Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced new coronavirus restrictions Tuesday as the state seeks a spike in new cases.
“We have now crossed over into the danger zone,” Hogan said, according to The Baltimore Sun. “Too many residents and businesses have ‘COVID fatigue,’ and they are letting their guard down.”
Watch today’s COVID-19 update live: https://t.co/vfE6KwK0Eh
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) November 10, 2020
Starting Wednesday at 5 p.m., restaurants will be reduced to 50% capacity down from 75% capacity, according to the report. Indoor gatherings of more than 25 are “strongly” discouraged.
The state also recommended Maryland residents avoid out of state travel to any state that has a positivity rate more than 10% or a new case rate greater than 20 cases per every 100,000 people. For those who do travel out of state to areas with high-infection rates, they will be required to get tested and must quarantine immediately until they receive their results, per The Baltimore Sun.
“You should immediately cancel or postpone travel to any of these states with spiking metrics,” Hogan said, per The Baltimore Sun.
State government is now require to telework except for essential services and the state is also encouraging businesses to expand work-from-home options, according to the Associated Press (AP). (RELATED: Grocery Chains Across The Country Are Restricting How Much Toilet Paper People Can Buy Again)
Maryland reported more than 1,300 news cases Tuesday, marking the seventh straight day with more than 1,000 cases reported, per the AP. The statewide positivity rate is 5.24%, according to the Maryland Department of Health.
Today, @MDHealthDept reports 156,709 confirmed cases of #COVID19 in Maryland.
The statewide positivity rate is now 5.24%
Maryland has 4,084 deaths, 1,891,138 negative tests and 8,305 patients have been released from isolation.https://t.co/9LEHaSDimJ pic.twitter.com/PkW6dNd5Ie
— Maryland Department of Health (@MDHealthDept) November 10, 2020