Alameda County Gets Closer To Entering Red Tier

ALAMEDA COUNTY, CA — Alameda County is moving closer to the red tier, which could mean fewer restrictions on public life in the near future.

Alameda County is currently in the most-strict purple tier, which indicates widespread risk, of the state's four-tiered, color-coded COVID-19 risk system. The red tier is the next-best tier and indicates substantial COVID-19 risk.

The county has seen its daily COVID-19 case rate per 100,000 residents drop sharply in recent weeks.

Alameda County saw 9.5 cases per 100,000 people per day as of Monday, the most recent day for which data was available Tuesday.

Counties can enter the red tier if they meet the following standards for two consecutive weeks:

• 4 to 7 daily new cases per 100,000 people (seven-day average, with a seven-day lag)
• 5-8% testing positivity rate in the entire county (seven-day average)
• 5.3-8% testing positivity rate in communities most likely to be hit hardest (health equity metric)

Here's how Alameda County compares to those metrics:

• 9.5 daily new cases per 100,000 people: nearing red tier standard
• 3.2% testing positivity rate in the entire county: meets orange tier standard
• 5.3% testing positivity rate in neighborhoods most likely to be hit hardest (health equity metric): nearing orange tier standard

There is an exception that might allow Alameda County to skip the two-week waiting period to enter the red tier after meeting its criteria. If Alameda County's health equity metric reaches the orange tier standard, it may move more quickly out of the purple tier.

When Alameda County eventually progresses into the red tier, county public health officials will have the option of enacting stricter restrictions than the state requires.

The state permits counties in the red tier to reopen the following businesses and services indoors, with safety modifications in place:

• shopping centers (50 percent capacity; closed common areas and reduced-capacity food courts)
• indoor dining (25 percent capacity)
• fitness centers (10 percent capacity)
• places of worship (25 percent capacity or 100 people — whichever is fewer)
• nail salons
• massage facilities
• museums (25 percent capacity)
• zoos (25 percent capacity)
• aquariums (25 percent capacity)
• movie theaters (25 percent capacity or 100 people — whichever is fewer)