Kentucky coronavirus cases stay steady at 8. Two patients linked by church.
No new people tested positive on Wednesday for novel coronavirus in Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear said.
A total of 11 cases were tested: 10 came back negative, one came back inconclusive, the governor said at his afternoon Capitol news conference on Wednesday. The inconclusive test was of a patient who previously tested positive and is improving, he said.
Kentucky’s total number of confirmed cases remains at eight: five in Harrison County, two in Fayette County and one in Jefferson County.
The World Health Organization hours earlier declared the outbreak of the viral respiratory illness, also known as COVID-19, a pandemic. WHO’s biggest concern, Beshear said, is “what they call alarming levels of inaction.”
“Our goal is to be taking action to ensure we can address this virus, that we can protect the most vulnerable in Kentucky,” he said.
Beshear also announced the 60-year-old Jefferson County resident who contracted COVID-19 and had been in isolation at Norton Brownsboro Hospital had been discharged and is now isolated at home.
The other seven people with coronavirus remain in stable condition. “We hope in the next couple days that one of our Harrison County residents will be fully out of the woods” and no longer be infectious, Beshear said.
The Democratic governor broadened a directive he had given earlier in the day for churches to consider canceling their services in the upcoming week, to include all community gatherings, generally. He asked they either be canceled, postponed, or done virtually, in order to prevent community spread of COVID-19 to the state’s most vulnerable populations: those over the age of 60, and those with underlying health issues, including someone with diabetes, heart, lung and kidney disease.
Beshear has said previously that all five confirmed COVID-19 cases in Harrison County are directly linked, and Wednesday afternoon he revealed that at least two of those people attend church together and referenced it as an impetus for why his call to cancel church services and community gatherings should be taken seriously.
“I know it is a big step, but I can tell you the direct connection between at least two Harrison County residents is that they go to church together,” he said. “We would not be suggesting” that these services should be canceled “if we did not believe this coronavirus can be or is currently being spread in those areas.”
He reiterated his strong suggestion that all Kentuckians avoid large crowds, referencing the NCAA president’s historic decision to restrict fan attendance at Division 1 men’s and women’s basketball tournament games. “That should show you how important this guidance is,” Beshear said, adding that he thinks the SEC should follow suit.
The next month is going to be “critical” in both determining “how long” Kentucky is responding to coronavirus cases, and “how severe the impact will be,” Beshear said. “I don’t believe we’re overreacting. I do believe we’re being aggressive.”
The governor’s office closed state prisons and similar correctional facilities to visitors earlier in the day, and urged employers to let employees work from home whenever possible. He also said state employees are restricted from non-essential travel outside Kentucky and urged private employers to follow suit.
He asked school districts to develop plans to close schools on short notice. While no mass closures of schools are necessary yet, Beshear said, it’s “very possible that in the future we’re going to have to ask schools in Kentucky to close down for a period of time.”
Kentucky residents can call the state coronavirus hotline — 1-800-722-5725 — for advice about when to seek medical treatment. Visit Kentucky’s coronavirus website, kycovid19.ky.gov, for more guidance about the disease.
This story was originally published March 11, 2020 at 5:39 PM.
