Colorado COVID School Outbreaks Spike Update

It didn’t take long for schools to return to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment‘s weekly list of new COVID-19 outbreaks. The CDPHE’s latest survey, made public on August 25, includes fourteen K-12 schools, paced by spread in Douglas and Mesa counties, which have rebelled against recommendations that students wear masks indoors.

The list doesn’t include STEM Schools Highlands Ranch, which reportedly has placed multiple classes on remote learning because of viral spread.

The outbreak standard has changed for schools since the last academic year. Back then, the state health department identified outbreaks based on two or more COVID-19 cases among residents, staffers, attendees and other people connected to a specific location confirmed within a fourteen-day period. But starting in June, the CDPHE began applying the two-infection rule only to residential health-care and correctional facilities.

Outbreaks at schools and other sites now require at least five confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 in a fourteen-day period. As a result, an unknown number of schools that would have been declared outbreaks during the 2020-2021 academic year could be flying under the radar — at least for now.

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Nonetheless, total outbreaks have been going up steadily in recent weeks. The August 11 report was marked by 33 outbreaks newly listed or tweaked by the CDPHE. That number rose to forty on August 18 and hit 51 on August 25.

The largest category of new outbreaks remains health care: Twenty-three of the new outbreaks are tied to health-care facilities, 22 of them specializing in senior care. Of the fourteen outbreaks at K-12 schools, four are located in Douglas County, where commissioners voted to reject masking advice from the Tri-County Health Department. Another four are in Mesa County, whose main school district has made mask use in schools voluntary.

Also identified as an outbreak site are the Aurora Public Schools Educational Services Center, a vacation Bible school in Larimer County, the football team at Fort Lewis College and an El Paso County child-care center.

Other outbreaks include spread at yet another large outdoor event — the sort of gathering many thought couldn’t trigger multiple infections. This time, it’s the Global Dance Festival, which took place July 23-24 at Empower Field at Mile High; it’s spawned thirteen attendee cases so far. Additional outbreaks occurred at the Thornton Police Department, Waste Management in Silverthorne and Fun Valley Family Resort in Rio Grande County.

Here are the 51 new or tweaked active outbreaks identified by the CDPHE in its August 25 report, including the date when the outbreak became official and the type of people impacted:

