COVID-19 HHRC Update: Managing COVID-19, COVID-19 Dial, Safe Tourism, What Ifs
September 21, 2020 10:00 am
Information shared from Grand Country Public Health https://www.co.grand.co.us/COVID19
Managing COVID-19
As basic distancing behaviors become routine, the fear that drove us to adopt them will recede. Fear gets bored easily, leading to habituation. If you do not feel constant fear around pools and cars, it is not because you are reckless; it is because you have learned to swim and use seat belts to manage the threats they pose. We can come to manage the virus and its threats the same way. We need to be careful that as fear recedes, we do not become too lax in practicing the protective measures put in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. If you fail to avoid a dog and it bites you, only you get hurt. However, if you fail to avoid a virus and it infects you, you now become the threat, a vector capable of spreading harm to others. This makes risking infection not simply a personal choice.
Two ingredients are required. The first is good information. Keep abreast of scientifically vetted recommendations from the World Health Organization and other reliable sources. Yes, these recommendations change sometimes, but this is because scientists are gathering and analyzing data and updating their knowledge at unprecedented rates. We now know, for example, that most coronavirus transmission takes place in crowded indoor spaces, particularly when people are forcefully expelling breath by talking, coughing or singing.
The second ingredient is (sensible) exposure to the threat. While there is no way to ensure zero risk of infection, the suggestions in the Risk & Benefits Chart empower individuals to make the best decisions — to weigh the health risks with the benefits to social, emotional, physical, economic needs.
Complete avoidance of risk will not be possible, but managing the risk is. Therefore, it is important to provide accurate information as well as information about weighing the risks of exposure.
COVID-19 Dial
Colorado’s dial framework standardizes different levels of “openness” at the county level. It is a tool for counties to use to make life during the pandemic more sustainable, allowing us to balance, to the greatest extent possible, controlling the virus with our social and economic needs. Counties were assigned levels on Sept. 15 based on their current capacity limitations from approved variances. In two weeks (Sept. 29), county assignments will be re-evaluated.
Regardless of this framework and the level CDPHE has placed Grand County in, GCPH will not be changing event capacities at this time. Event Capacities will remain at 50% capacity or a maximum of 50 people for indoor events and 50% capacity or a maximum of 125 people for outdoor events. The reasoning behind this is to allow for enough time for GCPH to assess if there was any virus spread that occurred during Labor Day Weekend.
Safe Tourism
Businesses across Grand County are following necessary Activity Specific Protective Measures to minimize the risks of COVID-19 ─ keeping you safe and our community open! Grand County takes COVID-19 very seriously, and all we ask is that visitors do as well.
To protect yourself and those around you, follow the Five (5) Commitments of Containment while visiting:
- Maintain six (6) Feet of Physical Distance. Keeping your physical distance from people not in your household or traveling group is one of the most effective prevention measures.
- Wash Your Hands Often. Especially after visiting public settings, businesses, and before eating or touching your face.
- Cover Your Face in Public. Wear a face covering when entering any place of business or public indoor environment (e.g. retail store, grocery store, post office, library, other government buildings, theater, etc.)
- Stay Home When Sick. Staying home prevents the spread to co-workers, friends, and neighbors.
- Get Tested Immediately if You Have Symptoms. Testing is a key strategy to help contain the virus.
What if you get exposed to COVID-19, experience symptoms, or even test positive while you are here?
If you experience any of these situations, you will have to follow the instructions of Grand County Public Health. As a visitor, this may mean having to take actions such as extending your stay to complete isolation/quarantine at your own expense, or traveling home by car without stopping, in order to protect those around you.
