Phillips County moves to Level Green

Phillips County is one of 29 counties in Colorado to move to level Green: Protect our Neighbors on the new COVID Dial 3.0. News of the level status change came from County Commissioners on Thursday, March 24.

Counties of 30,000 or less that were able to sustain seven consecutive days of level Green metric criteria as of Monday, March 22 were re-classified to level Green as of late last week, including Phillips County and others nearby including Sedgwick and Lincoln counties.

The latest information on local numbers from the Phillips County Office of Emergency Management says seven-day totals of new cases, incidents per 100K, test positivity and hospitalizations are all zero. Total, Phillips County has had a recorded 345 cases of COVID-19 and as a result, 13 deaths. As of last week, there were five active cases in the County.

As more Coloradans are eligible to get vaccinated and do so, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has released the latest update to Colorado's COVID-19 dial: Dial 3.0. The updated dial officially went into effect on Wednesday, March 24. State officials expect that Dial 3.0 to remain in effect until mid-April, at which point plans are to retire the dial and implement a new public health order that gives greater control over capacity restrictions to local public health agencies.

The COVID Dial 3.0 makes it easier for counties to move into Level Green: Protect Our Neighbors, the least restrictive level on the dial. It also removes many of the restrictions that currently apply at that level. The new version of dial metrics are simplified and capacity limits are less restrictive.

According to the CDPHE website, main changes in the Dial 3.0, which is expected to be in place until mid-April, are:

• The metrics for Level Green: Protect Our Neighbors have changed. These changes make it easier for counties to achieve Protect Our Neighbors status. Now, counties qualify for Protect Our Neighbors if they have up to 35 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people - up from 15 cases.

• There is no longer a certification process for Level Green: Protect Our Neighbors. Counties will be moved into Level Green once they maintain the appropriate metrics for at least one week.

• Most restrictions in Level Green: Protect Our Neighbors are now removed. Bars and indoor events must still adhere to a 50 percent capacity limit or a 500-person cap, whichever is fewer.

• The metrics range for Level Blue is now 36 - 100 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people.

• Bars can now open under Level Blue. The capacity limit is 25 percent capacity or 75 people, whichever is fewer.

• Outdoor events in Levels Green and Blue no longer have state-level capacity restrictions under the dial. Counties may choose to implement capacity restrictions on outdoor events at the local level.

• Retail, offices and non-critical manufacturing in Level Blue may now open to 75 percent capacity, up from 50 percent.

• There is no longer a State limit on personal gathering sizes. The State will follow CDCs guidance on personal gatherings. The CDC still strongly recommends avoiding larger gatherings and crowds to prevent the spread of COVID-19.