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Covid Updates: Yellow Tier, Now What?

With the big move to the yellow tier in San Mateo County this week, the Saturday update deserves a fresh post.  You can find our year+ of tracking at this post and the prior one.  Dinner downtown last night was a full-house affair with the conversational noise levels reaching pre-pandemic levels plus a tad.  I went up to the new Outdoor Supply Hardware as well and a few people were wandering the outdoor nursery area sans masks–it felt a little weird, but we will get used to it.  I will still track the numbers for the week which are:

77.4% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated and the age limit to do so dropped to 12 (Pfizer).  That is a small increase from last week.

Total Cases: 41,909 (+162 in the County)

Positivity: .7% (down another tenth)

Burlingame Cases: 1,244 (ONLY ONE new case this week; 34 in the last 30 days).

Now you see how we got to yellow.  Here's what that means:

Dr. Curtis Chan, deputy health officer with San Mateo County, said the change moves the county away from the mentality of strict government restrictions and toward a new era of common courtesy, community agreements and more relaxed mask scenarios.

“We are not emphasizing health officer orders. We want to emphasize caring. For fully vaccinated people, face coverings are not required, but also social agreement and common courtesy could be taken into consideration,” Chan said.  Chan believes there will be a reduced need for mask restrictions in the coming months, and he hopes mask restrictions will be additionally loosened by July 4.  “I would hope that would be around the date when mask social agreements are going to be eased up a little bit,” he said.

"Social agreement".  Got that?

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40 responses to “Covid Updates: Yellow Tier, Now What?”

  1. Amazing

    Social agreement. What is that? People coin these new phrases and imbue them with meaning that everyone else is expected to understand. How about be courteous if someone is/isn’t masked up?

  2. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Here are the numbers for this really quiet week Covid-wise:
    81.4% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 4% from last week.
    Total Cases: 41,999 (+90 in the County)
    Positivity: .6% (down another tenth)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,248 (4 new positives in B’game this week).

  3. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Here’s the Saturday morning update for May 29th:
    83.3% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up only 1.9% from last week.
    Total Cases: 42,069 (+70 in the County)
    Positivity: .6% (the same)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,249 (ONE new positive in B’game this week).
    Looking good!

  4. resident

    $50 dollar gift cards or supermarket debit cards coming for getting vaxed courtesy of Newsom. And a big “lottery”. Who says facing a recall is a waste of taxpayer money? https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/article/California-s-vaccine-jackpot-116-5-million-in-16208445.php

  5. Peter Garrison

    Nothing changes: Recent Pompeii exhibit at the Legion of Honor shows a fresco of a politician giving away free bread to the voters.

  6. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Here’s the weekend update showing slow progress on vaxing, but even slower growth of positives:
    83.9% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up only 0.6% from last week.
    Total Cases: 42,106 (+37 in the County for the week)
    Positivity: .5% (down a tenth)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,248 (magically we had one case disappear this week– down by 1 from last week!).
    Perhaps it is time to start recapturing some parking spaces in the two commercial districts?

  7. Joe

    The weekend update is still very good news:
    85.4% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 1.5% from last week.
    Total Cases: 42,214 (+108 in the County for the week)
    Positivity: .5% (stable)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,250 (2 new positives this week).
    Now that the County Fair is open, the County is using it as a carrot:
    Any San Mateo County resident 12+ who gets vaccinated at the County Fair will receive:
    Free admission for that individual and anyone 11 or under in that individual’s household plus a $20 voucher for food at the County Fair and four ride tickets.

  8. Gavinius Caesar

    I, Gavinius Caesar, hereby declare the empire to be mostly open. My subjects are to prepare for bread and circuses starting with a lottery for many coins of the realm. My gladiators shall tease the bear before killing him and my subjects shall applaud.

  9. Cassandra

    The library is open!
    Not really.
    2-4 pm Monday-Friday.
    12-4 Saturday.
    Closed Sunday.
    Think of the reasons for this:
    People prefer to read during their siestas.
    Church Law forbids reading on Sunday.
    The virus is afraid of the post-meridian sunlight.
    Librarians’ eyes have atrophied in 15 months of the shutdown.
    Paper cut injuries occur mostly in the morning and evening.
    There’s a supply-line shortage of info at the Information Desk.

