Contra Costa County Aligns With COVID-19 State Guidelines, Eases Restrictions
MARTINEZ (KPIX) - Contra Costa County Health officials have decided to align the county guidelines with the state, effectively doing away with any local restrictions.
"We're at the point where the state system is pretty good and we decided having clarity for businesses, so they can just look in one place to know what they're allowed to do and what guidance around to follow, was really helpful," said Dr. Chris Farnitano, the Contra Costa Health Officer.
Not much will change immediately. Starting Wednesday, some personal-care services that involve close contact with the face can operate outdoors. TV and movie production can resume. Professional sports without live audiences can resume (even though there are no professional sports in Contra Costa County).
If Contra Costa keeps its numbers low, the county could move from the purple to the red category within a couple of weeks, which would means restaurant dining and a whole host of other indoor activities.
"It makes me a little bit nervous but also, it still is sort of a personal choice and there's still a lot of places that do outdoor seating where if you wanted to go out and not necessarily be in contact with people indoors that's still an option," said Emily Hitomi, a county resident.
"Governor Newsom has a great team behind him and they've done their due diligence to make sure that they're keeping California safe and as long as we all follow along, I think that's a good plan," said Mike Chong.
Dr. Farnitano, the County Health Officer, said he has no plans to impose stricter rules than the state in the future, but reserves the obligation to do so if it proves necessary.
"If the numbers are okay it should be fine. At the same time, it is a pandemic, and it is still an unknown coronavirus, so we will see," said Monet Stiles of Walnut Creek.
