Movie Theaters, Concert Venues Can Reopen: Hogan's Plan Explained

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Maryland is entering the third and final stage of its coronavirus recovery plan. All Maryland businesses will be able to open this Friday at 5 p.m., pending their county's move into Stage 3.

Movie theaters and live entertainment venues can reopen at 50 percent capacity. These businesses can only host 100 people for indoor events or 250 patrons for outdoor gatherings, however.

Retail stores and houses of worship can now operate at a 75 percent capacity. They were previously capped at half their usual crowd size.

“I want to remind the people of Maryland that moving into Stage 3 does not mean that this crisis is behind us," Hogan said. "We must remain vigilant so we can keep Maryland open for business.”

Though businesses now have the state's permission to reopen, counties will handle most of the effort. Jurisdictions can still remain in Stage 2, Hogan said, but he stressed that they now have permission to further reopen if they see fit. If a district chooses to stay put in Stage 2, its businesses must follow the local orders.

Marylanders are steadily returning to work as restrictions ease. Since peaking at 10.1 percent in April, the state's unemployment rate has fallen each month.

Now, 7.6 percent of the labor force is out of a job. In comparison, the unemployment rate was a 3.3 percent in February, a month before coronavirus shutdowns began.

While Maryland still has a way to go before it reaches its pre-coronavirus economy, the state is still faring better than most of the country. The national unemployment rate sits at 10.2 percent, which is down from its recent high of 14.7 percent in April.

Maryland has added 156,000 jobs since recovery efforts began, said Kelly Schulz, the secretary for the state Department of Commerce. She attributes the economic revival to the $175 million in grants and loans that her department sent to thousands of local businesses.

Safety remains a top priority for Schulz, who said her team has met with 13 different industries to develop safe reopening guidelines. That partnership involved leaders from the tourism, manufacturing, retail, dining and attractions sectors, among others.

The group assembled a list of safety recommendations specific to each field. The suggestions include staggering employees' shifts to minimize potential coronavirus exposure and placing signs and barriers to aid social distancing. These tips are available in Maryland's Back to Business portal.

"We’ve helped them keep their doors open, pay their bills and keep their employees on their payrolls," Schulz said of Maryland business owners. "We have stayed strong during this pandemic, and we will remain vigilant. We are, in fact, keeping Maryland open for business."

Masks are still required in all public places in Maryland where social distancing is not possible. This includes all outdoor and indoor areas like town centers, shops and restaurants.

Hogan reminded residents to continue their coronavirus prevention measures, even around their relatives. People tend to feel safer around their family, but they must still take precautions, Hogan said.

Coronavirus seems to spread quickly at family events. Since the middle of July, 41 percent of coronavirus patients interviewed by contact tracers reported going to family gatherings.

"You think it’s maybe dangerous to go to a restaurant or a bar or some business," Hogan said. "But in fact, the No. 1 thing reported is family gatherings."

Status Of Return To School Plans In MD

The announcement comes hours after the Maryland State Board of Education turned down a plan to shake up local school schedules. State Superintendent Karen Salmon previously suggested that schools have at least six hours of instruction per day while students learn from home. She also proposed that students spend at least half that time on synchronous instruction with their classmates.

The state teachers union, called the Maryland State Education Association, cheered the move, saying a last-minute schedule shakeup could cause "confusion, stress, and chaos."

"The conversation at today’s State Board of Education meeting would have been useful months ago," union president Cheryl Bost said in a press release. "Having it today, after the school year has begun in many areas, is incredibly out of touch with the realities that educators, parents, and students are dealing with every day."

Leading up to the meeting, the union circulated a petition that called for no changes to school schedules until at least the end of the first marking period. That letter gathered 20,000 signatures in less than 48 hours, Bost said.

Bost added that union members are worried about the ongoing discussions encouraging expanded in-person learning.

Last Thursday afternoon, Hogan recommended that counties track their positivity rate and new infections-per-capita to determine whether they can safely reopen schools.

He says jurisdictions should aim to keep their seven-day positivity rate below 5 percent. Hogan urged districts to consider a hybrid schooling system, as every jurisdiction has met this threshold.

State officials also advise districts to shoot for a weekly average of less than five new coronavirus cases-per-day per 100,000 people. Public schools may only open for expanded in-person instruction when they reach this goal.

