This blog is no longer being updated regularly. However — coronavirus is still a global pandemic and we’re continuing to report on it. You can check the Kentucky case count here with our county-level COVID-19 tracker. You can find all of our additional reporting on coronavirus here.

##

WFPL News reporters will be updating this story whenever we have new information about the coronavirus in Kentucky and Indiana. Scroll down for older information.

Here’s what you need to know right now:

Find all of our coverage here.

Thursday, June 25

2:55 p.m.: More than 500 new cases of the COVID-19 virus have been confirmed in Indiana. The Indiana State Department of Health said Thursday that the 523 additional cases bring the state’s total to 43,655. Nine more deaths from complications due to the virus also have been confirmed. Officials say 2,394 state residents have died due to the virus. Another 192 probable deaths have been reported based on clinical diagnoses in patients for whom no positive test is on record. More than 444,000 COVID-19 virus tests have been reported to the state. —Associated Press

Wednesday, June 24

6:10 p.m.: State officials announced guidelines on reopening schools in the fall during Gov. Andy Beshear’s daily press briefing. The guidance includes mandatory requirements, as well as recommended “best practices,” for schools on social distancing, mask wearing and other measures.

“Necessary does not always equal easy,” Kentucky’s interim education commissioner Kevin Brown said. “The expectations that we’re providing…are not easy to implement — they will not be. But they are certainly necessary.”

The guidelines were developed by the Kentucky Department of Public Health, with input from a state task force, the Kentucky Department of Education and feedback from state superintendents.

Also during the briefing, Beshear announced the state will provide in-person help by appointment for people seeking to resolve their unemployment insurance claims. Beshear said there will be locations open in Frankfort, Monday through Friday of next week.

Wednesday’s briefing will be the last regular coronavirus briefing, according to Beshear. The governor said moving forward, he will hold “Team Kentucky” briefings on Tuesday afternoons at 4.

The governor said the state has confirmed 229 more cases of coronavirus, and one new death. –Jess Clark

Tuesday, June 23

5:20 p.m.: More than 300 new coronavirus cases were announced Tuesday, also primary election day in Kentucky.

Gov. Andy Beshear did not hold a briefing. But in a press release, he announced 315 newly reported cases and 11 new deaths.

The deaths reported Tuesday were from Allen, Clark, Fayette, Graves, Harlan, Jefferson, Logan and Shelby counties. -Kate Howard

Monday, June 22

5:27 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced on Monday 90 new cases of COVID-19 in Kentucky and no new deaths.

The governor called the news “special” exactly one week from statewide re-openings of bars, weddings and groups of 50 or fewer.

The governor also announced that the state is finalizing a contract with an outside vendor to help processing, communications and training around unemployment claims. The governor also announced that Labor Department Sec. Larry Roberts will take over unemployment insurance.

“I believe it is something that is going to hopefully speed things up,” Beshear said. “I believe it’s going to add some extra efficiencies, and I want to make sure that things are getting done and that things are getting better.” — Graham Ambrose

Sunday, June 21

Gov. Andy Beshear said the state confirmed 117 new cases of coronavirus Sunday, bringing Kentucky’s total confirmed infections to 13,750. Two new deaths were reported due to the disease: a 73-year-old man from Butler County and a 61-year-old man from Fayette County. A total of 526 Kentuckians have died from coronavirus.

“Keep getting tested, keep wearing masks, keep answering the call if our contact tracers reach out to you. We have the tools we need to slow the spread of COVID-19 significantly until we get a vaccine,” Beshear said in a press release sent from his office Sunday.

The release said 3,530 Kentuckians had recovered, as of Sunday.

In Louisville, the city has notified the public about what it says is the first case of a restaurant worker testing positive for the virus since restaurants were allowed to open on May 22. The city said three El Nopal employees tested positive at the chain’s Westport Road location.

Thursday, June 18

5:34 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 234 new confirmed cases of coronavirus Thursday, including 43 in Jefferson County.

“We continue to be on a good trajectory,” Beshear said.

Beshear said there were 400 people in the hospital with COVID-19, and 68 in the ICU.

Three more Kentuckians have died: a 79-year-old man in Perry County, a 91-year-old woman in Jefferson County, and an 87-year-old man from Logan County. 520 Kentuckians total have died from the disease.

Meanwhile, Beshear’s administration is facing criticism of its handling of unemployment insurance claims. Hundreds of people have waited in long lines for hours in Frankfort this week, hoping to have their claims addressed in person after months of attempts to resolve their claims online or on the phone.

The governor said he’s extended unemployment office hours until 8 p.m. Thursday to try to help as many people in line as possible, and that those who made the trip to Frankfort but cannot be helped this week will be prioritized Monday and Tuesday of next week.

He said problems with the unemployment system stem from underfunding of the department in previous years, and an antiquated system.

“We had a system that was designed to tell you no,” he said.

He said he’s hoping to send unemployment office workers to other parts of the state in the coming weeks so that people don’t have to make the trip to Frankfort to get assistance in person. — Jess Clark

Tuesday, June 16

6:36 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 203 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky Tuesday, bringing the state’s total cases to 12,829. In a news release, Beshear said Kentuckians need to keep in mind how serious the illness is.

“Everybody needs to remember that COVID-19 is still out there, it spreads aggressively and it can be deadly,” he said.

Beshear announced seven new deaths, raising the total to 512 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

“We have come so far, we have sacrificed so much, we have shown so much compassion for one another,” said Beshear. “Let’s continue to be good people, because that’s what’s going to defeat the coronavirus.”

According to the state, at least 3,431 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

Monday, June 15

5:06 p.m.: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear says there were 205 new cases of COVID-19 in the commonwealth reported Sunday and Monday, and six additional deaths. That brings the state’s total to 12,647 positive cases of COVID-19, and 505 total deaths.

Beshear says the state is still concentrating on bringing the state’s new coronavirus cases down. In the briefing Monday, Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Steven Stack compared the case rates of South Carolina, Arizona, Florida and Kentucky. He noted the three other states were all experiencing a resurgence and if “you’re hoping that the coronavirus will take a nap during the summer,” that doesn’t seem likely, given the current heat in Arizona or the heat and humidity in Florida.

2:39 p.m.: Indiana health officials say the state has 11 additional deaths due to COVID-19 and 533 new cases. The Indiana State Department of Health announced there have been a total of 2,251 coronavirus deaths overall since the start of the pandemic and 40,430 total cases in the state. Health officials say there are another 182 probable deaths with no positive test on record. Effective Monday, any Hoosier seeking COVID-testing can obtain it through one of the state-sponsored OptumServe sites, regardless of whether they are at high risk or have symptoms. To find testing locations around the state, visit the state’s website and click on the COVID-19 testing information link. — Associated Press

Friday, June 12

3:00 p.m.: In light of social distancing, quarantining and widespread protests over racial injustice, mental health issues may be pushed to the forefront.

But amid more demand for services like counseling and therapy, some aren’t comfortable with risks of in-person treatment during the coronavirus pandemic. Gov. Andy Beshear issued an order that insurance companies cover COVID-19 treatment; he also encouraged providers to offer telehealth, so more patients could see their doctors from home. But he didn’t mandate offering telehealth — or mandate that insurers cover it free of copays, as some other states have.

Despite this, some public and private insurances in the commonwealth are offering telehealth services and waiving co-pays for its members. Here’s more.

Thursday, June 11

1:00 p.m.: The Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness says it’s too early to tell what kind of impact recent protests across the city will have on coronavirus numbers.

During Thursday’s COVID-19 briefing, officials announced seven new cases of COVID-19, bringing the city’s total to 2,972. The death toll also increased to 189

Public health director Sarah Moyer said there has been a slight rise in positive cases over the last couple of weeks, but she attributed that to more tests being conducted.

“It’s hard to know yet if that is due to the reopening or the crowds,” she said. “It’s too soon to be due to the protests… We’re keeping an eye on that just like many states across the country.”

The city offered testing to protesters at Norton Audubon Hospital and behind City Hall over the weekend. Testing coordinator Bill Altman estimated that nearly 300 people were tested at the City Hall site.

Altman noted the higher risk of transmission that comes with such large gatherings of people as the driver for setting up the sites.

“The virus is here,” he said. “It has not gone away, and whenever you’re in situations where [there are] groups of people, you have to take the appropriate precautions, and you’re at higher risk. So it was that premise that compelled us to say, ‘Well, why don’t we provide testing services down at the protest site?’”

Results from those sites have not yet been released. In the event that there is an increase in positive cases, the city is strengthening its contact tracing capabilities.

A new contact tracing team with backgrounds in nursing, social work and community-based organizations will begin taking on new cases Friday. Between 80 to 100 positions out of more than 2,600 applicants are expected to be filled.

Moving forward, protesters are encouraged to stay in small, segmented groups and to continue monitoring for symptoms. — John Boyle

11:00 a.m.: Movie theaters, bars, museums and amusement parks in Indiana will be allowed to open Friday. The governor announced Wednesday that he’s moving up by two days the next stage of easing the state’s coronavirus restrictions. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb said a new state order will allow social gatherings of up to 250 people and retail stores and malls to operate at full capacity. Restaurants will be allowed 75% capacity, while bars, movie theaters and bowling alleys can open at half capacity. Public playgrounds can reopen Friday, but festivals and parades are still prohibited. — Associated Press

Wednesday, June 10

7:21 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 191 new cases of COVID-19 in the state Wednesday, bringing the Kentucky’s total to 11,883. Beshear said the number of new cases is still within the range that officials believe is under control. He also announced seven more coronavirus-related deaths, including three people from Logan County, all from long-term care settings. Beshear said on casual observation it seems like we’re now seeing more cases among people in their 50s and 60s.

2:44 p.m.: State health officials say 16 more people have died in Indiana with coronavirus infections, giving the state 2,355 deaths of those with confirmed or presumed infections since mid-March. Most of the newly recorded deaths happened Monday or Tuesday, but others happened as far back as May 24. The state health department said Wednesday an additional 339 COVID-19 infections have been confirmed across Indiana. That boosts the statewide total number of confirmed cases to 38,337 since the first was recorded in early March. —Associated Press

Tuesday, June 9

6:30 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear said businesses that have been allowed to open up with restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic will be able to have more customers later this month.

