Stanislaus County has been given the approval by the California Department of Public Health to move down one tier in the Blueprint for a Safer Economy, clearing the path for businesses to expand operations or in some instances reopen their doors.
Stanislaus County was able to move to the Red Tier because it met the two needed metrics and stayed there for two weeks. Under the Red Tier, daily new cases have to fall between four to seven per 100,000 residents and the positivity test rate has to be between five to eight percent. As of Tuesday, Stanislaus County has a case rate of 6.3 per 100,000 residents and a testing positive rate of 3.7%.
The primary changes allowed under the state order as Stanislaus moves into this tier include:
• Mall, outdoor malls, and other retail establishments opening indoors at 50% capacity;
• Museums, Zoos, Aquariums, Restaurants, Movie Theaters, and Places of Worship
opening indoors at 25% capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer;
• Gyms, Fitness Centers, Hotels and Lodging opening indoors with 10% capacity; and
• Personal care services opening indoors with modifications.
“Moving out of Tier One has truly been a community-wide effort involving changes in everyday activities and we thank all of you,” said Stanislaus County Public Health Officer, Dr. Julie Vaishampayan. “We can’t let our guard down. The virus is still here and we are seeing a significant amount of spread. In order to keep moving towards Tier Four, we must continue to give space to others, wear a face covering, wash hands frequently, and get tested if you have been exposed or have symptoms of COVID-19.”
The move to the red tier means COVID-19 spread in the County is still considered substantial by the CDPH.
“Our progress to Tier 2 is a result of our community coming together and we want to thank everyone for doing their part in helping with this change,” said Lori Williams, Director of Stanislaus County Public Health. “Reducing the spread of COVID-19 has always been our goal and we appreciate our community for sharing this responsibility with us. While we are not completely out of risk, we are definitely moving in the right direction and we encourage our community members to continue working with us in getting to Tier 4.”
In order to move to Tier Three, (Orange Moderate), Stanislaus County must remain in the Red Tier for three consecutive weeks and have less than four cases per 100,000 residents and a positivity rate less than 5% for two consecutive weeks. Additionally, the County must meet the health equity metric requirements for testing and resources.
Other neighboring counties in the Red Tier include, San Joaquin County, Merced County, Fresno County, and Sacramento County. To continue achieving these milestones, SCHSA is working with various community-based organizations to ensure testing and educational resources are available in all communities within Stanislaus County. Upcoming mobile testing events and additional locations are available on the SCHSA website at http://www.schsa.org/corona-virus/testing/.
Stanislaus County Public Health encourages the community to continue following recommendations and to get tested if they have been exposed to a person with COVID-19, have symptoms, or have gathered with others outside of their household. Free testing is available in Stanislaus County through partnerships with Optum Serve at website https://lhi.care/covidtesting and Project Baseline at website https://www.projectbaseline.com/study/covid-19/.
