On Wednesday, Governor Roy Cooper said he anticipates being able to lift all mandatory social distancing, capacity and mass gathering restrictions by June 1.

At his COVID-19 press conference, Cooper said he plans to issue an executive order next week outlining safety restrictions for the month of May.

“With at least two-thirds of adults vaccinated, our public health experts believe we will have enough protection across our communities to be able to live more safely with this virus and begin to put this pandemic behind us,” Cooper said.

Currently, nearly half of North Carolina’s adult population have had at least one shot and more than a third are fully vaccinated. Cooper said for the state’s most vulnerable population, those age 65 and older, almost 77 percent have had at least one shot and more than 71 percent are fully vaccinated.

All North Carolina residents age 16 and older are currently eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Dr. Mandy Cohen clarified that the mask mandate is not likely to be part of the restrictions lifted on June 1.

The state anticipates lifting the mask mandate and easing other public health recommendations once two thirds of adult North Carolinians have received at least one vaccine dose and if trends remain stable.

“North Carolina’s strong safety protocols and actions to slow the spread are why we’ve been able to avoid a surge in cases overwhelming our hospitals,” Cooper said. “Our careful, reasoned approach has worked, striking the right balance.”

This is the latest action from Cooper’s administration to lift COVID-19 restrictions within the state. On March 26, Cooper signed an order that allowed some businesses to increase capacity up to 100 percent indoors and outdoors with safety protocols in place

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released statistics indicating that North Carolina is among the states with the fewest deaths and fewest job losses per capita.

Lead photo via the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

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