State Health Department Debuts New Color-Coded COVID-19 Alert System

The Oklahoma State Health Department said its new color-coded COVID-19 Alert System is designed to give state leaders a clearer picture of the pandemic and will let the public know when to take extra precautions.

“The virus is going to be with us for a while,” Governor Kevin Stitt said during a Thursday press conference. “We have to learn to deal with it. We have to learn how to protect ourselves and our family.”

The COVID-19 color-coded system details the risk by county.

A county in green is considered the “new normal” with less than two new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people.

Right now, most Oklahoma counties in the state are in yellow with a “low” risk. Four counties are colored orange which indicates areas that have a “moderate” risk of the virus.

A county in red is considered a "high-risk phase." A high-risk county is where more than 14 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people have been diagnosed.

Another indicator of a high-risk county includes a critical shortage in intensive care units, surgery beds, ventilators, or Personal Protective Equipment across the state.

There are no high-risk counties currently in Oklahoma.

“I'll continue to coordinate transportation on ICU beds and use the entire state's assets and resources to make sure that no one hospital gets overrun,” Stitt said.

The state health department said this color-coded county map will be updated every Friday as part of its daily COVID-19 report.

The OSDH also said it's possible this new system could change based on feedback.