797 new Kentucky coronavirus cases and 7 deaths.
Gov. Andy Beshear announced 797 new cases of COVID-19 Friday in Kentucky, bringing the total number of cases to 25,931 as the virus continues to spread quickly. He announced seven more deaths, bringing the total to 691.
“We are continuing to see an increase and a growth that we absolutely need to stop,” Beshear said. “If we don’t see the numbers come down, we’ll have both a series of recommendations and steps we will need to take sometime next week.”
Beshear said he hopes to soon see benefits from the executive order he issued earlier this month mandating masks when in public spaces.
There are 618 Kentuckians in the hospital with the coronavirus, 130 of whom are in intensive care.Beshear has said his next steps will involve lowering the capacity allowed in restaurants and shutting down bars. Earlier this week, he asked the Kentucky Council of Churches to forgo in-person services for two weeks. His office said it was a request, not an executive order.
“We are still dealing with the world as it was two weeks ago,” Beshear said. “And I don’t think that we as a state are acting the same way that we did two weeks ago. I think we are doing a lot better in what it takes to defeat the virus.”
Beshear said 5.28 percent of tests completed in the last week were positive, which crosses the threshold for when public health experts recommend rolling back openings.
“That is now over the five percent mark that the White House and others have said is a danger zone,” Beshear said.
