Bridge Phase Starts Friday In Illinois: What It Means For You

ILLINOIS — The state is one step closer to fully reopening as Illinois enters its "bridge" phase Friday. Health officials call it a "metrics-based pathway" toward the fifth and final phase of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's Restore Illinois reopening plan, which he unveiled on May 5, 2020 — slightly more than one year ago. In Phase 5, all businesses can fully reopen and resume normal operations without capacity limits, as can conventions, festivals and other large events.

But the state isn't quite there yet.

State health officials have said they intend to dial down coronavirus restrictions gradually rather than get rid of them all at once, and how fast the state moves has been largely dependent on progress with vaccinations.

"There is no modern-day precedent for this. We are literally writing the playbook as we go," Pritzker said last May. "I'm not afraid to redesign the playbook if the rules change."

State and local authorities have tweaked the plan over the last 12 months, but the governor has largely stuck to it, maintaining that normalcy would only be possible once a vaccine was widely available.

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State health officials have targeted a 70 percent vaccination rate for those 65 and older before beginning to roll back indoor capacity limits and other restrictions — a target that's now been met.

“Illinoisans have worked so hard over the past year and a half to keep their families and neighbors safe, and reaching Bridge Phase means that we’re closer than ever to a return to normalcy,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said in a statement.

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As of Thursday, more than 10 million vaccinations had been administered across Illinois, including about 80,000 per day over the last week. According to the state health department, about 4.6 million Illinoisans have been fully vaccinated, including more than 80 percent of those over 65 and roughly 36 percent of the state's total population.

State health officials said Wednesday that local health departments and mass vaccination sites statewide are also ready to begin administering vaccinations to Illinoisans as young as 12 after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration voted to recommend an expansion of its emergency use authorization to that age group.

The governor urged everyone eligible for the vaccine to get a shot as soon as possible.

“The expanded use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine brings us one step closer to getting back to our daily lives and ending this pandemic,” Pritzker said. “Our state-supported mass vaccination locations, along with local health departments and other providers, are ready to vaccinate young people immediately, providing kids and families with a sense of relief after a difficult year.”

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But, vaccination rates vary greatly by county, and health officials warn the pandemic may far from over in some communities.

In DuPage, the Illinois county with the highest vaccination rate, about 45 percent of those age 16-64 and nearly 84 percent of those 65 and older have been fully vaccinated as of Thursday. However, in Alexander, the county with the lowest vaccination rate statewide, just over 10 percent of residents 16-64 have been fully vaccinated and only a quarter of those 65 and older have been.

What happens Friday

In the bridge phase, restaurant patrons must still be seated 6 feet apart and parties are still limited to 10 people or fewer, but capacity can increase from 25 to 30 percent indoors and up to 50 percent outdoors. Health and fitness classes, offices, personal care businesses and retail shops can also increase to 60 percent capacity from 50 percent; amusement parks can increase to 60 percent from 25.

Here's a full breakdown of the changes coming Friday:

• Dining: Seated areas: Patrons ≥ 6 feet apart; parties ≤ 10 Standing areas: 30 percent capacity indoors; 50 percent capacity outdoors
• Health and fitness: 60 percent capacity; Group fitness classes of 50 or fewer indoors or 100 or fewer outdoors.
• Offices: 60 percent capacity
• Personal care: 60 percent capacity
• Retail and counter service: 60 percent capacity
• Amusement parks: 60 percent capacity
• Festivals and general admission outdoor spectator events: 30 people per 1,000 sq. ft.
• Flea and farmers markets: Indoor: 15 people per 1,000 sq. ft.; Outdoor: 30 people per 1,000 sq. ft.
• Film production: 60 percent capacity
• Meetings, conferences, and conventions: Lesser of 1,000 people or 60 percent capacity
• Museums: 60 percent capacity
• Recreation: Indoor: Lesser of 100 people or 50 percent capacity; Outdoor: Maximum groups of 100; multiple groups permissible
• Social events: Indoor: 250 people; Outdoor: 500 people
• Spectator events (ticketed and seated): 60 percent capacity
• Theaters and performing arts: 60 percent capacity
• Zoos: 60 percent capacity

A bridge to what?

Officials say the ultimate goal is to fully reopen the state's economy with no capacity limits in place for any business, though a statewide mask mandate will stick around as long as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it's necessary.

Last month, the CDC said fully vaccinated Americans no longer need to wear masks outdoors, except in sports stadium, concert venues or other big crowds, and the governor said Illinois would adjust its mask mandate to follow suit. But other states, including California, are poised to lift their mask mandates entirely.

The state said it will continue to monitor the number of ICU hospital beds available across the state, as well as the number of patients who are hospitalized with COVID-19 and the number of people being newly admitted to the hospital because of COVID-19-like-illness. Should those numbers increase, the state will remain in the bridge phase instead of moving forward.

But as of Thursday, Illinois is on track to fully reopen and move to Phase 5 by June 11.

"This good news comes with a caveat," Pritzker said when he announced the target date last week. "We all have seen throughout this pandemic that this virus and its variants have proven to be unpredictable. Metrics that look strong today are far from a guarantee of how things will look a week, two weeks, a month from now. We saw that last August and again last March. But what we do know we have tools in the arsenal that have proven extremely effective."

State health officials on Wednesday reported another 1,795 cases of the coronavirus and 26 more deaths from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus. Nearly 1.4 million cases have been reported in Illinois, and 22,285 people have died across the state since the pandemic began more than a year ago.