Austin moves to Stage 4 guidelines

Austin was downgraded to Stage 4 of Austin Public Health’s Covid-19 Risk-Based Guidelines on Monday. Though the change represents a decrease in severity of the pandemic locally, the health department still urges caution. According to the city, the current recommendations include:

• Higher-risk individuals (those over the age of 65 and those who have chronic medical conditions) should stay home, except for essential trips such as buying groceries or seeking medical care.
• Lower-risk individuals should avoid social gatherings, any gatherings greater than 10 people, and non-essential travel.
• Businesses and restaurants voluntarily operate at a reduced capacity of 25-50 percent.
• Schools voluntarily limit attendance at sporting events to players, coaches and parents.

Austin moved into Stage 5 on Dec. 23, 2020, after a spike in cases spurred by holiday gatherings. More information and updates about the pandemic can be found at AustinTexas.gov/COVID19. “As the pace of vaccinations hopefully continues to rise and people continue to stay safe, we can keep moving this community in a positive direction,” APH Director Stephanie Hayden-Howard said.