Beverly Hills Little League

Covid-19 Mitigation

Last Updated 8/8/2022

In compliance with recent state and county guidelines for youth sports during the Covid- 19 pandemic, the Board of Beverly Hills Little League (BHLL) has adopted the following updated program and safety protocols for the 2022 Baseball Season. Safety will always be BHLL’s priority. BHLL will update these guidelines as necessary.

Eligible Players & Coaches

A coach in good standing with BHLL (including current PCA, concussion, and abuse training) is eligible to volunteer.

Coaches will be required to be familiar with and enforce the League’s safety protocols. All participants including coaches will have to a sign waiver of liabilities to participate in the Fall Program.

By participating in the league, all parents, guardians, adult coaches, and umpires agree to allow sharing of required SARS-CoV-2 testing results and vaccination status with whoever needs to know this information to satisfy testing and BHLL vaccination requirements, to establish player eligibility, and to fulfill Los Angeles County mandated procedures for reporting of positive test results.

Equipment & Snacks

Participants should bring their own equipment.

BHLL will supply necessary equipment to any participant lacking proper equipment due to financial challenges.

Depending on the division, the league will provide one to two set of catching equipment for each team and each catcher’s mask should only be used by one player each day unless sanitized between each use. The equipment shall be sanitized after each game.

Masks

Masks are recommended but not required when in the dugouts or in close contact with other team members or staff.

When outdoors, masks are recommended but not required in crowded spaces among spectators.

Any player having trouble breathing while wearing mask must take a break.

Travel

It is recommended that you get tested 3-5 days after travel if your travel included situations with crowded places while not wearing a well-fitting mask.

Travel is defined as travel by means other than your own vehicle or out of state travel in your own vehicle.

Rules if a Close Contact is Infected With SARS-CoV-2

To be a “close contact” you have been within 6 feet for more than 15 cumulative minutes (in 24 hours) of someone who has been diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2.

Follow strict mask use during all team activities for 10 days.

To be eligible to continue with team activities, ALL close contacts are required to have a negative test on day 5 after the exposure.

Procedure For Positive Tests or Individuals Symptomatic for COVID-19

Participants parents or legal guardians will notify the coach and the league safety officer at bhllcovidsafety@gmail.com when a positive test occurs in a player or close contact of the player.

Duration of isolation and precautions after a positive test are as mandated by the LA County Department of Public Health.

Screening for Infection

Home-Based Symptom Screening should include monitoring for the following:

  • Temperature 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher
  • Sore throat o Cough (for students with chronic cough due to allergies or asthma, a change in their cough from usual)
  • Difficulty breathing (for students with asthma, check for a change from their baseline breathing)
  • Diarrhea or vomiting
  • New onset of severe headache, especially with a fever

If a child has ANY of these symptoms, they should:

  • Get tested for SARS-CoV-2.
  • Notify the child’s pediatrician, coach, and the league safety officer. The safety officer may ask some additional questions to help determine when it is safe for the child to return to the team and about other people who may have been exposed.
  • Stay home until the results of the test are known.
  • If negative, they will need to submit proof of the test before returning to team activities.
  • If positive, the athlete must complete the required isolation (outlined above) before returning to team activities.

Vaccination

It is strongly recommended that all participants are fully up-to-date with vaccination because this is the primary mechanism to protect all members of the community and limit disruptions in team activities.

Up-to-date means a person has received all recommended COVID-19 vaccines, including any booster dose(s) when eligible.

The LA County Department of Public health mandates that youth sports leagues or coaches maintain records of all athletes’ and staff/coaches’/volunteers’ vaccination status. To satisfy this requirement, all athletes, coaches, and volunteers are required to submit notice of vaccination status to the coach for their respective team by the time of the first in person team activity.

Coaches are asked to forward the information to the league safety officer at Bhllcovidsafety@gmail.com by the start of the season and during the season whenever there is a change in status.

Weekly Testing for SARS-CoV-2

Routine testing is not recommended for people who show proof that they are up-to-date with vaccination against COVID-19 or that they have recovered from/completed isolation for laboratory confirmed COVID-19 within the past 90 days. However, testing will be necessary should such an individual display symptom of Covid-19.

Per Department of Public Health guideline, if there is a positive case on a team, all players, staff/coaches/volunteers (regardless of vaccination status) on that team are recommended to have a weekly negative test result for two weeks from exposure.

A weekly negative test is strongly recommended for individuals ages 12 and older who are not up-to-date with vaccination.

Coaches should maintain records of all athletes’ and staffs’/coaches’/volunteers’ vaccination status and any testing done after an exposure to a COVID-19 case.

They do not need to keep a copy of the vaccination cards or test results but must maintain records. These will be audited randomly during the season and any coach whose records are not in compliance with league policy will face disciplinary action.

Additional Protocols

Non-athletic team events, such as team dinners or other social activities, should only happen if they can be held outdoors.

Parents will not be allowed on the field.

There will be a minimum 7-day suspension of all team activities for any youth sports team in which there has been an outbreak of four or more epidemiologically linked cases over a 14-day period.