After two months in the highest risk tier for COVID-19, Ventura County moved all the way to the “low” category Thursday, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC measures risks weekly in a formula involving case rates and impact on area hospitals. The county entered the high risk tier in late June and last week ranked as 1 of only 7 California counties still in the so-called red tier, where masks are recommended indoors regardless of vaccination status.
A decrease in admissions and infections combined to push the county out of the “high,” past “medium” and into the lowest of three risk levels. In the “low tier,” CDC officials make no specific reference to masking but urge people to be up-to-date on vaccinations and booster shots and to get tested if they develop COVID symptoms.
Though transmission levels have fallen locally, the risk of infection is still “relatively high,” said Rigoberto Vargas, the county’s public health director. He said public health still recommends masks indoors in public places.
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” he said.
The leap in the CDC rankings was aided by the continued fall of the county’s case rate, which lowered the bar on the grading scale for the different tiers, Vargas said.
“It’s a good thing in that it confirms we’re in a downward trajectory,” he said.
Data posted by the California Department of Public Health on Tuesday showed a daily average of 22.6 cases per 100,000 people, a drop from the daily average of nearly 32 cases four weeks ago.
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COVID hospitalizations in the county had been stuck in a plateau but have fallen this week. As of Thursday, 53 COVID patients were being treated for the coronavirus, compared to 67 people nearly a week ago.
On Wednesday, Food and Drug Administration officials authorized new COVID-19 vaccine booster shots that target the most common omicron subvariants. A CDC advisory committee gave their OK Thursday
If the booster shots gain final CDC and California approvals, they could be available in Ventura County as soon as Tuesday. Vargas said public health has already received thousands of doses of the new Pfizer and Moderna shots.
The updated boosters would also be available at pharmacies and many medical offices, Vargas said.
Tom Kisken covers health care and other news for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tom.kisken@vcstar.com or 805-437-0255.
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