State expected to prohibit indoor dining in Westmoreland, Allegheny as covid-19 cases rise

Pennsylvania officials are expected to put new restrictions on dining and gatherings in five counties around Southwestern Pennsylvania — including Westmoreland and Allegheny — as coronavirus cases in the region continue to rise.

The new rules will take effect Thursday, according to two Westmoreland County officials familiar with the proposal, who asked not to be named because the restrictions had not officially been announced.

The state will prohibit indoor dining at restaurants and bars in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties beginning Thursday. The restrictions will remain for at least two weeks, the officials said.

Gov. Tom Wolf is expected to make the announcement official on Wednesday.

The state is expected to limit outdoor dining at restaurants to no more than 50 customers and limit gatherings to no more than 25 people.

The ban on indoor dining will be reviewed in two weeks, and whether the restrictions will be lifted will depend upon the number of covid-19 cases.

Allegheny County last week implemented a similar prohibition on indoor dining. County officials said they are planning to modify those restrictions before they expire Thursday.

Most of the region went into the green phase of the covid-19 restrictions on June 5, which allowed restaurants and taverns to serve food and drinks indoors for the first time since mid-March.

Since reopening, Westmoreland County’s daily count of new cases climbed from the low single digits to regular counts in the 20s and 30s. On Tuesday, the county reported its first coronavirus death since May.

Allegheny County’s daily case count climbed into triple digits during the same period.

Pennsylvania Department of Health Secretary Rachel Levine on Tuesday called leaders in the five local counties to discuss the rising cases, according to department spokesman Nate Wardle.

“In counties that are experiencing increases, the department is doing an in-depth look at those counties and doing direct outreach to the county leadership to discuss the data,” he said.

Wardle did not confirm any specific actions the state will take, saying mitigation efforts will be publicly announced later.

Allegheny County officials said Tuesday they are reconsidering their local order and may make changes before it expires Thursday.

“I’m considering modifying the event limits and restrictions for outdoor food and beverage service at restaurants,” county Health Director Debra Bogen said.

Bogen and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said the new restrictions in place over the last several days were carefully considered based on the results of case investigations.

The county last week also halted alcohol service at bars and restaurants and closed casinos.

Among the new cases investigated last week, 117 infected people said they had visited at least one bar, and 50 said they’d visited at least one restaurant. Others said they had attended a private party (36), shopped in a retail store (17) and went to a public gym (13), Bogen said.

“None of the other reported activities compare in magnitude to the number of times cases have reported going to bars and restaurants,” Bogen said.