  10. Cassandra

    Correction:
    M-F 2-6 pm
    Sat. 12-4 pm

  11. Joe

    Yesterday was special because I went grocery shopping without a mask. It was about 50/50 on masks as people get used to the idea. The produce section smelled…like produce! The weekend update is still very good news:
    86.7% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 1.3% from last week.
    Total Cases: 42,293 (+79 in the County for the week)
    Positivity: .7% (up .2% but such a small number of tests taking place)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,249 (another week when the count goes DOWN by 1).
    The SF Comicle dedicated a front page piece to the mask-no mask question in grocery stores. The found 63-3 masked at Rainbow Grocery, 26-1 at Rocky’s Market, 119-17 at Trader Joe’s in San Rafael, and 65 masked to 9 unmasked at Draeger’s in San Mateo.
    The state portal to get a digital copy of your vax info is https://myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov/

  12. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Business was booming last night on the Avenew. Restaurant seating was full, the Apple Store was busy and the decoy police car was out front. Kids were being kids. Expect complaints about the lack of parking to start soon. Here are the numbers for the week:
    87.5% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.8% from last week, so slowing down.
    Total Cases: 42,386 (+93 in the County for the week)
    Positivity: .7% (same as last week)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,254 (that would imply 4 new cases this week, but the numbers are sketchy when they go DOWN week-to-week. The County site says 10 new positives in town in the last 30 days).

  13. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    It was another quiet week on the Covid front as the news trumpets the threat of the delta variant. If it is a real threat at our current levels of vax, it will take a few more weeks to show up in the numbers. For the weekend update we have:
    88.2% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.7% from last week, so slowing down again.
    Total Cases: 42,509 (+123 in the County for the week; 30 more new cases than last week)
    Positivity: .8% (up a tenth)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,256 (up 2 from last week)
    So quietly stable week over week. The maskless percentages in grocery stores is rising. Seemed like more than half yesterday.

  14. Cassandra

    Went to the library.
    Masks required to “protect the children.”
    Makes no sense if you are fully vaccinated.
    Can’t give it to them.
    They can’t give it to you.
    Barely anyone there anyway.
    We’ve been trained to read at home.

  15. JP

    The Sheeple will take at least a month to stop rebreathing their own CO2.

  16. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Another quiet week on the Covid front. The Delta variant is here but it really hasn’t affected the numbers yet. The slight uptick in Countywide cases could easily be a function of the reopening. The weekend update is
    88.8% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.6% from last week, so slowing down again.
    Total Cases: 42,714 (+205 in the County for the week; 82 more new cases than last week)
    Positivity: .8% (the same)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,257 (up just 1 from last week. Cases in the last 30 days: 10)

  17. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    We are seeing the slight uptick that has been predicted from the delta variant including in B’game. Here’s how the week went:
    89.4% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.6% again from last week, same increase two weeks in a row.
    Total Cases: 43,068 (+354 in the County for the week; 149 more new cases than last week)
    Positivity: 1.7% (more than double last week)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,272 (up 15 from last week. Cases in the last 30 days: 22 which doesn’t quite jibe with the totals, but a definite uptick)

  18. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    We are seeing the uptick that has been predicted from the delta variant including in B’game. Several metrics have doubled even though the positivity rate is the same as last week. Here’s how the week went:
    90.1% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.7% from last week, about the same increase three weeks in a row.
    Total Cases: 43,676 (+608 in the County for the week almost double last week’s increase)
    Positivity: 1.7% (the same as last week!)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,303 (up 31 from last week–double the week before. Cases in the last 30 days: 45)
    With 90% of the County over 16 vaxxed and some of the remaining 10% probably already had Covid, the pool of new cases should dry up unless “breakthrough” cases (people who have been vaxxed and still get it) becomes someone frequent.

  19. Paloma Ave

    How about this?
    Anyone was has been eligible for Covid 19 vaccination, who hasn’t received it, does not get treated if they come down with it?
    What are your thoughts?

  20. resident

    Sounds like a plan. There are a couple of circumstances to be considered like the interaction with their other meds. But the idea is good.

  21. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water…..here is the weekend update
    90.7% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.6% from last week, about the same increase four weeks in a row.
    Total Cases: 44,430 (+754 in the County for the week up 25% from last week’s increase)
    Positivity: 2.5% (up a lot)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,322 (up 19 from last week–so a slower rise but still much higher than the 1, 2 or 3 per week we were seeing. Cases in the last 30 days: 61)

  22. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    The uptick has arrived as have the masks indoors. The main thing we need and do not get yet from the County is how many cases are breakthroughs…..here is the weekend update
    91.4% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up 0.7% from last week, about the same increase five weeks in a row.
    Total Cases: 45316 (+886 in the County for the week up 18% from last week’s increase)
    Positivity: 3.2% (up .7%)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,371 (up 49 from last week–so picking up noticeably. Cases in the last 30 days: 103)

  23. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    I was more curious than usual to see how this week went, but for all of the blaring headlines, the numbers aren’t much different than the last few weeks…..here is the weekend update (Update: I had forgotten to save two figures this week, they are now updated from the prior week).
    92.1% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up another 0.7% from last week, about the same rise six weeks in a row. Slow but sure.
    Total Cases: 46,231 (+915 in the County for the week which is about the same as last week)
    Positivity: 3.5% (up .3%)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,408 (up 37 from last week–so a slight slowdown. Cases in the last 30 days: 126)
    I spoke to an old friend who lives in the U.K. this week and was a breakthrough case after dining at a new, crowded, smallish restaurant seated at the bar. He had a rough ride and won’t do that again. Word to the wise.

