DENVER – Colorado’s largest province will also move to 100% capacity level for restaurants on Friday, Denver officials announced Wednesday, pointing out that the death toll is lower as more residents are vaccinated.
Denver goes to ‘Level Blue’ on Friday, which allows restaurants and gyms to operate at 100% capacity, although social footing of six feet will still apply, which limits capacity somewhat.
Denver joins the counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Jefferson and Boulder as major metro areas moving to Level Blue on Friday, when the state hands over COVID-19 authority to local governments. The state has a complete list of Level Blue restrictions, although some protocols may differ from country to country.
While the number of cases in Denver and across Colorado has increased over the past few weeks, Denver has reported five COVID-19 deaths since March 28th. The weekly deaths were up to 37 in December and peaked at 56 last April, with the onset of the pandemic. Denver’s seven-day moving average daily COVID-19 hospitalizations Tuesday was 3.29.
Bob McDonald, executive director of the Denver Department of Health, said Denver’s mortality rate is ‘generally very low at this time’, but that the city is also ‘closely monitoring’ hospitalizations.
McDonald and Mayor Michael Hancock said vaccine distribution was the most important factor in easing restrictions.
“The difference compared to last year is that we have the vaccines,” Hancock said. “We make decisions that are guided by data and the presence of the vaccine in our community.”
City officials said Wednesday 41 percent of Denver residents received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 22.8 percent were fully vaccinated. Across the country, 36.9% of Coloradans received at least one dose and 22.4% were fully vaccinated.
Denver’s changes this week also include an amendment to the city’s mask mandate. Masks are not needed in the outdoor environment, but inside and within public transportation. The modified mask order will expire in 30 days.
While local government takes effect this week, the state will still have control over large indoor events of more than 500 people, such as concerts and sporting events.
For outdoor events of less than 5,000 people, the event should have a mitigation plan for social distance. Outdoor events for more than 5,000 people should be further consulted by the city health department.
Jefferson County announced Tuesday that it would enter an “observation period” after May 15 in which no COVID-19 restrictions would be applied. Denver does not plan to have an observation period at this time.
Douglas County ruled Tuesday on Tri-County’s public health order and has no restrictions other than those that remain in place at the state level. McDonald called the decision Wednesday a risky move and perhaps too soon.