Remember when President Trump suggested a month ago that “we hit the body” with UV light to kill the coronavirus?

Well, two D.C. bars are doing just that.

Dupont sister bars,  Public Bar Live and Sauf Haus Bier Hall and Garten are encouraging guests to walk through a UV Cleanse Portal before they step onto the bars’ respective rooftops for the first time in over two months.

Sauf Haus and Public Bar outlined their guidelines for reopening on Friday in Instagram posts, including the optional use of UV portals by guests. According to the company that makes the UV door-ways, Healthe Lighting Science, the free-standing devices use low doses of far-UVC light to kill 90% of contaminants on the body without harm.

“We decided on the cleansing portal as a potential extra precaution,” says co-owner of Sauf Haus and Public John Issa. “Most studies have shown that it’s safe for use.” (DCist found a Nature article from 2018 confirming that low-dose UVC light can reduce the spread of airborne pathogens in humans, but that its public use has been widely limited due to carcinogenic concerns.)

When local restaurant blogger Barred In DC tweeted out a screenshot of the bars’ new unconventional cleaning method, some people were skeptical.

https://twitter.com/CityPretzelDC/status/1266344617844322305

Public Bar responded to the criticism with a link to the UV portal they’re using, claiming that the employees have all been trained on “safe usage and deployment.” Guests will step into the portal and make a 20-second long 360 turn for a low-dose of UV light.

Issa says that Public and Sauf Haus are complying with all of Mayor Bowser’s requirements for reopening, including social distancing guidelines, capacity limits, frequent sanitation, and are encouraging guests to make reservations.

This story has been corrected to show that the UV Cleanse Portal kills 90% of contaminants on the body, not in the body.