Colorado's COVID-19 Positivity Rate Drops Below 5 Percent

For the first time since October's uptick, Colorado's COVID-19 positivity rate is below five percent, and that's a milestone of our progress (socially-distant high five, everyone).

According to John Hopkins University, the World Health Organization uses five percent positivity rate as a threshold of how well a population is managing the spread of COVID-19. In October of 2020, Colorado's positivity rate exceeded five percent, and continued to grow. As we headed into the holidays and colder weather, a majority of counties shifted back to Level Red restrictions towards the end of the fall.

'World Health Organization (WHO) advised governments that before reopening, rates of positivity in testing....should remain at 5% or lower for at least 14 days.' - John Hopkins University

But, as hundreds of thousands of Coloradans get their first and second rounds of COVID-19 vaccines, and we continue to mask up in public places, social distance and limit gathering sizes, the state has finally gotten to 4.7 percent positivity. Now, we just need to keep it below five, or even better, keep steadily declining, for two weeks.

The positivity rate was 5.1 percent at the end of January, per Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

As of Tuesday, February 2, over 140,000 Coloradans had received both doses of the vaccine.