February 24, 2022
Skokie Health and Human Services Indoor Mask and Vaccine Mandates to End on February 28, 2022
The Village of Skokie plans to lift COVID-19 Public Health Indoor Mask Requirement and Public Health Proof of Vaccination Orders on February 28, 2022.
The Village of Skokie will act in alignment with the State of Illinois, City of Chicago and the Cook County Department of Public Health as improvements are continuing throughout the region in key COVID-19 metrics. The COVID-19 positivity rate in Skokie is 1.03% and the seven-day rolling average for confirmed cases as of February 20, 2022 is 13.43 cases per day. The Cook County region’s ICU and non-ICU hospital admissions numbers, and the positivity rate are both in the ‘lower transmission’ risk category. Confirmed cases also continue to decrease and are approaching the lower transmission category.
Lifting the COVID-19 Public Health Orders will mean:
- Masks will no longer be required in all indoor public places for the general public.
- Masks will continue to be required in those settings as required by federal or state order or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines (healthcare settings, public transportation and transportation hubs and congregate care settings). See more information from the CDC.
- In the settings covered by the Proof of Vaccination Order (those where food or drink are served for on-premises consumption and health and fitness centers):
- Proof of vaccination for patrons in businesses that are covered by the order will no longer be required.
- Proof of vaccination or weekly testing for employees covered by the Order will no longer be required.
Although masks will not be required, many residents will choose to continue to wear a mask – especially those who are immunocompromised and children under the age of five who are not eligible to be vaccinated. The Village of Skokie asks for continued understanding and kindness to those who choose to wear a mask, or for those who chose not to wear a mask as will be permitted in most settings.
The Skokie Health and Human Services Department strongly recommends wearing a face mask in schools, and further recommends masking in any crowded indoor public setting where physical distancing cannot be maintained such as at large indoor events. Skokie Health and Human Services staff will continue to monitor COVID-19 metrics in Skokie and in the Cook County region. Additional mitigation measures might be recommended in the future if the healthcare system is overwhelmed or if transmission rate increases warrant such action.
Information About the Current Skokie HHS Indoor Mask Requirement and Proof-of-Vaccination Orders That Will Lift on February 28, 2022
See the Village of Skokie Health and Human Services Department Indoor Mask Requirement Order
See information about the Skokie Health and Human Services Proof-of-Vaccination Order
The order requires that:
- Any individual aged two and older and able to medically tolerate a mask shall be required to wear a mask when indoors in a public place, regardless of vaccination status.
- For the purposes of the Order, indoor public spaces include any common or shared space in: (1) a residential multi-unit building or (2) any non- residential building, including but not limited to retail stores, restaurants, bars/taverns, health and fitness clubs, museums, hotels, personal services, performance venues, movie theaters, commercial buildings, event venues, health care settings, congregate facilities, on public transportation and in transportation hubs.
The order is consistent with orders and mandates of the County of Cook and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s Executive Order 2021-22, as amended by Executive order 2021-23 and Executive Order 2021-27, most recently re-issued by Executive Order 2022-01.