LUY-Development

Tag: covid19

  • What You Need To Know Today About The Virus Outbreak

    What You Need To Know Today About The Virus Outbreak

    A surge in infections has caused a critical shortage of medical supplies in many places. The hunt for ventilators and other critical items is consuming Europe and the U.S. Deaths around the world passed the 15,000 mark Monday.

    Meanwhile, China is slamming the U.S. for “scapegoating” over the virus, the Tokyo Olympics is considering postponing the event to 2021 and lawmakers in the U.S. are negotiating a nearly $2 trillion economic rescue package.

    Here are some of AP’s top stories Monday on the world’s coronavirus pandemic. Follow APNews.com/VirusOutbreak for updates through the day and APNews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak for stories explaining some of its complexities.

    WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY:

    —The coronavirus has arrived in the Gaza Strip and Syria, raising fears that the pandemic may now prey on some of the most vulnerable populations in the world.

    —Those defying social distancing and lockdown restrictions from France to Florida to carry on as normal are coming under fire. One French minister was furious: “Some consider they’re little heroes when they break the rules. Well, no. You’re an imbecile, and especially a threat to yourself.”

    —Grieving has become even more upsetting for families in the time of coronavirus. An untold number of burials around the globe now go forward with nothing more than a cleric, a funeral home employee and a single loved one. Others receive what would have once been called pauper’s funerals, buried in the clothes they died in.

    —Most American presidents will confront a crisis — or crises — whether it’s a natural disaster, war, economic downturn, public health threat or terrorism. Here’s a look at how they fared.

    WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

    For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover.

    Here are the symptoms of the virus compared with the common flu.

    One of the best ways to prevent spread of the virus is washing your hands with soap and water. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends first washing with warm or cold water and then lathering soap for 20 seconds to get it on the backs of hands, between fingers and under fingernails before rinsing off.

    You should wash your phone, too. Here’s how.

    Misinformation overload: How to separate fact from fiction and rumor from deliberate efforts to mislead.

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    ONE NUMBER:

    $300 BILLION: In a series of sweeping steps, the Fed will lend to small and large businesses and local governments as well as extend its bond-buying programs. It’s all part of the Fed’s ongoing efforts to support the flow of credit through an economy ravaged by the viral outbreak.

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    IN OTHER NEWS:

    AP’S MARCH MADNESS: The virus may have canceled March Madness, but the AP is counting down the top 10 men’s basketball games in the history of the NCAA Tournament. We’re counting them down through April 5, along with a host of memorable moments through the eyes of players who were there.

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    The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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    Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

  • Mississippi Wise To Close Capitol Because Of Virus

    Mississippi Wise To Close Capitol Because Of Virus

    JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The Mississippi Capitol is a germ and virus factory during any normal legislative session because of all the glad-handing, back-slapping and random hugging. It was clearly in line to become more perilous than usual during the coronavirus pandemic.

    Legislators voted last week to suspend their session until at least April 1, acting on the recommendation of the state health officer, Dr. Thomas Dobbs.

    “It’s been said that the full Legislature is a hub for this disease,” Senate President Pro Tempore Dean Kirby, a Republican from Pearl, told his colleagues. “Let’s try to keep this situation under control as much as we can. … This is a tough situation we’re in right now. It’s a crisis and we all know it.”

    By leaving the Capitol, Kirby said, “I feel like we’ll help our constituents and we’ll be doing the right thing.”

    Hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of people mingle in the Capitol on any given day when the House and Senate are in Jackson. In addition to the 174 legislators, the regulars in the building are legislative staffers, lobbyists, journalists and tour guides.

    It’s a place where social distancing is difficult. Advocacy groups set up tables and give away food in the central gathering spot on the first floor. High school students by the hundreds pass through the building — 4-H kids in blue corduroy jackets, athletes in letter jackets, choirs wearing all-black outfits.

    Not long before fear of the coronavirus started spreading in the United States, hundreds of parents and children wearing matching red T-shirts gathered inside the state Capitol and continued their yearslong — and, so far, unsuccessful — effort to get lawmakers to loosen Mississippi’s mandates for vaccinations that are needed before children can attend public or private schools. The state’s vaccination requirements for measles, chickenpox and other diseases are among the most stringent in the U.S.

    Researchers are working to develop a coronavirus vaccine. Dr. Anthony Fauci of the U.S. National Institutes of Health says that even if research goes well, a vaccine is at least 12 to 18 months from widespread availability.

