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LOOK AT WHERE THOSE NUMBERS CAME FROM AND GIVES US SOME CONTEXT. >> YOU MAY HAVE AND GOT CONCERNED LET’S DIG DEEPER. WHEN THE GOVERNOR TALKS ABOUT AN INFECTION RATE OF 56%, THAT IS 25 MILLION PEOPLE. IT IS A PROJECTION THAT ASSUMES WE WERE NOT ALL DOING THE SHELTER IN PLACE AND SOCIAL DISTANCING EFFORT, OR AS HE PUT IT, WE WERE JUST ALONG FOR THE RIDE. MOST PEOPLE GET INFECTED WILL BE JUST FINE. WHAT THE GOVERNOR IS WORRIED ABOUT IS THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO GO TO THE HOSPITAL. IF WE ASSUME 20% OF THOSE WHO GET INFECTED WILL NEED TO BE HOSPITALIZED, AND THE GOVERNOR ADMITS THAT IS ON THE HIGH SIDE, THAT IS 5 MILLION PEOPLE. ONLY ABOUT 45,000 AVAILABLE HOSPITAL BEDS IN THE ENTIRE STATE. THAT IS WHY THE GOVERNOR IS ISSUING THE ORDER.

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More than half of Californians are projected to contract the novel coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a letter to President Donald Trump asking for more resources. “We project that roughly 56 percent of our population -- 25.5 million people -- will be infected with the virus over an eight-week period,” Newsom said in the letter.Newsom cited the way COVID-19 has been spreading across the state to reach that projection.“In the last 24 hours, we had 126 new COVID-19 cases, a 21 percent increase,” the letter says. “In some parts of our state, our case rate is doubling every four days. Moreover, we have community acquired transmission in 23 counties with an increase of 44 community acquired infections in 24 hours.”| MORE | COVID-19 in California: The latest numbers and how to keep your family safeNewsom is asking the president to immediately deploy the USNS Mercy Hospital Ship to the Port of Los Angeles through Sept. 1 to help curb pressure on the state’s health care system as the number of COVID-19 cases increases."This resource will help decompress the health care delivery system to allow the Los Angeles region to ensure that it has the ability to address critical acute care needs, such as heart attacks and strokes or vehicle accidents, in addition to the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases," Newsom said in the letter. "The population density in the Los Angeles Region is similar to New York City, will be disproportionately impacted by the number of COVID-19 cases."The novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, is from the coronavirus family, which includes the common cold, but also includes more serious illnesses like SARS and MERS. While COVID-19 has a high transmission rate, it has a low mortality rate.This is a developing story. Stay with KCRA 3 for the latest.