Hawaii Gov. David Ige (D) on Wednesday announced that he would be signing an executive order bringing back some coronavirus restrictions in light of the surge of new delta variant cases.
“With COVID-19 cases going up, the State of Hawaiʻi is taking precautions now to avert a strain on our healthcare systems. To that end — I’ll be signing an Executive Order that will limit social gatherings, effective immediately,” Ige wrote.
As per his executive order, social gatherings will be limited to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors. When at restaurants, groups must be seated at least 6 feet apart, and professionally sponsored events must be reviewed by counties to ensure they are using safe practices.
Indoor capacity at businesses including restaurants, gyms and social venues will be limited to 50 percent.
These policies will remain in place until Oct. 18 unless they are superseded by another order from Ige’s office.
“The Delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has changed the course of the pandemic in Hawaiʻi. We are seeing case numbers in the 600s – the highest numbers we’ve seen since this pandemic began,” the governor said. “This requires immediate and serious attention to avert unmanageable strains on our healthcare system and other catastrophic impacts to the state.”
According to the Hawaii Department of Health, nearly 61 percent of the state’s total population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The state currently has a test positivity rate of 7.3 percent.