The county of Riverside remains in the most-restricted purple tier of the state’s four-tier system, as of press time.
Last week, the county announced that transitional kindergarten through sixth grade can resume in-person instruction with approved COVID-19 prevention plans because the county has less than 25 cases per 100,000 residents.
“The pandemic has had a major impact on education, like everything else, and as case rates currently continue to decline we can start getting more kids back in class,” said Dr. Cameron Kaiser, Riverside County’s public health officer. “But this can’t be without safety precautions or monitoring. Our districts and schools are committed to operating safely, and so am I.”
As of last week, four districts within Riverside County had approval: Corona-Norco Unified School District, the Palo Verde Valley Unified School District, Desert Sands Unified School District and Murrieta Valley Unified School District.
The county reminded residents that “Schools previously open for transitional kindergarten through sixth grade education under the earlier waivers process remain in operation, as do those schools that opened for all grade levels during the county’s brief period in the state’s red tier framework, Dr. Kaiser said.”
Visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) website at https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs, to become familiar with the laws and regulations pertaining to personal protective equipment, including what is mandatory with regards to respirators, etc.
For information on SBA’s assistance to small businesses, visit sba.gov/ppp or treasury.gov/cares. To contact the county of Riverside’s Business and Community Services department, call 951-955-0493 or send an email to [email protected] for local assistance.
Another stimulus bill is being negotiated but has not passed the Senate as of press time.

For more information on the COVID-19 shot, visit www.rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine or call 2-1-1. Seniors can call the Riverside County Office on Aging at 800-510-2020.

The county recently announced “For those who received a first dose at a county vaccine clinic (also called points of distribution or PODs), local health officials will reach out to residents through the contact method provided at the first appointment. At that time, the county will provide instructions for receiving the second dose conforming to the current CDC guideline on timeframes. Residents who received their first dose at [a] private provider, should contact that same provider to schedule their second dose.”
The CDC announced the second dose of the COVID-19 shot can be administered 42 days after the first dose instead of the originally recommended 21 or 28 days.
According to the Riverside University Health System – Public Health (RUHS) website, the area of Idyllwild-Pine Cove has a total of 113 reported COVID-19 cases since the outbreak and two deaths reported. One hundred and seven of the 113 people have recovered.
As of press time on March 2, Riverside County has 289,773 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 3,792 deaths related to COVID-19 and 274,956 people have recovered. Three hundred and seven individuals are being hospitalized, and of those, 83 are in the ICU. The county’s positivity rate is 7.6%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 is 16.6.
As of press time on Feb. 23, Riverside County had 287,822 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 3,664 deaths related to COVID-19 and 265,635 people had recovered. Four hundred and forty-one individuals were being hospitalized, and of those, 132 were in the ICU. The county’s positivity rate was 11.0%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 was 28.8.
As of press time on Feb. 16, Riverside County had 285,414 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 3,524 deaths related to COVID-19 and 246,381 people had recovered. Six hundred and sixty individuals were being hospitalized, and of those, 185 were in the ICU. The county’s positivity rate was 14.4%. The current adjusted case rate per 100,000 was 44.9.
To date, 2,492,494 total tests have been given for COVID-19 in Riverside County, according to RUHS.