If you’re like us, you heard the news of Arkansas beginning Phase II of reopening with mixed emotions. Excited to get another step closer to our normal routine? Yes. Wary of the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the state? Also yes.
Below you’ll find the latest rules and regulations from the Arkansas Department of Health to curb the spread of coronavirus. If you do decide to get out into the world, we encourage you to keep acting out of an abundance of caution. Keep wearing your mask. Keep your distance.
Note: These regulations are subject to change. Click here for the most up-to-date info from the ADH.
Restaurants, Bars & Clubs
New rules:
- Dine-in service may continue; seating may now increase to up to 66% of total seating capacity. This includes indoor and outdoor dining areas.
- Seating shall be adjusted to maintain six feet between occupied seats at adjacent tables.
Other guidelines from Phase I remain in place. Click here for a reminder on restaurant regulations and here for bar rules.
Businesses
Expect and follow these protocols given to business owners:
- Limit the number of people who can enter into the facility at any one time to ensure that
- people in the facility can easily maintain a minimum six-foot distance from one another.
- At places where lines form at a facility (inside or outside), facilities should mark off six-foot increments at a minimum, establishing where individuals should stand to maintain a physical distance of six feet.
- Employees entering a facility should wear a face covering to diminish potential spread if they are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic for COVID-19, especially when maintaining a physical distance of six feet is not possible.
- Customers or members of the public entering a facility should be strongly encouraged to wear a face covering to reduce the potential for introducing COVID-19 into the facility.
- Employees should be screened for fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat or loss of taste or smell as they are entering the building at the beginning work.
- Provide hand sanitizer, soap and water or effective disinfectant at or near the entrance of the facility and in other appropriate areas for use by the public and employees, and in locations where there is frequent employee interaction with members of the public.
- Retail businesses are encouraged to provide contactless payment systems or provide for the disinfection of all payment portals, pens, and styluses after each use.
- Regularly disinfect any high-touch surfaces.
- Signs must be posted at all entrances advising the public not to enter if they have fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat or loss of taste or smell, and if they have had known exposure to someone with COVID-19 in the past 14 days.
- Signs must be posted at all building entrances advising the public that they may wish to refrain from entering if they are 65 years of age or older or have underlying health conditions including high blood pressure, chronic lung disease, diabetes, severe obesity, asthma or weakened immunity.
- Employees who are diagnosed with COVID-19 must be reported to the Arkansas Department of Health. Businesses should assist ADH staff in conducting contact tracing in their facilities, in order to prevent an outbreak from occurring.
- Consider maintaining a log with dates and time of persons entering a facility to facilitate contact tracing in the event an outbreak occurs.