Live at 12 PM: CA Public Health Secretary presents coronavirus pandemic update

California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly is hosting a video news conference at noon on Tuesday to provide an update on the response to coronavirus cases.

You can watch it live in the player below:

Riverside County will not advance to red reopening tier this week

Failing to meet certain key metrics in the state's color-coded system for reopening, Riverside County will remain in the purple tier at least another week.

Purple is the most restrictive tier, and indicates widespread coronavirus in the community. The next step in the four-tier framework is the red tier, which would allow for more indoor businesses to reopen, including indoor dining, movie theaters, and churches at a reduced capacity.

To advance, Riverside County must meet state thresholds for coronavirus positivity rate and case rate for at least two weeks. For the last week, Riverside County has met the required positivity rate, but not the case rate.

The state requires a positivity rate of less than 8 percent – the county is at 7.8 percent.

But Riverside County is still seeing too many new cases per day. The state wants to see fewer than 7 per day per 100,000 people. The county is currently reporting 7.4 – but the state adjusted it up to 8.6 because enough people aren't getting tested.

"We will not be able to move into the red tier," said Brooke Federico, spokesperson for Riverside County, "because we must meet the red tier metrics for two weeks before we move into red. Last week we were in the red tier for one of two required metrics. We expect restaurants may reopen according to the state’s guidance indoors once we are in the red tier. That means max 25 percent occupancy, everyone must wear face coverings and sit socially distanced from other parties by six feet."

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