Restaurants, retail stores and barber shops have been allowed to be open since last month as long as they only have 33% of their occupational capacity. Starting June 20, retail will be able to have up to 50% capacity. The same goes for restaurants on June 22 and barber shops on June 25.

During his media briefing Tuesday, Beshear also announced that the state is moving forward with this year’s state fair, which takes place from August 20-30. He said that several social distancing restrictions will be in place. — Ryland Barton

Monday, June 8

3:16 p.m.: State health officials have reported an additional 14 coronavirus-related deaths in Indiana. Those newly recorded deaths increase the state’s toll from confirmed or presumed COVID-19 infections to 2,316 since the first one was reported in mid-March. The new deaths happened as far back as May 18. The state added 66 COVID-19 nursing home resident deaths in a weekly update posted Monday, giving the state 1,011 such deaths statewide. Those are 44% of Indiana’s total deaths. — Associated Press

Friday, June 5

5:00 p.m.: Gov. Beshear is not doing a coronvirus briefing today. The next scheduled briefing is Monday.

Thursday, June 4

4:57 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 295 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky on Thursday, bringing that state’s total to 10,705 cases. After a few recent days of increasing positive cases in the state, Beshear said it’s still too soon to say if Kentucky is seeing an uptick.

Eight more Kentuckians have died from COVID-related illnesses, which brings the state’s total to 458.

As the state moves forward with reopening more businesses, Beshear said he’s concerned with testing fatigue. He said businesses reopening should want employees to get tested regularly.

The governor also announced Thursday that casinos with historic racing machines, including Louisville’s Derby City Gaming, will be allowed to reopen on Monday.

4:33 p.m.: eTrueNorth, the health care company that has been providing COVID-19 testing at a Louisville Walmart , has cancelled this week’s scheduled testings.

“Over the past few days, eTrueNorth have limited testing hours due to circumstances at a limited number of specific sites across the country. There is still ample availability for COVID19 testing all at sites.” said eTrueNorth’s media contact Tom Wiser in an email. Wiser stated that individuals may reschedule their appointments for a different date.

The cancellations occur during the ongoing protests over the murder of Breonna Taylor and many other Black individuals across the nation. A WFPL reporter asked if the ongoing protests were a circumstance for cancellation. eTrueNorth has yet to comment. Since April 29th, eTrueNorth has provided testing at the Walmart on Bashford Manor Lane.

Erin Grant, a media contact for Kroger, said that they have not “had any interruptions” and “locations are running with no issue” at their Kroger COVID-19 testing sites. Louisville’s Kroger testing site was originally at Shawnee Park, but has since been moved to Southern High School.

As of June 3rd, over 250,000 Kentuckians have been tested and more than 10,000 of those tests have returned positive as reported on the Kentucky government’s COVID site.

According to their website, the Walmart testing location is scheduled to reopen Monday, June 8th to June 10th from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.. And on Sunday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. — Jewél Jackson

4:06 p.m.: The Indiana State Fair has been called off because of concerns over the coronavirus outbreak. The fair had been set for Aug. 7-23 and officials had held out hope of holding it at the Indianapolis fairgrounds as the governor has said he planned to lift most statewide coronavirus restrictions July 4. Fair officials said Thursday preparing for the event requires collaboration with hundreds of businesses and thousands of part-time workers and they couldn’t delay a decision any longer. The state fair drew nearly 879,000 visitors during last year’s 17-day run. — Associated Press

Wednesday, June 3

5:06 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear on Wednesday announced eight new deaths related to COVID-19, including a 48-year-old man without preexisting conditions, and a 9-month-old baby.

Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Public Health, said the infant’s exact cause of death is unknown but that they tested positive for COVID-19.

The 265 new cases are a reminder that “the virus is still out there and spreading,” Beshear said.

Still, the new data offered some cause for optimism. The number of Kentuckians in an ICU has declined sharply to 68 total. Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Public Health, suggested COVID infections are either plateauing or declining statewide.

Kentucky is also on pace for its most extensive week of testing. Beshear encouraged all Kentuckians to get tested, particularly protesters who have spent time in crowds.

Beshear also announced Humana has committed $11.5 million and 160,000 employee volunteer service hours to “advance healing, equity and a more united community.”

As of Wednesday, there have been a total of 10,410 positive coronavirus cases in Kentucky out of nearly 259,000 total tests. — Graham Ambrose

Tuesday, June 2

5:01 p.m. Gov. Andy Beshear announced 155 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky on Tuesday, bringing the case total to 10,185 statewide. Nearly three months after the commonwealth’s first reported case, 442 Kentuckians have died.

As protesters in Louisville and other cities take to the streets to condemn police brutality, some believe a second wave of cases is likely. Tuesday’s COVID numbers were lower than Monday’s, but Beshear said it remains too early to know if cases are declining.

The governor also pointed out the racial disparity in COVID deaths. Despite making up only 8% of the commonwealth population, Black Kentuckians represent about 17% of COVID deaths.

More than 253,000 COVID tests have been administered in Kentucky, with 2,307 total hospitalizations. As of Tuesday, 481 Kentuckians were hospitalized with the virus and 85 were in the ICU. — Graham Ambrose

Not seeing the graphic below? Click this link:

https://infogram.com/covid-19-6220-1hdw2jw5ek1x4l0?live

Saturday, May 30

6:33 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 247 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky on Saturday, the second consecutive day the state saw more than 200 new cases. On Friday, the governor announced 283 new cases.

In a news release, Beshear pointed to increased testing as the reason for the jump.

“We are reviewing today’s data to see if the pattern is continuing, which is largely a result of our expansive testing initiative in long-term care facilities,” he said.

The new numbers bring Kentucky’s total cases of COVID-19 to 9,704. Beshear also announced 13 new deaths, bringing the total number of Kentuckians lost to the virus to 431.

Friday, May 29

5:33 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 283 new cases of the coronavirus Friday evening, a significant single-day rise, and nine new deaths. Beshear cautioned against drawing any conclusions from the increase, saying the four-day average is 158 new cases, and that’s still a drop from where Kentucky was a couple weeks ago.

“I don’t want to suggest that it means something at this point either way,” Beshear said.

The state has now tested nearly 228,000 people. Cabinet for Health and Family Services Secretary Eric Friedlander praised the collaboration across health care and with public health departments, and said the state is aggressively testing at long-term care facilities, where 1,885 cases and 244 deaths from the coronavirus have been recorded. — Kate Howard

Thursday, May 28

6:49 p.m.: A glitch in the system at the Kentucky’s Office of Unemployment Insurance briefly made visible the personal information of those applying for unemployment. During the governor’s Thursday briefing on coronavirus, officials said they are not aware of anyone who has been affected by the data breach. Josh Benton with the Kentucky Office of Unemployment Insurance said that on April 23 the office of technology services learned of a glitch exposing the personal information of those who have filed for unemployment insurance in Kentucky. “So we have notified the major credit reporting agencies that this has happened and will be sending direct information to show who may have experienced this data breach,” Benton said. He said the system was not infiltrated by an outside party and the glitch was fixed the same day. Still, Gov. Andy Beshear said an inspector general will look into the issue because it took so long to notify the public. The office of unemployment will also move back under the labor department. “But I do want you to know that I’m not satisfied by the response. While there is no indication that anyone has been or will be financially harmed, I do believe it took way too long to provide public notice. This was back in April,” Beshear said. The governor announced 113 new cases of COVID-19 in Kentucky Thursday, bringing the statewide total to 9,184. At least 409 Kentuckians have died from the illness. — Ryan Van Velzer 3:00 p.m.: State health officials say 37 more Hoosiers have died from COVID-19 while another 646 people have been diagnosed with the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. The 37 additional confirmed deaths reported Thursday by the Indiana State Department of Health occurred between April 29 and Thursday, but most of them occurred Wednesday and Thursday. Those new deaths bring the number of Hoosiers confirmed to have died from COVID-19 to 1,907. Another 161 people have died from probable infections of COVID-19, raising Indiana’s confirmed or presumed deaths to 2,068 since the state recorded its first death on March 15. — The Associated Press 9:00 a.m.: As some businesses in the Ohio Valley reopen and welcome back both customers and employees the region continues reporting high levels of unemployment claims. At least 100,863 people in Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia joined those seeking help during the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia are making progress on unemployment claims filed in March as states begin a phased-in reopening. The data released Thursday morning by the U.S. Department of Labor showing about 2.1 million unemployment claims around the country for the week ending May 23, bringing the country’s total jobless applicants to about 40 million since mid-March. Labor Department figures show Kentucky with 53,738 claims; Ohio with 42,363; and West Virginia with 4,762. These unemployment claims come as the three states are reopening their economies. The data reported to the U.S. Department of Labor only accounts for unemployment assistance that has been processed. — Becca Schimmel

Wednesday, May 27

6:43 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear says the latest numbers on the coronavirus in Kentucky indicate the state is on a downward trend.

“Our numbers continue to suggest that we are no longer on a plateau but on a decline,” Beshear said.

Beshear reported 127 new cases of Covid-19 and six new deaths. In total, 400 people have died from the virus in Kentucky and more than 3,100 have recovered.

The state has so far performed more than 200,000 tests including nearly 19,000 serology tests. Beshear said that state has surpassed the stage in which testing was only reserved for people showing symptoms of the virus. The new challenge, he said, is encouraging people to sign up.

2:20 p.m.: State health officials say 21 more Hoosiers have died from COVID-19 while another 370 people have been diagnosed with the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. The 18 additional confirmed deaths reported Wednesday by the Indiana State Department of Health occurred between May 20 and Tuesday, bringing the number of Hoosiers confirmed to have died from COVID-19 to 1,871. Another 159 people have died from probable infections of COVID-19, raising Indiana’s confirmed or presumed deaths to 2,030 since the state recorded its first death on March 15. Indianapolis’ mayor announced Wednesday that the state capital would begin lifting more of its coronavirus restrictions starting Friday. — The Associated Press

8:00 a.m.: Kentucky has the ninth highest incarceration rate in the country, according to a 2018 report from the Prison Policy Initiative. Kentucky’s prisons are so overcrowded that many state prisoners are housed in seriously overcrowded local jails. The coronavirus presents a threat that has already proven deadly: Three inmates have died after catching the coronavirus at Green River.

