facility will
implement the required measures. Any park or recreation area/facility at which the
Protocol requirements cannot be effectively implemented may be required to close.
b. Outdoor recreation instruction and day camps that comply with the State COVID-19
Industry Guidance: Day Camps, may be conducted in park and recreation
areas/facilities.
14. Persons who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, or who are likely to have COVID-19, shall
comply with the Order of the Health Officer titled: “Isolation of All Persons with or Likely to
have COVID-19”, or as subsequently amended. Persons who have a close contact with a person
who either has COVID-19, or is likely to have COVID-19, shall comply with the Order of the
Health Officer titled: “Quarantine of Persons Exposed to COVID-19,” or as subsequently
amended.
Both
orders
are
available
at:
https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/community_epidemiology/d
c/2019-nCoV/health-order.html. If a more specific isolation or quarantine order is issued to a
person, that order shall be followed.
15. For purposes of this Order:
a. “Gathering” is any event or convening that brings together more than one person in a
single room or single indoor or outdoor space at the same time. A gathering does not
include:
i. A gathering consisting only of members of a single family or household.
ii. Operations at airports, public transportation or other spaces where persons in
transit are able to practice social distancing.
iii. Operations at essential businesses as defined in section 15a above and
reopened businesses as defined in 15f below and where the other
requirements set forth in this Order are followed.
iv. A religious service or cultural ceremony including a wedding ceremony
which is allowed provided the State Guidance on Places of Worship and
Providers of Religious Services and Cultural Ceremonies is followed.
Page 6 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 However a wedding reception is a gathering and is not allowed.
v. Outdoor protests in which participants maintain social distancing and wear
face coverings at all times.
b. “Non-essential personnel” are employees, contractors, or members of the public who
do not perform treatment, maintenance, support, or administrative tasks deemed
essential to the healthcare mission of the long-term care facility or hospital. Nonessential personnel do not include first responders, nor State, federal, or local officials,
investigators, or medical personnel carrying out lawful duties. Non-essential personnel
do not include visitors to hospitals and long-term care facilities who are granted entry
by the facility’s director, or designee, because they are family or friends who are visiting
a resident in an end of life or similar situation, are parents or guardians visiting a child
who is a patient, or because of any other circumstances deemed appropriate by the
facility director, or designee, and where appropriate precautions by the facility that
follow federal, State, and local public health guidance regarding COVID-19 are
followed.
c. “Social distancing” is maintaining a six-foot separation from all persons except for
household members, first responders and medical providers or employees conducting
temperature screenings.

