Colorado moves to new vax phase amid variant questions

Colorado public health officials are facing new questions about how to contain the emerging COVID-19 variant first discovered in India, even as the state shifts its approach to vaccinations.

Driving the news: The state is closing its final two community vaccination sites this week. Four others had closed earlier this month.

• The site at Dick's Sporting Goods Park issued its final doses Tuesday.
• The operation at Ball Arena — the most popular site in the state — runs through Saturday.

Why it matters: It marks a transition in Colorado's vaccination campaign, largely removing Gov. Jared Polis' administration and punting the responsibility to local officials and individual physicians.

• Colorado topped 7,000 COVID-19-related deaths this week.

The big picture: Nearly 75% of new COVID-19 cases in Colorado in the last week came from the Delta variant, the latest state data shows.

• The World Health Organization is now urging vaccinated people to keep wearing masks.
• And a new study found mixing doses for a booster shot is beneficial.

Zoom in: Colorado public health officials said they are monitoring the situation and beginning to plan for future federal guidance, and local authorities tell Axios they are deferring to the state.

What they're saying: Lisa Miller, an epidemiologist at the Colorado School of Public Health, said there's no consensus on masks for vaccinated people yet.

• "As with everything risk-related and COVID, it really comes down to a personal calculation about your own risk," she said.