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COVID-19: NKY has 14 new cases; KY has 147 new cases, 7 deaths; Gov. says good job can be better


Staff report

As of Tuesday afternoon, 14 additional cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Northern Kentucky, for 155 total cases, according to NKY Health. There are 75 cases in Kenton County, 37 cases in Campbell County, 34 cases in Boone County and 9 cases in Grant County. There have been 13 total deaths related to COVID- 19.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced 147 new cases, bringing the total statewide to 1149. He said there were seven new deaths bringing the state’s toll to 65.

As Passover begins and Easter comes on Sunday, the public is urged to maintain social distancing. Staying healthy at home means staying at home. That means you cannot visit other homes or invite people to ours, said Dr. Lynn Saddler, District Director of Health. “All of us need to avoid gatherings and groups of people.”

According to Dr. Lynne Saddler, District Director of Health, “In order to continue to fight the spread of COVID-19 in Northern Kentucky, it is critical that we continue social distancing and stay healthy at home. This means that our holidays have to look different this year. Take the time now to think about new ways to celebrate your family’s traditions that will keep you safe, and plan for celebrations that can take place once the threat from COVID-19 is over.”

Gov. Beshear agreed and said that what Kentucky is doing is working.

“We are flattening the curve,” he said. “We’re responsible for ourselves, our lives and the lives of people around us. It’s crunch time. You’ve done good work to date. It’s important to do even better.”

Gov. Beshear provided an update on actions being taken at long-term care facilities. As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, Kentucky’s long-term care facilities had 77 reported cases of coronavirus, including 55 residents and 22 staffers. There have been 11 deaths attributed to the disease.

“We’ve lost 11 Kentuckians who were in some long-term care facilities,” the Governor said. “This is a concern, and we’ve got to make sure we prevent the coronavirus from getting in as many of these facilities as possible and react quickly and swiftly when it does happen.”

Actions being taken system-wide:

• Encourage all residents to wear masks to reduce spread of virus,
• Cancel communal dining, social activities and limit the movement of residents around the facility,
• Minimize entry into resident rooms by bundling care and treatment activities,
• Restrict non-essential personnel, volunteers, and visitors from entering buildings,
• Daily intake of temperatures and shortness of breath, cough and sore throat,
• Have low threshold to transfer ill residents to a higher level of care.

Education and Workforce Development Cabinet Deputy Secretary Josh Benton, in an update on unemployment insurance, said they are actively training more staff, going from 12 before the pandemic to now 1,000 to 1,200 on the phones to help Kentuckians. Gov. Beshear and Deputy Secretary Benton said it is a priority to add capacity and respond to the needs of Kentuckians.

“We have also tried to stop the denied letters from being sent, and that those who have received one should ignore,” Benton said. “We have also been able to move back the date that individuals can get that 13-week extension. You are going to be notified within the week how to reopen your claim for an additional 13 weeks. This is really good news, especially for miners who have lost their jobs and exhausted their benefits.”

Beshear also talked about the racial breakdown of COVID-19 patients, which has been the subject of emerging news stories across the country.

The Governor said with about 68% of the known cases accounted for, Kentucky’s cases included about 79.25% Caucasians, 12% African-American, 2.6% Asians and 2% multiracial.

“I’m watching the debates and stories as they’re coming out nationally, and I will say they are concerning,” he said. “But they do make me proud that we expanded Medicaid, and that is for all of our people, when we did. I think it’s given us years, all of us across Kentucky to get healthy, get regimented, get the medications that we need to get on with our lives.”


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