California's official state of emergency for COVID to end in February, Newsom says

LOS ANGELES -- A state of emergency that was declared to help California tackle the COVID-19 pandemic will officially end as of February, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday.

Newsom said the state will wait until near the end of the winter season before ending the state of emergency to give the health care system the flexibility to handle any surge in COVID cases that may occur during the holidays.

The emergency was declared during the pandemic to help the state marshal resources to assist in vaccination efforts, distribution of personal protective equipment, processing coronavirus tests among other activities.

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It will end as of Feb. 28, 2023, Newsom said.

Even afterward, the state's COVID response will continue to follow a program known as the "SMARTER Plan." Details on that plan are available here.

"The State of Emergency was an effective and necessary tool that we utilized to protect our state, and we wouldn't have gotten to this point without it," Newsom said. "With the operational preparedness that we've built up and the measures that we'll continue to employ moving forward, California is ready to phase out this tool."

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