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BATON ROUGE, La (BRPROUD)- According to information received from the Louisiana Department of Health, Ascension has met the benchmark necessary to reopen bars and similar businesses that have been closed since the pandemic quarantine began.

“I petitioned the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control to ease the restrictions on
bars in Ascension Parish and allow them to reopen,” said President Cointment. “Today we
received that approval, so bars in Ascension Parish are authorized to reopen immediately.”

The LDH requires two consecutive one-week periods of 5.0% or less positive tests to reopen
certain businesses. Ascension registered 4.5% on October 7 and 4.1% on October 14.

“I am pleased and excited to see all of our efforts paying off,” said President Cointment. “I
commend the people of Ascension Parish for taking this virus seriously and following the
guidelines, which puts us in this good position today.”

President Cointment urged everyone to remain vigilant, follow CDC safety guidelines, wear
masks, and practice social distancing. He noted that restrictions can resume if there are two
consecutive weeks of 10.0% positive tests.

A complete list of restrictions still in place can be seen at : https://gov.louisiana.gov/assets/Proclamations/2020/134-JBE-2020-COVID-19-Public-HealthEmergency-Renewal-of-Phase-3-of-Resilient-Louisiana.pdf