What You Can And Can't Do In PA's 'Yellow' Phase

HARRISBURG, PA — By June 5, all Pennsylvania counties will emerge from the most strict phase of the coronavirus mitigation measures.

Philadelphia and its surrounding counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery will move from the red to the yellow phase of coronavirus mitigation on June 5. Residents there have been under a stay-at-home order since March 23 in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Berks, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lehigh, and Northampton will also move from red to yellow on June 5.

Some of the 18 counties that remain in red as of this week will be moved to yellow earlier than the Philadelphia region. Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lebanon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Schuylkill will move to yellow on May 29.

So what's allowed during the yellow phase?

For one, the stay-at-home order is lifted. Retail businesses can reopen but curbside pickup is encouraged. Offices can conduct in-person operations if following the guidance issued by the state.

"The purpose of this phase is to begin to power back up the economy while keeping a close eye on the public health data to ensure the spread of disease remains contained to the greatest extent possible," the governor's reopening plan states.

Here's a look at what life in the yellow phase will be like:

Work

• Telework should continue where feasible.
• Businesses can resume with in-person operations but need to follow the guidance for business previously issued by the governor's office.
• Child care can reopen following specific safety guidance
• Schools will remain closed for in-person instruction
• For offices, the reopening guidance includes specific rules around cleaning shared work spaces, limits meeting sizes, and recommends staggered work start times. Businesses must develop a plan in the event a worker becomes infected with the virus, include mandating temperature checks of all employees and identifying close contacts.

Social restrictions

• The stay-at-home order is lifted
• Gatherings of more than 25 are prohibited
• In-person retail is permitted, but curbside and delivery is preferable. Public-facing businesses and retailers will have to follow specific rules, such as limiting capacity in buildings, installing shields at registers, and mandating mask wearing among employees and customers.
• Restaurants and bars remain limited to carry-out and delivery only
• All businesses must follow guidance for social distancing and cleaning
• Indoor recreation, health and wellness facilities and personal care services, including gyms, spas, hair salons, nail salons and massage therapy, will remain closed
• All entertainment venues, such as casinos and theaters, will remain closed

Additionally, restrictions for congregate care and prisons remain in place in the yellow phase.

Once a county transitions to the yellow phase, the rates of infection will be monitored for significant outbreaks. Some counties could move to the green phase — in which salons, gyms, and restaurants reopen in a limited capacity — within two weeks if the infection rates continue to decrease.

During a news conference Tuesday, Health Secretary Rachel Levine said health officials will hold counties at yellow for "at least two weeks" to watch the rates of infection. "If they have a continued decreasing rate of infection, they'll be considered to go to green," Levine said.

If infection rates are not decreasing, the counties will be held at yellow, she said.

While officials have called the green phase a return to a “new normal,” state health officials say they'll continue to monitor public health indicators and adjust orders and restrictions as necessary once counties reach that third phase.

Across the state, 68,637 cases of COVID-19 have been reported as of Tuesday. A total of 5,152 deaths have now occurred in Pennsylvania, with 3,395 of them in nursing homes.

RELATED: Gov. Wolf Unveils 3-Phased, Color-Coded Reopening Plan By Region

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