As Arizona continues on track for its worst month of COVID spread, Banner Health reinstated its no-visitor policy at all Banner – University Medicine locations in Tucson, effective 6 p.m. today. According to Banner, this visitor ban to reduce COVID spread includes outpatient and ambulatory locations, such as clinics, urgent care locations, imaging centers, surgery centers and occupational health services locations.

There are four exceptions to the visitor restrictions:

• Pediatric patients (under the age of 18) may have one guardian or support individual with them.
• Laboring mothers may have one support person with them.
• Persons with disabilities who, due to the specifics of the disability, require assistance from someone in order to effectively participate in the healthcare process will be allowed to designate a support person to accompany them while in any Banner facility.
• End of life visitations will be accommodated.

Everyone who enters a Banner – University Medicine facility is subject to a health screening and must have their own mask, which should be worn at all times inside the facilities.

Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry noted that the county had seen 4,620 cases in the first 17 days of November.

“For the first 17 days in July, the worst month of COVID-19 case increases to date, there were 5,057 cases,” Huckelberry said in a Nov. 17 memo. “Therefore, we are on pace to exceed the total number of monthly COVID-19 infections in our previous worst month, July.”