Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker updated an executive order surrounding COVID guidelines in recent days, leading to new guidance surrounding masks, health care settings and more.
The changes to the order include new wording for who should mask and when in the state and the requirements for health care workers and those in long-term care centers, but there are some caveats.
The guidance from both Illinois and the CDC are separate from a mask mandate like those seen during surges of the pandemic so far, however, as they are recommendations and not requirements.
Here’s a look at the changes made:
New Mask Guidelines
On Friday, the governor made the first alteration to the order, which shifted a section on face coverings, changing the wording to recommend anyone, regardless of vaccination status, follow masking guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Previously, the order stated “any individual who is not fully vaccinated and who is over age two and able to medically tolerate a face covering (a mask or cloth face covering) should cover their nose and mouth with a face covering when in a public place and unable to maintain a six-foot social distance.”
The guidance now says, “all individuals, including those who are fully vaccinated, are recommended to wear a face covering consistent with CDC guidance.”
Currently, the CDC recommends masking based on what it defines as “community levels” of the virus, with only residents under a high alert level urged to wear face coverings in public spaces.
In medium alert levels, those who are at a higher risk of contracting the virus, including immunocompromised people, are urged to “wear a high-quality mask or respirator when indoors in public.”
Meanwhile, when at a high level, the CDC recommends everyone “wear a high-quality mask or respirator.”
Currently, Illinois has 16 counties listed under the medium community level, but none are at high.
Health Care and Long-Term Care Centers
In addition to Friday’s change, Pritzker on Monday updated masking and testing requirements for health care facilities and long-term care centers.
The changes, which took effect Monday, remove a weekly testing requirement for unvaccinated health care and long-term care center workers. There’s also a change for face coverings in health facilities.
“Face coverings are no longer required in all healthcare facilities but are still recommended in healthcare facilities in areas of high community transmission, consistent with CDC guidance,” the governor’s office stated.
The state-issued vaccine mandate for health care employees is also removed, though the governor’s office noted that federal requirements still remain in effect.
“Although the vaccine mandate has been removed on the state level, a federal rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requiring vaccination for workers at Medicare/Medicaid-certified facilities remains in effect,” the governor’s office said in a release. “The state’s amended executive order does not impact that requirement and many Illinois healthcare and LTC sites will continue to have a COVID-19 vaccine mandate under this federal rule.”
The amended order also does not alter vaccination and testing requirements for state employees at state-owned congregate facilities.
“Thanks to the tremendous efforts of our health care workers and residents, Illinois has done better at keeping our people safe with vaccines, boosters, and masking, which puts us in a position to continue to scale back health care requirements in line with the CDC,” Pritzker said in a statement. “COVID-19 is on its way to becoming endemic, like the flu, but it still poses a real threat to our immunocompromised and disabled communities. Here in Illinois, we look out for one another—it’s what defines us as Illinoisans. Let us continue to live up to those ideals by masking up and testing when we have symptoms and getting…
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