Gov. Newsom's Child Quarantined for Possible COVID-19 Exposure
SACRAMENTO (AP) -- One of Gov. Gavin Newsom's children may have been exposed to the coronavirus at school and is in quarantine, a spokesman said Friday.
The child began a 14-day quarantine "from the date of exposure" after the family was told a classmate at the private school had tested positive for COVID-19, Nathan Click said in an emailed statement.
The rest of the governor's family is not quarantining because they weren't directly exposed.
"The family has taken the potential exposure seriously and is following all state protocols," Click said.
The governor, his wife and all four of their children have tested negative for the virus, Click said. He didn't identify the child who was in quarantine.
Newsom had a rapid test this week that was negative and he will get a regular tests this weekend, Click said.
The story was first reported by Politico.
Newsom said last month that his children had returned to their private school in Sacramento, sparking criticism even as millions of public schoolchildren continue to study online or through other distance learning measures because of COVID-19 concerns.
Click said Newsom "has made the safety of students and staff a priority during the COVID-19 pandemic and has fought to ensure that every child – whether in a classroom or at home – is learning."
The school where Newsom's child was exposed will stop in-person learning and move to remote learning after the Thanksgiving break through the second week of December, in part because of the higher infection risks associated with holiday activities, according to an email Politico said it had obtained.
The governor also drew fire this week for apparently flouting the very social distancing rules that he has urged Californians to follow assiduously to curb a spiking COVID-19 infection rate.
Newsom said this week he made a "bad mistake" by attending a friend's birthday dinner on Nov. 6 at the ritzy French Laundry restaurant in Napa County. He apologized and described the dinner as outdoors. But photos obtained by the Fox 11 TV station in Los Angeles show Newsom and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, sitting maskless around a crowded table of 12 — including several lobbyists — inside a room that was enclosed on three sides.
Napa is one of 41 counties that as of Saturday night will fall under a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew that bars people from non-essential activities and orders bars, restaurants and other businesses to shut during those hours.
The counties fall under the most restrictive "purple" tier of the state's four tiers allowing stages of economic reopening. Private and public schools that already are open for in-person learning in those counties are allowed to remain open.
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