coronavirus illinois

2 Suburban Regions Move to Tier 1 COVID-19 Mitigations, Resume Indoor Dining

Region 8 includes west suburban DuPage and Kane counties, and Region 9 is home to north suburban Lake and McHenry counties

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Two regions in the Chicago suburbs can now move into Tier 1 COVID-19 mitigations, allowing for the return of limited indoor dining, among other changes, state health officials announced.

Region 8, which includes west suburban DuPage and Kane counties, and Region 9, home to north suburban Lake and McHenry counties, will both enter Tier 1 effective Tuesday, health officials said.

Here's a look at what is and is not allowed under Tier 1:

RESTAURANTS AND BARS
• Indoor service limited to the lesser of 25 guests or 25% capacity per room
• Establishments offering indoor service must serve food
• All bar and restaurant patrons should be seated at tables
• No ordering, seating, or congregating at bar (bar stools should be removed)
• Tables should be 6 feet apart
• No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting

ORGANIZED GROUP RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES (fitness centers, sports, etc.)
• Sports should follow the mitigation measures set forth in the All Sports Guidance, which outlines appropriate levels of practice and competition based on individual sport risk
• Face coverings must be worn at all times in fitness centers, including while engaged in individual exercise regardless of person or machine spacing
• Recreation, fitness centers and outdoor activities (not included in the above exposure settings) follow Phase 4 guidance

MEETINGS AND SOCIAL EVENTS (including weddings, funerals, potlucks, etc.)
• Limit to lesser of 25 guests or 25% of overall room capacity both indoors and outdoors
o Applicable to professional, cultural and social group gatherings.
o Not applicable to students participating in-person classroom learning, or sports.
o This does not reduce the overall facility capacity dictated by general Phase 4 business guidance such as office, personal care, retail, etc.

In recent days, all 11 of Illinois' regions have, to varying degrees, continued to lift some of the more stringent COVID-19 mitigations put in place in November amid a second wave of the pandemic.

State officials placed every region into the most strict Tier 3 mitigations in November, suspending indoor dining across Illinois and closing down museums and casinos, among other mitigations which lasted through the holiday season.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced earlier this month that regions could begin to lift those most stringent restrictions on Jan. 15 if they met the criteria. Last week, Illinois officials announced that all 11 regions were out of the most restrictive Tier 3.

“With all regions of Illinois now out of Tier 3, we can now see that the entire state is headed down the right path,” IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said Friday. “During the summer, we were on this same path.  We know that we must continue to take precautions and be smart about how we relax some of the mitigation measures, which are in place to protect our health and safety.”

With each region, the health department plans to "closely monitor test positivity, ICU bed availability, and the number of people in the hospital with COVID-19" and if numbers begin trending in the wrong direction, regions could see increased mitigations return.

These are the metrics to reach each tier and phase:

Moving from Tier 3 to Tier 2
o Test positivity rate = 8% and below 12% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o Staffed ICU bed availability = 20% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o Sustained decline in COVID patients in hospital (7-day average for 7 of 10 days)

Moving from Tier 2 to Tier 1
o Test positivity rate between 6.5% and 8% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o Staffed ICU bed availability = 20% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o No sustained increase in COVID patients in hospital (7-day average for 7 of 10 days)

Moving from Tier 1 to Phase 4
o Test positivity rate = 6.5% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o Staffed ICU bed availability = 20% for three consecutive days (7-day average); AND
o No sustained increase in COVID patients in hospital (7-day average for 7 of 10 days)

  • Test positivity rate below 8% for three consecutive days (7-day average) AND
  • =20% available staffed ICU hospital beds for three consecutive days, on a 7-day rolling average; AND
  • No sustained increase in COVID patients in hospital (7-day average over 7 of 10 days)

For a full breakdown of what's allowed in each tier click here.

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