As of this afternoon, December 30, 2020, PA announced that the time-limited mitigation orders put in place on Dec. 12 will expire at 8 a.m., Jan. 4 as planned.
With the expiration of the Dec 12th time-limited orders, mitigation efforts will revert to the original mitigation orders in place on Dec. 11.
Mitigation efforts that will remain in effect on Jan. 4 include:
Business, work, school, child care and congregate settings:
- Child care may open, complying with guidance
- Congregate care restrictions remain in place
- Prison and hospital restrictions determined by individual facilities
- Schools subject to CDC and commonwealth guidance.
- Telework must continue unless impossible
- Businesses with in-person operations must follow updated business and building safety requirements
- Masks are required in businesses
- All in-person businesses may operate at 75% occupancy, except where noted
- Self-certified restaurants may open at 50% capacity for indoor dining; Restaurants that have not self-certified are at 25% capacity for indoor dining,
- On-premises alcohol consumption prohibited unless part of a meal; cocktails-to-go and carryout beverages are allowed
- Serving alcohol for on-site consumption must end at 11 p.m., and all alcoholic beverages must be removed from patrons by midnight
- Personal care services (including hair salons and barbershops) open at 50% occupancy and by appointment only
- Indoor recreation and health facilities (such as gyms and spas) open at 50% occupancy with appointments strongly encouraged; fitness facilities directed to prioritize outdoor activities.
- All entertainment (such as casinos, theaters, and museums) open at 50% occupancy.
- Construction at full capacity with continued implementation of protocol.
- Hospitals are still being monitored to determine if elective procedure reductions should be ordered regionally.
- The out-of-state testing requirement is still in place.
- Local governments may still have more strict guidance in place.
- Social Restrictions:
- Gatherings limits determined using maximum occupancy
- Face coverings are required to be worn indoors and outdoors if you are away from your home.
- Unnecessary travel should be limited.
Gov. Wolf also noted that the new Department of Health COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard launched today. The dashboard provides the number of vaccinations administered by county and demographic information about the people being vaccinated.
The data on the dashboard is aggregated from vaccine providers that are reporting information relating to the individuals to whom they administer the COVID-19 vaccine. That information is reported into the Pennsylvania Statewide Immunization Information System (PA-SIIS).
Per the PA press release, currently, 142 hospitals, health systems, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and pharmacies have received COVID-19 vaccine, with 56 facilities expected to receive doses this week. To date, more than 90,000 Pennsylvanians have been vaccinated. Some of these facilities have previously received vaccine, and some are receiving vaccine for the first time.
“The Federal Pharmacy Partnership (FPP) also launched this week with 126 Long-Term Care Facilities across the commonwealth scheduled to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, according to information provided by Operation Warp Speed.
Dr. Rachel Levine announced today that she has signed an executive order to ensure vaccine is available to health care providers not affiliated with a health system, federally qualified health center or pharmacy.
“Effective Jan. 6, the order I signed today requires vaccine providers, such as hospitals, federally qualified health centers and pharmacies to designate at least 10 percent of their vaccine shipments for non-affiliated health care providers to ensure there is supply available,” Dr. Levine said. “It also requires vaccine providers to set up a point of contact for these non-affiliated providers to register for vaccination appointments.”
Duane Morris has created a COVID-19 Strategy Team to help organizations plan, respond to and address this fast-moving situation. Contact your Duane Morris attorney for more information. Prior Alerts on the topic are available on the team’s webpage.
If you have any questions about this post, please contact Brad A. Molotsky, Elizabeth Mincer, Sharon Caffrey, or the attorney in the firm with whom you are regularly in contact.
Be well and stay safe. Best wishes for a happy and healthy New Years to you and yours!