California playgrounds can now welcome visitors, regardless of a county’s status under the state’s coronavirus reopening protocols, health officials announced.
Playground visitors must wear masks unless they are younger than age 2 and must have caregiver supervision, according to state guidelines released Monday.
The caregiver is responsible for making sure the children whom they are responsible for wear masks.
Visitors should not use playgrounds if they cannot maintain 6 feet of distance from other users. Caregivers must remind children to maintain 6 feet of distance from people in different households.
Eating and drinking is not allowed in the playground, and visits should be limited to 30 minutes per day.
Playground operators should increase their cleaning and sanitation routines, preferably cleaning at least once daily, according to state guidelines.
Operators must post at the entrance of each playground what the maximum capacity is that would still allow for 6 feet of distance between households, and then also place markers on the ground throughout the playground noting what 6 feet of distance looks like.
More counties advance in reopening tiers
The news came as California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly reported a 2.8% 14-day positivity rate, saying the state overall is continuing to improve COVID-19 metrics.
Additional counties moved tiers this week, as announced during Ghaly’s weekly Tuesday update. There are now 18 counties in the purple tier, which is the strictest level of California’s color-coded, four-tier reopening framework. There are 22 counties in the red tier; 15 counties in the orange tier; and three counties in the yellow tier.
Butte, Contra Costa, Fresno, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Santa Barbara and Yolo counties moved into the red tier this week. Amador, Calaveras, and San Francisco counties moved into the orange tier.
“A number of counties also have met the first week threshold for a less restrictive tier and next week we will see if a number of those other counties could advance,” Ghaly said.
State adds mental health resources
Additionally, California Surgeon General Dr. Nadine Burke Harris announced Tuesday that the state has created additional mental health resources that anyone can access.
Each resource is tailored to people’s needs, ranging from children to first-responders.
Individuals can access mental health resources, self-help tools, referrals for professionals, individual or group counseling information and community support by calling (833) 317-HOPE.
“If this feels hard, it is because it is hard,” Burke Harris said. “We are in the middle of a once in a hundred year pandemic, compounded by the crisis of wildfires, and the social injustice we are seeing in front of use every day. … Self-care isn’t selfish.”
Desert Sun reporter Nicole Hayden covers health in the Coachella Valley. She can be reached at Nicole.Hayden@desertsun.com or (760) 778-4623. Follow her on Twitter @Nicole_A_Hayden.