IDPH Nixes Haunted Houses, Okays Trick-Or-Treating

This 2017 photo released by Charles Fremont shows a home decorated for Halloween in Webster Groves, Mo. On a typical Halloween in the St. Louis suburb, neighbors go all out to decorate their houses and yards with spooky skeletons, tombstones and jack-o’-lanterns as up to 1,000 people pack the blocked-off street to carry on an old tradition: Tell a joke, get a treat. This Halloween is going to be vastly different for many. Parents and governments are weighing whether door-to-door trick-or-treating can safely happen. (Charles Fremont via AP)

The Illinois Department of Public Health is nixing haunted houses but okaying trick-or-treating. The department released its updated guidelines for Halloween activities yesterday. Haunted houses are not allowed while the state is in Restore Illinois Phase Four Guidelines. Halloween gatherings are limited to no more 50-percent of a building’s maximum capacity, with a 50-person cap. Pumpkin patches, orchards, and hayrides are acceptable as long as masks are worn, and social distancing and proper hygiene are maintained. Trick-or-treating is being allowed if guidelines for social distancing, wearing cloth masks, and general safety are observed.