Boulder County Moves From Level Red To Orange: What Will Change

BOULDER COUNTY, CO — Dozens of Colorado counties, including Boulder County, shifted Monday from 'Level Red' on the state's COVID-19 dial to 'Level Orange' — a move that will allow restaurants to reopen indoor dining in a limited capacity.

In an announcement Wednesday on social media, Gov. Jared Polis asked the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to make the shift after a sustained decline in coronavirus cases.

"This is a direct result of Coloradans stepping up and taking the steps to protect themselves and others," Polis' post read.

The shift only applies to counties in Level Red, "which is the category designed to prevent us from having to lockdown in 'purple,'" he said.

Here's a list of what the shift from Level Red to Level Orange looks like:

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“We have some concerns about this move because we don’t yet know what the outcome of the holidays will be in terms of spread and new cases,” said Jeff Zayach, Boulder County Public Health executive director.

“But we will follow the state’s move and will not put a local public health order in place. Hopefully, we’ve all only been spending time with our own household and we won’t experience another surge in a week or two.”

Counties such as Arapahoe, Douglas and Broomfield have been approved for the state's 5-Star Certification program, which allows businesses — those who are approved for the program — to operate under a level that's one step lower than their county's level.

"5 Star certified businesses currently in Orange Level counties may be eligible for less restrictive capacity limits outlined in Yellow Level, after engaging in a consultation and approval process with their local public health agency," state officials said in a news release issued late Monday night.

Between Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon, 1,749 new cases of the coronavirus were reported in Colorado, according to public health data. As of Sunday, 341,250 cases of the coronavirus have been reported in the state among 2,158,828 tests that have been administered since the outbreak began, health officials confirmed.