Before those deaths, just 16 of more than 900 inmates were released after commutations, according to data released by the state. Here’s more.

Tuesday, May 26

6:35 p.m.: More than 50 people tested positive for COVID-19 at a long-term care facility in Louisville over Memorial Day weekend.

Thirty-nine residents and 20 staff tested positive for the virus at the Nazareth Home Clifton in Louisville, said Eric Friedlander, Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services secretary.

“Yesterday, along with Louisville EMS, we were able to transfer those residents effectively into the hospital and stabilize that facility,” he said.

Even as cases begin to decline across the state, nursing homes and longer-term care facilities will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future, Friedlander said. In total, more than 11,000 staff and residents have been tested in long-term care facilities across the state.

“We’re going to see this probably again in Kentucky, and we will have plans in place, and we will respond aggressively, and that is what we do,” he said.

12:11 p.m.: Indiana reports 18 new deaths from Covid-19, bringing the death toll to 1,850. There have been 32,078 diagnosed cases of Covid-19 in the state.

Monday, May 25

1:00 p.m.: State health officials say 354 more Indiana residents have been diagnosed with COVID-19, and an additional eight people have died from the disease. The Indiana State Department of Health reported Monday the total number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus is now 31,715, after corrections to Sunday’s total. A total of 1,832 Indiana residents have died. A total of 226,251 tests have been reported to the state health department to date, with a positive test rate of 14%. That includes testing conducted by the state, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and private laboratories. — The Associated Press

Sunday, May 24

4:05 p.m.: Jefferson County saw 17 new cases of the coronavirus today, bringing the total to 2,266. Mayor Greg Fischer also announced two new deaths: a 67-year-old female and a 66-year-old male. At least 147 people from Jefferson County have now died after contracting COVID-19.

12:15 p.m.: Yesterday, a group of women with ties to Kentucky’s Green River Correctional Complex gathered outside the governor’s mansion to push for more releases during the pandemic.

As of May 22, 357 inmates and 50 staff members have tested positive for the coronavirus at Green River. Three men have died. Read more here.

Saturday, May 23

6:26 p.m.: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear says there are 148 new cases of COVID-19 in the commonwealth, but no new deaths to report on Saturday. That brings the total number of confirmed cases to 8,571 and 291 deaths.

Beshear has paused his daily coronavirus briefings over the Memorial Day weekend. In a press release, he reminded Kentuckians to not relax their guard for the holiday.

“I am urging Kentuckians to please be safe this weekend,” Gov. Beshear said in the release. “As we recover, we are depending on Kentuckians to take the steps necessary to protect one another this weekend and every day and weekend moving forward.”

1:00 p.m.: Health officials say another 513 Indiana residents have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, bringing the state’s total to more than 30,900. The Indiana State Department of Health also said Saturday that deaths attributed to the disease have risen by 21 to 1,812. Another 152 probable deaths have been reported based on clinical diagnoses in patients for whom no positive test is on record. Officials say more than 214,930 tests have been reported to the health department. That’s up from 208,561 reported Friday. — The Associated Press

11:51 a.m.: Wondering how many cases of COVID-19 and related deaths have been reported in your Kentucky county? We’re continuing to update our Local COVID-19 Tracker, which brings you county-level coronavirus data that are both timely and easy to understand.

The tracker allows you to select your county and view the most recent COVID-19 related cases and deaths, as well as information about vulnerable populations in your county. Check it out here.

Friday, May 22

6:12 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear says Kentucky is seeing a decline of new coronavirus cases, a key metric he has said would be used to determine how much the virus is spreading and whether businesses can reopen during the pandemic.

“We now think we have not just plateaued, but we are in a decline in overall number of cases, especially when you look at the amount of testing we’re doing” Beshear said during his daily press conference on Friday.

“And that is really good.”

There were 141 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Kentucky on Friday, for a total of 8,426.

It’s hard to determine a decline from the raw number of new cases reported each day by state officials. Looking back over the last week, there were 122 new cases reported on Sunday, 138 on Monday, 164 on Tuesday, 166 on Wednesday, and 135 on Thursday. There were 252 last Friday.

Beshear has attributed recent spikes of new cases to a ramp up in testing across the state and thorough testing of high risk areas like nursing homes and prisons.

Also on Friday, Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams unveiled the website where Kentuckians can request mail-in absentee ballots for the June 23rd primary elections. Voters can request a ballot or register to vote at GoVoteKy.com.

The deadline to register is May 26 at 4:00; the deadline to request a ballot is June 15 at midnight.

3:40 p.m.: Indiana heath officials have added the deaths of 28 more people with confirmed or presumed coronavirus infections to the state’s toll from the pandemic. Those additional deaths, most of which occurred Wednesday or Thursday, give the state an overall total of 1,941 confirmed or presumed COVID-19 fatalities since Indiana’s first was recorded March 15. Meanwhile, Indiana’s unemployment rate hit 16.9% for April with more than five times as many people jobless than before widespread business closures started with the coronavirus outbreak. The Indiana jobless rate announced Friday was higher than the 14.7% national rate. Officials report about 546,000 people unemployed in Indiana. — The Associated Press

Thursday, May 21

6:51 p.m.: The state has released safety guidance for Kentucky daycares to reopen next month. According to the guidance, in-home child care programs can resume June 8 and licensed child care centers on June 15. Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services Eric Friedlander spoke on the issue during the governor’s Thursday briefing. He said child care has been a much-talked about issue because it’s “one of those areas that we know is critical to opening the economy, critical to parents, has been critical to our essential workers.” Guidance requirements include staggered playground time, no family events or field trips, limiting groups of children to 10 or fewer, and a centralized drop-off and pick-up location. Everyone is required to wear a mask except kids 5 and under. “That’s always a balance between protecting ourselves, our families and being able to go back and be healthy at work,” Friedlander said. The secretary also said the state has issued nearly $62 million to daycares around the state since March to ensure that facilities survive this crisis. He also spoke about a new benefit for families to make sure that “children don’t go hungry.” The Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer, or P-EBT, is a federal food assistance program for kids who would have received free or reduced lunch in school. Friedlander said those already receiving benefits like SNAP should see the funds automatically added to their cards. He said “some folks who get free or reduced meals” can also apply. “When you apply for these benefits, it’s not just you as the individual that benefits,” he said. “It’s your grocers, it’s your local businesses, it’s the entire food system in Kentucky that benefits.” Gov. Andy Beshear reported another 135 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky. The state’s new total is 8,286. He said another 10 Kentuckians have died from COVID-19. — Stephanie Wolf 12:42 p.m. The U.S. Department of Labor reported close to 99,000 additional unemployment insurance claims in the last week from Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia, as state unemployment offices worked their way through a backlog of millions of claims filed since the coronavirus pandemic forced business closures beginning in March. For the week ending May 16, Kentucky reported 47,036 claims, Ohio had 46,494, and West Virginia reported 4,853. Nearly 2.5 million people have filed unemployment insurance claims in the three states since mid-March. Nationally, the Labor Dept. reported 2.4 million unemployment claims for the week, bringing the total of jobless Americans seeking help to a staggering 38.6 million over the last nine weeks. — Jeff Young

Wednesday, May 20

6:31 p.m.: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced $300 million in CARES Act funding for city and county governments that will go out starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday.

During his Wednesday briefing, he said the money will reimburse local governments for expenses they accrued from the pandemic. Eligible expenses include personal protective equipment purchased for health and safety workers, materials used for disinfecting, payroll costs and necessary measures taken to allow public employees to telework during the crisis.

“You do not have the success we’ve had against COVID-19 without strong local leaders and the expenses that they put into it,” Beshear said.

The Department for Local Government will administer the funds through an application process.

“We hope that this is just an initial amount that we’ll be providing to these local governments,” he added.

Beshear expressed hope that Congress will swiftly pass another relief package. “Every city and county will tell you, without additional CARES Act funding to help them out, our recession will be deeper and there will be very serious cuts,” he said, adding that would impact public employees across the state and services that governments provide. “We need Congress to do this. The longer we wait, the more harmful it can be.”

He said he didn’t yet have an exact number of what Kentucky would need in terms of another round of federal aid.

The governor reported 166 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky. The state is now at 8,167, which includes 108 probable cases. Beshear said another 10 Kentuckians have died from the virus.

12:45 p.m.: Retailers can open at limited capacity in Kentucky today, and even though museums can’t officially open until June 8, many museum gift shops are open for business. Here’s more.

9:00 a.m.: The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting spoke to business leaders and elected officials who helped shape Beshear’s reopening policies, and economic and public health experts about how they’re likely to play out. And we interviewed workers and business owners from across the state that are most affected by these plans.

Regardless of what ultimately influenced Beshear to begin a phased reopening, the decision took place amid a confluence of economic worry, social distancing exhaustion and political pressure. Here’s more.

Tuesday, May 19

7:55 p.m.: The confirmed count of COVID-19 cases in Louisville is now 2,067, with 58 new cases reported today. With an additional three fatalities, the city’s death toll related to the disease is 132.

7:02 p.m.: Indiana health officials say the state has now had 1,678 people die with confirmed coronavirus infections since the state’s first death was recorded just over two months ago.

Most of Indiana’s 57 new confirmed COVID-19 deaths occurred between Friday and Monday. The other deaths date back as far as April 17. Two occurred on April 22, making it the state’s deadliest coronavirus day with 50 fatalities. —Associated Press

6:54 p.m.: The Belmont Stakes will be run June 20 in New York in front of no fans as the first leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown. This is the first year the Belmont will take place before the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. The new Belmont date was unveiled Tuesday by the New York Racing Association.

Because of the coronavirus, the Derby was moved to Sept. 5 and the Preakness to Oct. 3.

The rescheduled Belmont will be contested at a shorter distance — a mile and an eighth –instead of the race’s trademark mile and a half that has been in place since 1926.

