Dr. Frankovich discusses what new State reopening guidance means for Humboldt County

HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif. (KIEM) — Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Frankovich is giving residents a better idea of what the new reopening guidance from the State means for North Coast residents.

“Rather than talking about things being open or closed per say, it talks about ways we can modify business settings so they may remain open if at all possible, and just use things like reduced capacity or little change in venue to be able to have them open,” Dr. Frankovich says.

Dr. Frankovich welcomes the idea to have locally driven decisions when it comes to Covid-19 and believes this will help us out in the long run.

While some restrictions are lessened, like dining being able to move indoors with a lower capacity, some businesses have more restrictions such as fitness centers only being able to operate at 25% capacity.

Those that have already submitted reopening plans will not be required to fill out a new application. Instead, the joint information center will be reaching out to make sure they understand the new guidance.

Dr. Frankovich reminds residents that the county is not too far away until we progress to the next tier, or red level. If we get to this point, bars and breweries would be closed and places like family entertainment centers would move back to outdoor operations only.

“If everyone is compliant with this and does all those other things we are looking for then hopefully, we can ride in this level or better and not have to move up, but I think it needs to be on everyone’s radar moving forward,” Frankovich adds.