Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Sept. 1
Click here for updates for Sept. 2.
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases top 169,000
At least 169,424 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 2,741 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday reported 2,111 new COVID-19 cases, up from 1,186 the day before. Tuesday’s single-day total was the highest reported since July 30.
The health department also reported 39 additional deaths Tuesday.
The death toll as of Sunday neared 200 in Wake County, home to Raleigh. Wake has the second-highest number of coronavirus-related deaths in the state, after Mecklenburg County, which includes Charlotte.
Health officials said 6.7% of COVID-19 tests on Monday were positive. State health officials have said that percentage should be 5% or lower.
At least 946 people in North Carolina were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Tuesday, up from 915 as of Monday.
The state on Monday said it estimated 145,884 coronavirus patients have recovered.
Cooper eases coronavirus restrictions
Gov. Roy Cooper announced Tuesday that more businesses, including gyms, museums, bowling alleys and aquariums, will be allowed to reopen in North Carolina.
The change will take effect Friday. Gyms will be allowed to open at 30% of their capacity while museums and aquariums will be able to open at half their capacities, Cooper said during a news conference. Bars must still remain closed.
Cooper called the changes, which came a week earlier than expected, Phase 2.5. He said in early August that existing restrictions would remain in place until at least Sept. 11.
“We’ve continued to see our statewide numbers stabilize,” Cooper said. “We’re encouraged but cautious.”
Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state health department, said easing restrictions on these businesses doesn’t mean going is the right choice for everyone and that people should use their judgment.
She issued a separate order Tuesday allowing residents at skilled nursing homes to meet visitors outside of the facility. Such visits were already allowed at other long-term care facilities, but Cohen says skilled nursing homes care for some the most medically vulnerable people in the state who are at a high risk of severe COVID-19 infection.
“We’ve been trying to find this balance of protection but also recognizing that this visitation is part of leading a full and complete life,” she said.
Cooper also changed the statewide mask mandate to include children above age 4. Previously, the requirement was set at 11 years old.
The governor on Monday also extended North Carolina’s curfew on alcohol sales until Oct. 2. Businesses that sell alcohol for on-site consumption have been restricted from selling between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. since the end of July.
Lawmakers plan to vote on coronavirus spending
The North Carolina General Assembly will return to Raleigh on Wednesday to spend more than $900 million in coronavirus funds from the federal government.
The state received $3.59 billion under the CARES Act. Most of it has been spent but about $903.9 million remains It was set to go to things like transportation funding, but the funds are still waiting to be spent as the federal government never addressed requests for more flexibility in how to spend the money. The CARES Act requires states spend the money on coronavirus-related expenses.
Lawmakers have been working on a budget for how to spend the remaining funds and are expected this week to vote on stimulus checks for parents, grants for businesses that are struggling, bonuses to poll workers, grants for rural broadband and increasing unemployment benefits, The News & Observer reports.
UNC-Charlotte reports first cluster
UNC-Charlotte on Tuesday reported what appears to be its first COVD-19 cluster since students moved back to the area.
Eight students who live off campus tested positive for the virus. The university did not say when they were tested but said they isolated and have since recovered. Classes at the university started Sept. 7, but in-person instruction won’t start and students won’t move back on campus until Oct. 1.
The report comes as cases at North Carolina colleges and universities have been increasing since classes started last month. Some — UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State and East Carolina — have moved to remote instruction only. Thousands of students are leaving their campuses after living in dorms for a few weeks, leaving many concerned about the increased risk of COVID-19 spread as they move to new locations, The News & Observer reported Monday.
UNC-Chapel Hill added 75 new COVID-19 cases among students and employees over the weekend, for a total of more than 1,000 since February. It has also reported 12 total clusters. A cluster is defined at five or more cases in close proximity. The weekend was the deadline for Chapel Hill students to move out of campus dorms.
N.C. State University has reported a total of 31 clusters. Most of its 6,600 students living on campus started moving out last week.
Health and university officials have said students should take precautions to prevent spreading the virus, including washing their hands, wearing masks and social distancing.
“All students that are members of campuses with widespread transmission should quarantine for 14 days — whether they staying on campus, in off campus housing, or moving back home to prevent the spread,” N.C. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Catie Armstrong said in a statement.
More cases reported at Triangle high school
A private school in North Carolina reported five additional coronavirus cases on Monday, bringing its total to 11.
Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh hasn’t been asked to close or change its procedures, officials said.
“Four of these five new cases appear to be linked to a group of four cases that we discovered were connected to one another last week, which makes for eight related cases,” said Jeff Bell, head of the school.
All of the school’s coronavirus infections were likely contracted off campus, according to Bell.
Cardinal Gibbons is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh and is one of the largest private schools in the state.
More cases of coronavirus-related condition in children
North Carolina has reported 25 cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, which has been linked to the coronavirus.
Two additional children were diagnosed with the mysterious syndrome last week, Kelly Kimple, the head of the state health department’s Women’s and Children’s Health Section, said Monday during a meeting of the N.C. Child Fatality Task Force.
The condition seems to develop up to a month after COVID-19 symptoms start, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms of the condition can vary among children but the most common are abdominal pain and vomiting. A skin rash and diarrhea are also common.
Children account for about 11% of coronavirus cases in North Carolina. But Kimple says those cases may be undercounted as children often show mild or no symptoms.
“That does not mean that there’s not a great impact to the children throughout our state and nation,” Kimple said Monday.
State COVID-19 data show conflicting numbers, gaps
North Carolina’s coronavirus data sometimes includes information gaps or conflicting numbers, which can make it difficult to follow.
The state health department backfills testing information, which it calls a “dynamic number,” as it comes in due to lagging results. Issues with test results from LabCorp, which handles about half of the state’s COVID-19 tests, distorted how many tests have been reported in North Carolina and how many have been positive this month.
For example, the health department said Saturday’s record 2,585 new cases included about 1,000 backlogged positive tests from early August that LabCorp had just reported.
The information on the state health department’s site is also consistently updated or changed without announcements, including the reported percentage of positive tests each day, The News & Observer reports.
The data the health department shares is important as officials use much of it to determine the actions necessary to curb the spread of the virus.
Jessie Tennenbaum, chief data officer at NCDHHS, told The N&O the agency’s announcement of mistakes and corrections of information should “give the public confidence that it is working to get the numbers right.”
Free meals for students extended
The federal government will continue allowing free meals for all public school students, including those in North Carolina, regardless of whether they qualify.
Only lower-income public school students are usually eligible for free meals, but the restriction was waived during the coronavirus pandemic. It was set to expire Monday, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture says it’s extending it until as late as Dec. 31.
Students will be eligible regardless of whether they’re attending virtual or in-person classes.
School districts had been warning families who didn’t qualify for free or reduced-price meals that they would have to start paying for the meals.
Some districts in North Carolina said Monday universal free meals will continue while others said they are waiting to get more details from the N.C. Department of Public Instruction.
This story was originally published September 1, 2020 at 7:13 AM.
