AUGUSTA, Maine (WGAN) Governor Janet Mills will extend the state’s stay-at-home order with some modifications.
The “Stay Safer at Home” order will allow Maine people to visit businesses or participate in activities “that are deemed safe to open under stage 1 of the reopening plan.” Those businesses and activities include but are not limited to: barber shops, hair salons, pet grooming, limited drive-in, stay-in-your-vehicle religious services, drive-in movie theaters, some outdoor recreation, and auto dealerships and car washes, as long as those places are able to operate safely and continue to follow guidelines outlined by the CDC to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Phase 1 begins May 1st. It continues the prohibition on “gatherings of more than 10 people, the quarantine of all people entering or returning to Maine for a period of 14 days, and the special precautions for older Mainers and others at risk of COVID-19.”
The stay-at-home order itself will be in effect until May 31st, with exceptions for those businesses and locations.
Assuming no sudden spike in coronavirus cases, phase 2 would begin June 1st, which would allow gatherings of less than 50 people.
Stage 3, which would happen in July or August, would mainly be focused on getting Maine’s tourism industry back up and running, allowing campgrounds, summer camps, hotels, and other similar businesses to open.
Phase 4 has no determined timeline, but would essentially be a return to normal, with appropriate safety precautions still in place.
The governor’s administration and health officials stress that certain criteria must be met in order to proceed between each phase. Those are: a downward trajectory of influenza-like illnesses and COVID-like syndromic cases; a downward trajectory of documented cases and newly hospitalized patients; and the capacity of Maine’s hospital systems to treat all patients without crisis care and “the ability of the state to engage in a robust testing program.”
Health officials also reiterate that the dates for each phase are flexible and will depend on whether or not the state sees a new spike in cases at any point in the process. If it does, that could put a pause on re-opening, or prompt the state to re-impose some restrictions.
The state reported 17 new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, and no new deaths. The number of active cases has remained mostly flat, indicating that social distancing and stay-at-home orders may have helped to tamp down the spread of the virus.
