Boulder County Extends Stay-At-Home Order Through May 8

The decision was made amid "increasing cases of COVID-19, insufficient access to testing, and too few case investigators," the county said.

BOULDER COUNTY, CO — Boulder County Public Health has announced the extension of the county's stay-at-home order through May 8. The extension will help the county "develop clear strategies and guidelines for preventing a surge of COVID-19 cases," health officials said.

“As public health stewards, it is our responsibility to protect the health of all Boulder County residents by investigating and controlling the spread of communicable disease,” Jeff Zayach, Boulder County Public Health executive director, said in a statement.

“We have increasing cases of COVID-19, insufficient access to testing, and too few case investigators to consider anything else than extending the current Stay-At-Home Order. We want to avoid relaxing restrictions only to have to reimpose them if there’s a new surge in cases.”

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The difference between the statewide stay-at-home order and Boulder County's order is the allowance of non-critical businesses to offer curbside delivery of products, health officials said. The pick up of the products is now included in the order as "necessary travel."

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“We’re in a no-win situation,” Zayach said. “I know the livelihoods of many people have been significantly impacted by COVID-19. We hope that including the option for curbside delivery for non-critical businesses will help our communities start getting back on their feet.”

Boulder County has not met the conditions that need to be in place to make sure the spread of COVID-19 doesn’t resurge after stay-at-home restrictions are eased, health officials said.

The county issued the following list of 'necessary conditions' for the order to end:

• Transmission of the virus is controlled.
• Local hospitals are able to treat all patients needing hospitalization.
• Testing is available, and there is capacity to monitor those who have tested positive, as well as their close contacts.
• Outbreak risks are minimized in special settings like health facilities and nursing homes.
• Adequate preventive measures are in place in workplaces, businesses, and other essential places.
• Individuals and businesses have the information and guidance needed to adhere to requirements.

“This extra time will allow us to ramp up our epidemiology team to continue to conduct contact tracing, focus outreach and care on disproportionately impacted communities, receive additional personal protective equipment for our health care providers, and continue our progress on accessing testing,” Zayach said.

“Without these elements in place, moving to the governor’s Safer-at-Home phase in Boulder County would be extremely dangerous.”

Officials said additional two weeks of staying at home will allow time to:

• Complete renovation of the St. Anthony’s North facility to serve as a location for step-down care when COVID-19 patients who require continued acute care are discharged from the hospital.
• Prepare clear guidance for and with the business community to increase compliance and minimize confusion.
• Create clear guidance for residents to minimize confusion and increase compliance.
• Establish a compliance system for businesses to demonstrate their compliance with COVID-19 regulations.
• Ramp up outreach and guidance to disparately affected communities, including Hispanic/Latinx and older populations.
• Increase staffing for surveillance and monitoring of active cases of COVID-19.
• Receive additional testing supplies for Boulder County residents.
• Receive additional personal protective equipment (PPE), including surgical and N95 masks, for essential staff like health care workers and first responders.

Denver and Jefferson County have also extended their stay-at-home orders until May 8.