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COOK COUNTY RECORD

Friday, March 29, 2024

IL Supreme Court: Courthouses statewide can lift masking rules for vaccinated visitors, workers; Temp checks gone, too

State Court
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Illinois Supreme Court

Illinois courthouses will be allowed to lift masking requirements for courthouse visitors, attorneys and personnel who are fully vaccinated.

On May 27, the Illinois Supreme Court issued an order amending its previous COVID-related mask rules.

Under the previous guidance, issued in August 2020 in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19, everyone working in or visiting courthouses in Illinois were required to wear a face covering.

In the new order, the high court, following new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, now said courts may opt not to require face coverings only for people who have not been fully vaccinated. However, the order still allows lower courts throughout the state to require everyone in courthouses to wear face coverings, regardless of their vaccination status.

“Over the past year, the Court has done its best to follow the most recent advice from the relevant health professionals,” said Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Anne M. Burke, in a prepared statement. “The CDC now advises that it is unnecessary for vaccinated people to be masked in most circumstances. We have revised our order to account for this change in CDC guidance.”

Burke stressed the Supreme Court still believes it necessary to require all people who have not fully completed the vaccination process to remain masked while in courthouses.

The order also lifts the requirement for everyone entering courthouses to undergo temperature checks before being allowed entry. As with masking, local courts are still permitted to institute more stringent COVID check provisions, as deemed necessary by the local chief judge and administrators.

The order took effect immediately.

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