Stanislaus County again fails to meet the criteria for coronavirus red tier. What’s next
Stanislaus County did not meet the requirements Tuesday for moving into a less restrictive tier of the state’s coronavirus plan, raising serious questions about the long-awaited opening of schools.
The county’s daily case rate remained well above a threshold of 7 per 100,000 population in a weekly state update that determines what restrictions are in place in counties to control the spread of COVID-19 disease.
The case rate was 13.4 per 100,000 and was 13.6 per 100,000 after an adjustment for local testing volume. Testing positivity was 5.3 percent in the entire county and was 6 percent in disadvantaged neighborhoods, both of which met the state’s requirement for a positive test rate below 8 percent.
The county needs to meet all three criteria to move from the most restrictive purple tier to the red tier. The state has said it will make it easier for counties to reach the red tier when 2 million doses of COVID vaccine have been administered in underserved communities, which could happen within a week.
But the update Tuesday shows the county does not meet the 10 cases per 100,000 threshold that will help purple counties change to red after those vaccinations hit 2 million. Tuesday’s daily case rate of 13.6 per 100,000 was slightly down from 15.6 per 100,000 a week ago.
School districts have made plans for additional in-person instruction in elementary schools this month and for students to return to middle schools and high schools after not seeing a classroom for almost a year. But the county needs to move into the red tier for high schools and middle schools to reopen on modified schedules.
County health officials had projected coronavirus transmission numbers to fall within the red tier range by March 15. Stanislaus County has been in the purple tier since Nov. 16. The tier imposes restrictions on restaurants, other businesses and schools to help control the spread of coronavirus.
County supervisor calls for schools to reopen
County Supervisor Terry Withrow for months has called for local schools to resume classroom instruction. His biggest concern is for kids who suffer from poor nutrition or abuse at home, for which schools are a refuge.
“It is pathetic that we are keeping these kids out of school,” Withrow said Tuesday. “There is no justification if the virus can’t harm them as much as their situation at home.”
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Withrow said he also hears from parents who want their children back in class after many months of remote learning. The supervisor said he expects the county will write a letter to the state regarding the county’s tier status.
The state’s tier criteria were primarily written before campaigns to inoculate people against COVID-19 illness using approved vaccines. The county and local school districts have made efforts to get school staff vaccinated at the county’s public clinics or special vaccine clinics before more schools reopen.
The 92 hospitalizations and 15 intensive care unit admissions for COVID-19, as of Monday, are one fourth of peak levels in December, when holiday gatherings were attributed to a huge surge in coronavirus cases.
Despite a significant drop in new cases, almost 1,575 new infections were recorded in Modesto in the last 30 days, according to a the county’s dashboard, with the highest number (420) reported in an east Modesto zip code. Turlock had 714 new cases in the last month.
This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 12:08 PM.
