california government response to the covid-19 pandemic california government response to the covid-19 pandemic the government of california initially responded to the covid-19 pandemic in the state with a statewide lockdown, the first of its kind during the covid-19 pandemic in the united states. as the pandemic progressed in california and throughout the rest of the country, the california government, following recommendations issued by the u.s. government regarding state and local government responses, began imposing social distancing measures and workplace hazard controls. map of the outbreak in california by confirmed new infections per 100,000 people over 14 days (last updated march 2021) 1,000+ 500–1,000 200–500 100–200 50–100 20–50 10–20 0–10 no confirmed new cases or no/bad data map of the outbreak in california by confirmed total infections per 100,000 people (last updated march 2021) 10,000+ 3,000–10,000 1,000–3,000 300–1,000 100–300 30–100 0–30 no confirmed infected or no data background