    April 1 is the earliest that lawmakers would return to the Capitol to resume their session. They could return later if that’s what Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann and House Speaker Philip Gunn decide is the best thing for public health.

    Before Dobbs took the top job at the Mississippi State Department of Health, he was the state epidemiologist. Gunn said he and Hosemann will seek advice from Dobbs about when it might be safe for legislators to return to work.

    “We’ll pick up right where we left off,” Gunn said.

    Mississippi legislators normally meet the first three months of each year. Because this is the beginning of a four-year term, they were supposed to have a four-month session this year, from early January until early May. The extra month allows time for organizational matters such as assigning members to House and Senate to committees. It also gives new legislators a chance to meet their colleagues and learn the legislative process.

    Legislators are at roughly the halfway point of their work process this year. General bills have been considered in the chamber where they were filed — House bills in the House and Senate bills in the Senate. The two chambers are exchanging bills and will do more work on those after they return.

    Legislators will also start the final decision-making process about money matters. State agencies submitted spending requests several months ago for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The coronavirus is expected to deliver an economic gut punch with the likelihood that tax collections will decrease at the same time that demand for state services increases.

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    Emily Wagster Pettus has covered Mississippi government and politics since 1994. Follow her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/EWagsterPettus.

  • The Miss-Lou Teddy Bear Hunt Is On!

    The Miss-Lou Teddy Bear Hunt Is On!

    You can go on a Teddy Bear hunt!

    Miss-Lou residents have come up with a great way for families to get their kids out of the house for a little while, AND still maintain social distancing!

    A Teddy Bear Hunt!

    A Facebook Group has even been created to help you get involved.

    Here is how it works:

    Let’s put our teddy bears into our front windows, then add your street and town here!

    Parents can take antsy kids on a bear hunt, and when they honk in front of bear houses, people inside stay connected!

    Share and invite your friends!

    People all over are joining in the fun!

    We love it!

     

     

     

  • Coronavirus infections in Louisiana climb to more than 830

    NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Coronavirus infections in Louisiana have climbed to more than 830 Sunday, and testing was being made available to more people in the New Orleans area where the outbreak was centered, state health officials said.

    Affected residents live in 36 of the state’s 64 parishes, and 20 people have died from COVID-19, according to the state health department.

    State health officials on Saturday announced that drive-thru testing for the virus in the New Orleans area would be available to a wider range of people.

    Testing was previously open only to health care workers and first responders exhibiting symptoms consistent with the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus. But beginning Sunday, testing was to be offered to anyone with a fever or other symptoms, the New Orleans Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness and the New Orleans Health Department said Saturday.

    Three federally funded test sites are operating in the state, two in New Orleans and one in nearby Jefferson Parish.

    Testing in New Orleans is happening in the parking lots of the Mahalia Jackson Theater and the University of New Orleans Lakefront Arena, and in Jefferson Parish at the Alario Event Center. The New Orleans sites will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. or until 100 people have been tested at each site, officials said. The Jefferson Parish site will operate from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a cap of 250 tests per day.

    Louisiana has one of the nation’s highest per capita rates of infection, Gov. John Bel Edwards has said, with New Orleans at the epicenter of the state’s outbreak.

    For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe complications such as pneumonia. The vast majority recover.

  • Louisiana governor issues statewide ‘stay at home’ order

    BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. John Bel Edwards ordered all 4.6 million people in Louisiana to voluntarily stay at home starting at 5 p.m. on Monday unless they’re performing an essential task like getting food or medicine.

    First-responders and workers in grocery stores, pharmacies, doctors’ offices and other critical infrastructure are exempt from his directive, which will remain in effect until April 12, and could be extended beyond that.

    The directive doesn’t describe any details on enforcement, and leaves people with plenty of maneuvering room.

    Essential activities, it says, include getting exercise and fresh air, walking their pets, going to family homes and places of worship. But in all cases, people should practice social distancing, avoid groups of 10 or more, and shouldn’t visit friends or family without an “urgent need.”

    “The bottom line is we are in a race against time when it comes to this coronavirus and its rapid spread in Louisiana,” Edwards said at a news conference on Sunday.

    Edwards said voluntary compliance is the best way to contain the virus, he said.

    “We’re not going to be doing checkpoints and asking people to tell us why they’re out and about,” the Democrat said. “If the people of Louisiana demand that we enforce it before they honor it, we are in deep trouble, so I’m asking people to be good citizens.”

