Coronavirus: More than one million file for unemployment in California

‘We just passed the 1 million mark, in terms of the number of claims, just since March 13’

Mr Newsom announced the figure on Wednesday (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press)

California governor Gavin Newsom has revealed that one million residents have claimed for unemployment over the last two weeks, amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A number of businesses have been forced to close over that period and the state has been under a stay at home order since 19 March.

“We just passed the 1 million mark, in terms of the number of claims, just since March 13,” Mr Newsom said on Wednesday.

He added that the senate relief bill that will be voted on today would help the state offer $150 more per person a week for unemployment insurance, raising the amount to $600.

“This bill will be very helpful, and it’s very timely,” Mr Newsom said.

San Francisco ordered a shelter-in-place order on 16 March, becoming the first region in the country to impose such measures on residents.

Although the measure is often used for immediate incidents, like active shooters, the order forced residents to stay inside, only permitting them to leave for essential needs.

The City and County of San Francisco explained in their order that “everyone else is required to stay home except to get food, care for a relative or friend, get necessary health care, or go to an essential job.”

The stay at home order enforced by Mr Newsom three days later did not change much for San Francisco, but meant the whole state had to stay at home, except for essential needs.

According to a tracking project hosted by Johns Hopkins University, upwards of 65,174 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the US. The death toll has reached at least 921.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended a two-week ban on gatherings of more than 50 people as part of the battle to contain the spread of the contagion.