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The new measures will be enforced beginning 12:01 a.m. on Dec. 12, and will be in place until Jan. 4, Gov. Tom Wolf and other state officials said.
Ten-thousand new cases have been reported each day in Pennsylvania for the last eight days, and a record-high of 3,124 deaths reported Wednesday.
Hospitals are severely strained, and Wolf pleaded with residents earlier this week to take precautions to ease the burden.
The new measures are:
- No indoor dining
- 10-person limit on indoor gatherings. Churches, synagogues, temples, mosques, and other places of congregate worship, excluded, but are strongly encouraged to find alternative methods for worship
- 50-person limit on outdoor gatherings
- All in-person businesses serving the public may only operate at up to 50 percent of the maximum capacity stated on the applicable certificate of occupancy, except as limited by existing orders to a smaller capacity limit
- Indoor operations at gyms and fitness facilities are prohibited. Outdoor facilities and outdoor classes can continue, but all participants must wear face masks.
- Theaters, concert venues, museums, movie theaters, arcades, casinos, bowling alleys, private clubs, and all other similar entertainment, recreational or social facilities, are closed
- Voluntary activities sponsored or approved by a school entity’s governing body or administration are suspended, but these extracurricular activities may be held virtually
- All sports at K-12 public schools, nonpublic schools, private schools and club, travel, recreational, intermural, and intramural sports are paused
- Professional or collegiate sports activities may continue, but spectators may not attend
"We know that COVID-19 thrives in places where people gather together,” Wolf said. “Therefore, these mitigation measures target high-risk environments and activities and aim to reduce the spread of this devastating virus."
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