There are now 15 people with COVID-19 in the hospital and six of those are in the intensive care unit. At the time, some health officials including Contra Costa County Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano and Marin County Deputy Public Health Officer Dr. Lisa Santora said their counties will monitor hospitalization numbers in determining when to lift the mandate. "I think California is ready," said University of California San Francisco Prof. of Medicine Dr. Peter Chin-Hong. View the California Department of Public Healths Vaccine "We estimate that there are around 68,000 currently eligible and unvaccinated residents. Decrease, Reset Consistent with the SMARTER Plan and our adaptation of the SarsCoV-2 virus in our lives, California is updating its masking guidance. And while the county plans to align with the state's . Marin was the first to enter the yellow tier a week and a half ago, and was followed shortly after by San Mateo County. Hanh Truong is a reporter on The Sacramento Bees service journalism desk. from the federal government. How to tell the difference as spring nears, Where are masks still needed in California? The mask mandate for BUSD schools will be in place until the end of the 2021-2022 school year. Helping everyone in San Mateo County live longer & better lives. Effective April 3, 2023,the updated guidance is intended to provide information that each Californian should consider based on their unique circumstances. retired. UPDATE: California mask rules are changing but not disappearing. "Weve talked about following the science as we place new restrictions, and the local mask mandate helped control the fourth wave," he said. On March 12, California will also lift the mask mandate in K-12 schools, public transit, healthcare facilities, detention centers and senior care or childcare centers. Heres when youll need one, COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have increased, coronavirus cases reaching record highs following the holidays, counties that do not have existing guidelines on masks, those who travel in or out of California get tested for COVID, No vaccine rule for some. at local pharmaciessuch asCVS,Safeway,Albertsons,Walgreens, Heres when youll need one. Espaol, - Updated booster shots are She was previously a freelance journalist, covering education and culture for PBS SoCal and music for buzzbands.la. All Rights Reserved. Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, Santa Clara and Sonomawere all in the orange tier, indicating "substantial" community spread, on Friday morning. "With things moving in the right direction, we are making responsible modifications to COVID-19 prevention measures, while also continuing to develop a longer-term action plan for the state.". For additionalinformation on testing guidance from the The state recommends those who travel in or out of California get tested for COVID within three to five days. Hazardous Materials Business Plan Program, California Accidental Release Prevention Program (CalARP), Aboveground Petroleum Storage Tank Program. With over 90% of our eligible community fully vaccinated, weve earned another margin of normalcy.". Im not sure that the mask mandate being dropped had much of an impact because the majority of people who come into the theater still wear masks.. The universal mask mandate was implemented, along with other COVID-19 recommendations, on Dec. 15 for four weeks. Wearing a mask is recommended in indoor public places. These public health recommendations will be updated as CDPH continues to assess conditions on an ongoing basis. We can say that, while the summer surge of COVID-19 likely peaked in mid to late August in Contra Costa, our case rates and hospitalization totals remain high, comparable to last winter. In-home COVID-19 vaccinations and boostersare available Consider wearing a mask in indoor public places. Large-scale indoor events will have vaccination or negative test requirements for attendees through at least October 1. vaccinationswill conclude on June 30. Maria Medina Wilson Walker contributed reporting. 3. Heres why, She couldnt recognize her dad after COVID, study says. 1-833-4CA4ALL In fact, Napa County's case rate actually increased week-over-week. Persons may use information about the current CDC COVID-19 community levels in their county to guide which prevention behaviors to use and when (at all times or at specific times) based on their own risk for severe illness and that of members of their household, their risk tolerance, and setting-specific factors. San Mateo County joined seven other Bay Area jurisdictions in requiring masks in public indoor settings after COVID-19 has resurged in the region. Most hope that Californias latest ordinance will end the cycle of strict safety instruction and dangerous COVID-19 surges. Weve been wearing masks for almost two years so itll be nice to see each others faces again. On Feb. 16, San Mateo County followed the California state government order to relax mask mandates. By aligning with the state masking rules, the participating Bay "And hopefully, fingers crossed, they'll continue in the right direction for the next several months.". When will Bay Area counties lift COVID-19 mask mandates issued in response to delta surge? Here's what all seven counties said when asked about the future of indoor mask mandates. While Marin's move into the yellow is promising, it needs to remain at that level for 21 consecutive days. San Mateo County to lift indoor mask mandate on February 16. by Linda Hubbard on February 9, 2022. Local health departments that had mask requirements before Dec. 13 will continue mandating existing health orders. Please enter valid email address to continue. Contra Costa, Napa and Sonoma are further away with case rates of 67.97, 65.34 and 57.86, respectively. