Ohio's new Shelter in Place Order will run longer than the current USCIS closure to the public.
While some scheduled appointments will automatically will be scheduled, some will not. You reschedule any USCIS in person appointment that is not approved and scheduled for an Emergency by the USCIS Customer Service that is scheduled for after April 1, 2020.
At it's basic concept, Ohioans should all stay at home. Nonessential workers should work from home.
It does permit exceptions to staying home. Commonsense exceptions are leaving for health and safety, for necessary supplies and services, and for outdoor activity (walking your dog, going to a park), although DeWine said that playgrounds will be closed.
You can leave home to take care of others. You can take care of your neighbor, your family and your friends.
The second part of the Stay Home Ohio order talks about essential workers and businesses. The state used the Homeland Security guidelines. These are the accepted businesses that are essential for us to continue to live, such as grocery stores, gas stations, hospitals, etc.
Here is a full list of what is deemed an essential business. Each business that stays open must follow good protocol in regard to health.
In addition, only essential travel is permitted across the state. People riding public transit must comply with social distancing requirements "to the greatest extent feasible," the order states. The order allows travel into or out of the state to maintain essential business or for operations and minimum basic operations.
Leaving the home is permitted, and no one is required to stay cooped up in their homes, the order states. Walking outside is allowed, but maintaining safe social distancing requirements is required.
So what will remain open? The obvious will remain open, like first responders services, health care workers, transportation and essential infrastructure.
According to CDC guidelines, the following businesses are considered essential
- Retail fuel centers, such as gas stations and truck stops, and the distribution systems that support them
- Retailers that sell groceries and medicine
- Restaurant carry-out and quick-serve food operations
- Food manufacturer employees and their supplier employees
- Employees and firms supporting food, feed and beverage distribution, including warehouse workers, vendor-managed inventory controllers and blockchain managers
- Farm workers and support service workers to include those who field crops; commodity inspection; fuel ethanol facilities; storage facilities and other agricultural inputs
- Employees supporting or enabling transportation functions, including dispatchers, maintenance and repair technicians, warehouse workers, truck stop and rest area workers and workers who maintain and inspect infrastructure
- Petroleum drilling, extraction, production, processing, refining, terminal operations, transporting and retail for use as end-use fuels or feedstocks for chemical manufacturing
- Truck drivers who haul hazardous and waste materials to support critical infrastructure, capabilities, functions and services
- Workers who are needed to provide consumer access to banking and lending services, including ATMs, and to move currency and payments (e.g., armored cash carriers)