APRIL 9, 2021
A5
T he C oast News
Coronavirus County to orange tier, curfew lifted for restaurants, bars By City News Service
REGION — San Diego County has moved into the less-restrictive orange tier of the state’s coronavirus reopening system, and a 10 p.m. curfew for all restaurants, bars, breweries, distilleries and wineries was lifted as public health officials reported 328 new infections and three deaths. The county was able to move to the orange tier Wednesday because the state administered 4 million vaccinations in low-income communities hardest hit by the pandemic. That goal triggered an adjustment of the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, allowing San Diego County — which has reported fewer than 6 cases per every 100,000 residents for the last two weeks — to move up. The orange tier includes restaurants being able to operate at 50% of capacity — or 200 customers, whichever is fewer — while bars without food service may begin outdoors operations. Museums, zoos, aquariums, movie theaters and places of worship may have 50% of capacity indoors. Amusement parks may increase attendance to 25% of capacity for in-state visitors. Gyms, bowling alleys and family entertainment centers can allow 25% capacity indoors and indoor pools can reopen. Sporting events, concerts and other live events can increase attendance to 33% of capacity for in-state fans. There will be no capacity limits for indoor retail shopping. Wednesday’s COVID-19 data increased the county’s cumulative totals to 272,194 cases and 3,588 since the pandemic began. The three deaths were men who died between March 3 and March 21. One was in his 80s, one in his 70s and one in his 60s, health officials said. Of the 14,322 tests reported Wednesday, 2% returned positive. The 14- day running average as tallied by the county is 2.2%. More than 2.06 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been delivered to San Diego County, according to the San Diego County
ORANGE TIER includes restaurants operating at 50% of capacity — or 200 customers, whichever is fewer — while bars without food service may begin outdoors operations. File photo
Health & Human Services Agency, and 1,066,410 county residents — or 39.7% -have received at least one dose of the two-dose vaccines. A total of 625,632 people in San Diego County — or 23.3% — are fully vaccinated. These numbers include both county residents and those who work in San Diego County. The state’s goal is to vaccinate 75% of people 16 and older to achieve herd immunity — around 2.02 million San Diego County residents. Seven new community outbreaks were reported Wednesday: three in business settings, two in grocery/retail settings, one in a faith-based setting and one in a restaurant/bar setting. On a broader scale, California health officials said Tuesday that all state COVID-19 restrictions on businesses, gatherings and recreational activities will be lifted June 15, although a mask mandate will remain in place. The June 15 date could be adjusted if the state begins over the next two months to experience rises in hospitalization numbers or a sudden lack of vaccine supply. Officials urged all residents to ensure the move occurs on time by continuing to practice infec-
tion-control measures. Both San Diego State University and UC San Diego detailed plans Wednesday to return to in-person learning for the fall semester. UCSD initially announced the change Monday before providing more details Wednesday. UCSD officials said they expects around 90% of students and 85% of on-site staff to be fully vaccinated by the fall quarter. Campus residence halls will be at near 100% occupancy, with no more than two students per room, according to a UCSD statement. Facial coverings will still be required in all public spaces, while physical distancing guidelines are expected to be reduced from six feet to three feet in most settings. Nearly 10,000 students have been living on campus since fall 2020, while thousands more living off campus have attended daily in-person classes. During that time, the school boasts an infection rate of less than .05% among those students, according to the university. SDSU had fewer details readily available, but announced plans to share updated guidance next week for faculty members and researchers intended to allow them to gain increased ac-
cess to their on-campus research and academic spaces this spring. A more comprehensive return to academic spaces is expected in late summer, according to SDSU officials. Over the next few weeks, deans and associate deans will be working with department chairs, school directors and instructional faculty to explore options and update the course schedule as appropriate. The SDSU fall schedule release has been pushed back to May 10 from April 12, and fall registration has been shifted from April 19 to May 25 to allow for more time formulating schedules.
Supervisors OK COVID-related grants, discuss future funding REGION — The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted today to accept nearly $124 million in state funding for with contact tracing, mitigation and other strategies in combating further spread of the coronavirus. The $123,774,567 comes from state Depart-
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ment of Public Health, via the U.S. Centers for Disease Control Prevention, according to Dr. Wilma Wooten, the county’s public health officer. The supervisors also formally accepted a $629,000 federal grant from the CDC that will allow the county to focus on a racial and ethnic approach to community health. Supervisors additionally approved establishing a framework on how to spend future COVID-related relief funding, courtesy of the American Rescue Plan Act, which Congress recently passed and President Joe Biden signed into law. When it’s available, ARPA will provide hundreds of millions of dollars in COVID relief, including rental assistance and up to $40 million in hazard pay for county employees, officials said. Board Chairman Nathan Fletcher cautioned that ARPA funding hasn’t officially been allocated, so supervisors and county staffers have time to finalize how that money will be spent. “One-half of these funds we won’t receive until next year,’’ Fletcher said. “We may want to see what the world looks like then. We’re not locking anything in stone.’’ The board voted after hearing an update on COVID prevention measures and from the public, many of whom are county employees who said they needed hazard pay for being frontline workers and putting their lives at risk during a pandemic. Supervisors had their
own requests from ARPA, including $20 million for broadband, $25 million in legal services for those in need, and millions of dollars for mental health treatment and utility assistance. Supervisors Joel Anderson and Jim Desmond said they would oppose hazard pay for county workers. Anderson said his opposition was not meant to disrespect county employees. “I represent a very poor district and can’t face my constituents having given COVID bonuses,’’ he said. Desmond thanked county workers for all their efforts, but noted that non-county workers have also made sacrifices. Last year, supervisors approved spending $390 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act money, along with $40 million out of the county’s general fund, to help residents with financial needs. That money also helped the county and various partners, including hospitals, with efforts to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
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