STATE

State officials unveil color-coded COVID alert system

Carmen Forman

Gov. Kevin Stitt and the state's top health official on Thursday unveiled a color-coded alert system designed to give a county-by-county breakdown of the severity of COVID-19.

Stitt and Health Commissioner Lance Frye said the heat map will help Oklahomans make safe choices as they go about their daily lives.

"The intent of this alert system is to protect health and lives while enabling social and economic activity to resume in different phases of the pandemic," Frye said.

The COVID-19 alert system gives four levels of COVID-19 severity that are conveyed with corresponding colors. Counties with the fewest COVID cases are green. Beyond that, there are levels for low, medium and high COVID cases.

A county's COVID threat level is based on the number of positive cases per 100,000 people, calculated on a seven-day rolling average to smooth out any outliers.

The alert Unveiled Thursday showed most counties are at low risk. Tulsa, McClain, Ottawa and McCurtain counties were shown to be at medium risk. None were at high risk.

State officials will use the COVID-19 alert system to make decisions about how to respond to the spread of COVID-19.

Statewide, COVID-19 cases have been surging. A record number of cases, 858, was reported on Tuesday in Oklahoma. On Thursday, another 673 new cases were reported.

Stitt said the system takes into account when local hospitals are running out of intensive care unit beds and personal protective equipment for medical personnel, in which case a county would be colored red and listed as high risk.

In explaining the map, Stitt indicated his hesitance to order business closures unless Oklahoma counties reach the highest threat level.

"We're not going to start and stop our economy and start and stop our economy unless we see some catastrophic issues with our health care authority going up to our red level," he said. "I'm going to continue to be transparent with Oklahomans, continue to give them the data and then give them the freedom to make those decisions to protect themselves and their families."

Stitt and Frye also reiterated they believe it is the responsibility of all Oklahomans to consider themselves and their neighbors when taking actions to limit the spread of COVID-19.

As the number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations increase, Stitt and Frye said the numbers remain "manageable."

Oklahoma's hospitals have the capacity for 5,000 COVID patients, Stitt said. As of Wednesday, 453 people were hospitalized. Nearly 4,000 Oklahomans have active cases of the disease.

Asked whether the state would block municipal leaders from enacting strict COVID-19 measures, Stitt said he believes in local control.

Earlier this week, the Norman City Council implemented a mask mandate for those in most public places. Stitt said he would not interfere in such local decisions, but doubled down on his opposition to a statewide order requiring Oklahomans to wear face masks.

House Democrats previously applauded Stitt for the color-coded COVID-19 system that makes the data more clear for Oklahomans.

"Adopting this system means more transparency and better communication of data to our constituents," said House Minority Leader Emily Virgin, D-Norman.

Stitt previously said the idea for the COVID alert system came from the White House, but the Trump administration has not publicly adopted such a model.

The COVID-19 alert system can be seen at coronavirus.health.ok.gov. It will be updated weekly.

The new Oklahoma COVID-19 Alert System is pictured during an press conference Thursday at the state Capitol in Oklahoma City. [Sarah Phipps/The Oklahoman]