ANNAPOLIS, Md.- Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Tuesday announced at a COVID-19 press conference that effective Friday, March 12 at 5 p.m., capacity limits will be lifted on outdoor and indoor dining.
Capacity limits will also be lifted on retail businesses, religious facilities, fitness centers, personal services, and indoor recreational establishments (casinos, bingo halls, bowling alley, skating rinks).
However, restaurants and bars will still be limited to seated and distanced service only.
Effective Friday, March 12, other large outdoor and indoor venues will expand to 50% capacity, including conference and wedding venues, concert venues, conventions, theaters, racing facilities, and sporting venues.
Masking, physical distancing, and other safety protocols will remain in place for all indoor and outdoor business and establishments.
Quarantine requirements and other restrictions regarding out-of-state travel will also be lifted.
The statewide mask mandate still remains.
Maryland’s case rate per 100,000 has dropped by more than 76% to 12.9, which is better than 32 other states.
Maryland’s positivity rate has declined by more than 64%, to just 3.40%.
The number of nursing homes with active cases has dropped by 59% since the peak in mid-December.
Hospitalizations have dropped 59%, from nearly 2,000 to 792, which is the lowest level since November 10.
The state has completed more than 8 million COVID-19 tests and more than 1.6 million vaccines, including more than 250,000 in the last 7 days.
98.6% of doses provided by the federal government have been deployed, and 95.3% of all doses have been administered.