Colorado Coronavirus: 'Essential' Businesses, Services List
In several news conferences over the past week, Gov. Jared Polis has highlighted the difficulty in balancing the mitigation of an economic meltdown with the fight against the new coronavirus.
Businesses are allowed to operate if their employees work from home, but there are many casualties already — salon owners, clothing stores, shopping malls, toy stores — to name only a few.
Grocery stores, gas stations and pharmacies remain open.
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So which businesses and services are considered essential? The governor's office has released the following list:
1. Healthcare operations, including:
● hospitals, clinics, and walk-in health facilities.
● medical and dental care, including ambulatory providers.
● research and laboratory services.
● medical wholesale and distribution.
● home health care companies, workers and aides.
● pharmacies.
● pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.
● behavioral health care providers.
● veterinary care and livestock services.
● nursing homes, residential health care, or congregate care facilities
● medical supplies and equipment manufacturers and providers, including durable medical equipment technicians and suppliers.
● This does not include health clubs, fitness and exercise gyms, and similar facilities.
2. Critical infrastructure, including:
● utilities including power generation, fuel supply and transmission.
● oil and gas production field operations.
● public water and wastewater.
● telecommunications and data centers.
● transportation and infrastructure necessary to support authorized businesses.
● hotels, and places of accommodation.
● businesses and organizations that provide food, shelter, social services, and other necessities of life for economically disadvantaged, persons with access and functional needs, or otherwise needy individuals.
● food and plant cultivation, including farming crops, livestock, food processing and manufacturing, animal feed and feed products, rendering, commodity sales, and any other work critical to the operation of any component of the food supply chain.
3. Critical manufacturing, including:
● food processing, manufacturing agents, including all foods and beverages.
● chemicals.
● medical equipment supplies or instruments.
● pharmaceuticals.
● sanitary products.
● telecommunications.
● microelectronics/semiconductor.
● agriculture/farms.
● household paper products.
● any business that produces products critical or incidental to the processing, functioning, development, manufacture, or delivery of any of the categories of products included in this part 3.
4. Critical retail, including:
● grocery stores including all food and beverage stores.
● farm and produce stands.
● gas stations and convenience stores.
● restaurants/bars (for take-out/delivery only)
● marijuana dispensary.
● firearms stores.
● hardware, farm supply, and building material stores.
● establishments engaged in the retail sale of food and any other household consumer products (such as cleaning and personal care products)
● Pet stores and gun stores.
● Liquor and marijuana.
5. Critical services, including:
● trash and recycling collection, processing and disposal.
● mail and shipping services, and locations that offer PO boxes.
● laundromats and dry cleaning services.
● building cleaning and maintenance.
● child care services.
● auto supply and repair (including retail dealerships that include repair and maintenance, provided that retail activity ceases).
● warehouse/distribution and fulfillment.
● funeral homes, crematoriums, and cemeteries.
● in-person pastoral services for individuals who are in crisis or in need of end of life services provided social distancing is observed to the greatest extent possible.
● storage for critical businesses.
● animal shelters, animal rescues, zoological facilities, animal sanctuaries, and other related facilities.
6. News media
● newspapers.
● television.
● radio.
● other media services.
7. Financial institutions, including:
● Banks and credit institutions.
● Insurance, payroll, and accounting services.
● services related to financial markets.
8. Providers of basic necessities to economically disadvantaged populations, including:
● homeless shelters and congregate care facilities.
● food banks.
● human services providers whose function includes the direct care of patients in state-licensed or funded voluntary programs; the care, protection, custody and oversight of individuals both in the community and in state-licensed residential facilities; those operating community shelters and other critical human services agencies providing direct care or support.
9. Construction, including:
● especially for housing and housing for low-income and vulnerable people.
● skilled trades such as electricians, plumbers.
● other related firms and professionals for who provide services necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation, and critical operation of residences.
10. Defense
● defense and security-related operations supporting the State of Colorado, local government, the U.S. Government or a contractor to either or all.
11. Critical services decessary to maintain the safety, sanitation and critical operations of residences or other critical businesses, including:
● law enforcement.
● fire prevention and response.
● building code enforcement.
● security.
● emergency management and response.
● building cleaners or janitors.
● general maintenance whether employed by the entity directly or a vendor.
● automotive repair.
● Disinfection.
● Snow removal.
12. Vendors that provide critical services or products, including logistics and technology support, child care and services:
● logistics.
● technology support for online and telephone services.
● child care programs and services.
● government owned or leased buildings.
● critical government services.
13. “Critical Government Functions” means providing, operating, and supporting:
a. Critical services, including:
i. public safety (police stations, fire and rescue stations, correctional institutions, emergency vehicle and equipment storage, and, emergency operation centers);
ii. emergency response;
iii. judicial branch operations
iv. emergency medical (hospitals, ambulance service centers, urgent care centers having emergency treatment functions, and non-ambulatory surgical structures but excluding clinics, doctors offices, and non-urgent care medical structures that do not provide these functions);
v. designated emergency shelters;
vi. communications (main hubs for telephone, broadcasting equipment for cable systems, satellite dish systems, cellular systems, television, radio, and other emergency warning systems, but excluding towers, poles, lines, cables, and conduits);
vii. Public utility plant facilities for generation and distribution (hubs, treatment plants, substations and pumping stations for water, power and gas, but not including towers, poles, power lines, buried pipelines, transmission lines, distribution lines, and service lines); and
viii. transportation lifelines (public transportation, transportation infrastructure, airports (municipal and larger), helicopter pads and structures serving emergency functions, and associated infrastructure (aviation control towers, air traffic control centers, and emergency equipment aircraft hangars);
ix. hazardous material safety;
x. services to at-risk populations and Vulnerable Individuals;
xi. any government service required for the public health and safety, government functionality, or vital to restoring normal services.
Coronavirus Live Colorado Updates
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This article originally appeared on the Across Colorado Patch
