AUGUSTA, Maine — For the first time since Oct. 16, all 16 Maine counties are designated as “green” in the Maine Department of Education (DOE) color-coded health system that classifies counties’ relative risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford, and York counties were reclassified from yellow to green in the update Friday amid “dramatic drops” in new COVID-19 case and positivity rates over the past two weeks, the Maine DOE said.
All other counties remain green.
The color-coded system was implemented at the end of July to help give schools guidance on how to safely restart school amid the pandemic. All 16 counties got the initial go-ahead from the State, all receiving a "green" designation, though many districts opted for a hybrid model.
Here's how the classifications work:
- Green: relatively low risk of COVID-19 spread. Schools can consider in-person instruction with required health and safety measures.
- Yellow: elevated risk of COVID-19 spread. Schools should consider hybrid instructional models to try to limit the number of people in classrooms at the same time.
- Red: high risk of COVID-19 spread. In-person instruction is not advised.
The DOE said these designations are made out of an abundance of caution and for the consideration of school administrative units in their decisions to deliver instruction.
