KY COVID-19 Update: Sunday, Oct. 11

DEM Blogger

October 12, 2020

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 11, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Sunday updated Kentuckians on the state’s continuing efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

Earlier Sunday, the Governor issued a statement telling Kentuckians that he and his family are committed to setting a good example by following state and federal quarantine guidelines after they were potentially exposed to a person with COVID-19 late Saturday afternoon.

To watch the video message, click here. To view the full news release, click here.

The Governor and his family were potentially exposed through a member of his security detail who drove with the first family on Saturday and learned of a positive test later Saturday. The first family was not in contact with anyone else following exposure.

The Governor and his family have tested negative, are feeling well and have no symptoms. The Beshear family will be tested regularly and will remain in quarantine until cleared by the Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH).

“We want to make sure we’re setting the example, and we want to make sure we’re keeping other people around us safe,” the Governor said.

Case Information
As of 3 p.m. Oct. 11, Gov. Beshear announced at least 80,292 cases in the commonwealth, 852 of which were newly reported Sunday. Ninety of the newly reported cases were from children up to age 18, of which 23 were age 5 and under. The youngest was just 23 days old.

Kentucky recorded 7,675 new coronavirus cases this week, again marking the highest weekly toll of new cases. This week’s total is up by 1,549 cases over last week’s total, but it does include a backlog of cases from Fayette County that were reported Wednesday.

The Governor announced three more deaths on Sunday, bringing the death total to 1,252. The deaths reported included a 33-year-old man from Jefferson County; a 60-year-old man from Hopkins County; and a 70-year-old woman from Warren County.

“That’s three more families who are now grieving,” the Governor said.

Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of DPH, noted that congregate care settings continue to account for a large proportion of the COVID-19 deaths in Kentucky. Other settings, especially social gatherings and settings where people are in proximity to each other for extended periods of time, continue to give rise to clusters of cases.

Dr. Stack said: “With the disease so widespread in Kentucky now, the risk of all of us getting exposed is high if we don’t all do our part to socially distance, wear masks and practice good hand hygiene. I’ll add one other thing today – emotionally regulate yourself.

“By this, I mean it’s normal to miss the things we used to do with a lot of other people, like fall festivals, church services and sporting events. Acknowledge what you miss, then make a plan for what you can do,” he said. “Take a drive to view the colors of the changing leaves. Take a pumpkin walk around your neighborhood. Join a COVID-19 weight loss challenge. It’s OK to acknowledge that something’s been lost, but we don’t have to wallow in the moment. And, remind yourself that a vaccine is coming and there’s reason to be hopeful.”

Due to limited reporting on Sundays, some information will be delayed until Monday.

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.

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.