Information shared from Grand Country Public Health
https://www.co.grand.co.us/COVID19
Fellow Residents,
I am thrilled to be providing this update today. Grand County has been in a steady decline of COVID-19 cases since February 18th. Not only have we gone below the Red Level for the first time since October 2020, but we have also gone below Orange and have now been at Yellow levels for cases and positivity for 7 days! This is the result of all of you doing your part to keep our county safe and our businesses open.
We are moving to Yellow dial level restrictions! We are required to have 7 days of consistent metrics in this dial level before making any adjustments and by 5 pm today we will have met that requirement. In order to give our community businesses time to prepare for accommodating additional capacities safely and communities time to prepare messaging, the Amendment Order will go into effect by 12:01 AM Monday, March 8th.
We have done a lot of work to get where we are with the COVID-19 spread. We have to move into Yellow with the understanding that Spring Break tourism is coming. We need to be smart so that we don’t experience a surge in resident cases in the aftermath that can have further impacts on our schools and businesses An increase in cases in Grand County also impacts our ability to focus on administering the vaccine to you.
Indoor and outdoor events, regardless of size and venue, are still required to submit plans for approval. In addition, we are now well placed to initiate operations of the GrandStar program. If your facility wishes to become a GrandStar approved restaurant or gym, you must complete the plan and application here: www.playwinterpark.com/grandstar Once your application is reviewed you will be contacted for an inspection. Applications will be reviewed by the Chamber of Commerce staff, who have limited capacity, and will be reviewed and approved on a first-come-first-served basis.
I am proud of the work our community has done to get us to this point. Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Abbie Baker-MPH, CHES
Public Health Director/Epidemiologist
Weekly Update
Vaccine Update
Beginning on Friday, March 5th, individuals in Phase 1B.3 will be eligible for COVID vaccines in the State of Colorado. Clinics in Grand County will begin vaccinating 1B.3 individuals, in addition to the continuing vaccination of individuals in 1A, 1B.1, and 1B.2, as vaccine supplies allow. However, the State has split what was previously known as phase 1B.3 into two separate phases, placing restaurant workers in the new phase 1B.4. Vaccine supply continues to be limited, but, based on predictions by Governor Polis and CDPHE, GCPH is hopeful that vaccine shipments will drastically increase toward the beginning of April. We understand that many people are eager to get their vaccine as soon as possible, and we, too, want that to happen. We are confident that everyone in the community who wants a vaccine will be able to get one; we just ask for your patience while we work quickly and diligently to reach that goal.
1.B.3 : Beginning March 5
Phase 1.B.3 will include:
- People age 60 and older.
- Frontline essential workers in grocery and agriculture:
- People 16-59 with 2 or more documented high-risk conditions.
New phase 1.B.4 : Beginning later in March
We are creating a new phase– phase 1.B.4– for other groups that were previously in the prior group, which is set to start later in March.
- People age 50 and older.
- Higher education
- Frontline essential workers in food/restaurant services, manufacturing, US postal service, public transit and specialized transportation, public health, and human service workers
- Faith leaders
- Frontline essential direct care providers for Coloradans experiencing homelessness
- Frontline essential journalists
- Continuity of local government:
- Continuation of operations for state government:
- Adults who received a placebo during a COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial
- People 16-49 with one documented high-risk condition
Phase 2 : Timing Dependent on Supply
Phase 2 replaces what used to be Phase 3. This phase includes the general public or any Coloradan who is not included in earlier phases because they have a lower risk of exposure or are less likely to have severe outcomes from COVID-19. This phase may be further segmented by age if needed.
Antigen Testing Update
Grand County Public Health’s free antigen testing program is still operational and testing at sites in Fraser, Granby, Grand Lake, Hot Sulphur Springs and Kremmling one to two times at each location per week. While attendance numbers have dropped slightly in the last week, GCPH intends to continue the program through at least the end of March and maybe longer if demand persists. The schedule for antigen testing can be found at Grand County COVID-19 Testing Information. As a reminder, the antigen testing sites are open to everyone, are free-of-charge, and no appointments are necessary. Please note that testing at the Kremmling location on March 25 and March 27 is hereby cancelled unless an alternative site is determined. Please continue to check the link above for updates.
GrandStar
As alluded to a couple of weeks ago, Grand County is getting very close to initiating our GrandStar Program (the local variation of Colorado’s 5-star Certified Business Variance Program). Through a rigorous certification and inspection process, the GrandStar Program will allow certain businesses in Grand County to operate at greater capacities than the currently designated COVID Dial allows. The GrandStar program will initially be open to restaurants and recreation centers countywide, but the intent is to include additional business sectors (like indoor events) in the future. Restaurants and recreation facilities throughout the county are encouraged to check out the GrandStar website at www.playwinterpark.com/grandstar to learn more about the program and complete the application if interested.