The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion Tuesday to explore the possibility of offering supplemental paid sick leave for people who contract confirmed or suspected monkeypox, and potentially future infectious diseases that require isolation and quarantine.
Sponsored by Supervisors Hilda Solis and Sheila Kuehl, the motion directs county attorneys to report back to the board in three weeks on how the county could implement a paid sick leave policy for people who contact monkeypox, or other new and emerging infectious diseases.
The motion also urges Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign legislation that would extend the state's COVID-19 sick leave law through the end of the year.
The motion was unanimously passed.
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During the meeting, Solis said both COVID-19 and monkeypox disproportionately affect essential workers, who are predominantly Black and Latino/a and might not be able to take the recommended five to 10 days to isolate for COVID-19 -- much less the two to four weeks needed to isolate for the duration of a monkeypox diagnosis.
