At 9 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, Colorado once again will see changes to the COVID-19 dial, the state’s tool for determining restrictions on the county level.
At a news conference Friday, Feb. 5, Gov. Jared Polis and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Executive Director Jill Hunsaker Ryan announced the new dial, which aims to provide a swifter transition between levels. In Summit County, little will change as a result of the new dial, as the county will remain in level orange.
“While this is still a time for caution, these metrics better reflect where we are in the pandemic today, what we’ve learned over the last several months in using the dial and the balance we are trying to strike between disease suppression and economic hardships that restrictions can cause,” Ryan said.
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS Each flu season is different, but this year is unusually quiet with only 18 hospitalizations in Colorado due to influenza. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting record-low numbers of.
With Summit County nearing a “saturation point” in its efforts to vaccinate the 70-plus population, local officials are turning their gaze and resources to surrounding counties.
Starting this week, Summit County officials have been sending some doses to neighboring Clear Creek, Park and Lake counties. The goal is not to take doses away from Summit County residents but to help get the state to the next phase of vaccine distribution, which includes essential workers.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has made it clear that the state won’t be vaccinating essential workers until 70% of the state’s 70-and-older population is vaccinated. That group accounts for about half of the state’s hospitalizations and about 75% of deaths, according to state data.
State health officials say unlicensed home care providers can get vaccinated summitdaily.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from summitdaily.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Cases of the novel coronavirus are on the rise again in Summit County, averaging 703.6 new cases per 100,000 people in the past two weeks, up from a recent low of 513. Summit County.