Marin Hits Key Milestone As COVID Plummets

MARIN COUNTY, CA — Marin has hit a symbolic milestone on the road to post-pandemic normalcy.

Marin’s seven-day rolling average for new cases has fallen below triple digits for the first time since December, according to the county's coronavirus dashboard, in what it is yet another indication the omicron-fueled surge is petering out.

Marin’s seven-day rolling average for new cases fell to 96.9 on Feb. 5, a 73 percent drop in less than a month since topping out at 427.3 on Jan. 9.

The sharp drop in cases comes as Marin readies to follow state guidance next week in lifting indoor mask requirements for those who are vaccinated.

Unvaccinated people will still be required to wear masks in indoor public settings, and people on public transit and in high-risk settings such as nursing homes will still be required to wear masks regardless of vaccination status.

"Marin no longer has a local health order around masking, so we'll align with the state," Public Health Officer Dr. Lisa Santora told The Marin Independent Journal earlier this week.

Facial coverings will still be recommended by the state and federal health officials regardless of vaccination status under the state’s revised health order, which was announced Monday.

Marin hadn’t seen its rolling average below 100 since Dec. 21, when its seven-day average was 81.7, but it surged to 100.1 the next day and hadn’t dipped below triple digits until the county’s most recent report.

Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration brought back the masking mandate in mid-December as omicron gained momentum and last month extended the requirement through Feb. 15. California passed 80,000 pandemic deaths and 8 million confirmed positive cases last week. Los Angeles, the epicenter of the state's surge, confirmed more than 100 daily COVID-19 deaths multiple times last week. Still, new cases, hospitalizations and ICU admissions all continued falling Monday and are projected to keep declining at a rapid clip.

In announcing the change on social media Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom noted, "Cases have decreased 65% since the Omicron peak. Stay vigilant, get vaccinated, get boosted."

The Associated Press contributed to this report