Safely reopening California

Last updated July 29, 2021 at 3:30 PM

Thanks to your trust in the vaccine and falling transmission rates, California has fully reopened its economy. This means no more physical distancing, no capacity limits, no county tiers, and relaxed mask guidance.

On this page:

Reopening California 

California is moving 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 new public health order effective June 15 supersedes all prior health orders. The order has limited restrictions, related only to masking, mega-events, and 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 the California Department of Public Health’s Beyond the Blueprint for Industry and Business Sectors and the Questions & Answers.

Continuing safety measures

Everyday life will feel a lot like before COVID-19. But reopening safely means continuing vaccinations and protecting the health and well-being of Californians.

Do’s and don’ts for daily life

Restaurants, shopping malls, movie theaters, and most everyday places will be open as normal with no capacity limits or social distancing required. Protect yourself and others by keeping these common-sense rules in mind.

Do

  • Wear a mask if you’re unvaccinated, especially in crowded, indoor spaces
  • Wash your hands and sanitize surfaces
  • Follow safety rules for mega-events
  • Get tested if you’re sick
  • Wear a mask while on public transit, even if you’re vaccinated
  • Honor mask and distancing rules in place at a private business
  • Get tested if required by your workplace
  • Wear a mask when you travel

Don’t

  • Expect others to be ready to shake hands or hug
  • 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
  • Travel if you’re sick

Masks

California’s Department of Public Health has updated statewide masking guidance to match the CDC’s guidance, lifting California’s mask requirements for vaccinated individuals starting on June 15. Vaccinated people are able to come together without masks in most circumstances.

People who are unvaccinated must continue to wear a mask indoors in public settings to protect themselves and others. Also, there are some settings where masking is still required for everyone, such as:

  • Public transit
  • Hospitals
  • Long-term care facilities
  • Homeless shelters
  • Indoors in K-12 schools, childcare, and other youth settings 

See CDPH’s Guidance for the Use of Face Coverings to learn where masks are recommended or may be required.

Travel

California no longer has a travel advisory in effect. There is now no state recommendation to test and quarantine before and after travel.

However, the California Department of Public Health asks that you do the following:

  • Delay travel until you’re fully vaccinated
  • If you’re not fully vaccinated, but choose to travel, get tested before and after
  • No matter your vaccination status, wear a mask while on public transportation or in a transportation hub

Get tested if you feel sick, and avoid traveling if you have or may have COVID-19.

See CDC’s travel guidelines and read more at CDPH’s travel flyer.

K-12 schools, day camps, overnight camps, and childcare

K-12 schools

Day camps and other supervised youth activities

Overnight camps

Childcare

Mega-events

Mega-events are indoor events with 5,000 or more people and outdoor events with 10,000 or more people. This includes events like:

  • Conventions, conferences, and expos
  • Concerts, shows, and nightclubs
  • Sporting events
  • Live events and entertainment
  • Fairs, festivals, and parades
  • Theme parks, amusement parks, and water parks
  • Large private events or gatherings
  • Large races, marathons, and endurance events
  • Car shows

For indoor events with 5,000 or more people, attendees must confirm proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 status in order to attend. 

For outdoor events with 10,000 or more people, it is recommended that attendees confirm proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 status in order to attend. 

All attendees must follow CDPH’s Guidance for the Use of Face Coverings. These public health requirements and recommendations will be reviewed and reevaluated no later than September 1, 2021.

Workplace safety

There are no physical distancing or capacity limits for businesses and activities.

Most businesses are required to maintain compliance with California’s COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS), which include current public health guidelines. Certain workplaces, like hospitals and correctional facilities, are required to comply with the Aerosol Transmissible Diseases (ATD) standard instead of the ETS. Find more details in the frequently asked questions about the COVID-19 Prevention ETS.

In some workplaces, like healthcare facilities and congregate settings, the state requires workers to either be fully vaccinated, or get tested regularly for COVID-19 and wear PPE. Workers in these settings must be in compliance by August 23, 2021. See details at State Public Health Officer’s Order of July 26, 2021.

State employees working on-site are also required to be fully vaccinated, or get regular testing and wear masks. Employees must be in compliance by August 2, 2021. See details at CalHR’s Vaccine Verification and Testing Requirements.

Visit saferatwork.ca.gov to learn more about COVID-19 workplace requirements.

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.