87% Of Californians Now Live In Orange Tier Counties

CALIFORNIA — The Golden State moved closer to fully reopening Tuesday as five more counties advanced into the state's orange tier, just one notch above the most lenient tier.

To date, more than 87 percent of California's population lives under the moderate orange tier on the state's color-coded reopening map. The blueprint will be thrown out entirely June 15, the date Gov. Gavin Newsom planned to reopen the economy completely.

Fresno, Kings, Calaveras, Santa Barbara and Mono counties left the red tier and joined the bulk of the state in the orange tier. As of Tuesday, 38 counties now sit in the orange tier, three are in the yellow tier, and 17 are in the red teir. No counties remain in the toughest "widespread" purple tier, under which most Californians were living not so long ago.

Under the orange tier, Californians and businesses are able to relax into less restrictive living requirements. Notably, bars may reopen outdoors with modifications and will no longer be required to serve food. What's more, capacity limits were limited in stores.

Amusement parks can reopen at 25 percent capacity, and sporting events can expand to 33 percent capacity outdoors. Indoor pools can reopen, as can bowling alleys and card rooms.

Marin County was expected to advance into the yellow tier Tuesday, but county officials confirmed that it will stay in orange amid an uptick in cases. The county achieved the first week of the required two weeks to move into the minimal tier, but officials said it narrowly missed the mark in the second week.

"This is what the Blueprint was designed to do, to ensure a county moves forward only when we see a reliable trend of decreased transmission," said Dr. Matt Willis, Marin County's public health officer. "When a small uptick in cases is enough to keep us where we are, it’s a sign we’re not ready."

As of Tuesday, 76 percent of Marin County residents 16 or older had at least one dose of a vaccine. But Willis said it's too soon to declare victory.

"If people see relatively high community vaccination rates as a reason to let down their guard, they’re mistaken," Willis said. "Children under 16 still remain unvaccinated, and it takes about six weeks for newly vaccinated people to develop immunity. The fact is, we remain vulnerable to COVID-19 transmission, and if we want to move forward, we have to be vigilant together."

The quickened reopening pace is in part due to plummeting coronavirus cases and a rising number of vaccinated Californians. A quarter of California's adults are now fully vaccinated, the state announced this week.

Despite a small increase in cases in some counties, the state recorded a new coronavirus positivity rate low: 1.3 percent. The rate has remained level for the last several weeks as the state ramps up its vaccination speed, despite the temporary pause placed on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The state has continued to receive J&J doses from the federal government, a spokesperson for the California Department of Public Health told Patch on condition of anonymity. But it is currently waiting on a green light from the federal government to resume use.

"We are closely following the anticipated announcement from CDC expected later this week," the spokesperson said.

There is "no information" so far as to whether any Californians have experienced blood clotting following the administration of the single-dose vaccine, officials said.

California has administered more than 26 million vaccines. But even as California hit its benchmark of fully vaccinating one in four Californians, the milestone doesn't mean that those with one or even two doses have yet achieved the maximum protection that the vaccines offer.

People are only considered fully vaccinated two weeks after a second dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or a single dose of Johnson & Johnson's Janssen vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The first shot of the two-dose vaccines is considered to have up to 80 percent effectiveness in preventing illness, but that number is "somewhat tenuous," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, said last week. It isn't known how long that protection lasts, which is why experts urge Californians not to skip their second shot or to take too many risks between doses or immediately after their second shot.

"You're in a tenuous zone if you don't have the full impact," Fauci said.

California Coronavirus Data As Of Tuesday

• 3,620,301 confirmed cases to date.
• 1,606 newly recorded confirmed cases Sunday.
• 1.3 percent is the seven-day positivity rate.
• 58,075,920 tests have been conducted in California.
• 59,804 COVID-19 deaths have been reported since the start of the pandemic.
• 26,127,571 vaccine doses have been administered statewide.

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