Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the easing of California’s unprecedented order confining most people to their homes and shutting down all but essential businesses. Now, across much of California, lower-risk manufacturers and retailers such as bookstores, flower shops and clothing stores are beginning to reopen, while other businesses like restaurants, malls and salons remain closed, awaiting state approval for the next round.
County health officials have outlined five "indicators" of progress they are aiming for as they determine when to allow society to reopen further. These include benchmarks for testing, contact tracing and reserves of protective equipment like masks, face shields, gloves and gowns.
The Bay Area appears to currently be meeting at least two of the key metrics, one of which calls for the number of new coronavirus cases to flatten or decrease, the other which sets a target of stable or decreasing COVID-19 hospitalizations for 14 consecutive days.
To see the number of patients being treated for COVID-19 in Bay Area hospitals from April 24 through May, follow this link to KQED's analysis.
And to see updated case counts for all California counties, check out KQED's California COVID-19 tracker.
— Julia Scott (@juliascribe)