Will Alameda County Enter The Red Tier Next Week?

ALAMEDA COUNTY, CA — Alameda County public health officials anticipate the county could be placed into the red tier early next week, should current coronavirus trends continue.

Alameda County is among four Bay Area counties that remain in the most-strict purple tier, though its neighbor to the south, Santa Clara County, was among seven in California that got the go-ahead to move into the red tier Tuesday.

Marin and San Mateo counties were allowed to move into the less-strict red tier last week, while Napa, San Francisco and Santa Clara counties moved into the red tier Tuesday.

"The pandemic isn’t over and we need residents, workers and businesses to continue following COVID-19 safety measures we know work: wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep at least six feet of distance from anyone you don’t live with," said Neetu Balram, Alameda County Public Health Department spokesperson, in an email. "Smaller and outdoors is safer, but not without risk. If you were exposed to someone who has recently tested positive or are experiencing symptoms, get tested."

Counties can enter the red tier if they meet the following standards for two consecutive weeks:

• 4 to 7 daily new cases per 100,000 people (seven-day average, with a seven-day lag)
• 5-8% testing positivity rate in the entire county (seven-day average)
• 5.3-8% testing positivity rate in communities most likely to be hit hardest (health equity metric)

Here's how Alameda County compares to those metrics:

• 6.3 daily new cases per 100,000 people: meets red tier standard
• 2.4% testing positivity rate in the entire county: meets orange tier standard
• 3.7% testing positivity rate in neighborhoods most likely to be hit hardest (health equity metric): meets orange tier standard

County public health officials will still have the option of enacting stricter restrictions than the state requires whenever Alameda County moves into the red tier. Alameda County has done this in the past, but Balram said the county does not anticipate doing so this time around.

The state allows the following businesses and services to open indoors in red tier, with safety modifications in place:

• shopping centers (50 percent capacity; closed common areas and reduced-capacity food courts)
• indoor dining (25 percent capacity)
• fitness centers (10 percent capacity)
• places of worship (25 percent capacity or 100 people — whichever is fewer)
• nail salons
• massage facilities
• museums (25 percent capacity)
• zoos (25 percent capacity)
• aquariums (25 percent capacity)
• movie theaters (25 percent capacity or 100 people — whichever is fewer)

Alameda County has reported nearly 80,800 COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday, with more than 1,200 deaths linked to the virus. More than 293,000 residents have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.