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Nearly three years after the first cases of COVID-19 were discovered in San Mateo County, officials are ending the local state of emergency.
“While today’s vote ends the emergency phase of the pandemic, it does not end the county’s continued and focused effort to combat COVID-19,” said Dave Pine, president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors.
The board voted unanimously on Feb. 28 to drop the county’s local state of emergency. The change in status now aligns the county with the state of California.
Local cases of COVID-19 were first discovered in San Mateo county on March 2, 2020. The county first initiated its Emergency Operations Center and proclaimed a local health emergency on March 10, 2020.
Declaring a state of emergency allowed the county to help reduce the spread of the disease with public health orders. Local and federal relief packages were also then directed to the public health crisis and to ease the economic fallout.
“This global event was rough on everyone, and while we didn’t come out of it unscathed, we did better than many other communities,” said Dr. Scott Morrow, the county health officer. “This is thanks to you, the community, for your insightful, wise, and ‘caring for your neighbor’ cooperation. And while this is not yet over, hopefully this will be a once in many generations event.”
Since the pandemic began, 749 people have died from COVID-19 in San Mateo County, according to state data. As of Feb. 15, more than 730,000 county residents, or 94 percent of the population, have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
This week’s vote ends the emergency phase of the pandemic, but county officials vow to continue efforts to combat COVID-19.
“The county will continue to work closely with community- and faith-based organizations to educate residents about residual risks, vaccination recommendations and programs to buffer economic impacts,” Pine said.
Moving forward, County Health will focus on case and testing data. The state provides case and test positivity data from San Mateo County, which will continue to inform residents about local trends in the progression of COVID-19.
Testing
County Health will continue to schedule local vaccination clinics for faith-based organizations and schools through March.
At-home tests available at many stores and pharmacies are free or reimbursable for most people. The federal government offers free at-home test kits to U.S. households. For more information about when to get tested, visit the California COVID-19 website.
Treatment
“Medications to treat COVID-19 are free, widely available, and effective for stopping COVID-19 illness from getting serious,” according to the state.
The state provides information on:
- How to find treatment
- Facts about COVID-19 treatment
- When to get treatment
- More information about COVID-19 treatment
If you don’t have insurance or the options above don’t work: Call 833-686-5051 to make a free phone or video appointment through California’s COVID-19 telehealth service.
