Ventura County supervisors vote to end COVID-19 emergency order on Feb. 28. Here's what to know

Ventura County’s emergency order for COVID-19 will end Feb. 28, nearly three years after it started, the Board of Supervisors said Tuesday.

Supervisors voted 4-1 to end an emergency order signed by County Health Officer Dr. Robert Levin on March 12, 2020, and ratified by the board five days later. The decision keeps the county in alignment with California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement several months ago that the statewide emergency order would expire at the end of the month.

Supervisor Jeff Gorell proposed the move, noting legal guidelines support removing an emergency order at the earliest possible date conditions warrant. He pointed at a letter from Levin stating the threat to public health has diminished enough to make it "reasonable" to lift the order at the end of the month.

“If we lift these declarations today, it doesn’t mean COVID-19 has ended,” Gorell said, noting people who have symptoms or are exposed should still follow protocols and high-risk people should still be protected. He cited other counties across the state that have ended their orders.

“It’s time to terminate our local emergency proclamation and our local health emergency declaration,” Gorell said.

The statewide emergency order delivered the authority for vaccine mandates and stay-at-home orders, also allowing California to enter into more than $11 billion of contracts with test facilities and others. The county order mirrored many of the state’s provisions.

Nearly all COVID-19 restrictions have long been removed, but the local order facilitates about $830,000 in monthly reimbursement to the county from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for emergency programs, including a Project Roomkey that utilizes motels to provide shelter for more than 250 homeless people.

Supervisor Vianey Lopez provided the sole vote against the Feb. 28 expiration, suggesting the county keep the order in place until May 11 when President Joe Biden has said the U.S. emergency order will expire. She worried an earlier end could jeopardize FEMA funding in the county and potentially take away emergency shelter.

"There’s a question of the number of people who could potentially be placed out on the street,” she said.

County Executive Officer Sevet Johnson said it’s not clear if FEMA will continue to provide reimbursement in regions where emergency orders are expiring before the federal target in May but said such funding usually continues for 60 days.

“After that, it’s purely up to the discretion of FEMA,” she said.

Project Roomkey will continue but the scope of the program would likely have to be modified when FEMA reimbursement ends, Johnson said.

Gorell expressed confidence FEMA will continue as long as the federal declaration is in place, citing conversations with a leader in San Luis Obispo County where emergency orders ended last year.

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It's possible the end of the federal declaration could have ramifications on vaccinations, said Ventura County Health Care Agency Director Barry Zimmerman. Vaccines provided for free by the federal government may shift at some point to people’s insurance policies.

National experts have also said access to testing and medications could also depend on insurance when the federal emergency ends.

Transmission levels and the rate at which people test positive for the virus have fallen in Ventura County after rising during the holidays. Community levels are in the lowest of three risk tiers, according to a weekly assessment by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In a Jan. 31 letter to Johnson, Levin cited declines in hospitalizations and COVID-19-related deaths.

“I have determined that the imminent and proximate threat to the public's health has diminished sufficiently that it is reasonable to lift our declaration of local health emergency as early as Feb. 28,” he said by phone, later encouraging people to take safety measures.

"We still need to get vaccinated. In many indoor settings, it's still wise to wear a good quality mask," Levin said.

Johnson told the board that staff will present an after-action report reviewing and assessing the measures taken by the county during the pandemic. Supervisor Janice Parvin said the report is needed.

“It’s time for us to really start looking at mental health related to this pandemic,” she said. “I’d like us to move into that as a next step.”

Tom Kisken covers health care and other news for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tom.kisken@vcstar.com or 805-437-0255.

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This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura County supervisors vote to end COVID-19 emergency order