Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino all now meet the set of metrics to qualify for the red tier, but must stay there for a week before the state will allow them to reopen more businesses and operations.
Riverside and Ventura counties are close by, and could also move quickly, depending on some additional statewide vaccination targets expected to be met shortly.
The state normally announces new tier allocations on Tuesdays. This week, the state announced that nine counties – none of them in Southern California – are now shifting to less restrictive levels.
To change levels, counties must meet different targets for metrics, such as the number of cases per 100,000 residents, the positivity rate, and a health equality metric targeting the most disadvantaged neighborhoods.
Los Angeles County
On Tuesday, the state-adjusted mean daily new COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles County fell to 5.2 per 100,000 residents, well below the target of 7 cases per 100,000 to qualify for the red level. The province already met the other statistics.
The province is expected to move forward after the state hits the threshold of administering 2 million doses of vaccine in severely affected communities statewide, a total that could be reached by the end of the week.
Los Angeles County officials expect the shift to the red level could happen as early as next week.
Initially, the province was expected to continue at the red level later this month, with the number of new daily COVID-19 infections expected to fall below the state-imposed threshold of 7 cases per 100,000 residents as early as Tuesday. If the province maintained that level for two weeks, it would go from the purple level to the “red” level.
However, last week the state changed the barriers to progress through the four-tiered blueprint for a safer economy, taking into account the volume of vaccines being administered in hard-hit low-income communities across the state.
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If that happens, to transition to the red level, a county must have a new number of cases of 10 per 100,000 residents – a rate LA County will have already met for the required two weeks. The county health director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said this means the county will likely go to “red” by mid-next week.
Moving from the restrictive purple level to the red level empowers the county to increase capacity limits at stores and reopen indoor restaurants, fitness centers, and movie theaters. However, the province is not bound by state guidelines and could continue to impose stricter rules.
For example, while the county currently allows outdoor dining in the purple tier, it still prohibits restaurants from turning on televisions on their patios, as a way of preventing sports fans’ gatherings. The state has no such restriction on restaurants.
Orange Country
Orange County also meets all requirements for a shift to the red layer, including a case of 6 per 100,000 residents. The positivity percentage is even stronger and meets the standards for the orange layer
If the county can maintain these stats through Sunday, it could go to the red level by March 17, allowing for a relaxation of stay-at-home orders.
The province also reported 108 new cases and declining hospital admissions on Tuesday, but 61 more fatalities.
Where is your country?
Check out the map below to find out where your county is, and keep reading to see what can and can’t be accessed in each color-coded category.
App users: For a better experience, click here to view the full map in a new window
The red layer allows many more companies and organizations to reopen. For example, shops could allow half the capacity instead of 25%, and museums, zoos and aquariums could reopen for indoor activities at 25% capacity, as could cinemas, gyms and restaurants.
Below is a full breakdown of what can and cannot be reopened in the red layer:
- Hairdressing salons: open inside with adjustments
- Retail: open indoors at 50% capacity
- Shopping centers: open indoors with 50% capacity and limited food courts
- Nail salons: open inside with adjustments
- Electrolysis: open inside with adjustments
- Personal care (body waxing, etc.): Open inside with adjustments
- Tattooing and piercing: open inside with adjustments
- Museums, zoos and aquariums: open indoors at 25% capacity
- Places of worship: open indoors with a capacity of 25% or 100 people, whichever is less
- Cinemas: Open indoors with a capacity of 25% or 100 people, whichever is less
- Hotels: open with accommodations, plus fitness centers can open with a capacity of 10%
- Gyms: open indoors at 10% capacity
- Restaurants: open indoors with a capacity of 25% or 100 people, whichever is less
- Wineries: outside only
- Bars and breweries: closed
- Family Entertainment Centers: Outdoors only, such as mini golf, batting cages and go-kart racing
- Cardrooms: outside only
- Non-essential offices: only work remotely
- Professional sports: no live audience
- Schools: can reopen from the purple layer after two weeks for personal instruction
- Theme parks: must remain closed
City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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