State introduces 'Dial 2.0,' easing restrictions for several counties
DENVER — The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is updating its COVID-19 dial dashboard, allowing counties to move easier between levels, and therefore enter less restrictive phases.
The new dial, dubbed Dial 2.0, goes into effect Saturday, February 6 at 9 a.m.
“Dial 2.0 is designed so that counties can swiftly move into more restrictive levels when their numbers go up, and more quickly into recovery when their numbers go down,” said CDPHE Executive Director Jill Hunsaker Ryan. “Input from our partners helped us tailor the new dial to best serve the needs of Coloradans at the local level. Since the dial’s last major change in November, Colorado has begun distributing COVID-19 vaccines throughout the state. More people now have immunity to COVID-19, including people over 70 and frontline health care workers. This relieves the strain on our hospital system.”
Under the new parameters of Dial 2.0, several Colorado counties will be moving to Level Blue. Currently, just one county (Hinsdale) is in Level Blue--the second-least restrictive phase on the dial behind Level Green. Once Dial 2.0 goes into effect, more than 20 counties will move to Level Blue.
“The release of Dial 2.0 is a more responsive way to allow individual counties to stay safely open based on their COVID-19 incident rates. But we can’t let our guard down now. We are all in this fight together, Colorado. Let’s stick with good social distancing practices and mask wearing as we work our way towards ending the pandemic by vaccinating more and more Coloradans,” Governor Polis said in a press conference February 5.
Denver County will move from Level Orange to the less-restrictive Level Yellow. As many as 150 people can be allowed inside a restaurant in Level Yellow counties.
Certified 5 Star businesses are still allowed to operate a level down on the dial, but they cannot operate under Level Green unless they were in Level Green previous to the dial change. Denver is currently accepting applications for 5 Star certifications.
“As more and more Coloradans get vaccinated, the state will revisit the dial and expect to have a draft of Dial 3.0 in the spring, officials with CDPHE wrote in a press release. “CDPHE will seek input for this evolution and again for another update this summer.”
More information on the new dial and restrictions is available here.