Northam offers more details on easing COVID restrictions

Northam explains what happens in Phase I.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam offered more details on Phase I of the state’s plan to ease restrictions under the coronavirus pandemic.

Phase I will start on Friday, May 15, and should last at least two weeks, Northam said at a May 8 briefing.

Here’s what happens in Phase I:

• Non-essential retail – The current limit of 10 people inside a business is increased to 50 percent of capacity. 
• Restaurants and breweries – The current rule allowing only takeout and delivery remains in place but establishments can have outdoor seating at 50 percent of capacity if they have a permit for outdoor seating. 
• Entertainment and amusement venues will remain closed. 
• Gyms and fitness centers can have outdoor classes with limitations.
• Beaches are now open only for exercise and fishing. That will remain the case. 
• Places of worship – Services can be held inside at 50 percent capacity. 
• Personal grooming services can open if they adhere to strict social distancing with face masks and appointments required. 
• Private campgrounds will be open with restrictions on distance between campsites.
• State parks, which had been limited to day use only, will open in phases for overnight camping. 
• Childcare facilities will remain open for working families. 
• Overnight summer camps will remain closed. 

Individual communities can go more slowly, Northam said, citing Northern Virginia, which is expected to take a more cautious approach to reopening.

Related story: Virginia to begin easing COVID restrictions next week

“The virus is still with us and there is no cure or vaccine,” he said, so people still need to wear face masks and practice social distancing and frequent hand washing. The 10-person limit on gatherings remains in place.

“We’re not opening the floodgates here. We’re not flipping a light switch from closed to open,” Northam said. This is more about “turning a dimmer up a notch.”

Related story: Virginia ramps up coronavirus testing

The decision on Phase I is based on health data, including the number of COVID cases, numbers and averages of people being tested every day, the number of positive tests compared to the number of tests, shortages of personal protective equipment in hospitals, the number of hospital beds occupied by COVID patients, and the rate at which the number of cases are doubling.

Those metrics are largely trending downward. The number of cases is still going up, however, which is partly due to increased testing.

During Phase I, the “stay-at-home order will become a safer-at-home order,” Northam said. People more at risk due to age or health conditions should continue to stay at home, and everyone else should avoid going out unnecessarily.