Next up: Bars, some indoor events, some outdoor events
For places like bars and clubs to reopen when Connecticut reaches Phase 3 of its return to business in late July or August, residents will have to retain the good habits that most people are following when it comes to social distancing, mask wearing and hand-washing, according to the report released Tuesday by Gov. Ned Lamont and his Reopen Connecticut Advisory Group.
While exact protocols for Phase 3 are still being developed and are not part of the 43-page reported released Tuesday night, the reopenings are based on the same criteria as Phase 1 and 2, which depend heavily on health metrics, including testing and tracing contacts of COVID-19-positive patients to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
There are extensive requirements for colleges and universities to meet in order to accept residential students for the fall semester.
Bars, indoor event spaces and venues, indoor amusement parks and outdoor events of 100 or less are also included in Phase 3, which could occur as early as four weeks after the Phase 2 target date of June 20, which itself depends on health metrics and public coopera
Another 27 COVID-19 patients died since Monday, bringing the total fatalities to 3,769.
tion over the next few weeks, the final report of the advisory committee says.
The mid-summer Phase 3 reopening depends on risks that are being managed; that a second surge of the pandemic does not occur; the willingness of residents to submit to testing for COVID-19; their participation in contact tracing; the ability of the state to maintain a stockpile of personal protective equipment; the public’s support of local businesses and restaurants; and a lack of complications from neighboring states.
“The global COVID-19 pandemic is complex and rapidly
evolving, and that is why I asked a group of people on the ground here in Connecticut – including public health experts, business owners and representatives, education officials, and others – to review how the virus is impacting Connecticut and provide me with recommendations for a safe and appropriate response,” Lamont said in an early evening statement.
“We learn new things about this virus every day, and as a result, the plans outlined in this report are almost certain to change based on new facts, insights, and breakthroughs both here in our state and around the world, as well as in coordination with our regional partners,” the governor said. “But one thing is for sure – the strength, generosity,
and resolve I see every day across our state will remain constant. By working together, we can continue to protect the health and safety of our family, friends, and neighbors as we reopen Connecticut.”
Josh Geballe, Lamont’s chief operating officer and the commissioner of the state Department of Administrative Services, said during the governor’s daily news conference that so far, 600 health professionals, including employees from nine local health departments have been recruited to perform contact tracing: interviewing COVID-19 patients to track down people they might have spent enough time with to infect.
Contact tracing is a major key to the state’s continued reopening,
the report says.
In recent weeks, Connecticut has joined in a seven-state regional effort to purchase equipment and choreograph the reopening process, although each state has notable differences, such as Connecticut never closing its state parks while New York did. Rhode Island will allow 50 percent occupancy of indoor restaurants on June 1, while Lamont is holding firm on at least June 20 before some diners can move inside.
The state Department of Public Health on Tuesday reported that another 27 COVID-19 patients died since Monday, bringing the total fatalities in the pandemic to 3,769. In addition, there was a net reduction of 12 hospitalizations, for 694 patients statewide, equal to the total of about April 1. The state’s peak hospitalization was 1,972 on April 22.
During Lamont’s news conference from the State Capitol, West Hartford Mayor Shari Cantor and Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo joined him remotely to describe their local efforts to help restaurants stay in business during the slow reopening.
Lamont said that the June 20 target date remains for partial indoor dining. “One reason for this is, it’s closed in Westchester County,” Lamont said. “It’s closed in The Bronx. It’s a half-an-hour drive, and there’s some thought that if we open everything up indoors as well as outdoor, a lot of traffic can go back and forth.”