FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Gov. Andy Beshear watched teachers get vaccinated against COVID-19 on Friday and later headlined a memorial ceremony for the thousands of Kentuckians who have died from the virus.
The dual events reflected the hope of ultimately defeating the coronavirus and the losses the pandemic has inflicted, killing more than 3,300 Kentuckians, the governor said.
American flags were planted outside the state Capitol during the memorial ceremony in Frankfort. Earlier in the day, Beshear was in Louisville as teachers were being vaccinated, underscoring his push to get K-12 staffers inoculated statewide to get schools reopened. The state hopes to finish the first round of vaccinations for school staffers by the end of the first week in February.
During the memorial event, Beshear called the vaccination program he saw Friday a hopeful moment as he commemorated “another sad milestone in our war against COVID-19.”
“The light at the end of this dark tunnel grows ever closer as we walk toward it,” he said. “But this commemoration shows that we remain in a very dangerous and still a very dark time, with the pace of COVID-19’s destruction at one of its highest points in the entire pandemic.”
Kentucky reported 2,756 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 36 more virus-related deaths Friday. More than 1,500 virus patients are hospitalized in Kentucky, including 387 in intensive care units. The state said its rate of positive COVID-19 cases was 10.8%, its lowest level since Jan. 2.
Kentucky has fared much better than other states, the Democratic governor said at the memorial ceremony. But he added: “It’s hard to feel anything but pain and grief when we have lost so much and we are still not out of the woods in battling this virus.”
Beshear added that “untold numbers of lives” have been saved by a combination of “strong, decisive measures” along with the “compassion, dedication and sacrifice of so many Kentuckians.”
Since the pandemic hit, Beshear ordered a series of restrictions on businesses and individuals. His executive actions resulted in a strong pushback from Republican lawmakers, who recently passed legislation to limit his emergency powers. Beshear vetoed the measures, but GOP lawmakers have the numbers to override the governor when they resume their session in February.
As Kentucky has ramped up its vaccination campaign, demand has outpaced supply. It prompted Beshear to ask the federal government to double Kentucky’s vaccine allotment.
“We believe in this state right now we could give a quarter-of-a-million vaccinations every week,” he said during his Louisville stop Friday. “Think about how quickly, if that were possible, we could get to herd immunity in this commonwealth.”
Kentucky is administering the vaccine faster than the federal government is sending in new doses, the governor said.
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