562 new Kentucky coronavirus cases and 8 deaths. Positivity rate of 5.87 ‘too high.’
Gov. Andy Beshear, after testing negative earlier in the day for COVID-19, announced 562 new cases of the novel coronavirus in Kentucky on Tuesday, bringing the state’s case total to 35,793.
The rate of people testing positive is up again, to 5.87 percent. “That is a number that is simply too high for a lot of things that we want to do,” Beshear said in a video update.
Like Monday, Tuesday’s number of new cases is believed to be artificially low because of a data processing issue the state is working to correct.
Eight more people have died, including a 54-year-old woman from Jefferson County. The death toll now stands at 783. “This thing is real,” he said. “We’ve got to make sure we’re doing everything we can to fight it.”
Tuesday’s new cases include 18 kids under the age of 5. At nursing and assisted living homes, three more residents and 23 staff tested positive.
On Tuesday morning, Beshear and first lady Britainy Beshear both reported feeling sick with symptoms of the coronavirus, causing the governor to cancel a 1 p.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Capitol “out of an abundance of caution.” Both later tested negative for the virus. Beshear said he was feeling better.
“Both my family and I are OK. We’ve tested negative for COVID-19 after a real scare,” he said. “While my family ended up negative today, I know there’s a lot of families out there who are positive. We send you our love. We want you to get better.”
There are 667 people hospitalized with the virus, 148 of whom are in intensive care. Since the outbreak began in Kentucky, 11.4 percent of those who’ve contracted COVID-19 have had to be hospitalized.
At least 711,017 tests have been administered.
This story was originally published August 11, 2020 at 5:00 PM.
