As part of an ongoing effort to carefully roll back Illinois’s COVID-19 executive orders, Governor Pritzker on Monday updated masking and testing requirements for healthcare facilities and long-term care centers. These new guidelines, which go into effect this week, are in line with updated Center for Disease Control recommendations. Federal requirements remain in effect for those facilities. The updated executive order removes the weekly testing requirements for unvaccinated healthcare and LTC workers. The order will also trigger an update of IDPH policy on face coverings. Face coverings are no longer required in all healthcare facilities but are still recommended in healthcare facilities in areas of high community transmission, consistent with CDC guidance. Finally, the amended order removes the state-issued vaccine mandate for LTC and healthcare employees, consistent with the CDC’s guidance. Although the vaccine mandate has been removed on the state level, a federal rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requiring vaccination for workers at Medicare/Medicaid-certified facilities remains in effect. The state’s amended executive order does not impact that requirement and many Illinois healthcare and LTC sites will continue to have a COVID-19 vaccine mandate under this federal rule. As always, employers are encouraged to put appropriate testing, vaccination, and masking regulations in place if they so choose. Information on finding vaccines and booster shots can be found at www.vaccines.gov.