Gov. Beshear Urges Caution This Labor Day

DEM Blogger

September 4, 2020

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 4, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Friday updated Kentuckians on the state’s continuing efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) in the commonwealth.

“I know this is a big weekend: Derby weekend, even though it’s September, and Labor Day weekend,” said Gov. Beshear. “Traditionally, we’d get together with a lot of people over this weekend. This year, I need you to do it a little differently. Just this one time, probably in your entire life, please keep your gatherings small, 10 people or fewer.”

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. Sept. 4, Gov. Beshear reported that there are at least 51,677 cases in Kentucky, 809 of which were newly reported Friday. Ninety-eight of the newly reported cases were from children age 18 and younger, of which eight were children ages 5 and under. The youngest was a 2-month-old baby from Jefferson County.

“We’re trying to keep our businesses open and get our economy to bounce back. We’re going to get our kids back in school later this month. We’re trying to get high school sports up and going and keep them going,” said Gov. Beshear. “So we really need you to help us on all the other things like wearing a mask, washing your hands frequently and social distancing.”

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported 11 new deaths Friday, raising the total to 987 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

The deaths reported Friday include a 61-year-old man from Barren County; 88-year-old woman from Carroll County; an 82-year-old man from Clinton County; an 82-year-old woman from Hardin County; two men, ages 72 and 77, from Jefferson County; a 77-year-old woman from Kenton County; a 67-year-old woman from Marion County; a 75-year-old man from Owsley County; a 79-year-old woman from Rockcastle County; and a 64-year-old woman from Warren County.

“I know how much we all want to see our families and friends for this holiday, but for one year, we need to prioritize making sure every person we care about is around to celebrate with us next year,” said Gov. Beshear. “We have already lost so many Kentuckians, and I don’t want that loss to be even greater. It will be if we have a spike in cases.”

As of Friday, there have been at least 910,697 coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky. The positivity rate currently stands at 4.70%. At least 10,587 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here. To see all recent daily reports, click here.

Information about COVID-19 and schools is also being made available. To view the reports, click here for K-12 and here for colleges and universities.

Evictions Executive Order Updated
Today, Gov. Beshear, who has taken repeated steps to keep people from being evicted at the height of the pandemic, updated the state’s executive order on evictions to reflect the Center for Disease Control’s moratorium on residential evictions through Dec. 31.

Under the CDC order, a tenant who signs and submits a declaration to his or her landlord about the inability to timely pay rent cannot be evicted. However, the declaration is required in order to prevent an eviction. Like the Governor’s prior executive orders on evictions, the CDC order does not relieve anyone of the obligation to pay rent or comply with any other obligation under a tenancy, lease or similar contract. The CDC order allows landlords to charge and collect fees, penalties and interest for failure to timely pay rent, but prohibits evictions for nonpayment or late payment of such fees, penalties or interest.

Under the Governor’s executive order, the CDC order applies in Kentucky through the end of the year and helps keep Kentuckians Healthy at Home. The commonwealth’s Healthy at Home Eviction Relief Fund, which includes $15 million from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, will still provide relief for some eligible tenants and landlords. More details will be announced on Tuesday.

Face Coverings Mandate Extended
Today, Gov. Beshear extended the commonwealth’s mandate for face coverings in some situations for another 30 days, citing the mandate’s success in slowing the spread of COVID-19. To read the new executive order, click here.

Pharmacy Refills Update
Today, Gov. Beshear signed an executive order that extends previous orders allowing pharmacists to dispense 30-day refills. The current executive order is set to expire Sunday at midnight, the new order will be effective for 30 days beginning September 6.

Week in Review
For more information on this week’s updates, including those on Overdose Awareness Day, voting, the state’s travel advisory, COVID-19 testing, funding for access roads, an enhanced victim notification system (VINE), child care guidelines, poll worker recruitment, the 2020 census, unemployment claims, Kentucky State Parks recognized as “Best in Kentucky,” grants for Eastern Kentucky communities, Wilde Brands, the Tompkinsville Bypass opening, airport improvement grants, the Kentucky Derby and a COVID-19 vaccine timeline, visit governor.ky.gov/news.

More Information
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov, kycovid19.ky.gov and the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Kentuckians can also access translated COVID-19 information and summaries of the Governor’s news conferences at teamkentuckytranslations.com.