Officials say the change was made because of the new Triple Crown schedule and to accommodate the training calendar for three-year old thoroughbreds. —Associated Press

6:37 p.m.: Kentucky museums, outdoor attractions, aquariums, libraries and distilleries will be allowed to reopen starting June 8, Gov. Andy Beshear announced during his Tuesday briefing. He said they’re still working out specific guidance for these industries, but “this gives these businesses some advance notice.”

Like retail and restaurants, which have reopening dates this week, businesses will have to operate at 33% capacity and individual groups must be 10 or less. Beshear said he hopes to see the Louisville Zoo reopen this summer as well, but his administration hasn’t spoken to any zoo officials yet.

As more of the state’s economy starts to reopen, the governor issued a reminder of some of the key safety measures, like mask wearing, enforced social distancing, frequent sanitation, and temperature and health checks.

“You can object to a mask on your own personal health, but it’s… going to impact other people’s health,” he said. “So it’s more about your willingness to protect other people if you’re wearing or not wearing one. [And] temperature checks are one that are so important, because shame on us if we miss that blatant sign that somebody might be infecting other people.”

And in light of the upcoming holiday weekend and an easing of gathering restrictions that will allow groups of up to 10, Beshear asked people to be cautious.

“This is our first chance to get together with people we have missed,” he said. “We want to reopen our economy. We want to get things humming again in a safe way. This weekend, we can’t screw it up.”

The governor reported 164 new cases. He said 90 of those are probable. The state’s total is now at 8,069. Beshear announced 20 new deaths. —Stephanie Wolf

Monday, May 18

6:38 p.m.: Kentucky is getting ready to ramp up its contact tracing efforts, Gov. Andy Beshear announced during his Monday briefing.

Beshear said they’ll use CARE Act funding, over a seven-month period, to expand contact tracing capacity for the state.

“This isn’t just me,” he said. “This is the president too. This is Democrats and Republicans, federal government, state government. This is public health experts saying this is what’s got to happen for us to have a safe reopening and to restart our economy without pausing it.”

State officials expect to hire 700 additional people to help with contact tracing, and training will happen this week and next. Between contact tracing and testing, Beshear expects to spend more than $100 million of CARES Act money.

State officials are looking into any privacy concerns around this issue, from technology to HIPAA, especially since contact tracing “doesn’t work without you buying in, without your voluntary commitment,” the governor said.

“Tracing isn’t effective without robust testing,” Beshear added, claiming that the state is at that point now. “We have the ability for everyone who wants to get tested to get tested.” He also asked people to get retested and to get tested even if you don’t have symptoms.

“To reduce the spread, we need to find those asymptomatic people,” he said.

Here’s a list of where you can get tested in Kentucky.

Beshear said 122 new cases were reported on Sunday and 138 on Monday, bringing the state’s total to 7,935. Over the two days, there were 12 new deaths, all in Jefferson County.

4:48 p.m.: Louisville has crossed 2,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 74 new cases announced today by Mayor Greg Fischer. He said 1,244 of the 2,009 people known to have the virus have recovered. The death toll in Louisville is 129, which is unchanged since yesterday despite the addition of one fatality today. That is because officials removed one duplicate, Fischer said. —Amina Elahi

12:49 p.m.: State health officials say another 14 Indiana residents have died from coronavirus illnesses, pushing the state’s death toll from confirmed or presumed cases of COVID-19 closer to 1,800. Statistics released Monday by the Indiana State Department of Health show that all but one of Indiana’s 14 new confirmed COVID-19 deaths occurred on Saturday and Sunday, boosting the state’s confirmed pandemic deaths to 1,621. The state agency’s statistics show that another 144 Hoosiers have died from probable infections of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the virus. That raises Indiana’s confirmed or presumed COVID-19 deaths to 1,765. Indiana now has more than 28,000 coronavirus cases. — The Associated Press

Sunday, May 17

4:38 p.m.: Louisville has confirmed 71 new COVID-19 cases this weekend, according to tweets from Mayor Greg Fischer. The total number of confirmed cases to date is 1,935. Since Friday, the city has lost three more people confirmed to have the disease, bringing the death toll to 129. About 63 percent of Louisville residents known to have contracted the coronavirus have recovered. –Amina Elahi

12:18 p.m.: Indiana has reported 11 new deaths from COVID-19. The death toll stands at 1,607.

9:28 a.m.: Good morning. Gov. Beshear is not holding a briefing today. As a result, we are not expecting any updated coronavirus numbers for Kentucky.

Saturday, May 16

6:30 p.m.: In a video statement, Governor Andy Beshear announced that there are 244 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky. He says many of the cases are in Jefferson County and are linked to outbreaks at JBS pork processing plant and Maryhurst.

Maryhurst is a residential facility for girls who have been placed in foster care by the state due to abuse or neglect. The Courier Journal reports 14 staff members at Maryhurst and 11 residents have tested positive for the virus.

The governor said there have now been at least 129,405 tests performed in the state, but the number is likely higher because many labs don’t report their numbers on Saturdays.

Friday, May 15

6:30 p.m.: Governor Andy Beshear has added to the list of businesses that can reopen on June 1, with safety measures in place. Beshear says aquatic centers can reopen that day, but that only includes exercise pools – not public pools where children and families would congregate.

Most state parks will also reopen on the first of June, but that does not include playgrounds and pools within those parks. Movie theaters and bowling alleys can open that day, too, and fishing tournaments and auto dirt racing can resume.

The governor announced 252 new cases across the commonwealth, and 4 additional deaths. He said many of the new cases, and two of the deaths, are tied to the Federal Medical Center – a federal prison in Lexington.

The state’s total is now 7,444 positive cases. –Laura Ellis

1:00 p.m.: State health officials say 42 more Indiana residents have died from coronavirus illnesses, pushing the state’s pandemic death toll from confirmed or presumed cases of COVID-19 to nearly 1,700. The Indiana State Department of Health reported Friday that Indiana has now recorded 1,550 confirmed deaths from the respiratory disease caused by the virus. Indiana has also seen 141 deaths considered coronavirus-related by doctors but without confirmation of the illness from test results. Together, those deaths boost Indiana’s confirmed and probable deaths from the virus to 1,691 statewide. The state agency also reported Friday that 26,655 Hoosiers have now been diagnosed with COVID-19. — The Associated Press

Thursday, May 14

6:33 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear is moving up the date that people will be allowed to travel and gather in groups of 10 or fewer, to accommodate the Memorial Day weekend. The governor originally planned to lift his travel ban and allow for groups of up to 10 people to gather on Memorial Day, May 25. But he’s decided to lift the restrictions on Friday, May 22, instead.

“I’ve got to live in the real world like everyone else,” Beshear said during his daily press briefing Thursday. “I understand what people are going to want to do, and my job is to get the best results.”

The governor has released new guidelines for gathering in small groups. He’s asking people who come together to use social distancing, wear masks when within 6 feet of each other, and not share food or beverages.

Later in the briefing, the governor announced 199 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Kentucky, and two more deaths. A total of 328 Kentuckians have died of the disease. 7,225 people have been infected. –Jess Clark

4:29 p.m.: A statewide study by Indiana University researchers estimates that at least 2.8% of Indiana’s population has been infected by the coronavirus, a rate about 10 times that shown by previous testing. The testing of about 4,600 people at random around the state found 1.7% were infected at the time of the test and 1.1% tested positive for antibodies showing they were previously exposed. The findings estimate that Indiana has seen a 0.58% fatality rate among those infected. A professor who led the study says that rate is almost six times greater than the fatality rate for season flu. –The Associated Press

Wednesday, May 13

6:40 p.m.: The 10-year-old who has been hospitalized with a rare COVID-related pediatric condition has recovered enough to be taken off a ventilator, according to Gov. Andy Beshear.

“That is just a really good step,” Beshear said during his daily briefing Wednesday.

The 10-year-old is one of two Kentucky children who have been diagnosed with a rare but serious inflammatory condition caused by the coronavirus. A 16-year-old is also in the hospital with the condition.

The governor and health officials also expressed concern about a coronavirus hotspot emerging in Bowling Green. Kentucky public health commissioner Steven Stack said 708 people in the city have tested positive, the second-highest number of any city in the state, after Louisville.

Statewide, Kentucky saw 277 new cases Wednesday, bringing the state’s total confirmed positive cases to 7,080. More than 117,000 people have been tested. Five more Kentuckians have died of the disease. The state’s death toll from COVID-19 is 326 people. –Jess Clark

5:34 p.m.: Louisville has 11 new confirmed cases of coronavirus, with the city now totaling 1,788 cases, Mayor Greg Fischer announced during his Wednesday briefing. That shows fewer total cases than reported yesterday.

“After reviewing some of yesterday’s data, our team discovered some duplicates and other reporting errors,” Fischer said. “So we apologize for that… but we’re getting information from a lot of different sources.” Fischer also reported one new death, an 83-year-old woman. There have been 124 deaths from COVID-19 in Louisville so far.

For much of the briefing, the mayor spoke about the city’s budgeting challenges due to the pandemic. He said with reduced payroll taxes, a primary source of revenue for the city, “in less than three months, our city’s budget has dramatically changed, from anticipating a $19 million surplus, and then the virus struck.”

He said they’re now facing an approximate $27 million deficit by the end of June, and that will set things up to get only worse for the next fiscal year.

The city’s chief health strategist, Sarah Moyer, answered questions about a coronavirus-related inflammatory disease showing up in children. She said they’re monitoring it closely.

“It’s still very rare,” Moyer said. “But it is happening.” She said this does show that the threat of the virus is still very real and “we have new complications popping up everyday.” She added that if a child’s fever lasts more than three days, to reach out to a doctor. Moyer also said that they’ve extended the deadline for their contract tracer request for proposals to Friday due to “a lot of interest.” The city started with about nine tracers and has grown to a team of roughly 55, she said. –Stephanie Wolf

9:45 a.m.: A Louisville landlord that charged a tenant late fees after she failed to pay rent in April is being sued in Jefferson Circuit Court.

The Kentucky Equal Justice Center filed the suit this week, alleging Summerfield Realty LLC engaged in unfair, false, misleading and deceptive practices after charging a $91 late fee onto the account of Katrice Gill and threatening Gill with eviction.