1. Aurora Public Schools Educational Services Center 1, School Administration, Arapahoe County, 8/20/2021, 5 staff cases
2. Avamere Transitional Care and Rehab-Malley (020432): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Adams County, 8/20/2021, 3 staff cases
3. Bear Canyon Elementary School, School, K-12, Douglas County, 8/20/2021, 6 attendee cases
4. Berkley Manor Care Center (020419): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Denver County, 8/19/2021, 2 staff cases
5. Brookdale Greeley (2303B5): August 2021, Healthcare, Assisted Living, Weld County, 8/17/2021, 13 resident cases, 1 staff case
6. Buena Vista Correctional Complex: August 2021, State Prison, Chaffee County, 8/23/2021, 2 resident cases, 5 staff cases
7. Cardan Manor Assisted Living II (23Q273): August 2021, Healthcare, Assisted Living, Arapahoe County, 8/20/2021, 5 resident cases
8. Cedars Healthcare Center (020449): July 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Jefferson County, 8/19/2021, 3 staff cases
9. Central Park Liquor, Retailer, Routt County,8/16/2021, 6 staff cases
10. CFC Construction, Construction Company/Contractor, Jefferson County, 8/23/2021, 12 staff cases
11. Cheyenne Mountain Center (020573): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, El Paso County, 8/19/2021, 1 resident case, 2 staff cases
12. Choice House: Boulder Addiction Center, Healthcare, Alcohol/Drug Abuse Treatment (Inpatient), Boulder County, 8/18/2021, 4 resident cases, 3 staff cases
13. Cimarron Middle School: August 2021, School, K-12, Douglas County, 8/18/2021, 1 staff case, 10 attendee cases
14. City of Thornton Police Department: August 2021, Law Enforcement, Adams County, 8/24/2021, 5 staff cases
15. D&L Meat, Meat Processing/Packaging, Sedgwick County, 8/19/2021, 7 staff cases
16. Fort Lewis College Football Team: August 2021, College/University Sports Team, La Plata County, 8/24/2021, 8 attendee cases
17. Fruita Monument High School: August 2021, School, K-12, Mesa County, 8/24/2021, 8 attendee cases
18. Fun Valley Family Resort, Hotel/Lodge, Resort, RV Campground, Rio Grande County, 8/16/2021, 3 staff cases, 5 attendee cases
19. Global Dance Festival, Fair/Festival/Temporary Mobile Event, Denver County, 8/23/2021, 13 attendee cases
20. Goodwill Outlet World, Retailer, Arapahoe County, 8/20/2021, 6 staff cases
21. Grace Manor Care Center (020175): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Kit Carson County, 8/20/2021, 3 staff cases
22. Grand Mesa Middle School: August 2021, School, K-12, Mesa County, 8/23/2021, 6 attendee cases
23. Horizon Middle School: August 2021, School, K-12, El Paso County, 8/16/2021, 2 staff cases, 15 attendee cases
24. Innovation Learning at Vanguard K-3 , Child Care Center, El Paso County, 8/19/2021, 3 staff cases, 2 attendee cases
25. Lincoln Orchard Mesa Elementary, School, K-12, Mesa County, 8/21/2021, 7 attendee cases
26. Manor Health Services — Boulder (020315): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Boulder County, 8/19/2021, 2 resident cases, 1 staff case
27. Mesa Manor Center (021177): June 2021, Healthcare, Assisted Living, Mesa County, 6/16/2021, 2 staff cases
28. Mesa Middle School: August 2021, School, K-12, Douglas County, 8/23/2021, 3 staff cases, 2 attendee cases
29. Monument Ridge Elementary School, School, K-12, Mesa County, 8/20/2021, 9 attendee cases
30. Mortensen Elementary School, School, K-12, Jefferson County, 8/23/2021, 6 staff cases, 1 attendee case
31. Naturita Elementary School, School, K-12, Montrose County, 8/18/2021, 2 staff cases, 24 attendee cases
32. Park Forest Care Center (020450): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Adams County, 8/20/2021, 4 staff cases
33. Pueblo County Detention Center: August 2021, Jail, Pueblo County, 8/23/2021, 8 resident cases, 3 staff cases
34. Ralph Moody Elementary School, School, K-12, Arapahoe County, 8/20/2021, 5 attendee cases
35. Remington Elementary School, School, K-12, El Paso County, 8/23/2021, 2 staff cases, 8 attendee cases
36. Rocky Mountain Assisted Living — Glencoe (23A463), Healthcare, Assisted Living, Arapahoe County, 8/20/2021, 2 staff cases
37. Rocky Mountain Evangelical Free Church in Estes, Religious Facility, Church/Vacation Bible School, Larimer County, 8/16/2021, 4 staff cases, 3 attendee cases
38. Roxborough Intermediate School, School, K-12, Douglas County, 8/24/2021, 6 attendee cases
39. Serenity House Assisted Living IX (23D978), Healthcare, Assisted Living, Arapahoe County, 8/18/2021, 4 resident cases, 1 staff case
40. Skyline Ridge Nursing and Rehab (020682): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Fremont County, 8/19/2021, 2 staff cases
41. Spanish Peaks Veterans Community Living Center (0207YZ): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Huerfano County, 8/19/2021, 2 staff cases
42. Spring Creek Healthcare Center (020372): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Larimer County, 8/18/2021, 2 staff cases
43. The Bridge at Greeley (23036H), Healthcare, Assisted Living, Weld County, 8/13/2021, 2 staff cases
44. The Center at Center Place (02Z779): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Weld County, 8/23/2021, 2 staff cases
45. The Courtyards at Mountain View (23X801): August 2021, Healthcare, Assisted Living, Denver County, 8/20/2021, 1 resident case, 1 staff case
46. Turnberry Elementary School, School, K-12, Adams County, 8/24/2021, 1 staff case, 8 attendee cases
47. University Park Care Center (020650): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Pueblo County, 8/24/2021, 1 resident case, 4 staff cases
48. Waste Management — Silverthorne: August 2021, Waste Management, Summit County, 8/20/2021, 5 staff cases
49. Willow Tree Care Center (021121): July 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Delta County, 7/26/2021, 2 staff cases
50. Wind Crest: August 2021, Healthcare, Independent Living Facility, Douglas County, 8/20/2021, 6 resident cases, 4 staff cases
51. Windsor Healthcare Center (020332): August 2021, Healthcare, Skilled Nursing, Weld County, 8/23/2021, 2 staff cases