School districts had to send in their fall plans to the state board of education by Aug. 14. Eight counties submitted proposals that prohibited in-person instruction, Hogan said.

"This is simply not acceptable," Hogan said last week. "It is not the right thing for our Maryland children."

Many school leaders pushed back against the governor's guidance. Anne Arundel, Montgomery and Prince George's County school officials condemned Hogan's plea, reaffirming their commitment to a virtual start to the school year. Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Harford County all renewed their vow to start online, but promised to pick up the pace on developing hybrid plans.

"We must get this right, stay safe, and have consistent support rather than more last-minute surprises from state leaders," Bost said.

Hogan says he was frustrated with the way his recommendations were portrayed.

While the teachers union claims the suggestions were too rushed, Hogan says his advice gave school leaders a full marking period to develop safe plans to eventually reopen. His tips came two days after the state board of education reviewed the districts' plans and two weeks after they requested more guidance on how to reopen safely.

"We have to listen to teachers and parents and students," Hogan said. "Everybody wants to do this as carefully as we can. There’s real opinions on both sides of the issue, and I understand that.”

Tech Partnership Helps Contact Tracing

Maryland is teaming up with two tech giants to help keep the state safe as it further reopens.

Apple updated its software to allow states, including Maryland, to use its coronavirus contact tracing app, Hogan said. Four municipalities are using this system that Apple and Google launched earlier in the pandemic, state officials said.

"The first public health authorities in the United States to adopt the Exposure Notification Express system will be Maryland, Nevada, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.," Hogan spokesman Mike Ricci tweeted earlier in the day.

The system updates came Tuesday when Apple released its latest iPhone software, called iOS 13.7. The update allows public health authorities to support coronavirus contact tracing without developing their own application.

Coronavirus Statistics Update

Maryland added 614 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, bringing the state's total to 108,863 infections. The state also reported five more coronavirus-related deaths Tuesday. The virus has killed 3,617 Marylanders.

The state's positivity rate has seen a slight uptick since it bottomed out at 3.08 percent on Aug. 21. Now, the seven-day rolling average sits at 3.39 percent, which is the highest its been in two weeks. The weekly positivity rate topped out at 26.88 percent on April 17.

Hospitalizations have trended downward since they hit a recent peak of 592 on Aug. 1. Tuesday's 385 hospitalizations are down from their overall peak of 1,711 on April 30.

New cases have slowed as of late, prompting states to drop Maryland off their travel advisories. Most notably, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York removed Maryland from their joint travel advisory on Aug. 25. Travel from Maryland was previously restricted since July 21.

The trio requires travelers from a list of 30 states and three territories to self-quarantine for 14 days when visiting their pact, which was established on June 24. To land on the group's travel advisory, states must have either:

1. An average of more than 10 new cases per 100,000 residents per day over a rolling week.
2. Or an average positivity rate of more than 10 percent over seven days.

Maryland currently has an average of 8.46 new infections-per-day per 100,000 people. That per capita mark maxed out at 18.03 on May 7. New cases-per-day per 100,000 residents hit a recent low of 5.6 on June 24 before returning to a recent high of 15.55 on July 31.

As long as Maryland averages less than 610 new coronavirus infections-per-day and keeps its positivity rate low, it will avoid a second stint on the northeastern quarantine order. The state's positivity rate has been below the mandate's 10 percent benchmark since June 3.

Maryland has its own travel order. Hogan implemented the advisory on July 29, after spending months saying Maryland would not restrict travel from other states.

The mandate does not prohibit out of state visitation. The advisory instead discourages travel to states with a positivity rate greater than 10 percent.

Travelers coming from those states should immediately get a coronavirus test when they return to Maryland. These travelers should also quarantine until they receive a negative test result, the order says. These 11 states are currently on Maryland's quarantine and test mandate:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• South Carolina
• Texas

RELATED:

• MD Schools May Begin Safely Reopening: Governor Hogan

Have a story idea? Please contact me at jacob.baumgart@patch.com with any pitches, tips or questions. Follow me on Twitter @JacobBaumgart and on Facebook @JacobBaumgartJournalist to stay up-to-date with the latest Anne Arundel County and Prince George's County news. Correction: A previous version of this article listed Virginia as part of Maryland's travel advisory. That was incorrect. The advisory permanently excludes Virginia and the District of Columbia from the quarantine order, regardless of their coronavirus statistics.