199 new Kentucky coronavirus cases. Beshear moves up gatherings of 10 to May 22.
Gov. Andy Beshear on Thursday moved up when Kentuckians will be allowed to travel out of state and gather in groups of less than 10 people to May 22nd, loosening restrictions so families and friends can gather on Memorial Day weekend.
“We realize that people are making plans for Memorial Day,” Beshear said. “And I trust that we can do this right and we can do this safe.”
The announcement came shortly before Beshear announced 199 new cases of COVID-19 in Kentucky, bringing the total to 7,225 as Kentucky has continued its plateau of new cases. Kentucky’s coronavirus death toll is 328 after Beshear announced 2 new deaths Thursday.
In pushing up the date that people can gather in small groups, Beshear avoids the fraught position of not allowing people to gather on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend but letting them gather on Monday, when the restriction was previously scheduled to lift.
Beshear said he wanted to provide guidance and rules for such gatherings because “a number of people are going to do this anyways.”
He said people will still have to stay six feet apart from people who are not in their households and advised that people should not share food or drinks. People should avoid touching their eyes, nose and mouth while in group settings and should wash their hands frequently. He said it was all right to take off your mask if you’re sitting six feet apart, but encouraged people to gather outside instead of indoors.
He also stressed the importance of keeping kids apart, saying parents should “plan ahead” which games they will allow kids to play together. For example, he said his kids would play laser tag instead of basketball.
He also said people older than 65 or people who have heart, lung or kidney conditions should not participate in the gatherings.
“That’s not fair, but the virus isn’t either and we know how deadly this virus is,” Beshear said.
Beshear said an increase in testing has allowed for Kentucky’s reopening, even though the number of new cases has not declined and some counties are experiencing a surge in cases. Beshear announced that 121,246 tests have been run in Kentucky, which is the equivalent of 2.71 percent of the population. Around 5.9 percent of the Kentuckians who have been tested have tested positive.
The increased testing capacity is allowing officials to do mass testing in long-term care facilities and at least one prison, the Green River Correctional Center in Muhlenberg County. J. Michael Brown, Beshear’s executive cabinet secretary, said 356 inmates have COVID-19 at Green River and that only 8 tests are still pending. He said 22 people have recovered and only two inmates and two staffers are hospitalized.
In nursing homes, a total of 941 residents have tested positive for COVID-19, which is up 20 people from Wednesday. There have been 191 deaths related to nursing homes, which make up 58 percent of the total deaths in the state. Two staff members of nursing homes have died and 380 have tested positive.
Team Kentucky applications opening
Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman said people will be able to apply Friday morning for money from the Team Kentucky Fund, which has solicited donations to help people struggling during the pandemic. Coleman said people are eligible to apply at teamkyfund.ky.gov if they have experienced a loss of employment through COVID-19 or a reduction of their income of 50 percent or higher.
People who receive assistance will get vouchers to pay for rent, mortgage, electricity, gas, water, food and groceries. People will be limited to $1,000 per household.
The funds will be distributed through Community Action Kentucky.
Kentucky is slated to receive another $43.7 million in funding from the federal government, including $30 million for K-12 education. Beshear also pressed for federal relief for state and local governments.
“The only people who will be hurt if Congress doesn’t act will be the people of Kentucky and every state,” Beshear said.
Visit Kentucky’s coronavirus website, kycovid19.ky.gov, for more guidance about the disease and testing options.
This story was originally published May 14, 2020 at 5:35 PM.
