Governor Kemp lifts Covid restrictions, local businesses still following guidelines

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)— Governor Brian Kemp lifted the state’s remaining COVID-19 restrictions Thursday.

Local businesses like Felicia’s Cake Factory say they’re still going to follow pandemic guidelines. Felicia Howard is the owner of Felicia’s Cake Factory in Macon. She also works as a respiratory therapist. She says she felt shocked when she heard Governor Kemp lifted restrictions.

“I think it’s a little too soon to completely lift all restrictions,” says Howard. “Given that they’re just now getting the opportunity to get more and more people vaccinated.”

Howard says they’ll ask bakery guests to continue wearing masks. If you don’t have a mask they can provide one for you. If you choose not to wear a mask, they also provide curbside service.

“We want to keep everyone in our facility safe, as well as my family safe,” Howard explains.

Details of the new executive order

• It’s effective April 8 through April 30 of 2021
• It eliminates the gatherings ban
• It eliminates the shelter-in-place requirements
• The order removes the critical infrastructure distinction and collapses all organization suggested measures into one main list
• It reduces any remaining distance requirements
• Also, it eliminates the ability of law enforcement to close an organization for failure to comply with the Executive Order provisions

Michael Hokanson is the public information officer for the North Central Health District. He says just because the Governor lifted restrictions doesn’t mean the pandemic is over.

“It’s important to still keep in mind protecting yourself and others,” says Hokanson. “Even if you might not be in an environment where the proprietor, the owner of the business, etc. is putting up any specific kind of protections.”

Hokanson urges businesses to provide some level of protection against the virus to their customer base. Also, he says it’s imperative to think about your own health and the health of others when going about your daily life.

“You shouldn’t knock people for still wanting to comply with these orders because they might be in a situation different than yours,” says Hokanson. “They might be in a situation where they’re providing care for an elderly or immunocompromised person and they want their environment to be safe from COVID-19.”

Howard says her biggest concern is another outbreak, especially with the discovery of COVID-19 variants.

“We need to still be mindful that we’re still in the middle of a pandemic and still trying to remain safe while we’re still out trying to enjoy life.”