Gill, in an interview with KyCIR last month, said she was unable to pay her rent due to the pandemic.

Read the story here.

Tuesday, May 12

6:36 p.m.: A second child has been hospitalized in Kentucky with a rare coronarvirus-related inflammatory disease, according to Gov. Andy Beshear.

Beshear said Tuesday during his daily briefing that the patient is 16 years old, and has been hospitalized out of an abundance of caution. The first Kentucky child to be diagnosed with the syndrome is a 10-year-old who is still in critical condition on a ventilator.

“For these individuals that have this, this is very dangerous and life-threatening,” Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Steven Stack said.

Stack said the condition has symptoms similar to Kawasaki Syndrome, and causes inflammation throughout the body. Patients can have cardiovascular and respiratory collapse. Stack said children who come down with the disease do not always have respiratory symptoms initially, but instead might have rash, fever, fatigue, aches and watery eyes.

Beshear announced 191 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in Kentucky, for a total of 6,853 cases. Ten more Kentuckians have died from coronavirus, bringing the state’s death toll to 321 people.

Beshear said the number of cases confirmed remains relatively steady, despite an increase in testing capacity. The state has now tested more than 110,000 people. –Jess Clark

12:18 p.m.: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. made news this morning when he declared that outside of New England, “we never really reached any sort of pandemic levels in Kentucky and other states.” He lit up social media when he addressed Dr. Anthony Fauci directly and seemed to imply that Fauci was overstepping his role. Sen. Paul made his comments when the Senate Health Committee heard from Dr. Fauci, Dr. Robert Redfield and other members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. — staff

Rand Paul: "Dr. Fauci, I don't think you're the end-all, I don't think you're the one person that gets to make a decision…" Dr. Fauci: "Sen. Paul, I have never made myself out to be the end-all & only voice of this. I'm a scientist, a physician, and a public health official." pic.twitter.com/kp28BusfUL — The Hill (@thehill) May 12, 2020

Monday, May 11

6:24 p.m.: A ten year old from Kentucky is in critical condition and on a ventilator due to a newly-identified inflammatory condition related to COVID-19.

State officials say the rare syndrome causes the immune system to be hyperactive and creates an extensive inflammatory response.

Kentucky Public Health Commissioner Steven Stack said the syndrome can manifest in children’s digestive systems or respiratory systems, but there is still little known about it.

“This disease is still out there. Though we’ve had great success in blunting its worst impact at large across the state, it’s still out there and it’s still a danger,” Stack said.

Similar cases of the condition affecting children have been reported in Louisiana, Mississippi and New York.

There were 105 new coronavirus cases in Kentucky on Monday. Gov. Andy Beshear says the total is artificially low due to a lack of reporting from labs over the weekend and that the state will “catch back up” by Wednesday.

There were 4 four more coronavirus-related deaths on Monday, for a total of 311. –Ryland Barton

5:16 p.m.: Louisville has confirmed 1,675 cases of COVID-19, up from 1,398 on May 1, Mayor Greg Fischer said. There were 27 new cases confirmed today, as well as one additional death, a 72-year-old female. There have been 119 deaths related to COVID-19 in Louisville to date, according to city figures. Overall, 1,012 people have recovered, a rate of about 60 percent.

With some non-essential businesses starting to reopen, Fischer said business owners and employees need to follow the Healthy at Work guidelines laid out by the Beshear administration, which include enforcing social distancing, cleaning and disinfecting and using personal protective equipment such as face masks. He said people concerned that businesses aren’t following these guidelines may report non-compliance to 311.

1:03 p.m.: In Indiana, the number of confirmed deaths from COVID-19 now stands at 1,411. The total number of coronavirus cases in Indiana is 24,627, according to the Indiana State Department of Health. — Amina Elahi

Sunday, May 10

4:55 p.m.: It’s a quiet Sunday morning in Bullitt County. Most church parking lots sit empty on this Mother’s Day morning, their services moved online due to coronavirus. But the sanctuary at Maryville Baptist Church in Hillview is filling up with people ahead of the 11 a.m. service.

Maryville Baptist Church never stopped meeting in person, despite Gov. Andy Beshear’s March 19 executive order prohibiting mass gatherings. But this week, their Sunday service won’t be against the law.

On Friday, a judge issued a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit filed by the Hillview church. The order allowed the church, and all religious services in Kentucky, to start meeting legally, and immediately.

Maryville Pastor Jack Roberts is glad to have this legal victory. But he didn’t mind meeting in violation of the law.

“It’s never proper to follow laws that are illegal,” said Roberts. “And basically, that’s what was going on.”

Read more from Maryville and other churches as they responded to the opportunity to meet in person.

Saturday, May 9

7:00 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear is warning religious leaders not to rush into restarting in-person worship services, after two federal judges blocked the governor’s orders preventing congregations from gathering.

“People, take your time,” Beshear said. “You don’t want your house of worship to be a place where the coronavirus has spread.”

The governor said Friday that churches could open on May 20, if they followed strict social distancing guidelines and cleaning procedures. In light of the ruling, Beshear said he’s making that guidance effective beginning today.

Beshear also announced that beginning Wednesday, May 13, hospitals will be allowed to start admitting one visitor per patient.

Meanwhile health officials say they’ve finished testing the entire workforce at the Perdue chicken plant in Ohio County, after an outbreak. Kentucky’s public health commissioner Steven Stack said the test-positive rate for the plant was about 7.8%.

According to Beshear, the state had 158 new cases of COVID-19 Saturday, for a total of 6,440 confirmed cases. More than 2,300 have recovered. Six more Kentuckians have died, bringing the death toll to 304. — Jess Clark

9:08 a.m.: Churches all around the commonwealth will be allowed to hold in-person services on Sunday, after two federal rulings issued Friday.

U.S. District Judge Greg Van Tatenhove granted a temporary restraining order to Tabernacle Baptist Church in Nicholasville. The church was seeking to block Gov. Andy Beshear’s order barring in-person services to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, which was set to lift on May 20.

In a separate ruling, U.S. District Judge David Hale granted an appeal from Maryville Baptist Church in Louisville, which he had previously denied. Both churches claimed Beshear’s order violates the church’s right to freedom of religion under the First Amendment.

In a statement, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron praised the rulings.

“I encourage all houses of worship to prayerfully and carefully consider when it is the right time to resume in-person services consistent with health guidelines,” he wrote. “Although these rulings protect the religious liberty of Kentuckians, we must continue to do our part to protect the health of our fellow citizens by reopening carefully.”

Attorneys for the state argued that Beshear’s order is not discriminatory because it extends to other, non-religious gatherings.

Friday, May 8

6:00 p.m.: Officials say they will test 100 percent of residents and staff in the roughly 300 nursing homes across Kentucky as the state tries to ramp up testing during the coronavirus pandemic.

Though Kentucky has banned visits at nursing homes since March 10, but the virus has spread in several of the state’s 286 long-term care facilities. The elderly are especially vulnerable to the virus.

Eric Friedlander, secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said that the state has already tested about 10% of residents and that it would likely take two months to test everyone.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced 176 new coronavirus cases in Kentucky on Friday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 6,288. Four more people died, for a total of 298. — Ryland Barton



1 p.m.: State health officials say an additional 152 Hoosiers are confirmed or presumed to have died from the coronavirus, pushing Indiana’s death toll to more than 1,500. The Indiana State Department of Health announced Friday that a total of 1,328 Hoosiers have been confirmed to have died from COVID-19 _ 33 more than on Thursday, Another 119 probable deaths also have been reported. Testing shows 675 additional Hoosiers have been diagnosed with COVID-19, bringing to more than 23,000 the total number of Indiana residents known to have the disease. — Associated Press

Thursday, May 7

8:54 p.m: Louisville had 40 additional confirmed cases of coronavirus Thursday, which brought the city’s total to 1,553, according to a news release from Mayor Greg Fischer’s office. It said 906 people had recovered, or about 58%. Fischer’s office also announced five deaths confirmed to be related to COVID-19. After no new deaths yesterday, the total is 108. — Amina Elahi

6:02 p.m.: Kentucky restaurants will be able to open at one-third capacity starting May 22 as part of a new schedule of business reopenings announced by Gov. Andy Beshear.

Movie theaters and gyms will be able to open on June 1, campgrounds on June 11, childcare facilities and youth sports on June 15, and on July 1 bars will be allowed to open and groups of 50 can meet.

Beshear said businesses will have to meet social distancing, sanitary and personal protective equipment requirements in order to open and that people need to be ready to stop the rollout if the virus spikes.

“Any peak we see, any cause of major concern, we are all going to have to be willing to pause,” Beshear said.

Kentucky hasn’t seen a 14-day decline in cases and doesn’t yet have the high rate of testing officials say should happen before reopening. But Beshear said he’s moving forward because citizens and businesses are ready to follow safety requirements and the state is in the process of ramping up testing.

Beshear announced that the state is partnering with First Care Clinics, which has 13 urgent care centers across the state, to conduct 10,000 drive thru tests per week. He said that would bring the state’s weekly testing capacity to 40,000. Beshear said everyone should get tested.

“You’re wondering if it might be allergies? Go get a test. You’re just worried about your family because you’re going back to work? Get a test,” Beshear said. — Ryland Barton

1:22 p.m.: Indiana health officials have added 31 confirmed and six presumed coronavirus-related fatalities to the state’s death toll, putting the state over 1,400 fatalities. Most of the newly reported COVID-19 deaths occurred Tuesday or Wednesday, but one dated to April 21. The state statistics list 1,295 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, along with 119 probable deaths. — The Associated Press

Wednesday, May 6

7:00p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear has revised his ban on traveling to Kentucky during the coronavirus pandemic after a judge temporarily blocked it earlier this week.

Beshear’s new order still requires people to quarantine for 14 days when they come to Kentucky unless traveling for work, visiting a doctor, getting groceries and other exceptions. But the new order adds a new exception for people traveling as part of their normal lives living in one state and working in another.

Beshear said the new order aligns with travel restrictions imposed in Ohio, which have been upheld by courts.

“What we have to make sure right now, with this virus not being gone, is somebody cannot travel from one of the hotspots — Philadelphia, Boston, or others right now — coming into an area and continuing to spread infections,” he said. “It’s the same reasons as before, we’re doing a lot better inside Kentucky.” Here’s more.

