The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) on Aug. 25 released updated safety guidelines for patrons of restaurants and bars throughout the state, including a recommendation that customers wear face coverings when approached and serviced by establishment employees.
The State recently gave an update on where the Will County region stands after 14 days under the new guidelines. According to officials, the region has seen a substantial drop in positivity rates. As of Sept. 8, the region was down to 7.4% from a high of 8.9%. This means the State will not be adding any additional mitigation restrictions to the region. Hospital utilization rates also continue to be above the threshold for any enhanced mitigation efforts to be triggered from that metric.
Based on reports from the Will and Kankakee County Health Departments, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) believes that masking levels in the region have increased and that people are taking these measures seriously. The region will remain under the current enhanced mitigation efforts until it has a sustained positivity rate of less than 6.5%.
For now, the mitigation guidelines remain, and restaurants and bars should keep gatherings to a maximum of 25 people.