  24. Joe

    From Calmatters.org today:
    Timing is everything.
    It’s an adage that Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration appears to have taken to heart as recall ballots land in millions of mailboxes. The state Department of Public Health announced Wednesday that, starting Sept. 20, people attending indoor events with 1,000 or more guests must provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test from within the prior 72 hours. (A similar rule had previously applied only to indoor events with 5,000 or more attendees.) That means the new policy won’t go into effect until six days after the Sept. 14 recall election — and it’s slated to end less than two months later, on Nov. 1.
    The timeline suggests that Newsom may be trying to thread the needle as voters contemplate whether to keep him in office. Announcing a new public health mandate allows Newsom to draw a sharper contrast between his coronavirus policies and those of his prominent Republican challengers, who say they would reverse school mask rules and end vaccine mandates for health care employees and state workers. But, by not actually implementing the policy until after the election, Newsom may be able to avoid potential backlash from frustrated voters and businesses.

  25. Spurinna

    So slick.
    He’s got to go.

  26. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    The word of the week this week was “booster”. Several sources think the Sept/Oct timeframe will bring that recommendation, but again the numbers aren’t much different than the last few weeks…..here is the weekend update
    92.8% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated up another 0.7% from last week, about the same rise seven weeks in a row. Slow but sure.
    Total Cases: 47,185 (+954 in the County for the week which is about the same as last week)
    Positivity: 3.6% (up .1%)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,452 (up 44 from last week–so a slight uptick. Cases in the last 30 days: 157)
    Plenty of companies are delaying their back-to-the-office dates, but schools are opening so the dynamic may shift a bit soon.

  27. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    The word of the week this week was “plateau”. Several sources think we have reached a plateau and the numbers suggest that as well…..here is the weekend update
    92.1% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Apparently there is some new demographic data that is affecting the count since this rate is .7% LOWER than last week. No real explanation given.
    Total Cases: 48,061 (+876 in the County for the week which is down a bit.)
    Positivity: 2.9% (down .7%)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,493 (up 41 from last week–so pretty flat. Cases in the last 30 days: 167)
    There was not much new news about forthcoming boosters, but I did get a message from Walgreens that flu shots are here…jab away.

  28. Joe – Weekend Update on the Numbers

    The “plateau” tilted upwards a little this week in the County, but not that much compared to what we read in the headlines…..here is the weekend update
    92.8% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Somehow we recaptured the .7% that we lost last week. Back to what it was two weeks ago!
    Total Cases: 49,308 (+1,247 in the County for the week which is up 42% from last week’s increase.)
    Positivity: 2.9% (same as last week)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,538 (up 45 from last week–so about the same rate. Curiously, cases in the last 30 days only went up by 10 to 177. There is something amiss with the data on this metric.)
    As the B’game Air Quality Index has bounced around 100 the last few days it is hard to tell who is wearing their masks outdoors for Covid or for smoke.

  29. Joe

    The words for the week appear to be “mandate” which is quite a change from the “social agreement” noted in the original post and “booster”. You can take the County’s 2-minute survey on boosters here https://bit.ly/3E69thv …..here is the weekend update
    93.2% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Up 0.4% for the week.
    Total Cases: 49,921 (+613 in the County for the week which is half of last week’s increase.)
    Positivity: 2.9% (same as last week and the week before)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,567 (up 29 from last week–also dropping. Cases in the last 30 days are 159.)

  30. Joe

    The words for the week are still “mandate” and “booster”. Here is the weekend update showing lots of green indicators:
    93.7% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Up 0.5% for the week.
    Total Cases: 50,525 (+604 in the County for the week which is flat from last week.)
    Positivity: 2.2% (way down by .7% – the largest drop in a long time.)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,590 (up 23 from last week–dropping further. Cases in the last 30 days are 133 showing the downward trend.)
    Between the 93.7% vax rate for age 16+ and the natural immunity of the 50,525 people who have had Covid, the various types of mandates are going to be a tougher sell than before.

