Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on July 17
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases top 95,000
At least 95,477 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 1,606 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday reported an additional 2,051 cases of the virus, up from 2,160 the day before. Thursday’s total neared the record high of 2,462 set Saturday.
State officials have said increased testing could help explain increasing case counts.
The health department on Friday reported completing roughly 31,200 additional COVID-19 tests, for a total of more than 1.3 million. The percentage of positive tests was 8%.
The percentage has not dropped below 8% since May 26, when it was 7%. Health officials have said it should be closer to 5% to be on track for slowing the spread of the virus.
Hospitalizations hit another record
At least 1,180 North Carolinians were hospitalized with COVID-19 on Friday — an all-time high.
Friday’s total surpassed the previous record of 1,142 daily hospitalizations reported Wednesday.
That total had dipped slightly to 1,134 hospitalizations on Thursday, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
Thursday marked the fourth consecutive day in which daily hospitalizations exceeded 1,100 and the ninth consecutive day in which the count topped 1,000.
The health department estimates 77% of hospital beds and 79% of ICU beds were in use as of Friday.
Cooper requesting federal help
Gov. Roy Cooper wants the federal government to help as North Carolina faces a possible $5 billion revenue shortfall due to COVID-19.
“Cooper said the state is not expecting to return to its previously expected 2020 revenue levels until at least 2023, ‘even assuming the eradication of COVID-19 in the near future,’” The News & Observer reported Friday.
The governor, a Democrat, shared a letter with the state’s congressional delegation as U.S. lawmakers this month are expected to discuss additional coronavirus aid. Cooper said he wanted the federal money to go toward local governments, teachers, expanded unemployment benefits and other purposes.
Raleigh to ban late-night alcohol sales
Raleigh is among the latest North Carolina cities with plans to restrict late-night alcohol sales.
Starting next week, Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin plans to ban the sales after 11 p.m., The News & Observer reported.
The proposed limitations come after a similar order was under consideration this week in Charlotte and nearby Mecklenburg County towns.
Earlier this month, Orange County gave a 10 p.m. stop time for alcohol sales.
People in favor of early cut-off times have said they can help stop crowding during the coronavirus pandemic.
NC unemployment rate drops
North Carolina’s unemployment rate dropped — but stood at almost double what it was a year ago, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday.
The state’s rate went from “12.7% in May to 7.6% in June,” the sixth-largest decrease in the country, The News & Observer reported.
During the same time period, 173,000 jobs were added in North Carolina. That’s 340,400 fewer jobs than the state had in June 2019, when the unemployment rate was 4%.
1 in 4 child care centers are closed
About one in four child care centers in North Carolina are closed as some parents go back to work or run out of unemployment benefits. Some of the facilities closed their doors when people stopped enrolling their children or as a precaution to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus.
N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein joined others this week in asking the U.S. Senate to provide $50 billion to child care providers nationwide, The North Carolina News Collaborative reported Friday.
“If providers don’t get the funding they need to stay open, we’ll lose critical small businesses and place even more financial burdens on families already struggling during the pandemic,” Stein said in a news release.
Harris Teeter to require masks
North Carolina-based supermarket chain Harris Teeter on Thursday announced shoppers would be required to wear face coverings.
Delivery and online shopping options are available for customers who can’t cover their faces, The Charlotte Observer reported.
The policy, which was created in response to the coronavirus pandemic, goes into effect Wednesday.
Tillis says he’s concerned about Hispanics not wearing masks
U.S. Senator Thom Tillis said Hispanics in North Carolina get coronavirus infections more and aren’t as likely to practice some health guidelines, McClatchy News reported.
“We do have some concerns that in the Hispanic population we have seen less consistent adherence to social distancing and wearing a mask,” he said Tuesday during a town hall.
Tillis said he was also worried that Hispanics made up roughly 44% of people who tested positive for COVID-19 in North Carolina, a figure The News & Observer reported in June.
