GA Coronavirus Measures On Restaurants, Movies, Events Eased

GEORGIA — Most coronavirus restrictions in Georgia will ease next week, including dining-in at restaurants, live performance venues and conventions, Gov. Brian Kemp said.

In April, Kemp allowed the statewide shelter-in-place order to expire, another easing of restrictions the same week that restaurants resumed dine-in service, and salons and spas were allowed to go back to work.

At a May 28 news conference, Kemp said that starting June 1, gatherings of more than 25 people in a single location were allowed if there is at least 6-feet between each person, up from the 10-person standard set in April.

He also announced that amusement parks, traveling carnivals, water parks, circuses and other temporary amusement rides will be able to resume operation Friday. They must comply with 33 mandatory requirements, in addition to the guidelines for non-critical infrastructure businesses.

Related: GA Aquarium And Six Flags Set To Reopen Next Week

On June 1, bars and nightclubs were able to reopen if they complied with "strict sanitation and social distancing rules all crafted to reflect industry practices and mitigate health risks," Kemp said. Bars and nightclubs must meet 39 mandatory measures to ensure patron well-being, including:

• Screening workers for illness
• Limiting the people in the building to 25 people or 35 percent of total occupancy
• Only serving drinks to seated patrons or those in designated areas
• Limiting party sizes to six people

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Now, Kemp has allowed more restrictions to ease, including these which go into effect on Tuesday:

• Gatherings of more than 50 people are banned unless there is at least 6-feet between each person. This rule does not apply to critical infrastructure entities, incidental or transitory groupings, or co-habitating individuals.
• In restaurants and dining rooms, there is no longer a party maximum for the number of people who can sit together. There is no longer a limit on the number of patrons allowed per square foot.
• At indoor movie theaters and cinemas, there is no longer a limit on the number of people who may sit together in a party.
• Walk-ins are now allowed at body art studios, barber shops, hair salons, their respective schools, massage therapy establishments, and tanning facilities subject to specific requirements.
• Workers at restaurants, dining rooms, banquet facilities, private event facilities, and private reception venues are only required to wear face coverings when they are interacting with patrons. In a bar, there can now be 50 people, up from 25, or 35 percent of total listed fire capacity, whichever is greater.
• For salad bars and buffets, a worker can use cafeteria-style service to serve patrons or the establishment can provide hand sanitizer, install a sneeze guard, enforce social distancing, and regularly replace shared utensils to allow patron self-service.

Beginning July 1, a live performance venue may reopen for business if it complies with specific criteria based on whether it is designated Tier I, II, or III. There are certain exceptions in the order for drive-in performances; private recording sessions, livestream performances, practices, fan-less events, and rehearsals; and non-ticketed or free events.

The state defines live performance venues as, “any indoor or outdoor location that requires patrons to purchase a license to attend an event featuring live musical, dramatical, automotive, educational, or any other type of entertainment performed before in-person patrons.” The term does not include restaurants and dining rooms, banquet facilities, private event facilities, private reception venues, weddings, drive-in venues, or events held as part of a convention, and the term does not include outdoor recreational fields used for amateur sporting events.

Shelter-in-place

Effective immediately, residents and visitors of Georgia who are 65-years-old or older are no longer required to shelter-in-place unless they meet any of the following categories:

• People who live in a nursing home or long-term care facility, including inpatient hospice, assisted living communities, personal care homes, intermediate care homes, community living arrangements, and community integration homes
• People who have chronic lung disease, moderate to severe asthma, or severe heart disease

• Those persons who are immunocompromised
• Those persons, of any age, with class III or severe obesity
• Those persons diagnosed with the following underlying medical conditions: diabetes, liver disease, and persons with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis

Sports

Effective Tuesday, professional sports teams and organizations must follow the rules and guidelines set by their respective leagues. High school and collegiate teams and organizations must follow the rules and guidelines set by their applicable conferences or associations. Amateur sports teams and organizations must follow the criteria for non-critical infrastructure entities outlined in the order.

Last month, Kemp allowed professional and amateur sports teams which hold practices or other in-person operations to resume in Georgia.

Conventions

Effective July 1, a convention may occur if it meets 21 specific requirements in addition to the requirements for non-critical infrastructure entities. Convention means “an organized event of more than 100 persons that are required to register or obtain a license to gather for a common purpose at a single indoor facility or grouping of indoor facilities for more than four hours and in some cases for more than one day” and “shall include exhibitions, trade shows, conferences, and business retreats.”

The term convention does not include any regular operation of a business that occurs on property owned or leased for the exclusive operation of such business, nor does the term encompass regular religious services, business meetings, sports competitions, or events categorized by state law.

Overnight Summer Camps

Campers and workers may not attend an overnight summer camp unless they have received a negative COVID-19 test within 12 days – up from seven days – prior to starting camp.

Overnight summer camps were permitted in Georgia beginning May 31, if the organizations met 33 specific criteria for reopening, in addition to the requirements for operating a non-critical infrastructure business.

Mandatory requirements for operating non-critical infrastructure businesses, for-profit corporations, non-profit corporations, and organizations are extended through the end of the month. Specific requirements for previously closed businesses remain in effect.

As of 3 p.m. Thursday, 54,973 Georgians have been confirmed to have the coronavirus, with 2,375 of them dying from it. More than 9,000 Georgians have been hospitalized, with just more than 2,000 of them in the ICU. No information is available from Georgia about how many patients have recovered.

Georgia has tested 687,129 people so far, including both viral and antibody testing, with just more than 56,000 testing positive, or 8.2 percent.

Globally, more than 7.7 million cases of coronavirus have been confirmed, with 459,575 deaths, according numbers tallied Thursday afternoon by Johns Hopkins. In the U.S., more than 2 million people have been confirmed to have COVID-19, with 113,000 deaths confirmed as of Wednesday.

Related:

• Georgia Sees Almost 1,000 New COVID-19 Cases in 24 Hours
• When GA's Bars, Sports Teams, Live Performance Venues Can Resume
• Reopening Guidelines Released For Salons, Spas: GA Coronavirus
• GA Coronavirus: Reopening Guidelines Released For Restaurants