    Edwards said Louisiana could run out of health care capacity between seven to 10 days.

    “There is no reason to believe we won’t be the next Italy,” Edwards said. Already, Louisiana has the third highest number of cases per capita among U.S. states, he said.

    This coronavirus causes only minor flu-like symptoms in most people, who recover in a matter of weeks. But it is highly contagious and can cause severe illness or death in some, particularly the elderly and those with underlying health problems. Severe cases are often only able to breathe with respirators.

    New York, California, Illinois and some cities have issued similar shelter in place orders in the last few days. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell had issued a similar order for that city two days ago.

    State health officials said infections in Louisiana climbed to more than 830 on Sunday, with 20 deaths, as testing became more available. Edwards described a tenfold increase in just one week.

    “I do not take this action lightly, but there are some basic facts that we just simply cannot deny or ignore,” Edwards said.

    Edwards said restaurants can remain open for carry-out or delivery, and critical manufacturers, agriculture and utilities must continue. But he said businesses such as theaters, concert halls, hair salons and children’s play places should close.

    As for day care centers, he said they should follow guidelines from state education and health officials; it’s important, he said, that some of these remain open so health care employees can go to work.

    The mayor of New Orleans on Sunday said testing is increasing, but they need public cooperation to help control the spread of the virus.

    “The message we are here to make very clear to the public: Stay home,” Cantrell said. “Your health care providers are at work to protect you … but they can not protect us from ourselves if we are not following the rules.”

  • Mississippi gov seeks to help unemployed amid virus outbreak

    JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Confirmed coronavirus infections climbed to more than 200 in Mississippi, and the governor announced plans to provide quicker access to unemployment benefits for residents affected by the outbreak.

    The more than 200 cases were reported as of 6 p.m. Saturday, according to state health department figures updated Sunday. A single COVID-19 death has been reported in the state.

    Gov. Tate Reeves on Saturday took action to help relieve burdens on the state’s workforce, according to a news release. He signed an executive order instructing the Mississippi Department of Employment Security to expedite payments to unemployed workers and relax collection requirements on employers.

    “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and their employees are the people who keep our economy going,” the governor said in an announcement made on Facebook Live. “We have worked very closely with the Mississippi Department of Employment Security to help employees of small businesses that are having a difficult time keeping their doors open in these challenging times.”

    Reeves waived a one-week waiting period for unemployment benefits for all claims filed from March 8 to June 27. He also suspended work search requirements that applicants must normally meet to receive benefits.

    The governor also suspended collection activity, including enrollment of liens and tax garnishments.

    The city of Vicksburg is implementing a city-wide curfew beginning Monday from 11 p.m. until 5 a.m., according to the mayor’s office. People are not allowed to be on city streets during those times, although people traveling to and from work, medical workers and first-responders and law enforcement would be exempt from the curfew. The city also directed restaurants to end on-site dining, but take-out and delivery could continue.

    The Mississippi Law Enforcement Officer’s Training Academy suspended operations until further notice, the Mississippi Department of Public Safety announced.

    The vast majority of people infected with the novel coronavirus get only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, and recover in about two weeks. But many will need hospitalization. Particularly vulnerable are older adults and those with existing health problems who can develop severe complications, including pneumonia.

    COVID-19 testing will begin next week at the Mississippi Fairgrounds in Jackson. The drive-thru testing site will open by appointment starting Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for those showing symptoms such as fever or respiratory problems, state health officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said.

  • Louisiana “Stay at Home” Order issued By Gov. Edwards

    Louisiana “Stay at Home” Order issued By Gov. Edwards

    Today, Gov. John Bel Edwards issued a statewide Stay at Home order that goes into effect at 5 p.m. Monday, March 23, to further fight the spread of COVID-19 in Louisiana, as the number of confirmed cases have topped 800 and spread to more than half of our parishes.

    • Click here to read the Governor’s statewide Stay at Home order.
    • Click here to see graphics.

    “In Louisiana we have taken aggressive measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and flatten the curve; however, this is not enough. As our number of cases continue to grow, I am directing all Louisianans to stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary for you to leave. I am implementing this measure to help prevent you from becoming infected or infecting someone else. People can leave their homes to do essential things like buying groceries or food, pick up medicine or go to work only if their job is essential. If you have to go out, make sure you practice social distancing measures and keep 6 feet between you and the people around you. People are encouraged to go outside and to stay active during this time, as long as they practice social distancing when they are around their neighbors,” Gov. Edwards said. “This order is not something I take lightly, but it is necessary to protect the health, safety and well-being of our people, our communities and our way of life.”

