Safer at Home begins April 27

Sunday, April 26, marks the end of Colorado’s stay-at-home order, but it doesn’t mean everything is returning to normal — yet.

On the heels of President Donald Trump’s unveiling of a three-phase Guidelines for Opening up America Again, Gov. Jared Polis presented Colorado’s three-phase approach.

In Colorado, phase one was Stay at Home, which expires Sunday. Phase two will begin April 27 and is known as Safer at Home. On Monday, some of the restrictions will be lifted, but others will remain in place.

Stay at Home has been successful, and it is time to move on to a more sustainable phase, Polis explained. People need psychological and emotional fulfillment, and they need to be able to make a living.

For some populations, Safer at Home will look quite similar to Stay at Home. Older and at-risk people will continue to maintain the current levels of social distancing, meaning they should stay at home except for essential needs.

For the past few weeks, Colorado has maintained about 75%-80% social distancing. Yes, some people have been 100% isolated, but other essential workers have had to interact with others.

During Safer at Home, Colorado is aiming for 65% social distancing. More businesses will be allowed to open, but people should still stay at home as much as possible. If employees can work from home, they’re encouraged to do so.

Moving forward, the general public should:

— Stay at home as much as possible.

— Wear face coverings in public.

— Not have gatherings of 10 people or more.

— Avoid unnecessary travel.

— Stay home when sick.

Among the employers that will be allowed to reopen are offices, retail businesses, childcare facilities and salons. There will be strict precautions that must be taken though, such as temperature and symptom checks and reduced capacities. Elective surgeries will also be allowed.

Those businesses not opening back up yet include bars and restaurants as well as schools, which will remain closed through the semester. Polis’ goal is that restaurants and bars will reopen with precautions in mid-May.

Informing the decision to keep these measures in place is state-specific modeling done by professionals from Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado School of Medicine, University of Colorado-Boulder department of applied mathematics, University of Colorado-Denver and Colorado State University.

State epidemiologist Rachel Herlihy reported that Colorado has 2,000 beds available in intensive care units. Exceeding that number at any one time may overwhelm the state’s health care system. Modeling shows that 65% social distancing alone is not enough to stay below the ICU-bed threshold.

The best approach is a combination of interventions, which include 65% social distancing, wearing masks, improved case detection and containment, and older adults maintaining current high levels of social distancing.

If Colorado adheres to all of those interventions, the estimated date of the ICU peak is April 21.

Down the road, Colorado will move on to phase three, Protecting Our Neighbors.

While these guidelines are for the good of the state, Polis recognizes that certain communities may have different needs.

“In a big, diverse state, there should not be one statewide approach,” he said.

There will be a process for local governments to modify standards based on local conditions. Eagle County, for example, shut down early and is now able to reopen early as well.

As Safer at Home begins, the State will be looking for indicators that changes are needed, and adjustments will be made as necessary.

“I am thrilled that we are on the path to a sustainable way of living more safely, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t the potential that we have to return to a more cautious approach if the state sees a spike in new cases,” Polis said.

Workers in critical businesses ordered to wear masks

Already, the entire state of Colorado has been asked to wear face coverings when leaving home, but on April 17, Polis signed an executive order that workers in critical businesses and critical government functions wear nonmedical cloth face coverings that cover the nose and mouth while at work through May 17.

Of course, those who require a surgical-grade mask for their line of work should wear them. Others, however, are encouraged to use alternative face coverings so that medical masks remain available for those who need them.

Self-employed workers eligible for unemployment

Effective April 20, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment began taking unemployment benefit applications under the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act), paying the additional $600 per week in unemployment benefits and launch other new points of access for unemployed workers to obtain information.

There are several provisions within the CARES Act that provide enhanced or extended unemployment benefits, which are paid for by the federal government and eligible claims will be backdated so claimants will not lose out on benefits due to the waiting period to submit an application.

New claims that fall under one of the new allowed situations for unemployment under the CARES Act will be taken through a new system. This includes gig workers, independent contractors, self employed and those who are out of work because of a number of reasons directly related to COVID-19 including caring for a child whose school is closed or someone who tested positive for COVID-19.

Regular unemployment benefits will continue to be processed through the existing systems so anyone currently on unemployment does not need to take any action.

For more information, visit https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdle/unemployment.