Effective May 1, 2020, Ohio’s stay-at-home order will remain in effect, and large gatherings of more than 10 people will remain prohibited.

Business Safety Requirements

• Face coverings are generally required for employees and are recommended for clients/customers at all times.
• Businesses must limit capacity to meet social distancing guidelines (i.e., six feet between people, if not possible, install barriers).
• Maximum capacity must be established at 50% of the fire code.
• Appointments should be used where possible to avoid congestion.
• Daily health assessments must be conducted by employers of employees to determine if employees are “fit for duty.”
• Workplaces must be cleaned and sanitized throughout the workday and at the close of business.
• Employees are expected to generally maintain good hygiene at all times through hand washing, sanitizing and social distancing.

Infection Reporting and Contact Tracing Requirements

If a COVID-19 infection is identified, businesses must:

• Immediately report the employee or customer infection to the local health department;
• Work with the local health department to identify potentially exposed individuals to facilitate contact tracing;
• Shut down shop/floor for deep sanitation, if possible;
• Professionally clean and sanitize the site/location; and
• Reopen in consultation with the local health department.

Sector-Specific Requirements

The Responsible RestartOhio plan is phased by sector, with each sector responsible for meeting the business protocols applicable to all businesses set forth above and as follows:

• All medically necessary procedures that do not require an overnight stay in a hospital may move forward as of May 1, 2020. This includes regular doctor visits, well-care checks, well-baby visits, outpatient surgeries, diagnostic testing and imaging, dental procedures and veterinary visits. Nevertheless, telehealth services should continue to be utilized, if possible. Note, surgeries and procedures that, if not performed, would cause a threat to a patient’s life, a threat of the spread of cancer, the permanent dysfunction of a limb or organ, the presence of severe symptoms causing an inability to perform activities of daily living or the risk of rapidly worsening symptoms remain permitted even if an overnight stay is necessary. For more information on health care reopening in Ohio, click here.
• Manufacturing, distribution and construction businesses may reopen as of May 4, 2020, if they meet mandatory safety requirements for customers and employees. These requirements include: staggering or limiting the arrival of guests and of personnel working from home to the extent possible; changing shift patterns to reduce the amount of shifts; staggering lunch and break times; daily deep disinfection of high-contact surfaces; regulating the maximum amount of people in common spaces, including cafeterias; and spacing factory floors to allow for distancing. For a complete list of safety requirements and recommended best practices for manufacturing, distribution and construction businesses, click here.
• General office environments may reopen as of May 4, 2020, if they meet mandatory safety requirements for customers and employees. These requirements include: placing hand sanitizers in high-contact locations; cleaning high-touch items after each use (e.g., carts and baskets); frequent disinfection of workstations and high-contact surfaces; cancelling in-person events when social distancing guidelines cannot be met; no buffets in cafeterias; and utilizing disposable tableware and other materials. For a complete list of safety requirements and recommended best practices for general office environments, click here.
• Consumer, retail and services may reopen as of May 12, 2020, if they meet mandatory safety requirements for customers and employees. These requirements include: placing hand sanitizers in high-contact locations; cleaning high-touch items after each use (e.g., carts and baskets); specifying hours for at-risk populations; asking customers/guests not to enter if symptomatic; staggering entry of customers and guests; posting social distancing signage and disinfecting high-contact surfaces hourly; cleaning merchandise before stocking, if possible; discontinuing self-service food stations and product samples; and keeping food courts closed. For a complete list of safety requirements and recommended best practices for consumer, retail and services, click here.

Continued Business Closures

The following businesses and operations must remain closed pending further action:

• Schools and daycares;
• Restaurants and bars (carry-out is permitted);
• Personal appearance and beauty businesses;
• Older adult daycare services and senior centers;
• Adult day support or vocational rehabilitation services in group settings; and
• Entertainment, recreation and gyms. (This includes all places of public amusement, whether indoors or outdoors.)

Closed businesses are permitted to engage in minimum basic operations so long as employees comply with social distancing requirements. This includes the minimum necessary activities to maintain the value of the business’s inventory, preserve the condition of the business’s physical plant and equipment, ensure security, process payroll and employee benefits, facilitate employees to continue working remotely and related functions.

As Ohio and other states begin to open, businesses will begin to resume operations in the “new normal.” Such reopenings come with various requirements and continuing obligations from the general to the sector specific. Businesses should consult with counsel before and during resuming operations in order to appropriately ramp up while navigating the plethora of novel obligations and avoiding even more setbacks after being out of operation for so long.

(This alert is updated as of May 5, 2020.)