Santa Barbara County is expected to advance to the less restrictive red layer on Tuesday, Department of Health officials said at Friday’s virtual COVID-19 press conference.
“This will provide us with new opportunities for business and entertainment,” said Dr. Henning Ansorg, county public health officer, on the second most restrictive category. “It also poses a challenge for us to stay safe and not fall back in another burst of virus.”
Indoor activities of fitness centers and gyms, restaurants, movie theaters, aquariums, museums and zoos are allowed with changes to the red layer, according to the state’s COVID-19 reopening framework, the Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
In the red level, Santa Barbara County wineries, breweries, and distilleries are only allowed to operate outdoors with changes outlined in the classification system, including limited hours and a 90-minute time limit for guests, among others.
All 58 counties fall under California’s color-coded tier system, a four-tier classification framework. Santa Barbara County is in the “widespread” purple layer, the most restrictive level.
Ansorg’s comments at Friday’s press conference, which marked the one-year anniversary of the county’s first COVID-19 press conference, came shortly after government officials announced that California has reached 2 million vaccine doses in the vaccine equality measure.
According to state officials, two million doses of vaccine were administered to the most affected communities, representing about 25% of eligible people in California.
As a result, the Blueprint for a Safer Economy tiers has been updated to allow “slightly higher case rates on the substantial (red) tier,” the state said.
The criteria for the reopening stage will shift when 2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered to people living in approximately 400 zip codes in the vaccination eligibility quartile.
The purple criteria for the number of cases will shift from more than seven new cases per day per 100,000 people to more than 10 new COVID-19 cases per day, County Public Health Director Van Do-Reynoso said.
The red-tier case rate criteria will expand to four to 10 daily cases per 100,000 people, and the orange and yellow levels will remain the same, Do-Reynoso said.
The province must be in a level for three consecutive weeks before it officially progresses to the red level, Do-Reynoso said.
The latest level allotment shows Santa Barbara County at an adjusted rate of 9.7 cases per day, allowing the district to shift to the red level now that the state has reached the 2 million vaccine dose threshold.
To advance to the less restrictive red layer, the province must meet the test positivity rate for that level for two consecutive weeks. Santa Barbara County has a positivity rate of 3.6%.
The county’s COVID-19 statistics have “decreased significantly,” including the number of active cases, new cases daily, COVID-19 test for positivity, the number of cases, coronavirus-positive patients in the hospital and the death rate, Do said -Reynoso.
“The wintry rise in fallen is now over,” Do-Reynoso said Friday.
The province has reported that they have received more than 117,700 COVID-19 vaccine doses to date, Do-Reynoso said, adding that as of Friday, the province had administered more than 80% of the assigned doses to date. She noted that vaccination data is delayed by three days.
“The remaining doses are scheduled for clinics to take place in the coming days,” Do-Reynoso said Friday.
Santa Barbara County vaccinates people 65 or older, along with farmers and food workers, educators and childcare workers, emergency responders, residents 75 or older, emergency medical personnel, and health workers.
Beginning Monday, individuals ages 16 to 64 who are at high risk of morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 will be eligible for the vaccine in the province. The health issues listed in the county guidelines include cancer, chronic kidney disease, stage four or higher, chronic lung disease, Down’s syndrome, pregnancy, sickle cell anemia, heart disease, severe obesity, and type 2 diabetes.
“Each time it is eligible, vaccine supplies are still initially limited and more will become available in the coming weeks,” said Do-Reynoso. “Be patient as we open up vaccination options to the rest of the categories in our community.”
According to Ansorg, to date, Santa Barbara County has about 10% of the population aged 18 or older fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
“And give or take, 15% have received at least one dose, which already provides good protection against severe COVID and death,” Ansorg said.
According to the latest US Census Bureau population estimate, the county has more than 446,000 residents.
The next two to three weeks are expected to be “challenging,” as the number of weekly vaccines available to Santa Barbara County is unlikely to increase, while more residents will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, Ansorg said.
“In April we should see a dramatic increase in available vaccines, and hopefully by May anyone who wants a vaccine will be able to get it,” Ansorg said.