5:39 p.m.: With 37 new cases Wednesday, Louisville has now crossed 1,500 positive COVID-19 tests since the outbreak began in early March, Mayor Greg Fischer said. He cautioned that if testing were more widespread, the number would likely be higher. The city’s recovery rate remains at a bit over half, and with no new deaths reported, the number of Louisville residents lost related to the disease is still 108.

He continued to express concern about what he called “non-alignment” between Kentucky and Indiana as they reopen their economies at different rates. Fischer said he spoke with Ind. Gov. Eric Holcomb this morning and made a case for a regional approach to reopening, particularly for metro areas. Holcomb said he has no problem with metros coming up with an economic plan different than the state’s, according to Fischer. Sarah Moyer, Louisville’s chief health strategist, took issue with Indiana’s plan to allow in-person gatherings of up to 25 people soon.

“Quite frankly, that really scares me,” she said. She encouraged Louisville residents to continue social distancing, and Fischer said residents should not travel to Indiana other than for essential trips.

Fischer also said testing would increase at Metro Corrections this week due to an increase in corrections officers contracting coronavirus. As of Wednesday, 17 had tested positive, seven were awaiting results and 31 were in self-quarantine due to potential exposure. So far, no inmates have tested positive. He said 200 employees and inmates have been tested to date, and the city plans to test another 200 symptomatic and asymptomatic inmates and staff this week. —Amina Elahi

2:16 pm.: Indiana health officials have added 51 coronavirus deaths to the state’s death toll, raising it 1,264. Most of the newly reported COVID-19 deaths occurred Monday or Tuesday, but one dated to April 20. Travel and business restrictions eased Monday across most of the state under a new order from Gov. Eric Holcomb. He has cited a stabilization in the number of coronavirus patients being treated in intensive care units for allowing gradual lifting of those restrictions. Indianapolis officials said Wednesday the city’s tougher stay-at-home order will remain in place at least through next week. — The Associated Press

8:00 a.m.: What does one “normal” day look like in Louisville amid the pandemic? We sent reporters all over on April 22 to capture one day — one unremarkable remarkable day — of our lives. Here’s what we found.

Tuesday, May 5

5:44 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear says that almost 400 people have tested positive for COVID-19 at Green River Correctional Complex, a state prison in Central City.

Beshear said that the state tested more than 1,000 people, including inmates, staff and others that have come into the facility, and about 40 percent of the results came back positive for the virus.

“This is a concerning situation at that facility,” Beshear said.

Kentucky reported a large jump in coronavirus cases on Tuesday — 625, the state’s highest daily total. Beshear said attributed the spike to extensive testing at Green River and a lag in reporting from the weekend.

309 of the new cases were from Green River. Two staff and two inmates are currently in the hospital, with one staff and one inmate in the ICU.

Executive Cabinet Secretary J. Michael Brown said that the state almost has a complete snapshot of who has the virus at the facility.

“Then we can really follow out this plan to try to contain it where it is,” Brown said.

The state plans to divide the prison population into different buildings based on whether people have tested for coronavirus, tested negative, come in contact with a positive case or are considered to be vulnerable. —Ryland Barton

5:05 p.m.: Louisville is approaching 1,500 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 55 new cases announced today by Mayor Greg Fischer in a tweet. He said an additional six people had died, including a 35-year-old male. The other five victims ranged in age from 72 to over 90. Louisville has now lost 108 residents to the disease. As of today, 831 of the 1,476 people confirmed to have contracted coronavirus have recovered. —Amina Elahi

4:11 p.m.: The Jefferson County Attorney’s office is furloughing nearly half of its 99 employees funded by Louisville Metro, a spokesman said Tuesday.

There are about 325 total County Attorney employees. Louisville is facing a revenue shortfall of about $46 million for the fiscal year ending June 30 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Court services are also limited throughout the state.

“Now that we have withstood the initial wave of the pandemic and the legal needs brought on by it, I thought it was important that my office take these proactive steps,” County Attorney Mike O’Connell said, according to a press release. “We expect the court system to be overloaded once things begin to reopen, so this is my office’s chance now to do its part for Louisville Metro.”

Ten employees started their furlough period, which will go through at least May 31, yesterday. Another 37 will each take a one-week furlough before the end of the fiscal year. Overall, this affects 39 full-time and 8 part-time employees, spokesman Josh Abner said in an email.

“For the one-week furloughs, our office scheduled the furloughs so that when one assistant county attorney is out of the office a colleague will cover the work of the attorney on furlough,” he said.

The County Attorney’s office has provided certain pandemic-specific services over the past several weeks, including seeking and enforcing quarantine orders for those with COVID-19 who have tested positive and refused to voluntarily isolate. —Amina Elahi

1:30 p.m.: Indiana’s number of confirmed or probable coronavirus-related deaths has jumped to over 1,300 as state health officials have added 62 fatalities to that toll. Most of the newly confirmed deaths announced Tuesday happened between Friday and Monday, but others date back as far as March 31. The new state statistics show that at least 1,004 people died during April with COVID-19 infections — an average of nearly 33.5 people a day. A new order from Gov. Eric Holcomb that took effect Monday eased many business and travel restrictions for most of Indiana. —Associated Press

Monday, May 4

5:31 p.m.: Easing up on citywide anti-coronavirus measures too soon could lead to hundreds more deaths and hospitalizations, according to a new study from the University of Louisville and the city’s public health department released Monday.

To safely reopen Louisville this summer, the city will need to maintain current social distancing measures and add new rules related to testing, isolating and contact tracing. If restrictions loosen up too quickly, an additional 900 people could die and another 2,000 could be hospitalized, the study’s authors projected. Here’s more.

1:30 p.m.: Indiana health officials have added 19 confirmed coronavirus-related fatalities to the state’s death toll as a new order from the governor eased many of the business restrictions. Updated statistics released Monday also added 120 deaths among nursing home residents to the previous statewide total released a week earlier. The new tallies show 420 COVID-19 nursing home resident deaths, or about 36% of the 1,151 total statewide deaths. State officials have refused to identify nursing homes with outbreaks, despite complaints from relatives about a lack of communication about illnesses and deaths. —Associated Press

10:30 a.m.: In mid-April, the Centers for Disease Control began including probable and presumed positive cases in their coronavirus death toll numbers.

But it wasn’t until nearly two weeks later, on April 27, that Kentucky started reporting probable cases in its death toll. The 213 deaths reported in the first seven weeks of Kentucky’s pandemic only include people who were tested and confirmed to have coronavirus.

Which means the accuracy of the state’s death toll is only as good as its testing.

Fewer than 1.3% of Kentuckians have been tested, and despite recent efforts to expand free testing statewide, Kentucky remains among the bottom 10 states for testing by population, according to Johns Hopkins University. Here’s more.

Sunday, May 3

6:13 p.m.: Kentucky now has reported 5,130 cases of COVID-19, according to Gov. Andy Beshear. The number of fatalities is 253 as of Sunday evening. Gov. Beshear resumed his 5.pm. briefings today after taking Saturday off.

Beshear said coronavirus testing will continue to expand this week, and he scolded people who have failed to show up for their appointments for a test. “You can’t be doing that,” the governor said.

Reporters asked him his response to a group of people who demonstrated against his COVID-19 policies at the state capitol on Saturday. Noting that some of the demonstrators were from out of state, Beshear said people can protest, just do it safely. Some speakers urged people not to wear masks, to which Beshear responded, “We’re in a worldwide pandemic.”

“It’s still dangerous out there,” Beshear said.

—Staff

12:27 p.m.: The latest Covid-19 report from the state of Indiana shows the state closing in on 20,000 cases. As of Sunday, Indiana is reporting 19,993 cases. The death toll stands at 1,132. —Staff

10:43 a.m.: A federal appeals court has declined to block Gov. Beshear’s and the state’s temporary ban on mass gatherings from applying to in-person religious services. The three-judge panel ruled Saturday. It cleared the way for Maryville Baptist Church to hold drive-in worship services while adhering to public health requirements. That’s an alternative Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear has encouraged throughout the coronavirus pandemic. But the panel stopped short of applying its order to in-person worship services. The ruling came after the church asked the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for an emergency order stopping Beshear’s mass gathering ban from being enforced against religious services. —Associated Press

9:18 a.m.: Regular readers of this always-updated post will note the absence of new data on COVID-19 cases in Kentucky. The state’s COVID-19 website hasn’t updated since Friday, May 1. Gov. Beshear took a day off from his daily briefings on Saturday, but is scheduled to return today. We’ll have the latest numbers and other news here and live on 89.3 WFPL at 5 p.m. —Staff

Friday, May 1

6:19 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear says Kentuckians shouldn’t go to restaurants or attend social activities in surrounding states as other governors lift coronavirus restrictions before he does.

Tennessee allowed restaurants to open in most counties this week. Indiana plans to allow social gatherings of up to 25 people to take place starting Monday, and will allow retail businesses to open up at 50 percent capacity.

“I would ask that if things in other states are open that aren’t open in Kentucky, that we not travel to them,” Beshear said. “We want to do this right. It’s a matter and a difference of life and death.”

Beshear said he is still coordinating Kentucky’s coronavirus response with a group of Midwestern states, but individual states are setting their own reopening plans.

Beshear also said hundreds of people who signed up for drive-thru testing in Kentucky this week didn’t show up for their appointments. There were at least 400 no-shows at Kroger testing sites in Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green and Owensboro this week.

The governor said there were still more than 5,100 people tested at the locations, and Kentucky needs to use as much of its testing capacity as possible.

Beshear announced 177 new coronavirus cases on Friday, bringing the state’s total to 4,879.

–Ryland Barton

12:00 p.m.: It would be Oaks Day, except for the fact that the pandemic has pushed Louisville’s most festive time of year back to September. Instead, the airports are empty and horses and their trainers won’t be in the Churchill Downs stables for another week. Meanwhile, like many other fabric workers, some milliners have switched from making fancy Derby hats to masks.

Thursday, April 30

5:53 p.m.: Kentucky is facing a massive budget shortfall as the coronavirus pandemic has diminished the amount of tax revenue the state brings in.

