Currently, the county remains in the red tier of the state’s tier system after moving from the purple to the red tier three weeks ago on Sept. 22.
“State officials on Tuesday announced that Riverside County would stay in the red tier during the ‘adjudication process’ and see whether the county can reduce its case rate — cases per 100,000 people — and meet the metrics to remain in the red tier,” the county wrote in a press release. “Riverside County officials requested the delay as the county’s metrics showed an increase in case and positivity rates that could push it into the more restrictive purple tier.”
Being in the red tier allows that “All remaining personal care services may return indoors, including nail salons, tattoo shops, massage services and esthetician services,” the county previously announced. “As a reminder, hair salons and barber shops were returned indoors under the previous purple tier.
“In addition, restaurants, places of worship, movie theaters, as well as museums, zoos and aquariums may resume indoor operations up to 25% capacity. Gyms may resume indoors up to 10% capacity and indoor shopping malls up to 50% capacity.”
“We appreciate the California Department of Public Health for working with Riverside County and granting us this one-week extension in order to make progress on our metrics,” said Riverside County Board Chair and 4th District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. “According to Dr. Christopher Thornberg of the UCR School of Business, the hospitality sector including hotels and restaurants and the retail/service sector such as gas stations, clothing stores and personal care have been the hardest hit as a result of this pandemic. Many people have been laid off, lost their jobs or have had to close their businesses, especially in Riverside County. I ask that we all do our part and continue to adhere to safety precautions in our homes and while out in public. Please wear a mask, social distance and be careful. Let’s not go back a tier and prevent it by also taking the time to test, even without symptoms. Together, we can beat the pandemic and get people back to work.”
According to the Riverside University Health System – Public Health (RUHS) website, the area of Idyllwild-Pine Cove still has a total of 22 reported COVID-19 cases since the outbreak and one death reported. Twenty-one of the 22 people have recovered.
As of press time on Oct. 13, Riverside County has 62,553 confirmed COVID-19 cases. There are 1,258 deaths related to COVID-19 and 56,659 people have recovered. There are 146 individuals being hospitalized and of those 42 are in the intensive care unit (ICU). The county’s positivity rate is 5.0%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 is 7.6.
As of press time on Oct. 6, Riverside County had 60,867 confirmed COVID-19 cases. There were 1,244 deaths related to COVID-19 and 55,397 people had recovered. There were 142 individuals being hospitalized and of those 42 were in the ICU. The county’s positivity rate was 5.0%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 was 7.6.
As of press time on Sept. 29, Riverside County had 59,173 confirmed COVID-19 cases. There were 1,216 deaths related to COVID-19 and 54,150 people had recovered. There were 125 individuals being hospitalized and of those 33 were in the ICU. The county’s positivity rate was 4.8%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 was 6.7.
To date, 718,788 people have been tested for COVID-19 in Riverside County, according to RUHS. The two demographics with the highest number of cases are Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic/Latino.
The county is urging residents and visitors to cover their face, keep 6 feet of distance and wash their hands.
