State Officials to Lift Restrictions Issued During COVID-19 Omicron Surge

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) this week announced it will allow temporary measures imposed during the most recent COVID-19 surge to expire. The move comes as CDPH notes COVID-19 conditions continue to improve across the state and the Omicron surge subsides, including a 65 percent decrease in case rates since the peak of the Omicron surge.

The changes include:

• Additional visitation requirements that took effect on January 7 for long-term care facilities were allowed to expire on Monday

• Definitions for indoor and outdoor mega events will return to pre-surge guidance (from 500 to 1,000 attendees for indoor events and from 5,000 to 10,000 attendees for outdoor events) after February 15

• The universal indoor masking requirement will also expire after February 15, reverting the state to previous guidance which requires masking for unvaccinated persons in all indoor public settings and required masking for all individuals regardless of vaccination status in high-risk and congregate settings

CDPH notes California workplaces should continue to follow the COVID-19 prevention standards established by CalOSHA. Local health jurisdictions retain the authority to impose stricter standards. Additional adjustments to the state’s pandemic-related policies, including those for schools, are anticipated over the next week.

Additional information from CDPH is available here.