Indoor dining is back in southwestern Illinois as state eases COVID-19 restrictions
State officials say it’s now OK to dine-in at restaurants in southwestern Illinois, though some limits remain.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Thursday it is easing COVID-19 restrictions on the metro-east, also known as Region 4, effective immediately.
Region 4 includes St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, Clinton, Washington and Bond counties.
State officials had completely banned indoor dining at restaurants in the region, beginning last fall. There are still limits on indoor dining and other activities under the new guidelines, but the state has eased restrictions.
Here’s what to expect:
- Indoor dining and drinking is permitted for groups of up to 10 people, and tables should be 6 feet apart.
- Standing areas in restaurants or bars should be limited to no more than 25% of standing room capacity
- Retail and service businesses must limit capacity to 50% occupancy.
- Some indoor recreation facilities may reopen (bowling alleys, skating rinks), but indoor playgrounds should remain closed.
- Museums are limited to 25% occupancy, and guided tours should have 50 or fewer attendees.
- Social gatherings should be limited to 50 people or 50% of a room’s capacity. Multiple groups may meet in the same building, if they are socially distanced and in separate rooms.
- Offices must limit capacity to no more than 50% occupancy and in-person meetings of up to 50 people may be held with social distancing. Continued health screenings for COVID symptoms are recommended as well
- Youth and recreational sports must be limited to 50 or fewer spectators at events. Concessions are permitted with some restrictions and sporting venues may host multiple groups if spaced out appropriately.
- Gyms must limit capacity to 50% of the building’s occupancy. Social distancing is required for fitness classes and workout stations need to be 6 ft. apart. Employees must monitor for social distancing violations.
The metro-east was the last of Illinois’ 10 regions to reenter Phase 4 of the state’s coronavirus reopening plan.
The metro-east met the required metrics to ease restrictions earlier in the week after intensive care unit bed availability rose above 20%. Up until that point, the metro-east had met the other two required metrics: a seven-day average positivity rate under 8% or at least 6.5% for three consecutive days and a sustained decline in hospitalized COVID patients.
The state uses hospitalization trends, positivity rates and ICU availability to measure if a region should have relaxed restrictions.
Since the beginning of 2021, the region and the rest of the state have seen marginal improvements in COVID-19 positivity rates and overall hospitalizations. In early January, the metro-east had a seven-day average positivity rate of 13.2%. As of Wednesday, it was 6.5%. The positivity rate is the percentage of positive results of a batch of COVID tests.
Last week metro-east-based lawmakers asked Gov. J.B. Pritzker to move the region out of Tier 2 restrictions due to how close the area was to meeting all required metrics.
If hospitals begin to fill again and COVID-19 case rates rise, the region could still move back into tiered restrictions, the Illinois Department of Public Health said in a statement.
Some restaurants and bars across the region have ignored the state’s in-door dining rules, and enforcement has been inconsistent.
This story was originally published February 4, 2021 at 10:08 AM.