Thread by @ASlavitt

I spoke to Governor Walz and Commissioner Jan Malcolm today and called for closing all of the bars to indoor service across the state of Minnesota.

I’d like to explain. As challenging as this is to bar owners & patrons, this isn’t even close to a difficult recommendation to make at this time.

Bars have been the source of most of the major community hot spots. From NY to CA to TX to AZ, they represent the clearest discernible difference in accelerating case growth.

When they are open, spread increases. When they close, they go down. This is not a secret.

And as new data confirms, what starts in bars ends up in assisted living soon enough.

What about personal responsibility? Can’t we open them and just trust people.

If people were only impacting themselves, I’d say “Sure, let’s have personal responsibility.” But they’re not. They’re impacting your parents & waitresses & black & brown communities. And everyone.

Smoking is one thing. This is second hand smoke. And when bars are open, people go.

For all the conversation around masks, with bars open, masks simply won’t matter enough. Bars are one of the few places where strangers congregate inside, in close quarters, with music & noise, speaking loudly. Also, drunk.

The Restaurant & Bar Association have tried mightily to come up with solutions.

Closing early, promising distancing, saying there will be masking

None of them work. It is not their fault. There is no viable solution until community spread is gone & cases are contained.

What should the policy response be?
-Outdoor service
-Screen porch service
-Takeaway service (sealed)
-Expanded licenses

Financial support should come federally.

If we can bail out airlines & cruise ships, let’s support neighborhood bars.

For states that have bars open, they will either close when the virus is out of control or they will close before the virus is out of control.

Lower case counts, rapid testing, vaccines, and other conditions mean this won’t be forever.