Gov. Brian Kemp outlines Georgia's 'shelter-in-place' order

Thursday, April 2, 2020

ATLANTA, GA (WRDW/WAGT) — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has outlined his latest executive order that closes schools for the remainder of the academic year and also issues a shelter-in-place for all state residents.

A shelter-in-place order means the state wants you to limit your travel to only essential businesses or places of work.

Businesses labeled as “essential” will be allowed to remain open during the order from April 3-13.

Highlights of the order include:

All residents and visitors must practice social distancing and sanitation in accordance with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

No establishment shall allow more than 10 people inside if they’d be less than 6 feet from each other.

Residents and visitors must shelter in place in their residences, taking every precaution to limit social interaction with the exceptions of:

• Conducting or participating in essential services.

• Performing necessary travel.

• Engaging in performance of minimum basic operations for a business, nonprofit or other establishment not deemed part of critical infrastructure.

• People working on operations for critical infrastructure.

Essential services are deemed as:

• Obtaining necessary supplies and services for family or household members, such as food and supplies for household consumption and use, medical supplies or medication, supplies and equipment needed to work from home, and products needed to maintain safety, sanitation, and essential maintenance of the home or residence. Preference should be given to online ordering, home delivery, and curbside pick-up services wherever possible as opposed to in-store shopping.

• Engaging in activities essential for the health and safety of family or household members, such as seeking medical, behavioral health or emergency services.

• Engaging in outdoor exercise activities as long as a minimum distance of 6 feet is maintained during such activities between all people who are not occupants of the same household or residence.

All restaurants and private social clubs shall cease providing dine-in services. Takeout, curbside pickup and delivery are permitted. The provision does not limit the operation of dine-in services in hospitals, healthcare facilities, nursing homes or other long-term care facilities; however, to the extent possible, such facilities should offer in-room dining.

The term "critical infrastructure" refers to businesses and other establishments defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as "essential critical infrastructure workforce" and suppliers that provide essential goods and services to the critical infrastructure workforce as well as entities that provide legal services, home hospice, and non-profit corporations or non-profit organizations that offer food distribution or other health or mental health services.

Homeland Security defines critical infrastructure as including the chemical, commercial facilities, communications, critical manufacturing, dams, defense industrial base, emergency services, energy, financial services, food and agriculture, government facilities, and health care and public health sectors.

Critical infrastructure employers must take efforts to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, according to the order.