16. This Order is issued as a result of the World Health Organization’s declaration of a worldwide
pandemic of COVID-19 disease, also known as “novel coronavirus.”
17. This Order is issued based on scientific evidence regarding the most effective approaches to
slow the transmission of communicable diseases generally and COVID-19 specifically, as well
as best practices as currently known and available to protect vulnerable members of the public
from avoidable risk of serious illness or death resulting from exposure to COVID-19. The age,
condition, and health of a significant portion of the population of the county places it at risk
for serious health complications, including death, from COVID-19. Although most individuals
who contract COVID-19 do not become seriously ill, persons with mild symptoms and
asymptomatic persons with COVID-19 may place other vulnerable members of the public—
such as older adults, and those with underlying health conditions—at significant risk.
18. The actions required by this Order are necessary to reduce the number of individuals who will
be exposed to COVID-19, and will thereby slow the spread of COVID-19 in the county. By
reducing the spread of COVID-19, this Order will help preserve critical and limited healthcare
capacity in the county and will save lives.
Page 7 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 19. This Order is issued in accordance with, and incorporates by reference: a) the Declaration of
Local Health Emergency issued by the Health Officer on February 14, 2020; b) the
Proclamation of Local Emergency issued by the County Director of Emergency Services on
February 14, 2020; c) the action of the County Board of Supervisors to ratify and continue
both the local health emergency and local emergency on February 19, 2020; d) the
Proclamation of a State of Emergency issued by the Governor of the State of California on
March 4, 2020; e) Executive Order N-25-20 issued by the Governor of the State of California
on March 12, 2020 which orders that “All residents are to heed any orders and guidance of
state and local health officials, including but not limited to the imposition of social distancing
measures, to control COVID-19”; f) Proclamation 9984 regarding COVID-19 issued by the
President of the United States on March 11, 2020; g) Executive Order N-33-20 issued by the
Governor of the State of California on March 19, 2020; h) the “Interim Additional Guidance
for Infection Prevention and Control for Patients with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 in
Nursing Homes” issued by the CDC; i) COVID-19 guidance issued by the California
Department of Public Health on including, but not limited to the Face Coverings Guidance
issued on April 1, 2020; j) the State of California’s “Resilience Roadmap;” the State of
California’s Plan for Reducing COVID-19 and Adjusting Permitted Sector Activities to Keep
Californians Healthy and Safe; and, the California Statewide Public Health Officer Order dated
August 28, 2020.
20. This Order is issued to prevent circumstances often present in gatherings that may exacerbate
the spread of COVID-19, such as: 1) the increased likelihood that gatherings will attract people
from a broad geographic area; 2) the prolonged time period in which large numbers of people
are in close proximity; 3) the difficulty in tracing exposure when large numbers of people
attend a single event or are at a single location; and 4) the inability to ensure that such persons
follow adequate hygienic practices.
21. This Order is issued to provide additional opportunities for recreational activities while also
requiring additional protections from the spread of COVID-19 to the public who are taking
advantage of these opportunities for recreational activities. And providing additional
protections for employees of essential businesses or reopened business and their
customers/clients.
22. This Order is issued to protect the public health as businesses are allowed to reopen by
requiring businesses to implement procedures necessary to ensure their employees and
Page 8 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 customers comply with social distancing, sanitation and screening practices.
23. This Order comes after the release of substantial guidance from the Health Officer, the
California Department of Public Health, the CDC, and other public health officials throughout
the United States and around the world.
24. The statement of facts and circumstances set forth as justification for each Guidance issued by
the California Department of Health Services that is referenced in this Order are hereby
accepted and incorporated by reference into this Order.
25. Pursuant to Health and Safety Code section 120175.5 (b) all governmental entities in the
county shall take necessary measures within the governmental entity’s control to ensure
compliance with this Order and to disseminate this Order to venues or locations within the
entity’s jurisdiction where gatherings may occur.
26. Violation of this Order is subject to fine, imprisonment, or both. (California Health and Safety
Code section 120295.)
27. To the extent necessary, this Order may be enforced by the Sheriff or chiefs of police pursuant
to Government Code sections 26602 and 41601 and Health and Safety Code section 101029.

Page 9 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

 28. Once this Order takes effect it shall supersede the Order of the Health Officer and Emergency
Regulations dated August 7, 2020.
IT IS SO ORDERED:
Date: August 31, 2020

______________________________________
Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H.
Public Health Officer
County of San Diego

EMERGENCY REGULATIONS
As Director of Emergency Services for the County of San Diego, I am authorized to promulgate
regulations for the protection of life and property pursuant to Government Code Section 8634 and
San Diego County Code section 31.103. The following shall be in effect for the duration of the
Health Officer Order issued above which is incorporated in its entirety by reference:
The Health Officer Order shall be promulgated as a regulation for the protection of life and
property.
Any person who violates or who refuses or willfully neglects to obey this regulation is subject to
fine, imprisonment, or both. (Government Code section 8665.)

Date: August 31, 2020

______________________________________
Helen Robbins-Meyer
Chief Administrative Officer
Director of Emergency Services
County of San Diego

Page 10 of 10
ORDER OF THE HEALTH OFFICER AND EMERGENCY REGULATIONS