PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine businesses are dealing with a new set of guidelines designed to prevent the spread of coronavirus on Tuesday in preparation for the cold winter months.
The state has increased its limit on indoor seating to either 50% capacity or 100 people, whichever is less, according to the office of Democratic Gov. Janet Mills. The outdoor gathering limit remains 100 people, the office said.
The state has also said indoor service at bars may resume on Nov. 2. The new rules also slightly relax the face covering requirements for businesses such as spas and tattoo parlors.
The new rules ease some restrictions, but also expand requirements about mask use to more parts of the state, said Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention director Nirav Shah.
The state has expanded the scope of enforcement statewide, instead of limiting it to Maine’s coastal counties and more populated cities, the governor’s office said.
“At the same time we’ve liberalized our approach there, we’ve also tightened our approach in which parts of the state the mask mandate is enforced,” Shah said.
In other news related to the pandemic in Maine:
THE NUMBERS:
Another 26 coronavirus cases have been reported in the state, the Maine CDC reported Tuesday.
That brings the total number of coronavirus cases in Maine to 5,780, while the number of deaths was unchanged at 143, officials said. The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Maine was about 36, which is about four more than it was a week ago.
Shah said most of the cases in the state are occurring in York, Cumberland and Somerset counties.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
___
BIRX URGES CAUTION
Deborah Birx, the coronavirus response coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force, urged continued caution about the pandemic during an appearance at a community college in Maine.
Birx spoke Tuesday at Southern Maine Community College in South Portland. She said now is a bad time for people to let their guards down in the fight against the virus.
“We need people to focus on personal protection,” Birx said.
(Copyright (c) 2024 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)