Current safety measures

Last updated October 26, 2021 at 10:30 AM

Thanks to millions of vaccinations, California’s economy is open. There are no county tiers, capacity limits, or physical distancing requirements. But COVID-19 has not gone away. To safely go about our daily lives, we need to keep taking steps to prevent the spread.

On this page:

What to do now

Do what it takes to stay safe until COVID-19 is under control. Use these tools to reduce the risk of infection.

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Vaccinations

If you’re 12 or older, get vaccinated. It’s our best tool to end the pandemic. Vaccination is safe, effective, and free.

Photo of a group of people wearing masks

Masks

Wear a mask to keep from spreading the virus to those with no defense, like the immune-compromised and children under 12.

Photo of an outdoor COVID-19 testing center and a man getting tested by a nurse

Testing

Get tested for COVID-19 if you may have been exposed. It’s free and confidential for everyone in California.

Woman reading a COVID-19 exposure notification on her phone

Exposure notifications

Turn on exposure notifications in your Apple or Android phone. CA Notify can then alert you if you’ve been near someone who tested positive.

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Education and childcare

As kids return to in-person learning, find out requirements for masking, vaccinating, and testing.

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Workplace safety

Employers are responsible for keeping the work environment safe. See the state’s rules and standards to support this.

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Mega-events

Mega-events are indoor events with 1,000 or more people and outdoor events with 10,000 or more people. Attendee rules apply for each.

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Travel

Keep California healthy and our communities open by following CDC travel guidelines.

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Holidays

Celebrate the holidays in ways that don’t spread COVID-19. Read our safety tips.


See COVID-19 guidance in more languages.


Do’s and don’ts for daily life

Protect yourself and others by keeping these common-sense safety steps in mind.

Do

  • Get vaccinated
  • Wear a mask where required, in public indoor spaces, and on public transit
  • Turn on exposure notifications on your phone
  • Get tested if you’re sick
  • Honor mask rules in place at a private business
  • Get tested if required by your workplace
  • Wear a mask when you travel

Don’t

  • Lose your proof of vaccination
  • Think you can’t get the virus or pass it on because you feel well
  • Assume everyone is vaccinated
  • Expect all COVID-19 rules everywhere to be lifted
  • Travel into the U.S. without proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test
  • Attend large events if you’re sick
  • Travel if you’re sick

Read the CDC’s How to Protect Yourself and Others and CDPH’s COVID-19 Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People.

Past restrictions

Reopening California 

California has moved Beyond the Blueprint to safely and fully reopen the economy. 

As of June 15, 2021, the Governor terminated the executive orders that put into place the Stay Home Order and the Blueprint for a Safer Economy. He also phased out the vast majority of executive actions put in place since March 2020 as part of the pandemic response, leaving a subset of provisions that facilitate the ongoing recovery.

The public health order effective June 15 supersedes all prior health orders. The order has limited restrictions, only related to masking and mega-events, as well as settings serving children and youth.

Restrictions that ended on June 15 include:

  • Physical distancing
  • Capacity limits on businesses
  • County tier system

Read the Governor’s orders N-07-21 and N-08-21. Find details in CDPH’s Beyond the Blueprint for Industry and Business Sectors and the Beyond the Blueprint Questions and Answers.

Retiring the Blueprint map

Under the old Blueprint for a Safer Economy framework, every California county was assigned to a risk-level tier. Based on their positivity rate, adjusted case rate, and/or health equity metric (for counties with populations more than 106,000), counties faced varying degrees of activity and capacity restrictions. The weekly status was shown on a map with four tier colors: purple, red, orange, and yellow.

The Blueprint framework was California’s reality from August 2020 to June 2021, but it is no longer in effect. You can find the latest data about your county on the State Dashboard.

See how tier restrictions were assigned and changed, as well as historical county data at CDPH’s Blueprint Data Archive.