County moves COVID-19 mobile testing unit to Santa Barbara
To expand COVID-19 testing access for residents, the public health department will move the mobile COVID-19 testing unit to Santa Barbara’s East Beach starting Monday.
The unit is open Monday through Friday from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm in the waterfront parking lot at 1118 E. Cabrillo Blvd. in Santa Barbara.
Appointments are required, and testing is free and available to all community members.
Appointments can be made online at https://lhi.care/covidtesting or by calling 888.634.1123.
The Public Health Department website – https://publichealthsbc.org/testing/ – has more information on local testing options. Residents can also call 2-1-1 for assistance with registering for a testing appointment.
“Getting tested means detecting where the virus is spreading and stopping it. We know our community is keen to move forward, and testing is an important tool to make this happen. By reducing the number of files, our community can move faster through the layers and start reopening more business sectors and schools, ”Do-Reynoso said in a statement. “The mobile testing site is a great way for community members to easily access COVID-19 testing while enjoying great views.”
The New Santa Barbara County COVID-19 Status Report
Meanwhile, county public health officials reported 54 new positive COVID-19 cases on Friday, and two additional North County residents have died from COVID-19.
There have been a total of 32,573 confirmed positive cases in the province, and the COVID-19 death toll now stands at 428, according to the COVID-19 community data dashboard.
Both residents who died were under the age of 70 and had underlying medical conditions, according to public health. The deceased lived in Lompoc and Santa Maria. The deaths were not associated with an outbreak at a congregational care site, according to the province.
There were 43 confirmed COVID-19 patients treated at hospitals in the Santa Barbara County area. Of those patients, 15 were in intensive care units.
According to Public Health, the county had more than 31% ICU availability as of Friday.
Of Friday’s new positive cases, Santa Maria had 26, and four were each reported in Santa Barbara and Orcutt. Three of each were reported in the Montecito-Summerland-Carpinteria area, Goleta, Santa Ynez Valley, Lompoc, and in the unincorporated areas of North County. The unincorporated area of Goleta Valley and Gaviota had two new cases and Isla Vista had one. No geographic locations had been released for two new cases.
According to Public Health, there were about 255 community cases across the county that were still considered contagious.
It has been almost a year since the first confirmed case of new coronavirus in Santa Barbara County was confirmed. The county’s first COVID-19 case was reported on March 15, 2020, and the first local death was announced in April.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department reported on Friday that the number of active COVID-19 cases among inmates at the main prison has dropped to zero.
“All COVID-19 cases in the main jail have been resolved and there are currently no COVID-19 positive inmates under surveillance,” said sheriff’s spokeswoman Raquel Zick.
On Friday, more than 210 inmates at the main prison had tested positive for COVID-19, including a Santa Maria inmate who died after landing in hospital for COVID-19 complications while in custody at the Santa Barbara County Jail.
In addition, a sheriff’s deputy tested positive for COVID-19, Zick said Friday.
To date, 116 sheriff’s employees have tested positive for COVID-19, 113 of whom recovered and returned to work, Zick said.
Learn more about COVID-19 vaccine appointments
Registration information for provincial clinics and links to pharmacy and hospital vaccination sites can be found here: https://publichealthsbc.org/covid-19-vaccine-appointment-registration/.
Sign up for the provincial newsletter on vaccination efforts, including announcements of available appointments here: https://signup.e2ma.net/signup/1937902/1753150/.
Call 2-1-1 and select option 4 to reach the local call center for vaccine questions and to assist you in registering for an appointment if you are eligible. The call center can be reached at 800.400.1572 for numbers outside the area and is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.
The 2-1-1 call center is staffed with people who can answer questions about COVID-19 in Santa Barbara County, the Public Health Department said.
The state of California has released lists of specific jobs that qualify for each vaccination priority group, but not the education and childcare sector. Check out the lists here: https://covid19.ca.gov/essential-workforce/.
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department has additional vaccine-related information on the COVID-19 page here: https://publichealthsbc.org.
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