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Eagle County to adopt state’s COVID ‘dashboard dial’

Dial is intended to provide a consistent way to see the level of virus containment in all the state's counties

Eagle County is adopting the state's COVID-19 "dashboard dial." The county is currently on Level 2 of the dial.

Eagle County’s Department of Public Health and Environment will adopt Colorado’s statewide COVID-19 dial dashboard over the next two weeks. 

Local public health officials worked closely with the state’s health department and the Governor’s office to develop the dial, which was released Sept. 15 and includes a risk assessment for each of the state’s 64 counties. It is meant to create consistency for expectations and goals among counties, while allowing a measure of local control in tailoring public health policies.

The dial dashboard relies on three key metrics, including disease incidence rate, percentage of countywide COVID-19 tests that come back positive, and the number of hospitalizations for COVID-19, to generate a color-coded risk assessment. Each level further determines the activities and capacity limits based on the risk within each county.



Eagle County will start at the Safer at Home Level 2, Concerned.  The metrics for the county have been stable over the past few weeks and if they can be maintained for another two weeks, Eagle County could qualify for the Safer at Home Level 1, which can increase capacities for some indoor and outdoor settings. 

“Consistent tracking of disease trends and subsequent messaging to the community is always a priority,” Eagle County Department of Public Health and Environment Director Heath Harmon said. “This is true with disease monitoring as well as with guidance for events, organized sports, dining, shopping and other activities outside the home. We have seen clearly that when the messaging is inconsistent between communities, this inevitably leads to confusion and frustration. Our intention in adopting the statewide dial dashboard is to eliminate these problems.”

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Eagle County will work over the next two weeks to implement the new state dial and replace its existing COVID-19 Risk Meter. This will include collaborating with local partners to ensure there is a clear understanding of what the new dial will mean and the activities the community can expect by level.

School protocols have proven effective and have not led to an increase in COVID-19 spread. However, officials say private social gatherings that took place during the Labor Day weekend where masking and distancing were not implemented have contributed to increased spread in the community. 

Local health officials remind the community that regardless of how the state’s risk assessment of the county fluctuates, prevention measures will not change. Following the 5 Commitments of Containment will continue to be the simplest, most effective strategy for preventing disease spread.   

Regular updates on the county’s response to COVID-19 are being shared at http://www.ECEmergency.org. The county’s forum for community discussions is at http://www.facebook.com/OneValleyVoice. Those with additional questions can email covidquestions@eaglecounty.us or call 970-328-9750.

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