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Dr. Warne reviewed the data dashboard showing current county data. Contra Costa County remains in the Orange Tier. Our case rate is 4.5/100,000, testing positivity rate is 1.8% and equity metric is 2.5%. We’ve continued to improve since April. Not expecting to move to the Yellow Tier due to current case rate. We are in the 4-5 range and would need to be less than 2 to be promoted to Yellow.
The County has 69,197 coronavirus cases to date. New cases per day are stable. The 7-day average has improved. Current hot spots are Discovery Bay and Rodeo, with several other cities still above 100 cases. Testing remains strong.
The County has sustained total deaths of 796. There are currently 29 people in Contra Costa hospitals with coronavirus. The 7-day average hospitalization rate is 31. There is 40% bed availability in the ICUs; only 5% of ICU cases are COVID. There are only three active cases within Long Term Care facilities, which is significantly less than the peak.
The County’s vaccine numbers are very good. 1.3M doses of vaccine have been administered. More than 600,000 people have been fully vaccinated and 710 partially vaccinated. Daily vaccinations have decreased from the high saturation point last month. The daily average doses per day is 8,800.
Vaccines are now available to children aged 12-15; there are 65,000 kids in that age group eligible in our county. Parental consent will be required. The FDA now says it is safe to receive other vaccines along with COVID-19 vaccine.
School-based community vaccine clinics are now open at selected schools. No cost/no appointment necessary.
The CDC issued new mask guidelines for vaccinated persons to be implemented in in California after June 15. CalOSHA will consider revising workplace requirements for vaccinated workers. The following is being deliberated but is all preliminary: dropping requirements for masks when everyone in a room is fully vaccinated and has no symptoms. If not everyone is vaccinated, then all will need to mask. To implement this, employers would likely have to obtain a worker’s vaccination records. The law allows employers to require/request this information.
Chair Andersen mentioned that, yesterday, Santa Clara County decided to implement separate guidelines from the State. She asked Dr. Warne if Contra Costa will do likewise. Dr. Warne said the County will decide on revised guidelines once new State and Cal OSHA guidelines have been promulgated. He noted that the County hasn’t placed stricter limits than the State and will likely not do so going forward.
Dr. Warne discussed “breakthrough” cases, where COVID was contracted by a fully vaccinated person. He reported 212 breakthrough cases in our county over 4 months. These cases were a mix of 2/3 symptomatic and 1/3 asymptomatic persons. Out of more than 500,000 fully vaccinated people, the incidence of breakthrough cases has been very low. In contrast, there were 25,000 breakthrough cases among partially vaccinated people. He estimated that the vaccine provides a 99% reduction in infections.
Among the fully vaccinated breakthrough cases, six people were hospitalized, and 1 person died. The person who died was elderly and already in hospice for other reasons.
The County’s data team continues to refine data for public.
Dr. Warne discussed what role CCHS will have beginning June 16 and beyond. CCHS will continue to be a resource going forward to provide guidance/interpretation, and will continue to coordinate testing and vaccination, contact tracing, and other aspects of the County response.
Regarding singing and chanting at religious/cultural services, he said that music performance is allowed and is not dependent on vaccination status. Performers can perform without masks but he strongly recommends even greater social distancing in that circumstance.
He cannot predict with certainty what the State’s post-June 15 guidance will be regarding parades/festivals but “mega events” do pose greater risk. The State Blueprint restrictions will be lifted after June 15, returning to business as usual for most sectors. He expects that limitations on capacity, types of activities, social distancing and extra masking requirements will mostly go away. Overarching guidelines such as for masking will be roughly consistent with CDC guidance. Domestic/international travel will be in accordance with CDC guidance. He expects separate guidance will be promulgated for schools, facilitative of reopening in the fall.
The exception to business as usual will be mega-events, which are defined as those having a daily attendance of more than 5, 000 indoors and 10,000 outdoors. Such events may include conventions, concerts, sporting events, music/food festivals, fairs, and parades. It is contemplated that admission to such events will be conditioned upon proof of full vaccination or a recent negative test result, plus no virus symptoms. Dr. Warne has no further details currently but noted that local public health officials and business leaders have input into the decision-making.
Chair Andersen invited public comment/questions:
- Unidentified Caller: spoke to a court injunction, ruling that the State cannot regulate churches for COVID. OSHA said if employer requires the workers be vaccinated, they may be liable for any vaccine complications of workers. Dr. Warne said he could not speak to the issue of liability. Santa Clara County is not requiring its employees to get vaccinated but merely to report if they have been vaccinated, to determine what to do if there is an exposure. State policies may be applied differently based on the vaccination status of a group. Chair Andersen said that vaccination status is not protected information under HIPAA but a person may choose to withhold this information, in which case it will be assumed that he/she is unvaccinated for purposes of applying policies or tracing outbreaks.
- Todd Trimble asked about restrictions on food truck events. Dr. Warne expects that, after June 15, food truck events will likely not be restricted assuming they meet all other regulatory and licensing requirements. Until June 15, these events are not permitted.
- Jared Thompson asked about home-based religious fellowship involving a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated people and any requirements or recommendations regarding religious services for children. Chair Andersen clarified that, considering the Supreme Court ruling, the guidance are recommendations and no longer requirements. For the safety and well-being of congregants, the County still recommends masking and social distancing. Dr. Warne said the social gathering guidance for Orange Tier is recommended for home fellowship.
- Jay Lipson asked about large events, such as one planned for the City of Lafayette, which is expected to attract more than 10,000 people and will be outdoors. He asked how the new guidance will apply when total attendance will be 10,000 but not all at one time, with people coming and going throughout the day. He complained that inconsistency between local and CDC guidelines is causing confusion. Dr. Warne clarified that the rule will likely be applied according to the daily attendance number. If the daily attendance will exceed 10,000, then mega-event restrictions will apply.
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