California Hits Record Low For Cases; 3 Counties Off Purple Tier

CALIFORNIA — Three Golden State counties, Marin, Inyo and Tehama were removed from the widespread purple tier Tuesday and were placed on the substantial red tier, officials announced. As cases declined statewide, California hit a record low of positive coronavirus cases.

Over the last two weeks, just 3.6 percent of tests in California were positive, showing the lowest rate since late March. One month ago, the positive test rate was almost twice as high.

With three more counties now off the dreaded purple tier, a number of businesses will be allowed to resume or expand indoor operations in these counties.

Restaurants will be allowed to resume indoor dining at 25 percent capacity and so will personal services such as nail salons and aestheticians, museums, zoos and movie theaters. Gyms and fitness centers will reopen indoors at 10 percent of their capacity.

Indoor shopping centers and libraries can expand their indoor capacity to 50 percent. Places of worship will also be allowed to resume indoor services at 25 percent capacity.

"There's a whole host of counties that have met the red tier for one week," said Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health and Human Services Secretary.

If they can hold for another week, they will all move as well. To move forward, a county must meet the next tier's criteria for two consecutive weeks.

As San Diego edged back toward the purple tier, with an uptick in cases, Ghaly said that the state was in talks with the county.

"This will be an ongoing conversation with San Diego," Ghaly said. "If collectively there is a belief that slowing things down...and moving to a more restrictive tier is going to help us get through the coming months, the state is certainly prepared to do that."

In Los Angeles, Ghaly said that transmission rates were still coming down.

"It comes down on the backs of a lot of hard working people in the LA communities," he said.