The city of Chicago is officially entering Phase 4 of the Illinois coronavirus mitigation plan, thanks to continued improvements in positivity and hospitalization rates, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced on Sunday.
By the parameters of Phase 4, the indoor service in bars can be resumed, and the indoor service continues in restaurants, according to the IDPH website.
The move means that more than half of the state’s health regions have already passed Phase 4 mitigation rules. Most suburban communities remain under Level 1 mitigations, which allow for indoor dining, but not indoor bar service. .
Under normal circumstances, the move to Phase 4 would increase capacity limits in closed restaurants, but city officials say that restaurants and bars will be required to comply with Level 1 limits for these numbers. The internal service is limited to 25% or 25 or less people per room, with no tables with more than six internal customers.
Bar service can also be resumed in restaurants and bars, according to a statement from the city of Chicago.
The city’s “non-essential” curfew has also been lifted under new regulations, according to the mayor’s office.
“We continue to see great progress in the ongoing fight against COVID-19 and I am excited that our metrics continue to move in the right direction,” said Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a statement. “However, although we welcome the return of the limited internal service last weekend, a rush to expand capacity too quickly would be irresponsible. With cases and positivity rates even higher than before the second peak, now is the time to maintain safeguards to ensure continued progress and, hopefully, avoid reversals in the future. “
The city achieved a reduction in mitigation rules by leaving its positivity rate below 6.5% for three consecutive days. That number has remained stable at 6.4% in the past few days, according to IDPH data. The availability of ICU beds in the city remained constant above 20% for 11 consecutive days, while admissions for COVID-19 decreased in each of the last 10 days.
When Chicago moves to Phase 4, the following regulations are in effect:
- Indoor restaurants and events will remain limited to less than 25% capacity or 25 people per space
- Most other industries will be limited to less than 40% of capacity or 50 people
- Bar seating will be allowed and the size of the indoor table can increase to six people
- The curfew for non-essential business will be revoked
- Bars and restaurants will be able to extend the opening hours until midnight, without alcohol from 23h.
In a press release, city officials said that while the numbers continue to fall, they say that “a hasty return to greater domestic capacity would pose a serious risk” of reducing progress that has been made.
“We have just resumed safe meals indoors, and while we are excited about this change, we must continue to be careful and cautious in our reopening,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, in a statement to press. “The last thing we want to do is cause a third wave of the virus, running to fully reopen the riskiest settings, where the masks are removed and people gather nearby.”
In addition, health officials said it was “standard public health practice” to monitor the impact of any significant mitigation changes for a minimum of two weeks, noting that Chicago had returned to eating indoors less than a week earlier.
Illinois health officials on Saturday reported 3,345 new cases of COVID-19, as well as 65 additional deaths attributed to the virus.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, Friday’s new cases have raised the total number of confirmed cases across the state to 1,123,873 since the pandemic began. The fatalities reported on Friday increased the death toll to 19,203.
In the past 24 hours, Illinois officials said 107,802 test specimens were returned to state laboratories, placing the state with 15,952,421 tests carried out during the pandemic.
The seven-day rolling positivity rate in all tests was 4%, remaining the same as the previous day. The positivity rate for single tested individuals dropped slightly to 5.1% on Saturday.