As the COVID-19 pandemic carries on, we at Vision Advertising are still doing our best to stay up to date with the everchanging headlines. We recognize how critical it is to have the right information when organizing your team and conducting business with consumers. Over the past week, there have been some big developments in Massachusetts’s reopening process, so it’s important to familiarize yourself with these key changes.

Massachusetts Transitions into Phase 2

As alluded to in our previous COVID-19 Weekly Roundup, Governor Baker issued an executive order to transition into Phase 2 of Massachusetts’s 4-Phase Reopening Process on June 6^th. Starting today, Monday, June 8^th, some businesses and sectors included in Phase 2 may resume operations in compliance with mandatory safety standards and capacity limitations. This phase is broken down into two steps.

Step One

Beginning immediately, this first step of Phase 2 allows for the reopening of businesses and organizations that can safely abide by social-distancing guidelines, including retail stores, childcare, day camps, lodging, youth sports, and outdoor-seated dining.

Step Two

The start of this step will be based upon improvement in public health metrics, for which there is no estimated date currently – though Phase 2 will last a minimum of three weeks. This will allow for the resumption of close-contact services such as indoor dining, nail salons, massage therapists, and tanning salons.

What is Permitted in Step One?

While several businesses are included in Phase 2, there remain some limitations when it comes to operations in varying fields. In particular, the following restrictions apply until the beginning of the second step:

• Restaurants: Only outdoor dining is permitted while observing the MA COVID-19 Restaurant Checklist. Keep in mind Massachusetts’s expedited the Alcoholic Beverages License (ABCC) process.
• Retail: Stores and malls will be limited to either 8 people per 1,000 square feet of accessible, indoor space or 40 percent of the maximum occupancy – whichever is greater – while observing the MA COVID-19 Retail Checklist.
• Hotels and Lodging: Venues are not permitted to host events, functions, or meetings while observing the MA COVID-19 Lodging Checklist.

Personal services that don’t require close physical contact, such as photography, tutoring, and career coaching, are authorized to resume work.

We advise local businesses to continue keeping an eye on Massachusetts’s reopening process to estimate and prepare for when they can resume full services. We also recommend you inform your team of the resources available to them such as  Massachusetts’s PEUC program, which can be applied for online. We at Vision Advertising will continue to do our best to keep you up to date with the evolving COVID-19 landscape. We wish you all the best of health, and should you need guidance, you can reach out to us for a consultation.