Placer County is a COVID vaccine success story. So why is it still in Newsom’s red tier?

Placer County has been a leader in the Sacramento region in getting its residents vaccinated. Nearly 80% of those over the age of 65 have received at least one dose and nearly half the adult population is fully vaccinated.

So why is the county still in one of California’s more restrictive tiers for business openings?

“Our adjusted case rate continues to gradually improve,” said Dr. Rob Oldham, director of health and human services for the county. “We’re all hoping to move into the orange tier soon but we have not quite made it below the six cases per 100,000, the level that would allow Placer to move to the orange tier under the state’s tier framework.”

The county’s case rate now stands at 6.4 cases per 100,000 and a seven-day test positivity rate of 2.7%, nearing the cutoff for orange tier status.

And even though Placer County remains in the red tier, cases have stabilized since February, according to the county’s April epidemiology report. Health officials reported 1,295 new cases last month, down significantly from a peak in December, when 6,674 new cases were reported.

Of the residents who reported new cases in April, about half were interviewed by public health. Household transmission remains the largest source of transmission with 107 of 704 people reporting being in close contact with a household family member who had a confirmed case. Twenty people reported being in contact with someone at school who had a confirmed case, and six people reported contracting the virus at work.

Ninety-three people reported attending a large gathering.

But as Placer approaches the lower orange tier, so does Gov. Gavin Newsom’s June 15 deadline dissolving the tier framework and many of the restrictions that come with it.

Vaccines in Placer

Placer County recently surpassed more than 300,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses administered. Nearly 145,000 people in the county – roughly equivalent to the population of Roseville – have been fully vaccinated.

The county has announced plans to “demobilize” its vaccine clinic at the county fairgrounds in Roseville, which has been responsible for administering more than 80,000 vaccines since January and helping the county have one of the best vaccine rates in the region.

But now, as demand for the vaccine begins to decline and the county’s allocation dwindles, Oldham said the county will instead focus on targeting communities that may have trouble accessing the vaccine.

“As vaccine demand plateaus, we’re demobilizing the county’s mass vaccination clinic in the next few weeks and working together with our health system and pharmacy partners on community-based models to reach those who have gone unserved,” he said in an email to The Sacramento Bee.

Supervisor Cindy Gustafson, who represents the Lake Tahoe area, said she supported the move to “pop up” vaccine clinics especially for rural residents.

“There’s areas of our county where folks are transit dependent and trying to get to a vaccine appointment might mean taking a half day to a full day off of work in order to get vaccinated, and so I think the idea of the pop ups and getting into those communities of need is essential to keep us moving forward,” she said.

The decision to close the county clinic comes alongside data that shows the allocation of vaccine to Placer County dropped significantly during the month of April. During the week of March 29 to April 5, the county received 8,980 doses. But by the end of the month, during the week of April 26 to May 2, the county only received 2,340 doses.

Oldham said there’s still a lot of work to be done in reaching younger adults, especially those 34 and younger. About 30% of those 18 to 34 are fully vaccinated, and only 4% of those 18 and younger have received two vaccine doses, according to county data.

This story was originally published May 12, 2021 at 5:00 AM.