Gov. Jared Polis once again extends declaration of disaster emergency due to pandemic
With no end in sight to the COVID-19 pandemic, and with outbreaks reported at more than 70 locations during June, Gov. Jared Polis Tuesday extended the state’s disaster emergency order for another 30 days.
It’s the fifth time he’s issued that order since March 10. Polis has now issued 125 executive orders tied to the pandemic, activating the National Guard, suspending regulations tied to alcohol delivery and food trucks, and allowing for online petition gathering. That order was overturned by the state Supreme Court last week.
The one he hasn’t issued: a statewide mask requirement.
Polis has said in recent weeks he worries about growing outbreaks in Utah and Arizona, states that border Colorado. Twenty states, including Kansas, New Mexico and Texas, are now under mandatory mask orders.
The executive order issued Monday increases the funds to the state public health department by $82.7 million and to the Department of Public Safety by $16 million. Those funds come from the state’s Disaster Emergency Fund, which relies on CARES Act money.
As of Monday, 357,751 people have been tested for the virus, with 34,257 testing positive. Deaths due to the virus total 1,542 with another 150 who had the virus but died from other causes.
During June, 73 more facilities reported outbreaks of COVID-19, defined as at least two positive cases. That includes the administrative office of the Pueblo Police Department, the Blanca potato processing plant in Costilla County; the Eagle Lake overnight camp in El Paso County, the University of Denver, and the Uptown Healthcare Center in downtown Denver. Of the 387 outbreaks reported through July 6, 175 have been at healthcare facilities such as nursing homes, rehab centers, independent living communities and group homes. At least 912 deaths, some 60% of the total, are tied to those healthcare settings.
Only three counties in Colorado have yet to report positive cases: Dolores in southwestern Colorado, and Kiowa and Sedgwick counties on the Eastern Plains.
Nationwide, nearly three million people have tested positive for the virus and more than 130,000 have died. Forty-one states, including Colorado report increased cases of COVID-19 in the past 14 days as well as an increase in the percentage of positive tests. Hospitals in Arizona, Florida and Texas — states that reopened early — report they are at or near capacity for intensive care unit beds.


