The pandemic has not changed the ability of partygoers to play the new year – and then spend the night – in establishments throughout the city.
It’s a reality that makes Milwaukee’s top health official feel a little uncomfortable.
Milwaukee’s current order to curb the spread of COVID-19 does not limit the hours bars and restaurants can be open, but focuses on mitigation measures, said Acting Health Commissioner Marlaina Jackson.
The current order, which includes stricter rules that facilitate two weeks after New Year’s Day, limits bars and restaurants with COVID-19 safety plans approved by the Department of Health to 50% of their total capacity or limits. of their security plans. Establishments without security plans remain at 25% capacity.
Jackson said the mitigation steps required in security plans are “a layer of protection” even if an establishment will be open all night.
But, he said, “we are generally concerned about any celebration in which someone is away from home.”
She and other city officials urged residents to stay home during the holidays, saying case figures remain worrisome.
Since the update on Tuesday afternoon, the city has been approaching a total of 53,000 cases since March 1 and had recorded 465 deaths.
Jackson said his department was working with the Milwaukee police department and “looking at some other opportunities” related to enforcing orders on New Year’s Eve.
City officials announced last month that city health inspectors responding to complaints about COVID-19 security breaches would be escorted by police officers after the department received a death threat following an action. of application at a rally held by supporters of President Donald Trump in the Serbian Hall. At the rally, city officials said, inspectors were pushed and harassed.
The app will be made on New Year’s Eve based on complaints, not through spot checks, he said.
“This is something we continue to work on from a programming perspective, and that’s why we’re making all of our applications based on those complaints,” Jackson said.
The goal will be to respond to complaints overnight, he said.
In an email, police department chief of staff Nick DeSiato said the department would conduct business checks.
“The Milwaukee police department will continue to conduct business checks, as it would on any New Year’s Eve night, to make sure establishments operate lawfully and safely,” he said. “We remain a committed partner to all departments in the city, including the Milwaukee Department of Health, when we have the resources available to help them.”
Contact Alison Dirr at 414-224-2383 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @AlisonDirr.