Governor Herbert’s Executive Order moving Utah’s status from Red (High Risk) to Orange (Moderate Risk) takes effect today, May 1st. TriCounty Health Officer Jordan Mathis explains that this doesn’t change a whole lot for the TriCounty area. Employees are still required to wear face coverings and the public is still strongly encouraged to wear face coverings. Gyms, salons, and other businesses are now opening statewide, a step the TriCounty Health District had already taken. One main change is dine in services at restaurants, bars, and other food establishments are resuming starting today under certain conditions. High risk individuals including those ages 65 and older are still strongly encouraged to follow the Red guidelines. The Governor’s ‘Utah Leads Together 2.0’ plan moving forward is still a work in progress and it is unclear how long Utah can expect to be at Orange status. Mathis explains that the state has not yet set forth clear guidelines for moving to the Yellow phase and therefore TriCounty Health and local leaders won’t know what it will take to qualify until the state provides that information. It’s also important to note that if things change drastically in the state or in the TriCounty area it could push the status from Orange back to Red. Links to view the order and details about the tiered guidelines for the general public are available at www.tricountyhealth.com and www.coronavirus.utah.gov. Under the Moderate Risk tiered guidelines, the general public is still asked to take extreme precautions, stay 6 feet away from others when outside the home, limit in-person interactions to individual households and those who have been following recommended distancing, and to leave home infrequently. Social interactions in groups has been increased from 10 to 20.
