In another sign that Arizona’s COVID-19 outbreak is slowing, more locales are lifting their orders that travelers from the state must quarantine upon arriving.
New York and New Jersey announced Tuesday that travelers from Arizona and South Carolina would no longer be required to quarantine for two weeks when they arrive.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the quarantine of Arizonans on June 24. His administration qualifies states and areas with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or an area with a 10 percent or higher positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average. Those caught defying the order faced fines.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey ordered a similar two-week order for people coming to his state from three northeastern states in April. That order was allowed to expire.
An Arizona woman lost her lawsuit against Cuomo on Aug 14 that challenged his quarantine order. She claimed it kept her from helping friends move and travel about the state.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s office also removed Arizona from the city’s list of states where travelers must quarantine for 14 days. The city announced Tuesday that travelers from Arizona and North Carolina were removed from their list of areas facing quarantine orders. Chicago’s list now includes Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. Lightfoot added South Dakota to the list Tuesday. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has not imposed any travel mandates for his state.
The lifted restrictions come as the state’s COVID-19 metrics continue their downward slide. The state’s Rt(R-naught) as of Wednesday is 0.88, which means on average a person with COVID-19 transmits it to about 0.88 others. Any average below 1.0 represents a slowing of the spread of the virus. The Arizona Department of Health Services reported just 187 new cases Wednesday and attribute 104 more deaths to the virus.
Along with California and Canada, New York and Illinois represent locales where it’s common for retirees to own a winter home in Arizona.
