Colorado joins Western States COVID pact with California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada

DENVER — Colorado and Nevada are joining three West Coast states in developing an ongoing response strategy to the health and economic crises generated by the coronavirus.

In a statement, Gov. Jared Polis said Colorado and Nevada are joining California, Oregon and Washington state in the pact, which now covers 60.9 million Americans and more than 18% of the country’s population.

“There’s no silver bullet that will solve this pandemic until there is a cure so we must have a multifaceted and bold approach in order to slow the spread of the virus, to keep our people safe and help our economy rebound,” Polis said.

New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island have separately signaled plans to loosen social-distancing requirements in tandem.

Each of the states will continue its own response to the virus, but will share best practices on protecting vulnerable populations, building medical capacity and tracking the spread of the disease.

It’s unclear if Colorado will be involved in discussions with the other states on when to allow non-essential businesses to reopen. In their original joint announcement, the West Coast states alluded toward reopening together so residents from a restricted state don’t go across state lines to shop, eat or drink in a state that lifted stay-home orders and potentially spread coronavirus further.

In a previous press conference, Polis said he is in contact with the governors of Wyoming, Kansas, Utah, New Mexico and Nebraska about sharing ventilators and tracking the spread of coronavirus across state lines, particularly in border communities where people may commute back and forth. He did not mention if those conversations would lead to a formal pact.

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