BUFFALO, N.Y. — In a COVID-19 briefing on Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced all Orange and Yellow Cluster Zone restrictions have been lifted for Erie County.
In addition, Yellow Zones in Erie County and Niagara County have also been dropped. According to the governor, the only remaining Yellow Zones are all downstate.
However, even without the micro cluster zones, there are still several guidelines from the state.
Following the governor's announcement, 2 On Your Side received several questions from viewers about what restrictions are still in place.
One of the most frequently asked was, what are the rules for gatherings?
A spokesperson with the state said the residential limit is 10 people, for other types of events it's 50 people.
When it comes to schools, testing 20 percent of students and staff is no longer required to remain open. As for whether or not some schools will choose to continue testing, we'll likely learn that in the weeks ahead.
There are still capacity restrictions for several industries.
For example, houses of worship, retail and personal care are limited to 50 percent capacity.
Gyms and fitness centers are limited to 33 percent capacity.
Several people asked if the travel advisory is still in effect. The answer is yes.
That means travelers who were in another state for more than 24 hours are still expected to take a COVID test within three days of departure from that state, quarantine for three days upon arrival in New York, and on day four take another COVID test.
Travelers who were out of state for less than 24 hours must fill out our traveler form upon entry into New York State and take a COVID diagnostic test four days after their arrival in New York.
More information on the travel advisory here.
For restaurants, capacity is limited to 50 percent and one of the more significant changes is that they now can have a maximum of 10 people per table, instead of four. There is still a 10 p.m. curfew and a spokesperson with the state said if you want to purchase alcohol you still need to order food as well.
All of the guidance from the state can be found in the New York Forward Plan. Click here to learn more.
To read our full report on the governor's briefing, click here.