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are trending downwards across the San Francisco Bay Area, precipitously so in some counties. Read more here. Last week, Los Angeles County public health director Barbara Ferrer said the winter surge will be considered over in the nation's most populous county when hospitalizations fall below 2,500 for seven days in a row. With the end of the California COVID-19 State of Emergency, it is appropriate to revise our current masking framework. county dashboard estimates 0% ICU capacity, Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). clinics at congregate care facilities, including skilled nursing PCR testing remains widely available through health care providers and pharmacies. In summary: When - The California indoor mask mandate expired at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. Most of the U.S. population 5 years of age and older has antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, either from vaccination or infection that can serve as a foundation for the protection provided by the bivalent vaccines, an FDA official said. San Mateo County has followed the state in lifting its indoor mask mandate for vaccinated persons, effective February 16. . County Health Officer Farnitano had previously said hospitalization numbers will be used to determine when to lift the mandate, and the most recent seven-day average for hospitalizations in the county is 188 patients, down from the peak of 220 on Aug. 23. This includes persons with a medical condition for whom wearing a mask could obstruct breathing or who are unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove a mask without assistance. Clock starts for first Bay Area county to lift COVID mask mandate, Horoscope for Monday, 5/01/23 by Christopher Renstrom, Destructive landslide closes historic California institution, Dubs fans picking apart video of possible Poole-Draymond incident, Major SF retail store slated to permanently close, Warriors' biggest hater made a cowardly Game 7 'bet', Draymond Green rips Domantas Sabonis: 'Lost a lot of respect', Esalen Institute sued over alleged use of video with the N-word, More rain, 'unseasonably chilly' temperatures coming to Bay Area, Winter returns to California with snow, hail and rain, Bay Area mom influencer found guilty of lying about kidnapping, Shock, fear as 2 killings in 3 days rock quiet Davis, Bay Area preschool teacher suspected of dumping body along road, In search of vegan food, I found a world-class Mendocino inn, What you should wear to Disneyland in May. "But not committing to any single metric. CDPH Masking Guidance Frequently Asked Questions. Before resuming the masking requirement in December, California had lifted the requirement for people who were vaccinated as of June 15, a date that Newsom had described then as the state's grand reopening. In recent days, county data shows that daily COVID hospitalizations have dropped to 84 as of Monday, compared to over 100 in recent weeks. He is an East Bay native who has a Master's degree in journalism from Stanford University. California Department of Public Health (CDPH), please view the The universal mask mandate was implemented, along with other COVID-19 recommendations, on Dec. 15 for four weeks. As of Friday, 81% of Marin's population was fully vaccinated. to Default, Certificates, Licenses, Permits and Registrations, Registered Environmental Health Specialist, California Health Facilities Information Database, Chronic Disease Surveillance and Research, Division of Radiation Safety and Environmental Management, Center for Health Statistics and Informatics, Medical Marijuana Identification Card Program, Office of State Public Health Laboratory Director, at risk of severe illness of death if they are infected with COVID-19, Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulations, Cal/OSHA Aerosol Transmissible Diseases (ATD) PDF, CDPH Masking Guidance Frequently Asked Questions, COVID-19 Guidance for Child Care Providers and Programs, CDC Science Brief: Community Use of Masks to Control the Spread of SARS-CoV-2, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Merchant said the county is working with community-based organizations, medical leaders and community leaders to educate residents on vaccine safety and efficacy and the risks posed by COVID-19. California joined Oregon and Washington in lifting school mask mandates, officials announced Monday. MS 0500 First published on February 7, 2022 / 11:00 PM. That's almost 10 times higher than the low point in June, despite a countywide vaccination rate of 78% among residents age 12 and older. formto request a vaccine clinic at a congregate California health officials said Monday that they are "continuing to work with education, public health and community leaders to update masking requirements at schools to adapt to changing conditions and ensure the safety of kids, teachers, and staff.". However, he said people should use more caution in settings where there is a lot of movement, including grocery stores and malls. Helping everyone in San Mateo County live longer & better lives. Health,Dignity "We're still in 'purple' equivalent and would want to see numbers closer to orange," he wrote. There is medium community spread and impact on healthcare system of COVID-19. What does that mean? People who are hearing impaired or need to communicate with a person who is hearing impaired are also not subject to the mandate. Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines in San Mateo County: https://www.smchealth.org/covidvaccine, Learn more about COVID-19 testing options in San Mateo County: https://www.smcgov.org/testing, Requirements for all industries after June 15: https://covid19.ca.gov/industry-guidance/#can-open, Access community resources: People who are experiencing homelessness or unsafe living conditions where they cannot afford safe shelter are encouraged to try to stay with family or friends, identify housing options, or access emergency resources such as shelter.