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Colorado coronavirus latest May 24: Park Meadows reopens with safety measures in place

The reopening comes a day after Douglas County and many other counties across the state received approval for their variance requests.

COLORADO, USA — The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has approved variance requests from 30 counties, including Douglas and Larimer.

Park Meadows mall in Lone Tree reopened at noon Sunday with safety measures and social distancing.

These are among the coronavirus updates for the state on Saturday. More details are below, and we'll continue to post information as it comes in throughout the day.

> Watch the video above for the latest headlines on COVID-19 for May 22. 

WHAT TO KNOW RIGHT NOW

  • 24,174 cases, up from 23,964 the day prior. 
  • 4,119 hospitalized, up from 4,105 the day prior.
  • 1,332 deaths among those who tested positive for COVID-19, up from 1,327 the day prior.
  • 1,088 deaths due to COVID-19, the same as the day prior.
  • Get the latest data from the Colorado Dept. of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE).
  • CDPHE released guidance instructing restaurants how they can reopen
  • Colorado has approved variance requests for 30 counties

Click/tap here to read updates from May 23.

A-Basin announces reopening plans

Arapahoe Basin Ski Area plans to reopen on Wednesday, May 27. 

  1. Reservations are required. Do not show up without a reservation
  2. Physical distancing will be enforced and guests must wear face coverings in designated areas.
  3. Tailgating and other gatherings will not be allowed.

More details can be found on A-Basin's website.  

RELATED: A-Basin to reopen May 27; small number of tickets will be available

Park Meadows mall reopens day after variance request approved

Park Meadows reopened at noon Sunday, a day after the state health department approved the variance request for Douglas County.

Patrons are encouraged to wear a face covering, avoid congregating in groups and respect social distancing guidelines.

Mall administrators submitted a detailed reopening plan earlier this month that included monitoring the hallways with surveillance cameras from a police substation on mall property. Lone Tree police officers, who serve as mall security, would help disperse groups inside.

Safety measures include spacing out usable sinks in the bathrooms, adjusted seating in the food court, and providing hand-sanitizing stations at entrances and high-traffic areas.

The mall will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.

Colorado has approved variance requests for 30 counties

As of Sunday morning, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has approved variance safer-at-home order requests submitted by 30 counties.

The approved variances include those from Douglas and Larimer counties.

Some of the approved variance requests were very specific. For example, the County of Denver submitted an approved variance request to specifically reopen just the Denver Botanic Gardens.

>Click here for the full list of approved safer-at-home variance requests on CDPHE's website.

RELATED: Douglas County gets go-ahead to reopen restaurants, gyms, churches, Park Meadows

RELATED: Larimer County can reopen restaurants, churches and malls, but not bars

Coronavirus cases in Colorado

CDPHE on May 15 changed the way it was reporting data in two ways:

  • The number of deaths among people with COVID-19. This represents the total number of deaths reported among people who have COVID-19, but COVID-19 may not have been the cause of death listed on the death certificate. This information is required by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and is crucial for public health surveillance, as it provides more information about disease transmission and can help identify risk factors among all deaths across populations.
  • The number of deaths among people who died from COVID-19: This represents the total number of people whose death was attributed to COVID-19 as indicated on a death certificate. This number is determined by the CDC and is updated daily for dates through the previous Saturday.

In Colorado, CDPHE reports 23,964 people have tested positive for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, up from 23,487 the day prior.

Fatalities

CDPHE reports:

  • 1,332 deaths among people with COVID-19
  • 1,088 deaths due to COVID-19

The day prior, 1,327 people had died, 1,088 from COVID-19

The majority of deaths — 55% — are among people over age 80; 23% of deaths occurred in people between ages 70-79 and 13% were in people ages 60-69.

The graph below shows the total number of people in Colorado who have died after a COVID-19 diagnosis, since the first death happened on March 13.

Hospitalizations

Of those who tested positive for the disease, 4,119 hospitalizations have been reported, up from 4,105 the day prior.

As of 11:02 a.m. on May 23, 426 patients were hospitalized with the disease, according to the most recent data from the Colorado Hospital Association. Within the last 24 hours, 32 patients have been transferred or discharged.

Note: 86% of facilities reported data on May 23.

This graph below shows the number of people currently hospitalized with a COVID-19 diagnosis and the number of people who have been discharged within 24 hours. This is a key metric because it can be an indicator of whether or not Colorado’s hospital system is being overwhelmed by the virus.

Testing

According to CDPHE, 150,308 people have been tested, up from 147,744 the day prior, and 60 counties are reporting cases, the same number as the day before.

This graph below shows the number of tests the state processed in a day. This is another key metric because the state’s ability to reopen will depend on the number of tests Colorado can run each day. As testing improves, the number of cases will rise because the more tests that are conducted, the more cases will be found.

Positivity is the number of tests that come back with a COVID-19 result. Above 10% could be an indicator that not enough testing is being done and that only people likely to have COVID are getting tested.

Please note that there may be a lull or spike in reported case data due to how it's reported. CDPHE data changes as labs, hospitals, facilities and local agencies report their own data. For example, a spike in the number of deaths does not necessarily mean that many more people died within 24 hours, but rather is indicative of when the data is entered into the system. New data is released daily at 4 p.m.

> See the latest numbers from the state health department.

COVID-19 is a disease caused by a virus that first appeared in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. Symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, cough and breathing trouble. Most patients develop only mild symptoms. But some people, usually those with other medical complications, develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal.

RELATED: The specifics of each Colorado county's safer-at-home orders

RELATED: FAQ: Dr. Kohli answers your questions about the coronavirus

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