Gov. Kay Ivey: Retail businesses can reopen when stay-at-home order expires April 30
Alabama retail businesses, beaches and government offices can reopen after 5 p.m. Thursday with social distancing restrictions, but restaurant dining rooms, entertainment venues and close-contact service providers such as hair stylists remain closed, Gov. Kay Ivey said today.
Non-essential medical and dental procedures also can resume. Retailers will be required to limit occupancy to 50% of normal load and keep customers separated by at least 6 feet.
“What our citizens have done is working,” Ivey said, saying her stay-at-home order will expire at 5 p.m. Thursday. “The people of Alabama have done things to stay well.”
The stay-at-home order went into effect April 4.
The new safer-at-home order will expire May 15. It keeps the prohibition on non-work gatherings of 10 or more people, but explicitly allows events where participants remain in their cars, including church services.
The new order from State Health Officer Scott Harris encourages individuals, especially in vulnerable groups, to continue limiting trips outside the home and practicing personal responsibility such as frequent hand washing.
“The threat is not over,” Ivey said. “We must continue to be vigilant in our social distancing.”
Dr. Harris said the state has met two of the three guidelines President Donald Trump has suggested as a criteria for reopening. The state has not seen a 14-day decline in COVID-19 cases.
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