DENVER – Colorado will change its COVID-19 calling system again next Wednesday to allow counties to have more flexibility in easing business restrictions as the state vaccinates more people.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment (CDPHE) announced the changes in a press release issued Friday at 6 p.m. The department is taking feedback on the proposed changes by noon on Monday, before finalizing the call changes on Tuesday, which will take effect Wednesday.
“Coloradans have made significant sacrifices to reduce the spread of disease, so it’s time to update the dial to reflect this reality, plus the growing number of people who are immunized,” said CDPHE CEO Jill Hunsaker Ryan. This updated proposal is based on Colorado disease and vaccination rates, plus input from local public health agencies and local governments, and we are looking to help the public refine further.
CDPHE
CDPHE says it will make changes again by mid-April to “move to a more local model, allowing local public health agencies to take more control over the capacity constraints that are currently determined by the dial.” . The last change of the dial at the beginning of February.
Among the changes in the last proposal are:
· There are no longer state limits on the size of personal gatherings, but a request for people to follow CDC guidelines to avoid large gatherings.
· Counties will be able to apply for the least restrictive phase, Level Green, if they have 35 or fewer cases of COVID per 100,000 people. The metric had previously been 15 cases per 100,000 people.
· In Level Green, bars, gyms and indoor event spaces will be able to operate at a capacity of 50% for up to 500 people, any of which is smaller, but most of the other restrictions have been removed.
· Blue Level counties will be allowed to open bars with a capacity of 25% of 75 people, whichever is less.
· Level Blue and Level Green outdoor event spaces will no longer have capacity restrictions, but counties may choose to implement them locally
· Retail trade, offices and non-critical production locations in the counties of Level Blue can operate with a capacity of up to 75%, from 50%.
· Blue 5-star businesses can operate with a capacity of up to 60% if they do not exceed 50 people above the caps for restaurants and indoor events and 25 people above the lid for gyms.
You can find out more about capacity restrictions in the draft proposal by clicking here. And you can find out more about the updated “Dial 3.0” value proposition by clicking here. Coloradans can review the changes by clicking here and can send feedback here.
These proposed updates reflect the growing number of coloradans who have received a COVID-19 vaccine in the last four months. People aged 70 and over accounted for 38% of all hospitalizations during the Colorado pandemic. Almost 80% of this age group is fully vaccinated, and vaccines will become available to all Colorado residents over the age of 16 by mid-April, “CDPHE said in a press release.
“The role of the state in continuing to impose state-level restrictions is diminishing, and the role of local communities in regulating and managing the virus is growing.”