The Illinois Department of Corrections is resuming in-person visitation at its correctional facilities. This will be the first time loved ones have been able to see their family members in more than a year due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Visitation is scheduled to resume at the Centralia Correctional Center on April 19th. Visitation will start at the Big Muddy and Vandalia Correctional Centers on April 26th.
Illinois Department of Corrections Acting Director Rob Jeffreys says maintaining family connection is a vital component of an incarcerated person’s mental and emotional well-being. He says because of the aggressive measures the department has taken to mitigate COVID-19 within their facilities, IDOC is one of the few correctional systems in the nation now reopening to visitors.
Everyone who enters an IDOC correctional facility is symptom screened, temperature checked and provided a surgical mask. Plexi-glass barriers have been installed on visiting tables, which are spaced apart to allow for proper social distancing. Visiting rooms and restrooms are deep cleaned between visits. IDOC is utilizing an online system to schedule visits and limit the number of visitors permitted at one time.
More information is available on the department’s website.