Kentucky Budget Director John Hicks announced on Thursday that state tax revenues will likely be between $318.7 million and $495.7 million lower than initially predicted. That’s a 3.8% to 4.7% drop. Hicks also said tax revenue is expected to fall between 10.5% and 17.2% in the first two quarters of the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.

During his daily briefing Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear said he talked to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and asked him to push for Congress to pass a bill that sends money to help prop up state budgets.

“This is a real threat. Not just to where we are right now, but it’s a real threat to helping us rebuild,” Beshear said. “Without federal assistance, our recession will be longer, our unemployment will be greater.”

Kentucky state government received about $1.6 billion in the coronavirus relief package that passed out of Congress in March, but those funds are dedicated for coronavirus response. Congressional leaders have been debating a new relief package over recent weeks.

McConnell has expressed skepticism about sending more money to states, criticizing requests as “blue state bailouts.” He has suggested allowing financially struggling states to file for bankruptcy — a process that is not currently allowed — or tying funding to a provision that would provide businesses and employees legal immunity to coronavirus-related claims.

Beshear said he appreciated McConnell hearing him out.

“Now I hope he’ll be able to act in this next CARES Act to make sure this type of relief that’s needed is provided,” Beshear said. — Ryland Barton

4:27 p.m.: Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear’s schedule to restart the economy appears to contradict his administration’s own benchmarks for when it is safe to reopen.

Just ten days ago, Beshear said it would not be enough to flatten the curve before reopening. Following guidance from the White House, Beshear said Kentucky would need to see 14 days of declining cases before making any announcements.

“If we are there, that’s great, but remember what the White House has said and what we know is we actually need two weeks of going down,” he said.

But on Wednesday, Beshear announced a phased reopening of the Commonwealth while acknowledging confirmed cases of coronavirus have “plateaued,” but not yet declined. Here’s more.

12:39 p.m.: Indiana health officials have added 43 confirmed coronavirus-related fatalities to the state’s death toll as the governor nears an announcement on changes to the statewide stay-at-home order. The state has recorded 1,007 confirmed COVID-19 deaths through Thursday since the outbreak hit Indiana in early March. Six more presumed COVID-19 deaths added to the state statistics give Indiana 107 such fatalities. Gov. Eric Holcomb has said he would announce changes Friday to the statewide stay-at-home order that has been in effect since March 25. — Associated Press

12:00 p.m.: New unemployment insurance claims in the Ohio Valley began to taper off this week as states make their way through the backlog of applications amid business closures forced by the coronavirus pandemic. But local economies still face a staggering number of unemployed, and many of those who are out of work are still awaiting help.

About 211,000 people in Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia joined those seeking help during the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Here’s more.

Wednesday, April 29

5:48 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear has unveiled a plan to ease restrictions on several industries and activities as Kentucky begins to reopen during the coronavirus pandemic.

Starting May 11, Beshear said manufacturing, construction, car dealerships, professional services and pet grooming and boarding will be able to reopen as long as they follow requirements to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Beshear also said horse tracks will be able to hold races, but they won’t be allowed to have fans yet.

Beshear said businesses will be required to meet several safety standards, including masking employees, enforcing social distancing rules and sanitizing work areas.

Starting May 20, retail stores and houses of worship will be able to reopen to in-person traffic, though Beshear said the final rules—to be unveiled later—will likely only allow a limited percentage of patrons to be in the building at a time.

Beshear said on May 25, social gatherings of fewer than 10 people will be allowed, and barbers, salons, cosmetologists will be allowed to reopen.

5:25 p.m.: Mayor Greg Fischer said there were 37 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in Louisville as of Wednesday, bringing the city’s total up to 1,226. Almost half of them, 606, have recovered. But Fischer also said five additional people had died from causes related to COVID-19. Louisville’s death toll tied to the disease now stands at 89. The mayor said African Americans continue to make up a larger portion of cases and deaths than they represent in the population. — Amina Elahi

“Deaths in our African American community are running 30 to 32% of total deaths versus 22 to 23% of our overall population,” he said.

11:30 a.m.: University of Louisville Health is asking for plasma donations from patients who have recovered from COVID-19. Plasma from recovered patients may contain antibodies that could help provide others fight off the virus.

“It’s not a cure, but there is a tremendous amount of hope that convalescent plasma can assist more patients to beat COVID-19,” said Jason Smith, chief medical officer at U of L Health.

Kentucky Blood Center is holding a special plasma drive to help with the effort on Thursday and Friday at 5406 Antle Dr., Louisville, KY 40229.

“To donate, a donor must have a positive lab test indicating the disease was present and complete resolution of the symptoms for a minimum of 28 days, OR a positive test as described and no symptoms for at least 14 days PLUS a negative lab test confirming the donor is no longer infected,” according to a press release. — Ryan Van Velzer

10:40 a.m.: The Louisville Urban League will host a one-day free coronavirus testing event on Thursday, April 30 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The drive thru tests will take place at the league’s offices, 1535 W. Broadway, for its clients, partners and residents of west Louisville. The nonprofit expects to test about 500 people at the event, its chief engagement officer Lydon Pryor said in an email. Norton Healthcare is partnering with the league to perform the nasal swab tests, which should return results within two and four days. The tests are meant to tell if the person had the coronavirus at the time of testing. Register online to be tested by clicking here. — Amina Elahi

Tuesday, April 28

5:26 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear apologized for erroneously saying that an unemployment claim filed by a Kentuckian named Tupac Shakur was fraudulent.

Beshear said on Monday that there are “bad apples” who have filed for unemployment benefits during the coronavirus pandemic using fake names, highlighting a claim filed by Tupac Shakur — the same name as the famous rapper who was assassinated in 1996.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reported Tuesday that a man named Tupac Malik Shakur, who goes by Malik, is in fact very real and worked as a cook in local restaurants until they were shut down due to the pandemic.

Beshear said he apologized to Shakur over the phone on Tuesday.

“I owned it, it’s my fault, he was gracious,” Beshear said.

Kentucky has experienced a record number of unemployment claims since restrictions were imposed to try and stymie the spread of coronavirus.

Beshear said that the state is working to address a backlog of claims and that there are still 37,000 people who filed in March waiting to get benefits. — Ryland Barton

5:17 p.m.: Louisville has 70 new confirmed coronavirus cases, for a total of 1,189 to date. Almost half of those have recovered, according to a press release from Mayor Greg Fischer’s office. The city’s official death toll related to COVID-19 is 84, including one new reported death today.

4:23 p.m.: Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron is threatening a lawsuit against the state challenging the constitutionality of an order barring all mass gatherings, including in-person church services. Standing at a podium on the steps of the state capitol, Cameron asked Gov. Andy Beshear to rescind the order as it applies to in-person church services.

“The governor should allow churches to resume in-person services consistent with the Constitution and CDC guidelines,” Cameron said. “And if he doesn’t, then we will be forced to file a lawsuit and allow a judge to determine if his order, as it pertains to religious groups, is constitutional.”

On March 6, Beshear signed an executive order prohibiting all mass gatherings including community, sporting and faith-based events.

https://governor.ky.gov/attachments/20200319_Order_Mass-Gatherings.pdf

Cameron said in-person church services are protected by the First Amendment. He said it’s “inherently wrong” that big box, grocery and liquor stores remain open while churches are closed. — Ryan Van Velzer

2:10 p.m.: State health officials say Indiana’s death toll from confirmed coronavirus cases has topped 900, with nearly 100 other people having died with presumed infections. The Indiana State Department of Health on Tuesday reported 57 additional deaths, boosting the state’s confirmed COVID-19 death toll to 901 since the first fatality was recorded seven weeks ago. Indiana’s confirmed COVID-19 death toll has more than doubled since the 437 recorded as of April 12 while Gov. Eric Holcomb has continued discussing steps toward easing business restrictions imposed under the statewide stay-at-home order. — Associated Press

11:30 a.m.: As members of Congress push for allowing payday lenders to access federal loans, data show that their business in Kentucky dropped precipitously when the pandemic struck.

The industry processed about 20% fewer loans in March than it did the previous March, according to a monthly report provided to the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions by the loan processing firm Veritec Solutions. That represents a drop in lending of $8.3 million in the short-term, typically high-interest loans.

The industry turned to Congress for help to manage the downturn, and a group of lawmakers asked Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Small Business Administration head Jovita Carranza last week to allow short-term, high-interest lenders to access funding from the Paycheck Protection Program.

No decline in business was mentioned in the letter; Kentucky Rep. Andy Barr, a Republican from Lexington, was among those who signed it.

Read more from KyCIR’s Jared Bennett.

8:27 a.m.: Remember back in early March, when the first confirmed cases of coronavirus were detected in first Harrison County, then Fayette County and Louisville? That first Louisville case was Donn Adams, who had just returned from traveling to Mexico. Now recovered, he shares his story about the ordeal.

Monday, April 27

6:38 p.m.: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced that the state would start to “bring some groups and industries back online” beginning May 11.

“We’re going to need every industry and every group to stay patient with us,” he said during his Monday briefing, stressing that it will be a gradual lifting of restrictions. “Work can’t be the same when we go back.”

The governor said they’ll ask everyone to wear cloth masks outside of their homes, and that businesses will need to do regular temperature screenings, continue teleworking when possible and to keep a safe distance between employees.

“It’s going to look strange,” he said.

Beshear reported 87 new cases and one new probable case of coronavirus, bringing the state total to 4,146 with a total of 48,799 people tested in Kentucky. He also reported five new deaths.

5:11 p.m.: There were 27 additional confirmed cases of coronavirus in Louisville today, bringing the city’s total to 1,119, Mayor Greg Fischer said. Nearly half of those have recovered. One additional person died related to COVID-19, which puts Louisville’s death toll at 83.

Fischer said Louisville is not expected to have a major spike in cases, unless something “odd” happens. He described the city as being in a “rolling plateau.”

Today, Gov. Andy Beshear cleared some non-urgent, not-emergent health providers to resume practicing, including optometrists and dentists, who must use advanced protection. Beshear said yesterday that providers that cannot follow the state’s safety rules cannot open.

