NYC Enters Phase 3 Sans Indoor Dining

Personal-care businesses are to reopen in New York City for the first time in nearly four months Monday as the five boroughs enter Phase 3 of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s reopening plan.

The rest of the state’s regions have already moved into Phase 3. New York City will still be more limited, as officials decided last week to hold off on allowing indoor dining indefinitely out of concerns that it would cause a spike in new coronavirus cases. Outdoor dining is in effect.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said there were more than 530 new confirmed cases of the virus reported around the state on Saturday and eight deaths. At the height of New York’s virus outbreak, new infections reached daily totals of more than 10,000 and deaths topped 700.

So far, reopening had been allowed for retail stores and offices. The reopening self-care businesses must still limit the number of people allowed inside at 50% of capacity, and social distancing and mask wearing must be observed.

Even with reopening, some services are still prohibited at personal-service businesses. State regulations prohibit any service that requires a customer to remove a face mask, like facials.

Employees will be required to get diagnostic tests for the coronavirus every 14 days, and there must be a mandatory screening, like a questionnaire or a temperature check.