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PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island recorded 10 new cases of coronavirus disease in the past day, bringing the number of people in the state who have been infected to 33, Gov. Gina Raimondo said at a media briefing Wednesday afternoon.

With that in mind, public schools beginning on Monday will transition to "distance learning" for at least two weeks.

During that period, the governor said, the state will evaluate the situation and decide the future course – but she thinks it "very unlikely" schools will reopen on Monday, April 6. Schools are currently closed after Raimondo last week moved April vacation to this week.

"This will not be two weeks of extra vacation," Raimondo said. "This is learning from home, spending as much time and effort as if you were in school."

Public schools that have not already submitted plans for remote learning to the Department of Education have until the end of day Thursday to do so.

"This is a real deadline," the governor said, a point emphasized also by State Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green, who attended the briefing with Health Department Director Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott and other officials.

Raimondo and Alexander-Scott said that the increase of 10 new cases, the largest 24-hour rise since the outbreak reached Rhode Island in late February, was not unexpected. Seven women and three men have been confirmed as infected, and they range in age from their 20s to their 70s, Alexander-Scott said.

All cases are travel-related, with individuals having visited Iceland, the Netherlands, Spain, England and France. Four of the 10 are hospitalized, with one of the four expected to be discharged on Wednesday and three of the four in stable condition, the Health Department director said. The non-hospitalized six are recovering at home.

"We’re not even a little surprised," Raimondo said.

"This is going to grow," she predicted.

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In other major developments Wednesday:

-- The Public Utilities Commission has issued an emergency order mandating that no public utility service – electricity, gas, water or sewage -- can be terminated for any reason, other than public safety (such as a gas leak), while the state battles coronavirus.

Utilities have also been told to stop sending past-due notices and stop reporting past-due balances to collection agencies – an order, she said, the Office of Attorney General Peter Neronha is set to enforce. Advice to consumers: If service is terminated, call your utility provider; if the provider is unable to help, call the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers at 401-780-9700.

Raimondo added that people who can still afford to pay their utility bills should.

"This is the time for good faith, good intentions," she said.

-- Broadening an order from last week, the governor, with the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner, ordered all insurance companies doing business in Rhode Island to immediately begin paying for all "medically appropriate tele-health visits of any kind," whether they are conducted by phone, video platform or some other not-in-person means. The insurers must pay at the same rate as an in-person visit, the governor said.

-- Alexander-Scott announced licensure changes for physicians, mental-health therapists, registered nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals to free up more front-line health workers.

Professionals with a valid license in another state will now be able to get a 90-day temporary license to practice in Rhode Island almost immediately. Under current procedures, that process can take a month or so, Alexander-Scott said.

Also, she said, any license that was currently set to expire in the next 90 days will not expire, meaning licensure will be extended.

-- Dental offices are now available only for emergencies, and anyone experiencing and oral-health emergency is asked to call their provider for service. The hope is to keep people with dental emergencies from arriving at hospital emergency departments.

-- Faced with so many businesses closing, the governor said "our state revenue is going to take a serious hit." Raimondo said she is exploring several measures, including "trying to line up liquidity" for the state to access "short-term cash" to keep government running. Federal assistance will also be important.

-- Raimondo said child-care centers, which she directed to close this week, are being evaluated on a case-by-case basis and other "babysitting" options are being considered.

-- As claims from people suddenly out of work rise, the governor clarified which program people should turn to for help. She said, people who have been laid off should file for unemployment; while people who are sick or in quarantine should apply for Temporary Disability Insurance.

– Raimondo said the state is strongly recommending that gyms close, noting that many have already done so voluntarily. She said the state is not recommending barbershops and hair salons close, but she urged people not to go into such places if they are crowded or if anyone is sick.

She also said the state would not change Friday’s monthly deadline for restaurants to pay sales taxes that they have collected, something that many in the restaurant industry have been requesting. She said the state Department of Revenue would be willing to work with individual restaurants that may not be able to pay.

The governor and Infante-Green said that the Education Department will offer support and training to teachers who starting Monday will be teaching remotely. "This will be tough," she said -- but expressed optimism that as the days pass, distance learning should become more familiar and easier.

The governor described an "all hands on deck" effort ahead, saying that students had the responsibility to take their work seriously, although they are working from home.

Looking broadly ahead, Raimondo said, "This is months, not weeks, but relative to other states, Rhode Island is faring well."

She added: "Our stress levels are rising. I keep reminding people to take a breath."

With reports from Staff Writer Linda Borg.

Coronavirus questions and answers, updated at least once daily.

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