February 18, 2021
  • 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 Thursday until further notice. Today’s report:

    Weekly Vaccine Shipment Delayed by Winter Storms
    San Mateo County Health has been advised by the California Department of Public Health that the weekly delivery of vaccine doses has been delayed by the winter storms affecting the country. The County had been expecting 14,200 Moderna doses (combined first and second doses) and has not received information on when the shipment will arrive.

    A vaccination clinic today (Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021) at the San Mateo Event Center and Friday’s clinic (Feb. 19) at San Francisco International Airport are going forward. The vaccine will likely switch from Moderna to Pfizer on Friday, and some second-dose appointments on Friday may be canceled due to the switch.

    Plans for vaccination clinics for next week are being adjusted as needed, based on when the Moderna doses arrive. Vaccine distribution to local health care partners and some large vaccine distribution events may also be on hold until we receive updates from the California Department of Public Health.

    Financial Assistance Available for Housing, Other Impacts Due to COVID-19
    The Board of Supervisors has directed emergency funding to assist eligible renters, immigrants, restaurant/brewery/winery owners and others hit financially by the pandemic.

    San Mateo County residents who’ve suffered financial setbacks can apply for emergency financial housing assistance. Additional emergency relief programs include:

    ► San Mateo County Immigrant Relief Fund
    ► Emergency Rental Assistance Program
    ► Restaurant, Brewery and Winery Relief Grants

    The County’s website includes details, eligibility requirements and application information and deadlines.

    “All good news, all headed in the right direction.”
    If new COVID-19 cases remain low and other metrics are met, the state could allow the County to reopen additional sectors of the economy by next Wednesday, County Manager Mike Callagy said this week.

    The optimistic forecast comes with a note of caution: Individual behaviors – getting tested, following common-sense health and safety guidelines – are key to lifting COVID-19 restrictions.

    “Testing remains one of the pillars of the County’s pandemic response. We can’t lose sight of that,” Callagy said, adding recent numbers show “all good news, all headed in the right direction.”

    San Mateo County is in purple Tier 1, the most restrictive in the state’s color-coded Blueprint for a Safer Economy reopening roadmap.

    But recent trends if continued could land the county in the less-restrictive red Tier 2 by next Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 – depending on a number of factors.

    As of Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021, the County reported the following metrics to the state:

    ► Rate of new daily cases/100,000 population: 9.6
    ► Testing positivity rate 7-day average: 2.8 percent
    ► Health equity metric* positivity rate: 4.6 percent
         *The positivity rate in disproportionately impacted communities

    “The real encouraging news is the health equity metric,” Callagy said. “We want to make sure the health equity metric moves in the right direction as well as our case rates. That remains critical.”

    Moving to red Tier 2 would allow indoor dining with restrictions, increased indoor retail capacity limits and additional activities with restrictions.

    smc covid tier map

    Screen shot from the state's database on COVID-19 metrics.

    https://covid19.ca.gov/safer-economy/

    COVID-19 Testing Widely Available: Schedule an Appointment Now
    Safe, easy and no-cost testing is widely available at County-sponsored locations for everyone who works or lives in San Mateo County regardless of symptoms.

    Appointments are available at sites at the College of San Mateo and in North Fair Oaks, San Bruno, Daly City, East Palo Alto and Half Moon Bay. Days and hours vary by location.

    Learn about options and schedule an appointment.

    Spanish Facebook Live: What You Need to Know about the COVID-19 Vaccine
    The office of District 4 Supervisor Warren Slocum will host a Facebook Live event @supervisorwarrenslocum on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021, at 6 p.m. for a Spanish discussion of “Covid19 Vaccine: All the Facts You Need to Know.”

    An expert panel of speakers from San Mateo County Health, San Mateo County Manager’s Office and the Ravenswood Family Health Center will be joined by a member of the North Fair Oaks community who has received the vaccine. To learn more, contact the District 4 Office at (650) 363-4570 or visit the district’s website.

    COVID-19 Vaccinations and Case Count
    A total of 116,259 individuals (0ut of the county population of approximately 780,000) have received a first dose of vaccine as of Wednesday, Feb.17, 2012. Just over 39,000 have completed the two-dose vaccine series, according to publicly available data dashboards.

    County Health as of Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, has reported 38,036 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Note: The total number of cases has more than doubled since Dec. 8, 2020, when a total of 18,724 cases were reported.

    Total number of deaths attributed to the disease is 481. More than three out of four deaths have occurred to individuals age 70 and older.

    County Manager Media Briefing
    County Manager Mike Callagy provides an update on the County’s response to COVID-19 and answers questions from Bay Area media at a video news conference Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2021. The full video is posted here: https://youtu.be/qD_YqiR3c_c

    Business Compliance Update
    The County’s Compliance Team, as part of the Business Engagement and Compliance Program, has received 1,361 complaints as of Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. Of those, 93 percent have been abated, meaning the suspected violation was either not found or was corrected immediately. Other cases are in progress or under investigation.

    The team enforces health and safety COVID-19 orders. The team has issued 145 warning letters and 36 citations that amount to a total of $34,250 in fines. Learn more about reporting and business appeals.

    SFO Hosts San Mateo County’s Largest Mass Vaccination Center
    Thousands of eligible San Mateo County residents are receiving their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine this week at the largest mass vaccination center between San Francisco and the South Bay.

    Located in the long-term parking garage at San Francisco International Airport, the center is the most ambitious effort yet to get vaccine into the arms of eligible residents. Getting the center up and running is a test to see if the airport’s garage is suitable as a future mass-vaccination site. Watch a video of Board of Supervisor’s president David J. Canepa speaking to media yesterday about the pilot project.

    Learn about eligibility and see if an appointment is available. No walk-up (or fly-in) appointments are available. 

    For further information on eligibility and to sign up to receive notification when the state makes you eligible, visit County Health’s website.

    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.