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Your Coronavirus Update – Today, Oct. 10, 2020
Photo: Dr. Birx, national Coronavirus Task Force, with Dr. Dooley, president of URI
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
More than 14,000 scientists and medical practitioners have signed a petition against lockdown measures put in place to curb the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, saying that they are causing “irreparable damage.”
The British government says it will pay two thirds of the salaries of workers in companies that have to close as a result of new coronavirus restrictions widely expected to come into effect next week.
Broadway theaters now extend their closure until June 2021
The Tennessee Titans got some good news Friday with no positive test results hours after the NFL rescheduled their game with Buffalo to Tuesday
Some hospitals in the north of England are set to run out of beds for Covid patients within a week, health chiefs are warning, amid growing signs that the disease’s fast-unfolding second wave is beginning.
President Trump will hold an in-person event to address “law and order” at the White House on Saturday and hold a rally two days later in Florida, his first public events since being hospitalized with COVID-19.
175 doctors have signed a letter saying President should be good to go to debate in person and will not be contagious.
The Small Business Administration has released a simplified loan forgiveness application for Paycheck Protection Program loans of $50,000 or less – https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2020-10/PPP%20Loan%20Forgiveness%20Application%20Form%203508S.pdf
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RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY
URI sororities and fraternities (Greek community) ordered to shelter IN PLACE until Sat, October 24th. With over 11% positivity rate, and 277 cases on campus in total, the outbreak is on its way to exceeding that of Providence College. The order, which went into effect suddenly at 9pm last night, said the students “should not leave their residences, on and off-campus {Greek} houses except for medically related trips, and other essential services such as getting food, prescription pickup and essential employment. They will continue classes virtually.
Gov. Raimondo: RI will stay in Phase 3 until vaccine arrives.
Gov. Charlie Baker met with Dr. Deborah Birx Friday after she met with a group of college presidents in Cambridge.
Worcester cancels fall school sports.
Encore Resort and MGM Springfield can offer roulette and table games, with modifications.
Success on college campuses in RI that are controlling the coronavirus among the student population comes from early asymptomatic testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantining.
Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, says twice-a-week testing of college students — symptomatic or not — is ideal.
Roger Williams University estimates it will spend $2Million on testing this year – having already conducted 50,000, with 20 cases.
Bryant has already spent $3Million with 29 cases, testing once a week.
RI mail ballot applications must actually be received, not just postmarked by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, October 13th.
“There is an urgent need to address transmission among young adult populations, especially given recent increases in COVID-19 incidence among young adults,” according to the CDC. Full study, here: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6941e1.htm?s_cid=mm6941e1_w
No Woonsocket Autumnfest, but on Monday, Oct. 12th there will be a parade of first responders and others, starting at the Hamlet School at 10am.
Pawtucket cigar bars who have moved seating outdoors are angering the neighbors who say they can no longer comfortably sit in their yards and must keep their windows closed due to the smell.
Patriots continue to see negative results among their players.
PawSox grand finale event postponed from this weekend to next – Oct. 16-18.
Dr. Birx visited URI for 3 hours, touring the campus and testing facilities, and met with Dr. Dooley, president, and Gov. Raimondo, and Dr. Scott, Health Dept. director, URI’s senior leadership team and COVID-19 Task Force leaders. She commended the multitude of signs around the campus urging the community to follow COVID-19 precautions. “One of our favorite signs talked about a student’s phone, mask, ID, and wallet,” she said. “[It] reminds them that a mask is part of what we do every day now.”
RI Data:
(Note: There will be no Data update, per Gov. Raimondo, until Tuesday at noon)
From Governor Raimondo on testing sites:
All State-run COVID-19 testing sites in Rhode Island will be closed on Monday, October 12th. These testing sites include all locations for Rhode Island’s dedicated K-12 testing program, the Rhode Island Convention Center, the Cumberland and Newport Stop & Shop testing sites, and the Block Island Fire and Rescue Barn. Normal operations will resume on Tuesday.
Additionally, the Beat COVID/K-12 Dexter Street testing site in Pawtucket is moving to 354 Pine Street in Pawtucket. The site will be open at its current location at 71 Dexter Street on Saturday, and then moved on Sunday and Monday. It will reopen on Tuesday morning at 354 Pine Street. This site will continue to be reserved for Central Falls and Pawtucket residents and people getting tested through the K-12 testing program.
Finally, updated COVID-19 data will not be posted on Columbus Day. Rhode Island’s COVID-19 data will next be updated on Tuesday, October 13th.
From Gov. Raimondo on cases in PreK-12 schools:
So far, we’ve performed nearly 6,000 tests and have identified 109 cases just through this system, for a total percent positive around 2%. We’ve run over 1,400 tests on school staff and 4,200 on students. We’re continuing to ramp up and do even more testing — of the roughly 6,000 tests we’ve run so far, almost 2,500 were performed last week alone. And we’re going to keep up that momentum throughout the school year.
Since school started, we’ve identified 250 cases in our K-12 community among students, teachers and staff. That means that the 109 cases identified through our PreK-12 system represent less than half of the cases we’ve found, and the rest went through primary care physicians or our other testing structures.
We’ve set up our one-of-a-kind testing system for all members of our school community – public and private – to easily schedule a test by calling 844-857-1814. That’s the best way to ensure both that you can get access to same-day testing and that your results will get back to the Department of Health – and therefore to our school leaders – as quickly as possible.
One of the many encouraging things we’ve seen since reopening schools is that, of the 250 cases identified so far, nearly half are from students and staff who never set foot in a classroom this year. And that’s in spite of the fact that the majority of students, teachers and staff are back in school buildings. Throughout Rhode Island, 95 schools have seen a positive case, and the overwhelming majority — 69 schools — saw only one case. That’s fantastic. That means in all those cases, we were able to immediately isolate the positive case before the virus had a chance to spread to others. And for those 26 schools that had more than one case, many of them had only two, and these have generally been siblings or other individuals not connected through the school. By and large, things are going very well with K-12 so far.
Dr. Birx, speaking at URI this week: