Kentucky reports 227 new cases of COVID-19; Beshear says state still in plateau
Gov. Andy Beshear Wednesday announced 227 new cases of COVID-19 in Kentucky, bringing the state’s total to 7,080 as the state is slated to begin its third phase of opening up the healthcare industry.
Beshear said he believes the state is still in a plateau, saying there’s a difference in percentage of positive results between targeted testing in places like nursing homes and testing of the general public. He pointed to the sharp increase in cases in Warren County — he announced 72 new cases there Wednesday — and said that appears to be what the future of the pandemic may look like, where certain counties become hot spots amid a the wider state reopening.
“What we’re seeing in Warren County is what they think will be our future,” Beshear said.
Bowling Green has the second largest number of cases in the state — Beshear says the county has 708 cases — after only having around 156 cases three weeks ago.
“When it sets up in a community and starts to take hold, hospitals can get overrun,” Dr. Steven Stack, Kentucky’s public health commissioner said.
Several children were among the people who tested positive in Warren County, which has become concerning given a rare COVID-19 related syndrome that has caused critical cases for at least two Kentucky children. Beshear said Kentucky’s most serious case — a 10-year-old who was on a ventilator — was extubated Wednesday, meaning the boy’s condition is improving.
Stack said parents and physicians could call the Kentucky COVID-19 hotline (1-800-722-5725) if they had concerns about the rare syndrome.
Beshear also announced five COVID-19 deaths Wednesday, bringing the state’s total to 326. He showed a graph that said 57 percent of the Kentuckians who have died have been women, which is uncommon across the nation. He also said 52 percent of the people who have died from COVID-19 have been older than 80, even though that age range only accounts for 9 percent of the total cases.
He also pointed that even though Kentucky’s black population is only around 8 percent, they make up about 15 percent of the total COVID-19 cases and 19 percent of the deaths.
Much of Kentucky’s death toll has been among nursing home residents. Beshear said a total of 187 residents of Kentucky nursing homes have died, which makes up 57 percent of Kentucky’s COVID-19 deaths. Beshear also announced 20 new cases of COVID-19 among nursing home residents, bringing the total to 921.
“Part of why we’re seeing these numbers is because there’s more testing being done in these facilities than ever before,” Beshear said.
Wednesday also marked the beginning of the third phase of healthcare reopening, which will allow people one visitor in the hospital. Hospitals are also allowed to resume in-patient surgeries and procedures at 50 percent of their volume.
The state will begin allowing more businesses to open next week, including retail businesses and restaurants. Other businesses, like bars, will have to wait until July. When asked about bars, Beshear acknowledged that the rules are unfair, but said they are necessary.
“There are a lot of things about this that don’t seem fair because this virus isn’t fair,” Beshear said.
The state is projecting a massive budget shortfall because of the virus — which has loomed in the background as part of the incentive for reopening amid the plateau — and Beshear again urged Congress to act quickly and provide financial relief for state and local governments. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been parsimonious about providing relief for local governments, saying he wants to avoid the money being used to pay off things like pension obligations.
The state has significantly increased its ability to test people for the virus and Beshear said the state’s four drive through locations next week are in Richmond, Mayfield, Louisville and Ohio County. He said people are now able to sign up for appointments.
Herald-Leader reporter Alex Acquisto contributed reporting for this article
This story was originally published May 13, 2020 at 5:29 PM.
