Placer on track for lower coronavirus restrictions. What it means for restaurants, businesses

Things are looking up for Placer County.

According to the latest COVID-19 data collected by the county’s Health and Human Services Department and presented in Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, the county’s coronavirus cases and hospitalizations have decreased significantly since the summer, and the county is on track the be downgraded in the state’s monitoring system yet again, this time entering the orange tier.

Hospitalizations for COVID-19 hit a high in July with 68 people hospitalized in the county’s three hospitals. By the last week of September, hospitalizations had fallen to 19 people.

“It’s a really impressive trend to see,” said Dr. Robert Oldham, interim public health officer in his presentation to the board.

The case rate has also dropped from a high of 13.4 cases per 100,000 people in the summer to 3.2 by the end of September. Oldham said new data show that the case rate continues to drop and now stands at 2.5 cases per 100,000. The case rate had jumped briefly in September before falling again, a blip public health officials attributed to spread over Labor Day weekend from large gatherings, Oldham said.

The testing positivity rate is trending downward as well — a metric the state uses to gauge the prevalence of the virus — falling to 2.5% from a high of 6.4% in July.

Oldham said the county’s tier is on track to be moved if the numbers continue to hold through a second week, bringing more relaxed restrictions for restaurants, gyms and business owners.

“So no promises, but it looks like we may make to orange tier by next Tuesday, October 13,” he said. The state updates its color-colored tiers under the “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” each Tuesday.

Counties in the orange tier have “moderate” coronavirus spread. The weekly test positivity rate is between 2 and 5 percent. For every 100,000 residents, at least one person tests positive for coronavirus each day. Gyms can operate indoors at 25% capacity, restaurants at half capacity. Bars can operate outside only.

Placer County was downgraded to the state’s second most restrictive level of coronavirus monitoring to the second most restrictive, the red tier, allowing some businesses and schools to reopen Sept. 8.

That same day, the county’s Board of Supervisors also voted unanimously to end the county’s local state of emergency.

This story was originally published October 7, 2020 at 10:24 AM.