Nebraska Restrictions Reduced Starting Saturday as COVID Hospitalizations Decrease

Dec. 11, 2020, 11:04 a.m. ·

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The state's COVID-19 data dashboard.

Updated 4:30 p.m. CT

Nebraska's health restrictions will be reduced Saturday as the downward trend of active COVID-19 hospitalizations continues today.

The statewide Directed Health Measures are based on a percentage of staffed hospital beds that are occupied by COVID-19 patients.

789 Nebraskans were hospitalized as of Thursday night, and the seven-day average has fallen below the 20% threshold for the "Orange" category.

"We still have the virus in the community," said Gov. Pete Ricketts. "We still need to continue to practice all the rules that we’ve been talking about with regard to the pandemic and slowing things down."

That change allows elective surgeries to resume, allows indoor gatherings up to 50% capacity, and removes all restrictions for gyms, salons, and tattoo shops.

Chief Medical Officer Dr. Gary Anthone says it's more important than ever for Nebraskans to remain cautious.

"This is not the time to give up," he said. "This is the time to, especially the people that will not be vaccinated, to keep as vigilant as possible."

Nebraska's first shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine is expected early next week, with healthcare workers in line for the first doses.

Now that the state is in the Yellow phase, another seven-day average within Orange is required to move back up.

New cases of COVID-19 in Nebraska are down about 19% over the past two weeks, but are still nearly quadruple the highest point in May.

146 Nebraskans have been confirmed dead of the virus so far this week.