“The community faces significant challenges, including multi generational households that make it tougher to social distance, and the increased exposure risk for essential workers on the frontlines who are keeping our economy running...,” Tillis campaign spokesman Andrew Romeo said in an email to McClatchy News.
“Senator Tillis has also been clear that not enough North Carolinians of all backgrounds have been wearing masks and has consistently advocated that all his constituents do so,” Romeo said.
Testing gradually catching up
Coronavirus testing in North Carolina has gradually started catching up with the national average after a slow start.
Testing capacity has remained low in North Carolina compared to other states despite increasing in recent weeks. The state has consistently fallen in the middle or bottom states in terms of per-capita testing, according to COVID Tracking Project data. It spent five weeks in April and May in the bottom quarter of per-capita testing and hit as low as No. 45 out of 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
Though the state has made progress, there are still shortages, according to a report from the NC Watchdog Reporting Network, which included reporting from The News & Observer.
Experts say testing is vital to controlling COVID-19 as knowing who is infected can help slow the spread.
Health department data show the state is still well short of its goal set in June to test 40,000 people daily, testing an average of about 27,000 people a day over the last seven days.
Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the health department, has said she’s encouraged by the progress but that supply shortages will likely continue limiting testing capacity.
“It’s a work in progress and we’re continuing to do that. But what we’re seeing again now is the rearing of the head of that supply chain issue,” she said.
Some Latinos sent away from hospitals
Some Hispanic North Carolina residents who speak limited English are being sent home from hospitals even with serious COVID-19 symptoms, a state adviser on the Hispanic/LatinX COVID-19 response said Thursday.
Dr. Viviana Martinez-Bianchi said during a news conference she is working to determine the extent of the issue after hearing of such cases.
“Organizations should not put already-struggling families fearful of what is happening with their health” in a position where they have to explain they are sick enough to be in the hospital, she said, according to The News & Observer. “It shouldn’t be so hard to do.”
Communities of color in North Carolina have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Latino residents make up less than 10% of North Carolina’s population, but account for 44% of its lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases.
In early June, Gov. Roy Cooper signed an executive order to address disparities among these communities.
The state announced Thursday the launch of a Spanish-language website that advises people whether they should be tested. Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the health department, said hospitals are required to see everyone who comes in, “but we do know there are access issues.”
The state is opening 300 temporary, free testing sites in Black, Latinx and Native American communities.
Cardra Burns, senior deputy director at the Division of Public Health, told The News & Observer that 2,000 people have already been tested at 60 events in less than a week.
“The early feedback tells us the need is very much there,” she said.
Some school districts plan for remote learning
At least two North Carolina school districts have plans for remote learning in the upcoming school year.
Orange County Schools in the Triangle won’t return to in-person learning until September, the school board decided Thursday. Remote instruction will resume Aug. 17.
The board will meet again Monday to discuss details and whether to keep some or all students in virtual classes until the end of the first grading period, which is in October.
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board, also in the Triangle, will meet Thursday night and could also vote to keep classes online through the first grading period.
On Wednesday, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools decided to hold classes virtually following a two-week socially distanced orientation for students.
Under the plan, students will rotate through schools in-person during the first two weeks and move to remote learning by Aug. 31. Parents can enroll students in an all-remote option if they don’t want them to go to the in-person orientation.
The decisions come after Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday announced a statewide plan for students to return to school under “moderate” social distancing measures, meaning many students will get a mix of in-person and online instruction.
School districts were previously instructed to create plans for three different reopening scenarios. Cooper’s plan gives districts the option to open for remote instruction only.
Masks mandated in courts
Face masks will now be required in North Carolina courthouses, Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley said Thursday.
Jury trials are also further postponed through at least late September. Beasley had previously said they would be delayed through August due to the coronavirus.
The announcements came after workers at the Durham and Wake county courthouses tested positive for COVID-19. Officials had encouraged recent visitors to watch for symptoms.
Gov. Roy Cooper’s statewide mask mandate, which took effect June 26, exempted courthouses.
This story was originally published July 17, 2020 at 6:52 AM.
