Platte County health department adds new, tighter COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings, restaurants
Platte County health authorities announced enhanced COVID-19 guidelines that limit indoor gatherings of more than 10 people and put tighter restrictions on restaurants, forcing them to close by 10 p.m.
The order, issued Wednesday, follows the same blueprint as new restrictions set by Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, as well as Clay and Jackson counties in Missouri and Wyandotte County in Kansas.
The Platte County order goes into effect at midnight, Monday and will continue until further notice.
“The three Health Directors in those jurisdictions felt strongly that the Orders need to be consistent with one another, due to widespread community spread throughout the entire region,” Natalie Miller, a health department spokeswoman in a written statement.
Last week, Johnson County implemented looser restrictions.
Platte County’s new order requires that masks must be worn at all indoor spaces where multiple people in a room or barrier-divided space are present. Masks must also be worn outdoors where social distancing of six feet is not possible. The exception at restaurants is when times except when actively eating or drinking.
All restaurants, taverns and other venues that serve food, beverages and other items are limited to 50% occupancy.
Gyms, fitness and recreational facilities also cannot be more than 50% occupied. Individuals are required to wear masks while inside those spaces as well.
Similar to the Kansas City and Clay County orders, businesses are encourage to let employees work remotely as much as possible.
All indoor gatherings are limited to 10 people. Any gatherings with more than 10 people who are not in the same household, must receive the approval of the county’s public health director, officials said.
Those restrictions apply to public and private gatherings, including life milestone events, concerts and sporting events with spectators.
The new restrictions were announced as area hospitals have experienced a surge in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases. The University of Kansas Health System reported a record number of patients being treated for COVID-19.
On Tuesday, the metro area added more than 1,100 new cases of the coronavirus for a total of 68,799. And across the metro, 904 people have died of COVID-19.
This story was originally published November 18, 2020 at 1:07 PM.