Sisolak Update; 10 Person Groups & Chloroquine Restrictions

Groups of 10 or More Prohibited

Gov. Sisolak has banned groups of 10 or more from gathering. The actual details are unavailable because the order has not been made publicly available yet. The gov.nv.gov page for Emergency Directives does not seem to be updated in any haste. So from now on, it's illegal to have more than 9 people in a group, excluding members of the same household.

The Governor's Facebook page said this, without a link to the actual order.

Today I signed an emergency directive prohibiting gatherings of groups of 10 or more in any indoor or outdoor public area to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. This does not apply to those in the same household or services or patronizing related to an essential business.

This is what the Review-Journal said:

​The governor said the restriction on under-10 group size includes indoor and outdoor public spaces such as social clubs, parks, libraries, parking lots, playgrounds and sports fields. Members of the same household are exempt from the restriction.
“You may enjoy a daily walk in the park with others in your household. But please, maintain a safe distance from those that are also enjoying the public spaces,” the governor said.

It remains to be seen if police will enforce this. Probably not, unless you make it really obvious and are obstinate about dispersing. 

Questions about the constitutionality of infringing on the right to peaceably assemble come into question. What if there are multiple groups of nine, each member of the group six feet apart, and the groups are spaced 20 feet from each other? Does this apply to churches? Does this apply to lawful protests? 

These orders are too unclear and it has to be questioned what the risk is of people catching the infection in open air if proper distances are maintained.

Sisolak Restricts Chloroquine Prescriptions

UPDATE: The governor said on Twitter "This regulation DOES NOT prohibit prescription of these drugs for inpatient treatment. In other words, if a doctor in a hospital or emergency room setting wants to prescribe these drugs to treat a patient diagnosed with COVID-19, he or she is still free to do so."

Slow, sarcastic clap for the poor communication and terribly written order.

UPDATE: This prohibits use for COVID-19 patients. Here is the actual order and proposal. If it turns out that chloroquine is safe and works to treat the infection, blood will be on the hands of these doctors and Sisolak for denying them life saving treatment. I hope doctors and pharmacists ignore this order.

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Gov. Sisolak has signed a public health order restricting prescriptions of hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malarial drug touted by many doctors and President Trump as effective in treating COVID-19. The federal government is allowing use of the drug on an experimental basis in compassionate use. The drug is also used regularly to treat lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and other medical issues.

It appears the order allows the drug to be prescribed in hospital settings and is intended to prevent doctors from writing prescriptions to hoard it for anticipated future COVID cases. The concern is that doctors will write scripts to patients who want to have the drugs on hand "just in case" and the state wants to keep them for those who legitimately need the drugs. Of course, this drug has to be prescribed by a doctor as it's not available over the counter. 

Here is the actual press release from Nevada Health Response.

​While the drugs serve necessary medical purposes, there is no consensus among COVID-19 experts or Nevada’s own medical health advisory team that the two drugs provide treatment for COVID-19 patients. The emergency regulation is aimed at preventing hoarding of the drugs. [...]

The regulation prohibits the prescribing and dispensing chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for a COVID-19 diagnosis, requires an ICD-10 code on prescriptions for the drugs and limits the prescription amount to a 30-day supply for the drugs.

As the Las Vegas Sun put it:

Nevada’s governor has signed an emergency order barring the use of anti-malaria drugs for someone who has the coronavirus.

Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak’s order Tuesday restricting chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine comes after President Donald Trump touted the medication as a treatment for the virus.

Trump last week falsely stated that the Food and Drug Administration had just approved the use of chloroquine to treat patients infected with coronavirus. After the FDA’s chief said the drug still needs to be tested for that use, Trump overstated the drug’s potential benefits in containing the virus.

Sisolak said in a statement that there’s no consensus among experts or Nevada doctors that the drugs can treat people with COVID-19. His order also limits a prescription to a 30-day supply to ensure it’s available for “legitimate medical purposes” and so that people cannot find a way to stockpile the drug.

However, the Reno Gazette-Journal said it was not a total ban:

The order is not an absolute ban. Doctors in hospitals and emergency rooms can still prescribe these drugs to treat a patient diagnosed with COVID-19 if they so choose. The drugs will be restricted in outpatient settings to prevent hoarding.
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