FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear signaled on Wednesday that he expects to extend his mask mandate again later this month, saying the facial covering requirement is “more important than ever” amid efforts to reopen schools and protect the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
For a second straight day, the governor reported more than 800 new coronavirus cases in Kentucky. He said statewide cases appear to be “creeping up, and we need to watch it.” He later said the state is in “a dangerous place” in battling the outbreak.
With more than 1,600 confirmed cases in the past two days, Kentucky was approaching a total of 50,000 cases since the start of the pandemic.
Beshear also reported 18 more virus-related deaths in Kentucky, raising the death toll to 36 in the past three days.
“That happens when we have the number of cases we have in Kentucky,” he told reporters.
Despite the high number of cases, the Democratic governor insisted that his requirement that people wear masks in public is working and indicated that the order will be extended again later in the month.
“It’s going to be more important than ever that we wear them,” Beshear said. “And if we want to protect business, if we want to get our kids back in school, if we want to save lives, the No. 1 thing we need to do is wear a mask. And the No. 2 thing we need to do is stay 6 feet apart.”
The governor has urged Kentucky school districts to hold off resuming in-person classes until late September to give the state more time to get the virus under control. Beshear’s virus-related executive orders, including the mask mandate, are being challenged in court, and the state Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in the case later this month.
Meanwhile, Beshear reported 816 coronavirus cases on Wednesday, including 116 cases among children age 18 and younger. The 18 latest virus-related deaths raised Kentucky’s total death count to 966 since the pandemic began.
Kentucky’s positivity rate - a rolling figure reflecting the average number of tests coming back positive for COVID-19 - stayed below 5%, at 4.71%.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some - especially older adults and people with existing health problems - it can cause more severe illness and be fatal.
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Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
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