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Contra Costa County entered the COVID-19 red tier on Sunday, joining the remaining three Bay Area counties set to advance out of the state’s most restrictive tier early this week following an update to the thresholds for assignment to each tier, state public health officials said Friday.
Contra Costa, Monterey and Sonoma counties were previously expected to move out of the purple tier as soon as Tuesday due to their declining COVID-19 case and test positivity rates, but Contra Costa Health Services confirmed the county reached the red tier this Sunday (March 14).
The red tier brings with it the expansion of business activities, including the return of indoor dining, gyms and movie theaters at limited capacity. It also means public school districts can reopen middle and high schools for in-person instruction, which the San Ramon Valley Unified School District is scheduled to do on Wednesday (March 17).
Prior to Friday, counties needed a rate of new cases per day per 100,000 residents below seven, a test positivity rate of 8% or less and a positivity rate below 8.1% in their hardest-hit communities to move out of the purple tier.
However, now that more than 2 million vaccine doses have been administered in those hardest-hit areas, a goal set by state officials, the case rate threshold for the red tier will move to 10 cases per 100,000 residents.
The change allowed Contra Costa and Sonoma counties to move into the red tier on Sunday while Monterey County is on track to do so on Tuesday.
By Tuesday, 26 counties are expected to move to the red tier for the first time since last fall, prior to the state’s winter surge. In addition, all 11 counties in the greater Bay Area would be out of the purple tier.
“What that means, practically, is that California is making good strides in achieving the commitments to deliver doses to the hardest-hit communities across our state, making sure that our first line of protection is going to those places that have shouldered the greatest burden of disease,” state Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said in a media briefing Friday.
The move to the red tier allows Contra Costa County to resume indoor operations at 10-25% capacities for a litany of businesses such as restaurants, gyms, movie theaters and museums.
SRVUSD spokesperson Denise Jennison confirmed on Friday that the district remains locked in to reopening its middle and high school campuses to students for in-person learning under a hybrid system starting Wednesday morning (March 17). SRVUSD elementary schools, which were allowed to reopen in the purple tier, started welcoming back students Feb. 10.
In addition, outdoor stadiums and amusement parks in the three counties will be allowed to reopen at 20% and 15% capacity, respectively, as of April 1.
Contra Costa County Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano said in a statement that while the pandemic is not yet over, the tier change, plummeting case rates in the region and wider access to vaccines remain positive developments.
“It is encouraging to see our data moving in the right direction, and it’s a testament to the hard work Contra Costa residents have put in to slow the spread of COVID-19,” Farnitano said. “But it is important that we make healthy choices to keep up our momentum.”
Sonoma County Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase also praised her county’s effort to reduce the virus’ spread.
“From the staff providing vaccinations and testing, to the community organizations providing outreach and education, to every individual who is choosing to wear face coverings and practice social distancing, each of you is making a difference,” Mase said in a statement.
State officials intend to tweak the tier thresholds again once the state reached 4 million vaccinations in the hardest-hit communities.
With the tier changes set to take effect Sunday, 37 of the state’s 58 counties and roughly 65% of the state’s population will be out of the purple tier.
Key restrictions now lifted in the San Ramon Valley and the rest of Contra Costa County due to the red tier status include:
* Restaurants can offer indoor dining at 25% maximum capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
* Retail stores expand to 50% maximum capacity and food courts permitted with indoor dining restrictions.
* Grocery stores can expand to full capacity while following retail industry guidance.
* Movie theaters can reopen at 25% maximum capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
* Museums, zoos and aquariums can reopen at 25% maximum capacity.
* Gyms, fitness centers and studios (including at hotels) can open indoors at 10% maximum capacity. Climbing walls are permitted.
Editor’s note: Story by Bay City News Service, with DanvilleSanRamon editor Jeremy Walsh contributing localized information.