    The order is set to expire at the end of the night on Sunday, April 12. The Governor will re-evaluate the need for the statewide Stay at Home order and other mitigation measures currently in place to determine if they need to be extended beyond April 12.

    The Governor previously ordered all K-12 public schools, casinos, bars movie theatres, gyms and fitness centers closed and restricted restaurants to take-out, drive-through and delivery orders only. He has also moved the state’s April 4 elections and limited crowd size.

    For businesses, the new Stay at Home order has limits on the following:

    • All places of public amusement, whether indoors or outdoors, including but not limited to, locations with amusement rides, carnivals, amusement parks, water parks, trampoline parks, aquariums, zoos, museums, arcades, fairs, pool halls, children’s play centers, playgrounds, theme parks, any theaters, concert and music halls, adult entertainment venues, racetracks, and other similar businesses.
    • All personal care and grooming businesses, including but not limited to, barber shops, beauty salons, nail salons, spas, massage parlors, tattoo parlors, and other similar businesses.
    • All malls, except for stores in a mall that have a direct outdoor entrance and exit that provide essential services and products as provided by the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) guidelines.
    • Businesses closed to the public as listed in the order can conduct necessary activities such as payroll, cleaning services, maintenance or upkeep as necessary.
    • Any business not covered by the guidance from the CISA discussed in Section 3 of the order and not ordered to temporarily close must reduce operations to continue with minimum contact with members of the public and essential employees, while requiring proper social distancing, adhering to the 10-person limitation on gathering size.
    • Early learning centers and child care facilities adhering to the guidance issued by the Louisiana Department of Education and Office of Public Health may continue to operate.

    Examples of Essential Worker Functions under the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) guidelines include:

    • Healthcare workers and caregivers
    • Mental health and Social Service workers
    • Pharmacy employees
    • Workers supporting groceries, pharmacies and other retail sales of food and beverage products
    • Restaurant carryout and quick-serve food operations and food delivery employees
    • Farm workers
    • Electricity and Utility Industry Employees
    • Critical Manufacturing Employees (medical supply chains, energy, transportation, food, chemicals)
    • Petroleum, Natural and Propane Gas Workers
    • Transportation and Logistics Workers
    • Communications and Information Technology Employees
    • Financial Services and Banking Industry Employees

    See CISA essential business guidelines here.

    Members of the public will still be allowed to go to grocery stores and pharmacies to pick up food, medicine and necessary supplies, go to their essential jobs and to go outside for exercise and fresh air. When leaving their home, people should practice social distancing.

    OTHER ORDERS FROM THE GOVERNOR:

    Gov. Edwards has issued a number of orders designed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Louisiana and flatten the curve. They are:

    In addition, Gov. Edwards issued a proclamation on March 13 moving Louisiana’s elections, which can be found here.

     

  • March 22: New COVID-19 Coronavirus Infections in Franklin & Pike Counties

    March 22: New COVID-19 Coronavirus Infections in Franklin & Pike Counties

    Mississippi Has More Than 200 COVID-19 Coronavirus Cases

    Here is the latest information from the Mississippi Department Of Health, updated on Sunday March 22nd.

  • March 22: COVID-19 Coronavirus Cases Reported In 36 Louisiana Parishes

    March 22: COVID-19 Coronavirus Cases Reported In 36 Louisiana Parishes

    Rural Parishes Starting To Report COVID19 Coronavirus Infections

    Graphic courtesy of the Louisiana Department Of Health

    If you have questions about coronavirus, please contact the Louisiana 211 Network by dialing dial 211. Or, you can text the keyword LACOVID to 898-211 for the most current information about the outbreak as it becomes available.

     

  • Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards Thanks Healthcare Workers

    Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards Thanks Healthcare Workers

    Governor Edwards Posts Thank-You Letter And Video On Social Media

    The Governor published a sincere letter of appreciation to all healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak in Louisiana:

    “My mother was a nurse and I learned many years ago that not all heroes wear capes…With all of my heart, and on behalf of the entire state, I want to thank you for your relentless efforts and your service to our brothers and sisters and most vulnerable Louisiana residents.”

    The Governor also made a video for social media, thanking healthcare workers for their efforts.