The Economic Impact of the Pandemic
Mendocino County Health Officer will Issue Shelter-In-Place Order on March 18
By: The Hinman & Carmichael LLP Team
Our political leaders (at the state level at least) are taking responsible steps to address pandemic medical issues through public health initiatives such as “shelter in place” and “social distancing.” The health initiatives vary across the state, and across the country. Shelter in place is in effect in 8 Bay Area counties but is quickly coming to other counties and states. The ability to stay open will vary across locations (for example restaurants outside of the shelter in place counties may remain open with social distancing – although that may quickly change) so we urge taking the most conservative course when planning for the duration.
We are in the beginning stage of a long journey to societal health. This is day one of “shelter in place” in Northern California. We anticipate shelter in place orders spreading to other locations quickly. By days 30, 60, 90 and 120, businesses (and the overall economy) will be suffering immense damage if plans to move to alternative business models are not made and executed immediately. The overall priority is treating the international pandemic, but personal and family health are critical and business survival is right behind.
By the time the first three weeks of the shelter in place order expires (on April 7th) cabin fever will be setting in, business owners (and employees) will be experiencing a serious drop in revenue and the public will be searching for acceptable social outlets.
We are all in this together, and if we can alleviate some of the anticipated harm in a manner consistent with addressing the pandemic, we should do so. All of us here at Hinman & Carmichael LLP are available to our clients to assist them in working through these issues as we all attempt to manage our way through the crisis.