All D.C. residents 16 and older will be eligible to pre-register for COVID-19 vaccination appointments starting May 1, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Monday.

The guidance aligns with a goal President Joe Biden gave late last week directing states to open vaccine eligibility to all groups by May. While all will be eligible, many won’t get the actual shots for weeks or months later, officials cautioned, due to a lack of supply.

“These individuals, depending again on our vaccine supply, may begin to receive appointments within the week of their eligibility,” said D.C. Health Director LaQuandra Nesbitt. “But again, that is contingent on our vaccine supply.”

The District is opening up eligibility to additional priority groups, meanwhile. Starting this week, essential workers in Phase 1B Tier 3 can register, including court and legal services staff, frontline mass transit workers, U.S. Postal Service employees, and food service staff. It also includes essential workers who cannot “execute their job functions remotely/via telework and are required to report for duty in-person during the public health emergency.” They include local government, public utility, health, human and social service, and commercial and residential property maintenance workers. All teachers and child care workers are eligible, regardless of whether they work in person currently.

Starting March 29, essential workers in Phase 1C Tier 2, including taxi, for-hire and ride-hailing drivers, logistics/delivery/courier workers, and those working in media and mass communication will be eligible. Only those who have to report in-person and cannot do their functions via telework are eligible.

The District will further expand eligibility the week of April 12 to those in Phase 1C Tier 3. That tier includes all essential employees of institutions of higher education (i.e. colleges, universities, trade schools), construction workers, IT workers, federal government workers, commercial and residential property managers.

D.C. is getting about 24,000 doses of vaccine per week with nearly 14,000 of those doses going to the groups pre-registering at vaccinate.dc.gov. About 115,000 people have pre-registered for the vaccine so far.

So far, about 70% of seniors invited to book an appointment have done so. Everyone else has booked an appointment at a rate of about 83%. About 14% of D.C. residents have gotten one shot while about 7% are fully vaccinated.

Starting next week, the District also will move forward with a raft of changes to its pandemic-era restrictions on businesses and outdoor gatherings.

D.C. officials say outdoor gatherings can now increase to up to 50 people at a safe distance. The District’s updated guidance also means Nationals Park can host up to 5,000 fans and Audi Field up to 2,000 fans.

Restaurants, too, will be able to increase their capacity to 25% or up to 250 people with social distancing measures in place.

While D.C. is loosening restrictions on activities as more residents become vaccinated, Bowser continued to urge caution.

“We have not crushed the virus in this city or this nation and we have to be mindful of that,” Bowser said during Monday’s press conference. “We can’t go back to normal because this virus is still circulating in our city, people are still getting sick and going to the hospital and people are still dying.”

She added that there is “reason to be optimistic,” but told residents to remain vigilant to help curb the spread of the virus.

“There are more and more things that we can do today and there will be even more things that we can do as spring evolves…assuming that our numbers continue to go down,” she said.

Here are some of the changes starting mostly on March 22, listed by category:

Gatherings

• Outdoor gatherings can be up to 50 people at a safe distance
• Indoor gatherings must continue to follow CDC guidelines with a max of 10 people for private indoor gatherings.

Restaurants

• Indoor dining can have 25% of capacity or up to 250 people
• Alcohol can be sold until midnight
• Tables must be 6 feet apart with up to six people per table
• No standing at the bar area

Pro Sports

• Nationals Park can have up to 5,000 fans
• Audi Field and D.C. United can have 2,000 fans

Entertainment

• DC Health will resume reviewing and approving live entertainment waivers
• Movie theaters may open with no more than 25 people or 25% capacity in each auditorium, whichever is less

Museums, galleries and exhibits

• Will remain open with capacity limits (250 per floor and 25 persons per room)
• Guided tours allowed
• Dining areas must follow guidance for restaurants

Gyms, exercise classes

• Indoor group fitness classes can have up to 10 people
• Outdoor classes can have up to 50 people
• 25% capacity or up to 250 people, whichever is lower, at gyms, with 6 feet physical distancing

Recreation

• Low- to moderate-contact sports may occur on a casual basis
• Playgrounds reopen
• A limited number of Department of Parks and Rec indoor recreation centers open for programs and reservation-only activity
• Parks and Rec fields limited to 250 persons

Grocery stores

• May operate buffets only if staff serves the food. Self-service continues to be prohibited.

Schools

• The use of cohorts, and not mixing students and staff between cohorts, is strongly recommended to minimize exposures if a case occurs in a teacher, staff or students, but caps on cohort sizes removed.
• Meals should be served in classrooms
• Staggering drop off/pick up times recommended
• Shared equipment, electronic devices, school supplies should be avoided
• Floating staff should be limited
• Restrictions on sports for middle and high school students have been removed. Face masks should be worn and physical distance of 6 feet should be maintained when possible during sports activities.
• Low-contact sports training, practices, and games are permitted. Games should occur outdoors.
• For moderate to high contact sports, only organized drills and skill-building activities are permitted.
• High-risk activities, such as theater, choir, or band are no longer prohibited but are recommended to be canceled or modified to allow 10 feet of space between participants.

High School Sports

• Starting today, some high school and middle school sports can resume and field permits for spring will resume
• Starting March 22, applications will open for spring sports (drills and practices)

D.C. will re-evaluate its reopening process, including guidelines on childcare, higher education, personal services, rec centers, travel, and places of worship on April 5.

You can find the full list of details in the Mayor’s presentation here.

This story has been updated to include information about restrictions on D.C. businesses and gatherings.