Gov. Newsom declares State of Emergency amid growing coronavirus fears

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a State of Emergency in California due to the coronavirus.

Newsom announced the declaration during a press conference Wednesday afternoon.

The State of Emergency will make additional resources available and will "formalize emergency actions already underway across multiple state agencies and departments."

The proclamation comes after California's first coronavirus (COVID-19) death in Northern California. An elderly person with pre-existing conditions died after contracting the virus. It is believed that that person contracted the virus while aboard a cruise ship.

The number of cases of COVID-19 have risen in California and the state is preparing for a possible large spread of cases.

“The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus,” said Governor Newsom. “This emergency proclamation will help the state further prepare our communities and our health care system in the event it spreads more broadly.”

The governor's office says the emergency proclamation includes provisions to protect consumers from price gouging, allows healthcare workers to come from out of state to assist, and gives healthcare facilities "flexibility to plan and adapt to accommodate incoming patients."

On Tuesday, Newsom announced a release of millions of N95 masks to address statewide shortages caused by coronavirus fear. Earlier this week, the governor's office announced that the state will be able to help test thousands of specimens from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

For more information regarding the coronavirus/COVID-19, visit the CDC's dedicated page.

The full State of Emergency declaration can be found here.