Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced on May 6 that barring any significant reversals in key Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic statewide indicators, Illinois will move into the Bridge Phase with higher capacity limits on Friday, May 14, and return to normal business operations as soon as Friday, June 11.
Following recommendations from Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) experts, Illinois will move forward with a dial-like approach between the mitigations in Phase 4—which currently apply to the entire state—and the post-pandemic new normal of Phase 5.
This Bridge to Phase 5 will allow for higher capacity limits and increased business operations, before public health experts report it safe to move to the new normal that Phase 5 will bring.
Once 70 percent of residents 65 and older have been vaccinated and barring any reversals in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths for a 28-day monitoring period, the Bridge to Phase 5 will begin with increased capacity limits in both indoor and outdoor settings.
Once 50 percent of residents 16 and older have been vaccinated and stable or declining COVID-19 metrics are recorded during a 28-day monitoring period, Phase 5 will be implemented, removing capacity limits altogether.
All regions of the state will move through these next phases together based on statewide metrics.