On Sunday, Gov. Andy Beshear asked Kentuckians to remain vigilant in the fight against COVID-19 as the state takes an initial step toward reopening certain healthcare operations Monday. His administration is being cautious as they try to balance people’s need to work with the need to stay safe.
It marks the first day since this virus hit that instead of adding restrictions, the state is reopening some areas.
“We are starting with healthcare for some very simple reasons,” Beshear said. “First, people have not been able to go in to some types of visits and important appointments to keep themselves healthy. And people can grow unhealthy or have other issues that are unrelated to COVID-19.
“Second, we need to get our healthcare industry moving again because as we want to test more people we will need our healthcare industry to be operating at a greater level to make that happen. And third, in thinking about how to do this gradually in a way that protects people, in a way that we can always take temperature as we move forward, healthcare is the place to start.”
Beshear said the phased reopening of healthcare services is the first step under the Healthy at Work initiative he introduced to help businesses restart operations safely when the time is right.
The initiative set out public health benchmarks for reopening Kentucky’s economy. These benchmarks closely follow the White House’s Guidelines for Reopening America.
On Monday, health care practitioners can resume non-urgent/emergent health care services, diagnostic radiology and lab services in:
- Hospital outpatient settings;
- Health care clinics and medical offices;
- Physical therapy settings, chiropractic offices and optometrists;
- Dental offices (but with enhanced aerosol protections)
“From a public health standpoint, from a medical standpoint, we would probably prefer to wait even longer before lifting any restrictions,” said Steven Stack, commissioner for the Department for Public Health. “But we’re trying to balance competing societal needs: people’s need to get back to work, people’s need to perform other important functions in society, people’s need to pursue their lives, with the need to keep people safe.”
This guidance does not apply to long-term care settings, prisons and other industries or other settings. The guidance does not apply to elective surgeries or procedures, which will be addressed in a subsequent phase.
Case information
As of Sunday afternoon, Beshear said there were at least 4,074 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 202 of which were newly confirmed.
Beshear also reported three new deaths, raising the state’s toll to 208 deaths related to the virus.
At least 1,511 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.
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The Owensboro Health coronavirus hotline is available 24/7 by calling 877-888-6647. Call the hotline before seeking in-person care. More information from OH can be found here.
For the latest information and data on COVID-19 in Kentucky visit kycovid19.ky.gov or dial the Kentucky state hotline at 800-722-5725.
For the latest health guidelines and resources from the CDC, visit their website here.