  31. Joe

    I was bummed I missed the show at the Black Cat nightclub. I would have liked to say hi to London Breed. Here is the weekend update showing lots of green indicators:
    94.6% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Noticeably up 0.9% for the week.
    Total Cases: 51,046 (+521 in the County for the week which is down a little from last week.)
    Positivity: 1.8% (way down again by .4% – down 1.1% in the last two weeks.)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,606 (up 16 from last week–so still dropping week-to-week. Cases in the last 30 days are 115 showing the downward trend.)
    Aside from booster news, the big question is when the County will start calling out breakthrough cases and give us some sense of how they happen.

  32. Joe

    This week brought the schoolkids mandate and a new treatment in pill form from Merk. Here is the weekend update showing lots of green indicators:
    95.0% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Incremental improvements from here will be harder as we are only up 0.4% for the week.
    Total Cases: 51,518 (+472 in the County for the week which is down a little more from last week.)
    Positivity: 1.5% (way down again by .3% – down 1.4% in the last three weeks.)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,622 (up 16 from last week–the same number as the prior week. Cases in the last 30 days number 85 showing the downward trend continues.)
    There is still no County news about breakthrough cases, but I hear booster shots are available for scheduling from a variety of providers. The current recommendation is to stick with whatever flavor you got originally, so only Pfizer so far.

  33. Joe

    The word for the week is still “mask mandate” as the officials gyrate on whether or not to drop the indoor requirement. Here is the weekend update showing lots of green indicators yet again:
    95.7% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. That’s a slight uptick to +0.7% verses last week. And not that many people play for the Warriors.
    Total Cases: 51,847 (+329 in the County for the week which is down nicely from last week.)
    Positivity: 1.3% (down again by .3% – down 1.6% in the last four weeks – cut by more than half.)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,573 (the number MAGICALLY DECLINED by 49. Who knows why? Cases in the last 30 days number 52 showing the downward trend accelerates, but can we believe them?)
    In order to drop the masks indoors we apparently need to have 80% of the county vaxxed. That is about 611K people which is higher than the number shown as complete, but the number shown as vaxxed is 637K. The DJ tried to make sense of it all here https://bit.ly/3oO3s3Y. 329 new cases in a population of 3/4 million people doesn’t seem like a high transmission rate……

  34. Joe

    The word for the week is “booster” as the Moderna booster got the OK and the J&J OK is on the horizon. Also mixing them up may be OK’ed as well meaning a run on Moderna is likely. The Pfizer booster is now available at the SM Event Center.
    From the County site: October 14, 2021: San Mateo County Health processed a correction to the vaccination data dashboards that has decreased the number of vaccinated county residents by about 5 percent.:
    90.7% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Whatever increase happened this week is totally erased by the 5% slip-up.
    Total Cases: 52,141 (+294 in the County for the week which is down slightly from last week.)
    Positivity: 1.2% (down again by .1% – down 1.7% in the last five weeks)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,589 (up by 16 from last week’s questionable number. Cases in the last 30 days number 48 showing the downward trend continues.)

  35. Joe

    The word for the week is still “booster” as the Moderna and the J&J OK’s arrived along with the mix-and-match OK. I talked to one person this week who was boosted. It will be the new badge of honor.
    91% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Up 0.3%.
    Total Cases: 52,466 (+325 in the County for the week which is up slightly from last week, but barely.)
    Positivity: 1.0% (down again and dropping into the hard-to-decipher range)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,602 (up by 13 from last week. Cases in the last 30 days dropped by 2 to 46.)

  36. Peter Garrison

    All jacked up on Moderna and Pfizer booster.
    Now to mass for the Medicine of Immortality in the Sacrament.
    Covering those bases…

  37. Paloma Ave

    That is so Pete Garrison of you! Can I get an Amen?

  38. Joe

    Three quarters of an amen. Mass is capitalized, Pastor.

  39. Peter Garrison

    Back from Mass.
    So jacked.

  40. Joe

    The words for the week are “booster”, masks and hamburgers. Getting a booster appointment at Walgreen’s is easy–ask me how I know. Marin is about to lift the indoor mask mandate and In ‘n Out is giving the old in-and-out one-finger salute to the inspectors. Here’s the story for San Mateo County this week:
    91.3% of the County over age 16 is vaccinated. Up another 0.3%.
    Total Cases: 52,852 (+386 in the County for the week which is up slightly from last week and the week before, but barely.)
    Positivity: 1.0% (flat)
    Burlingame Cases: 1,618 (up by 16 from last week. Cases in the last 30 days up a little to 54.)
    It looks like the kids are next in line.

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