California to provide hotel rooms to front-line health care workers

(KION) California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Thursday that the State will be giving health care workers hotel rooms at little or no cost.

Watch a livestream of Newsom's announcement here.

Health care workers who have come into direct contact with COVID-19 patients, are suspected of coming into contact with COVID-19 patients or who have tested positive for COVID-19 and do not need to be hospitalized will be prioritized.

Newsom hopes the move will prevent health care workers from spreading the virus after they finish their shifts.

"California is fighting to protect those who are protecting us. Health care workers are the heroes of this moment. As we ramp up the workforce to meet the demand, we are also stepping up to help keep our workers' families safe by providing hotels as temporary housing options," Newsom said.

Members of the New California Health Corps are also eligible to participate in the program.

Starting Friday, health care workers can make reservations through the Department of General Services CalTravelStore.

The State has found 150 hotels that have agreed to give discounted rates, and more are encouraged to participate. Hotels interested in offering discounted rooms can email covid19lodging@dgs.ca.gov.

The priority is to find hotels in counties with a high population density or with high COVID-19 numbers, including Los Angeles, Santa Clara, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Diego and Fresno.

Newsom also announced a partnership with United Airlines to give free round-trip flights to health care workers form around California and the rest of the country volunteering to join California's health care workforce. The state is working to partner with other major airlines to offer similar services.

"It is very encouraging to see our industry leaders step up and lend a hand in this effort to help us meet this moment and support our health care workers to make sure they have resources to get to where they are needed," Newsom said.