Fischer said Louisville preparing for what he calls “phase two” of the outbreak, which is the gradual reopening of businesses.”That’s going to begin in earnest once our health experts and the data make it clear that it’s safe to gradually ease the social distancing restriction,” he said. — Amina Elahi

5:05 p.m.: The Kentucky Department for Public Health has confirmed 220 employees at meatpacking plants across Kentucky have tested positive for the coronavirus, with one employee death related to the virus in Louisville. Here’s more.



10:28 a.m.: Museums are “complicated machines.”

“They exist not just to welcome the public and to share the art, but to secure the art, to keep it safe in perpetuity,” said Speed Art Museum director Stephen Reily, describing the physical aspect of museums.

The museum has been essentially on “lockdown” since it closed to the public in mid-March. But just because the lights are dimmed, that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing happening inside. Here’s more.

Sunday, April 26

6:30 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear reported three new deaths and 202 new cases in Kentucky as of Sunday, bringing the state’s total to 4,074 out of nearly 48,500 tested. Altogether, 208 Kentuckians have died related to COVID-19. To date, about 1,500 people have recovered, he said. See more from the governor’s Sunday briefing.

4:15 p.m.: There are now 1,092 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Louisville, Mayor Greg Fischer tweeted Sunday afternoon.

That marks an increase of 22 cases since Saturday.

With one additional death related to COVID-19, the total of Louisville residents lost related to the virus is now 82. Fischer said 519 people had recovered, a rate of about 48%.

In his tweet, the mayor encouraged people to continue staying home, and to wear masks and practice social distancing if they go out. — Amina Elahi

10 a.m.: LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Doctors at the University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital’s emergency department say they believe sick people are avoiding the hospital for fear of catching COVID-19.

The daily arrivals at the emergency department have fallen by more than half to about 130 on average since early March. Doctors held a news conference Friday. The ER has performed 1,800 tests for the coronavirus so far with only about 80 positive results.

Dr. Daniel Moore says the risk to patients of contracting COVID-19 at the hospital is exceedingly low right now.

Saturday, April 25

5:45 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear says that Kentuckians who still haven’t received unemployment benefits but applied in March can expect to hear back from the state next week.

Kentucky has received a record number of applications — more than 500,000 filed since the pandemic began.

Beshear said the state is working to upgrade its computer system to be able to process more requests and expects “significant progress” next week.

“This is a tough time for everybody. The number of claims has been greater than ever in our history. If you signed up in March and you haven’t been helped, that is absolutely unacceptable,” Beshear said.

The state has hired more than 1,000 people to staff the unemployment call center.

Beshear announced 171 new coronavirus cases in Kentucky on Saturday, for a total of 3,905. There were 5 new deaths, for a total 205. — Ryland Barton

11:26 a.m.: Up until recently, coronavirus testing has not been widespread; the way most people have found out they’ve had COVID-19 was from going to the doctor or a hospital. Now, experts agree widespread testing will help get the virus under control. People who believe they may have COVID-19 can still get a test by seeking medical care, but there are a number of other options — both for people with and without symptoms. Here’s a list of current testing sites; we’ll update as more information becomes available.

9:45 a.m.: Here are the current curves, as of this morning, for number of cases confirmed and tests in Kentucky and Indiana:

Here’s a closer look at positive tests:

Here’s the current death count:

Friday, April 24

6:35 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced 322 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky, the largest daily increase so far. Beshear said the increase is partly due to the state’s efforts to expand testing and that he still believes Kentucky is in the “plateau” of the pandemic.

There are now 3,779 confirmed coronavirus cases in Kentucky. Beshear reported nine new deaths associated with the illness, for a total of 200.

Beshear said that the uptick in cases shows that Kentuckians need to keep practicing social distancing guidelines.

“We’ve got to stay at it, we’ve got to stay strong,” Beshear said. “This is a reminder, or even a wakeup, of what we’re dealing with.”

Nursing homes have been hit especially hard by the pandemic, with 578 residents and 268 staff testing positive for coronavirus. There have been 91 coronavirus deaths in Kentucky long-term facilities.

Beshear also announced that an additional 352 state prisoners convicted of non-violent, non-sexual crimes near the end of their sentences have been released from state custody. He said all of the prisoners had five years or fewer remaining on their punishments and that 339 of them were state inmates serving out their punishments in local jails. — Ryland Barton

4:26 p.m.: Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb has signed an executive order allowing elective and non-urgent surgical and invasive procedures to resume in the state as of 11:59 p.m. on Sunday. On Wednesday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear made a similar announcement in Kentucky.

3:04 p.m.: Festival producer Danny Wimmer Presents has canceled the three music festivals that were planned for Louisville in September: Hometown Rising, Louder Than Life and Bourbon & Beyond.

In a press release, the company said it would try to bring as much of the 2020 lineups as possible back in 2021.

“We are truly heartbroken it has come to this,” the press release said. “We want to thank you for your patience, support and loyalty. We hope you are staying safe as well as physically and mentally well. We are blessed to have such an amazing Festival Family, and together, as a community, we will get through this.” The company is offering full refunds to ticket holders.

12:00 p.m.: Kentucky is expanding absentee voting during the coronavirus pandemic, allowing every voter to cast a ballot by mail or vote early during the state primary elections on June 23.

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams announced the changes on Friday.

In a statement, Beshear said that the State Board of Elections is working on a plan to also conduct limited in-person voting with the possibility of a drive-through option.

“While there will be significant education and work required, we are committed to making sure this election will be held in a safe manner, while we are in this worldwide health pandemic,” Beshear said. Here’s more.

8:19 a.m.: Join our coronavirus Facebook group to discuss the COVID-19 outbreak with other people in your community. We also stream Gov. Andy Beshear’s daily briefings, and you can directly ask reporters and editors questions about coronavirus. — Ashlee Clark Thompson

Thursday, April 23

6:24 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear during Thursday’s daily update mentioned news reports that say Kentucky is among the top states with the most new jobless claims. Data collected by Smartasset.com found that nearly 400,000 Kentuckians — 19% of the state’s workforce — signed up for unemployment insurance between March 15 and April 11. The website ranked Kentucky 6th in the country for the most jobless claims.

Beshear said that’s a sign the state is effectively signing people up for unemployment insurance.

“What we are doing is we are signing more people up per day than other states are, even with the claims and applications they have,” Beshear said.

He also said that doesn’t mean the state will stop working to provide unemployment to those who still have trouble with the system.

“We are still suffering from a legacy system that is designed to tell people no,” he said.

Beshear announced 161 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s total to 3,481. Six more Kentuckians have died from the illness for a total of 191 deaths related to coronavirus. — Ryan Van Velzer

6:12 p.m.: Louisville has crossed 1,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, Mayor Greg Fischer tweeted Thursday evening. He said there have been 74 new cases since yesterday. In total, 474 of the total 1,005 Louisville residents with COVID-19 have recovered. Fischer said there was one additional fatality, bringing the city’s total to 78. — Amina Elahi

1:00 p.m.: Indiana’s coronavirus death toll has topped 700 people in about five weeks with 45 additional fatalities announced by state health officials. More than half of the newly recorded COVID-19 deaths reported Thursday occurred Tuesday or Wednesday, but they dated as far back as April 6. Indiana’s death count of 706 could jump by several dozen on Friday as state officials plan to start including deaths that doctors blame on COVID-19 without test confirmations. Meanwhile, Indiana had about 75,000 new jobless claims filed last week. About 515,000 people in Indiana have now sought unemployment benefits since mid-March. — Associated Press

10:14 a.m.: More than 4,000 people in Kentucky could die over the course of the coronavirus pandemic if social distancing and other mitigation tools were abandoned, according to a “best guess” model created by federal health officials in early April.

The virus has so far claimed 185 Kentuckians, and the state is on track for far fewer deaths than scenarios outlined in the federal models. Here’s more.

8:38 a.m.: As many of us have transitioned into working from home, that’s also true for the people running to unseat Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in November. Here’s what campaigning in the age of coronavirus looks like for Democrats Amy McGrath, Charles Booker and Mike Broihier.

Wednesday, April 22

5:44 p.m.: Gov. Andy Beshear announced some hospital and health care services that have been shut down during the coronavirus pandemic will reopen on Monday as part of the state’s gradual reopening.

Diagnostic radiology, in-person doctor visits and pre-anesthesia testing appointments will be allowed starting Monday. Beshear said there would be a broader reopening of health care providers in the coming weeks. He said health care will look different going forward and that people will have to pay special attention to social distancing guidelines.

“The new waiting room is your car,” Beshear said.

Beshear also announced new drive-thru coronavirus testing sites that will open next week in Louisville, Lexington, Owensboro and Bowling Green. Tests will be available to anyone who wants them, Beshear said. Previously the drive-thru tests were only available to health care workers, first responders, people over age 65 or those with pre-existing health conditions.

Beshear said the sites in Louisville and Lexington will be located in predominantly African American neighborhoods — Louisville’s will be set up in Shawnee Park and Lexington’s will be at the Bluegrass Community and Technical College campus on Newtown Pike. Beshear said each of the sites will try to conduct 1,500 tests per week for the next two weeks.

The governor announced 196 new cases of coronavirus in Kentucky, bringing the state’s total to 3,373. Beshear announced 14 new deaths related to the illness. A total of 185 Kentuckians have died from COVID-19. — Ryland Barton

5:13 p.m.: There are now 931 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Louisville, an increase of 24 since Tuesday, Mayor Greg Fischer said. Of them, 447, or almost half, have recovered. But another six Louisville residents have died related to the virus, bringing the city’s total to 77.

“I wish it wasn’t this way, but there are going to be more deaths from COVID-19,” Fischer said. “The way we can honor these victims and keep us all safe is continue practicing our social distancing.”

The need for social distancing will continue to affect events and recreation in Louisville for some time. Fischer said the annual Festival of Faiths would be held virtually this year, for example. Also, amenities such as public pools may not be able to reopen next month since people would gather there, and since the virus could live on surfaces outside of pools or possibly persist in water that isn’t sufficiently chlorinated, said Dr. Sarah Moyer, Louisville’s chief health strategist.

Moyer said that Louisville’s testing capacity is, like the 