San Joaquin County once again moved from the purple tier to the red tier in California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, as California Governor Newsom announced the possibility of opening the entire state.
California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy tracks COVID-19 cases, vaccinations, and health equity in each county to determine which businesses can operate and what their maximum capacity will be. The system has been modified several times over the past year.
On April 6, 2021, San Joaquin County finally moved from the purple widespread tier back to the red substantial tier. This allows. The counties’ metrics are currently at 9.9 new COVID-19 cases per day per 100K, 4.0% positivity rate (7-day average), and 3.4% health equity quartile positivity rate. The color-coded system is outlined in the image below.
Click here for more info on California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
What the red tier means for businesses: Retail and shopping centers can open with 50% maximum indoor capacity. Museums, zoos, aquariums, places of worship, movie theaters, and restaurants can open with 25% max indoor capacity. Amusement Parks and Fairs can reopen with 15% max capacity. Gyms can reopen with 10% max capacity. Click here for more, detailed information.
Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced the possibility of eliminating the color-coded system and reopening the state with common sense measures (such as wearing masks). As long as hospitalization rates remain low and the state keeps a stable supply of COVID vaccines for everyone 16 years of age and older, the state is set to fully reopen by June 15, 2021. This comes after the news of California administering 20 million vaccinations, and fully vaccinating nearly 7.5 million of its 40 million+ residents. The state plans to open vaccine eligibility to everyone 16 and older by April 15, 2021.
Some are speculating that the latest recall effort is the driving force behind Governor Newsom’s decision to reopen the state. After several failed attempts at recalls, the latest effort does not look so well for Governor Newsom. Signatures are still being verified and have until an April 29th deadline. Governor Newsom said the recall had nothing to do with this move to reopen the state, but instead he is focused on the COVID-19 data (Source: CBS News. California to fully reopen June 15 if state meets specific criteria, governor says. April 7, 2021.)