Merced, Stanislaus counties remain in COVID red tier, Madera County moves to orange
As more coronavirus restrictions lift around California, Merced County is among nearly a dozen counties still lingering in the red tier of the state’s coronavirus reopening program.
Merced County is among 11 California counties that remain in red Tier 2, indicating continued “substantial” spread of the virus in the county. The others are Del Norte, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Solano, Stanislaus, Tehama and Yuba counties.
Meanwhile, nearby Madera County made enough progress with its rates of new COVID-19 cases, as well reducing the percentage of people who test positive for the virus, to advance from red Tier 2, representing “substantial” viral transmission, into orange Tier 3 in the latest assessments announced Tuesday morning by the California Department of Public Health.
Red tier is the second-most restrictive level of the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy. The blueprint and its tiers are intended to provide for a gradual reopening of businesses and other activities from broad closures and restrictions enacted last year to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus from person to person.
The differences in what can be open, and to what extent, are significant between the red and orange tiers. In the red tier, restaurants can open their dining rooms to serve customers, but only at 25% of capacity. Movie theaters, museums and some other indoor activities are also limited to 25% of capacity, while fitness clubs and gyms are limited to 10% of capacity.
In the orange tier, restaurants, movie theaters and museums can expand to 50% of their capacity, while gyms can be open at up to 25% of capacity.
Restrictions are also loosened in the orange tier for activities like private gatherings, private events, family entertainment centers and outdoor live events such as sports or concerts.
The red tier indicates that “substantial” transmission of the novel coronavirus is continuing in a county, based on the rate at which new daily cases of COVID-19 are arising and the percentage of people tested for the virus for whom results come back positive. Orange Tier 3 denotes “moderate” spread of the virus in a county.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans last month to fully reopen California’s economy and lift the blueprint tier system by mid-June under certain conditions, including if the state has enough vaccines to give coronavirus shots to anyone age 16 and older who wants one, and if hospitalization rates of COVID-19 cases are low and stable.
Valley counties’ case and testing rates reported Tuesday include:
Merced County, remaining in the red tier: A seven-day average of 7.8 new daily cases per 100,000 residents, down from 8.9 the prior week. Testing positivity was down slightly to 3.2%, compared to 3.3% a week earlier.
Kings County, remaining in the orange tier: A seven-day average of 4.6 new confirmed coronavirus cases each day per 100,000 residents, up from 4.2 a week prior. Testing positivity was unchanged at 1.5% of coronavirus tests coming back with positive results.
Madera County, now in the orange tier: A seven-day average of 3.1 new daily cases per 100,000 residents, down from 4.9 the prior week. Testing positivity was down to 1.6%, compared to 2.2% a week earlier.
Mariposa County, remaining in the orange tier: A seven-day average of 4.0 new daily cases per 100,000 residents, down from 7.2 a week earlier. Testing positivity was halved to 1.3%, compared to 2.6% the prior week.
Tulare County, remaining in the orange tier: A seven day average of 3.0 new daily cases per 100,000 residents, up from 2.7 a week earlier. Testing positivity was also up slightly, rising to 1.3% compared to 1.2% the prior week.
Merced County reports a new death
The Merced County Department of Public Health reported one new COVID-19 death Tuesday afternoon, raising the total of fatalities to 460 since the start of the pandemic.
The latest death was a man over the age of 65 who was known to have underlying health conditions.
The county also reported 38 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of residents infected by the virus to 31,859 since the start of the pandemic.
There are an estimated 370 residents actively infected by the virus.
The number of residents hospitalized in Merced County due to the coronavirus is 5.
Merced County has a positivity rate of 3.1%, indicating the level of people among those tested who had a positive result.
California has reported almost 3.7 million confirmed coronavirus cases since early 2020, including 61,241 deaths.
This story was originally published May 11, 2021 at 5:24 PM.
