Redwood City – The County of San Mateo continues to work to protect public health and safety in response to the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19.
The County of San Mateo’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) remains open to coordinate countywide response and communications in response to the situation. The EOC’s Joint Information Center will provide status reports every Tuesday and Thursday until further notice. Today’s report:
SMC Recovery Initiative: Creating a Better Future
The Board of Supervisors today accepted the final report on the SMC Recovery Initiative, which outlines a path toward a more equitable, healthy and connected community in the recovery from COVID-19.
The 91-page report reflects the goals, objectives, recommendations, and priorities identified through more than 35 work sessions. These virtual sessions brought together representatives from a diverse array of individuals and organizations, including nonprofit groups, business interests, schools and elected officials, among others.
The recovery initiative is driven by four guiding principles: Public Health, Equity, Fiscal Responsibility and Community Collaboration. The report includes objectives and recommendations aligned with the initiative’s goals.
Next steps involve developing a website as a central resource for tracking the progress of recovery efforts and directing users to current resources.
Read the staff report to the Board of Supervisors.
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County Health Chief Outlines New Metric for State’s Tier Assignments
At the Board of Supervisors’ meeting today, County Health Chief Louise Rogers said that the state has added an additional metric to determine a county’s tier status part of the Blueprint for a Safer Economy. In addition to countywide case and positivity rates, the equity metric uses data from the Healthy Places Index (https://healthyplacesindex.org) to identify the census tracts at greatest risk, due to lower income, lack of health insurance, overcrowded and/or unaffordable housing, and other social determinants of health.
To move to a less restrictive tier, COVID-19 positive test rates in these census tracts must come within 5% of the overall positive test rate required for that tier.
Rogers said that in the data the state shared recently, the positivity rate for these communities in San Mateo County is 5.3% compared to an overall county positivity of 2.6% for the most recent 7-day (7-day lag) period. San Mateo County would remain in the red tier.
She said that neighborhood-level testing and community engagement, along with broader testing countywide and the work of the Immigrant Relief Fund, the San Mateo County Recovery Initiative, and the measures for providing rent relief and other economic benefits, have reduced some of the burdens these communities are facing. The expanded testing strategy is continuing to reduce the positivity rate.
Small-Residential Property Owner Resources, Watch for Grant Application Dates
Residential rental property owners who live and rent in San Mateo County, rely on rent as a main source of income and lost rental income due to COVID-19, may qualify for $6,000 grant per eligible unit through the Small Property Owner Assistance Program.
The grant application period will be announced soon. Property owners are encouraged to review the information posted at https://www.smcstrong.org/copy-of-frequently-asked-questions to understand the application process, properties that may qualify for grant funds, and to assemble documents required when submitting the grant application.
The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors dedicated $2 million to establish the grant program for small-scale residential rental property owners in the county who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The San Mateo County Strong Fund (SMC Strong) was established by the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors on March 24, 2020 to assist individuals, families, non-profits and small businesses that have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. The San Mateo County Strong fund is managed by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and San Mateo County Economic Development Agency is a SMC Strong partner agency.
Prevent the Spread, Get COVID-19 Test at SMC Event Center and Mobile Sites
The two key metrics that can lead to a safe and healthy community and more services opening in the County of San Mateo are reducing the number COVID-19 cases and increasing the number of residents being tested.
Prevent the Spread: You can prevent the spread of COVID-19 by washing hands, wearing masks, and not congregating with those outside of your home. See more COVID-19 prevention tips at https://www.smchealth.org/coronavirus-frequently-asked-questions and at https://bit.ly/3iFJSjs
Get Tested: The county is making COVID-19 testing easier and more accessible. The test not only helps you and your community stay safe, but also helps the county’s rolling seven-day average which impacts the metrics that may help us move to a lower tier of reopening.
You can find information on the various testing resources available in the county at https://www.smcgov.org/testing where you can also watch a video about the testing process, and see how to make an appointment with the County’s testing partner Project Baseline.
Testing for COVID-19 is available to everyone 18 and older who lives or works in San Mateo County regardless of symptoms or increased risk of exposure. The COVID-19 diagnostic test is safe, easy and at no-cost to you regardless of which testing site you choose.
San Mateo County Event Center Testing
Testing is available from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays at the San Mateo County Event Center, with the capacity to test over 1,000 adults per day. To see testing availability and make an appointment, up to seven days in advance, visit Project Baseline.
Mobile Testing
Testing at sites served by a mobile operation is available Monday through Friday. See the schedule for Oct. 7 – 14 and make an appointment at least seven days in advance at Project Baseline.
Remember: If you don't have access to the internet, an on-site volunteer may be able to help you register and get tested.
San Mateo County COVID-19 Case Count
San Mateo County Health has updated the number of positive cases to 10,309 as of Oct. 5, 2020.
County Health provides detailed information on cases by age group and date and deaths by age group. Learn more at https://www.smchealth.org/coronavirus
Call Center
Residents with non-medical, non-emergency questions about the coronavirus can call 211 or 800-273-6222 at any time, day or night. Callers from landlines and cellular telephones located within San Mateo County are connected with a trained service professional from 211, a confidential service available in 180 languages.