Update: Colorado’s Response to COVID

*As of January 14, 2021

Colorado Governor Jared Polis has received some criticism in the last month over changes to the State’s COVID response, as well as changes to the vaccine rollout plan. The governor’s tweet informed Coloradans, including healthcare professionals, that all counties currently at Level Red would be moved down to Level Orange by January 4, 2021. 

To many, the move felt highly politicized, as Governor Polis prepares his campaign for reelection in 2022, potentially pandering to business owners who were able to reopen at the downgrade. Level Orange allows for a reopening of indoor dining at a capacity of 25 percent max or 50 people, whichever is fewer. Gyms and athletic clubs also began reopening under similar guidelines. 

Should Denver see a drop in cases and remain at 350 cases or lower for one week, businesses will be able to apply for the state’s 5-star certification program. The program encourages businesses to implement safety measures beyond what is already required by public health orders and guidelines that will help slow the spread of COVID-19. In doing so, businesses will be able to accelerate their reopening.

Polis’ initial tweet announcing the change to several county’s threat level reads as follows: “In reviewing the data, Colorado has been in a sustained decline for 13 days, and only 73 percent of ICU beds statewide are in use. In light of this and based on the data, I am asking CDPHE to move counties in Red on the dial to Orange, effective Monday, January 4, 2021.”

Related article: Denver Moved to Level Yellow on COVID-19 Dial

While hospitalizations within Colorado have seen a decrease, the transmission rate of coronavirus still remains high. Public health officials have even warned of a new, more contagious strain of the virus appearing in several countries including the U.S. The mutated strain of the virus was first reported in the U.K. and has since been confirmed to have appeared in Colorado as the first known case in the country. 

At two weeks out from the holiday season, Colorado began seeing a slow uptick in cases, but nothing compared to the large spike seen in November, which threatened to compromise healthcare systems. CDPHE official Bob McDonald, in a livestreamed, COVID response update, attributed the initial downturn in cases to Red Level restrictions. 

Health officials were both surprised and baffled by the downgrade to Level Orange, learning of the change through social media with the rest of the public. Many expressed frustrations about being left in the dark on a major change in state health policy for the second time in one day following Polis’ unexpected changes to the vaccine rollout. 

As OFM previously reported, the state planned to roll out vaccinations in phases, with people of highest infection concerns gaining higher priority. However, during a morning news conference on December 30, Polis announced that changes to the initial plan had been made. 

Coloradans 70 and older have been pushed up the list to Phase 1b, which previously only included healthcare workers and public safety officials. Phase 1b also added  teachers, food and agricultural workers, postal workers, manufacturing workers, transportation workers, grocery or other retail workers, journalists reporting in the field, and people who provide services to those experiencing homelessness. 

Previously, the state had planned to keep Phase 1b fairly small to reflect the limited supplies of vaccinations, and had initially included around 100,000 people. The new plan for Phase 1b now covers the largest portion of Coloradans, containing more than 1.3 million people. 

Polis stated that the decision to prioritize older Coloradans came from statistics showing that individuals 70 years and older accounted for more than 78 percent of the state’s coronavirus deaths. The changes also reflect new, federal guidelines for the vaccine, released late last year.  

Though teachers and essential workers have been moved up to Phase 1b, there has been increasing confusion regarding when educators can expect to be vaccinated. Cherry Creek schools backtracked on its announcement to begin vaccinating its teachers “right away.” The new plan has teachers starting vaccinations in March.

“It just doesn’t seem to fall in line with the push to reopen schools,” Brooke Williams, president of the Jefferson County Education Association, told 9News. “It’s important for all frontline workers to get the vaccine.”

Denver Public Schools have issued a letter echoing the March timeline for teachers to begin vaccinations, while Douglas County Schools say some of their staff have already received invitations from Centura Health to be vaccinated. 

OFM will continue to monitor updates from both local and state officials, to provide you with the most up-to-date information.