Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear reported 963 new cases of COVID-19 during Thursday’s update, saying he’s proud of how Kentuckians always come together, either because of winter weather or a world wide pandemic.
Even though the state has been hit by snow and ice multiple times this week, the governor says efforts continue to get vaccines out to the public as quickly as possible and keep up testing. That’s one of the lowest numbers reported on a Thursday since early October—the positivity rate went up slightly to 7.07 percent, which the governor says is due to the impact on testing caused by the weather.
The governor announced that visitation guidance for long term care facilities will change, with many to resume indoor visits if residents have received the vaccine.
They are requesting that people still limit the number of visitors and that those visitors continue with well-known health guidelines, such as wearing face masks and social distancing.
Trigg County Hospital will now be a regional vaccination site, as the governor announced more opening in the next week—other locations include in Marion County and Walmart sites opening in Hopkins and Caldwell County.
Thirty-seven more Kentuckians have died due to COVID-19, including two residents from Caldwell County, one from Logan County and one from Muhlenberg, putting the overall total at 4,373. Nearly 600,000 Kentuckians have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and although the weather has caused some delays in the supply chain, the governor expects to recover quickly.
General Counsel Amy Cubbage gave an update on unemployment, saying that they have now addressed approximately 82 percent of claims that were filed since the start of the pandemic to December 31.
The Tennessee Department of Health reported 998 new cases there, along with 72 new deaths—bringing the death toll in the Volunteer State up to 11,057.