DENVER – Government Jared Polis said Thursday that bringing the table back inside led to its decision to ask state health officials to move Denver and other large counties from the Red Level to the state’s COVID-19 disk to the Orange Level.
“There are ways to have a fairly safe dining experience inside,” Polis told Denver7 in an interview Thursday morning.
Moving the counties from the Red Level to the Orange Level would allow the return to the restaurants inside, which has been banned for weeks at the Red Level. The orange level would still require 25% internal capacity limits for restaurants.
Polis’ request, which he posted on social media on Wednesday night, would reduce restrictions in 33 Colorado counties currently on the Red Level. Polis cited a decrease in COVID-19 cases and an improvement in ICU capacity at the state level.
“During this pandemic, we had to cross a difficult line between the public health crisis and the economic crisis,” Polis said in a late post. “Reviewing the data today, Colorado has been in a sustained decline for 13 days and only 73% of ICU beds statewide are used.”
Two weeks ago, Dr. Jonathan Samet, dean of the Colorado School of Public Health, who leads the state’s data modeling team, co-authored a paper in The Denver Post with Elizabeth Carlton, an associate professor at the University. from Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, arguing against the inner table.
“Study after study, restaurants are linked to the spread of coronavirus,” wrote Samet and Carlton. “The evidence comes from scientific studies investigating sources of outbreaks, the impact of policies and recent activities of infected people.”
Their views acknowledged that keeping the table indoors will be “devastating” for restaurants, but “will help us survive the pandemic.”
“Let’s make sure the restaurants have the support they need to survive,” Samet and Carlton wrote.
However, on Thursday, Dr. Jill Hunsaker Ryan, executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment, said: “The 13-day decline is a strong indication that we are moving in the right direction. Coloradans have managed to slow down the spread, and we need them to continue to follow public health protocols – such as continuing to interact only with those they live with, especially during the holidays. “
“In general, low-red countries have reduced viral transmission to a point where we can provide economic relief and move them to the orange level, recognizing that economic burdens also cause poorer health outcomes,” Ryan said. “We aim to work with local public health agencies on the next steps. Counties are always able to establish more restrictive orders than the state, if they choose to.”
When asked on Thursday if it is on the same page as CDPHE, Polis said the decision to move from Red to Orange would be a “regional call,” meaning if a Denver subway county moves to Orange, probably that others will do the same.
The move to the Orange Level could take place as early as next week, Polis said.
Denver health officials said Thursday that the move to Orange will include Denver County and is a sign of a number of “trends in the right direction.” Denver will move to the Orange Level on Monday.
Arapahoe County announced on Thursday that it will move to Orange, given the governor’s request. Adams County later announced that it will move to Orange, starting Monday. Broomfield has also joined the list of counties, announcing that it will move to Orange on Monday.