Coronavirus update for Oct. 15: How more Fresno-area businesses could soon reopen
For the third straight week, Fresno County has remained in the second tier of the state’s reopening plan, a promising sign despite a recent increase in new COVID-19 cases, deaths, and hospitalizations.
If the county remains in the red tier for at least 21 days, it has the potential to graduate into the less restrictive orange Tier 3 under California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
The next stage allows most indoor businesses, including movie theaters, museums, zoos, restaurants, and churches, and most indoor gatherings to operate at a higher capacity of up to 50% or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
In the county’s current stage, these businesses can keep operating indoors with limited capacity of 25%.
Public health experts predict a rise in new cases over the coming months as the economy continues to reopen gradually and flu season, coupled with COVID-19, increases the chance of more people getting sick. If that happens, Fresno County could potentially fail to qualify to enter the next stage.
Before Fresno County can advance into the next phase, orange Tier 3, the rate of new daily cases must fall to fewer than four cases per 100,000 residents, and the testing positivity rate needs to fall below 5%.
Fresno County’s new daily case rate stands at six cases per 100,000 residents, and it has a positivity rate of 5.1% as of Wednesday, according to state data.
On Wednesday, the California Department of Public Health reported 56 new cases across the county, bringing Fresno’s total to 29,579. No additional deaths were reported keeping the total at 424. County officials will provide an update on the number of new deaths on Friday. So far, 19,407 county residents have recovered.
The average number of people being treated in county hospitals for COVID-19 has gone up over the past two weeks, showing the daily average number of hospitalized patients was slightly above 96, compared to a two-week average of fewer than 84 patients on Oct. 1. As of Wednesday, Fresno County had 91 COVID-19 hospitalizations.
There are four color-coded tier levels under California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, which includes the most restrictive purple tier indicating the virus risk of transmission is “widespread,” the second red tier phase for “substantial” spread, the third orange tier for “moderate” spread and the least restrictive yellow tier for “minimal” spread.
To remain outside the purple tier, a county must continue to meet the threshold for both the case rate and the testing positivity rate. Failing to meet those requirements for two consecutive weeks or a rapid uptick in hospitalizations could force a county back into a more restrictive tier.
The only county in the central San Joaquin Valley that has met the requirement to enter the least restrictive yellow Tier 4 is Mariposa County. To enter the final stage, a county needs to have fewer than one new case per day per 100,000 residents and a testing positivity of less than 2%.
Due to the county’s current stage, middle and high schools could reopen with limited class sizes. Elementary schools across the county have also been applying for waivers to resume in-person classes.
But that doesn’t mean schools will opt for that option. The Central Unified School District announced on Tuesday it had decided to keep its doors shut until the start of the new year.
Still, some school districts are eager to get in-person classes back up and running. In a statement late Wednesday, Clovis officials said they expected to finalize a date for students to return to in-person classes next week. Previously, Clovis officials have said some elementary schools could return as soon as early November or late October.
State and national updates
California’s total case count reached 855,072 on Wednesday, while a total of 16,639 people have died statewide.
The national death toll from COVID-19 is nearing 217,000 as of Thursday morning, while more than 7.9 million people have contracted the virus since the pandemic began in early March. As of Wednesday, 1,011 new COVID-19 deaths and 59,751 new cases were reported nationwide, according to a New York Times analysis.
On Wednesday, First Lady Melania Trump confirmed her son Barron Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, just weeks after she and President Donald Trump also received positive test results.
When the president announced his infection in early October, Barron, 14, their youngest son, tested negative. Despite the positive diagnosis, the First Lady said he was a “strong teenager that exhibited no symptoms,” the New York Times reported.
On Thursday, vice presidential contender Sen. Kamala Harris announced she would be canceling her campaign’s last leg travels after two individuals tied to her campaign contracted the novel coronavirus, AP News reports. Harris was aboard an airplane with those individuals on Oct. 8, though campaign officials said she was not in close contact and remained within six feet.
Joe Biden’s campaign confirmed Thursday the presidential nominee did not have exposure to the two individuals.