Updating municipal officials across the state in a group call Tuesday, state officials including Gov. Roy Cooper underlined the growing severity of COVID-19 as they discussed actions underway to slow the spread, improve the chain of essential supplies, and secure aid for local government budgets. "I'm not sure that we've ever seen anything like what we are experiencing right now," Governor Cooper told mayors, city council members, managers and more. "It affects every part of our state."
Governor Cooper is expected to give a press conference at 4 p.m. today (Friday) to discuss additional measures for coronavirus protection. Please pay attention to news channels and press releases from state agencies for any changes to the details discussed below. Governor Cooper on Tuesday's call acknowledged the looming budgetary and operational problems local governments are already thinking about as the virus eats resources and prompts unprecedented realignments. He said he's "pushing for the strongest package possible" to keep the state and its local governments as whole and ready as possible. He highlighted a $200 billion special funding request the state has made to the federal government.
At the time of the call -- 2:30 p.m. on March 24 -- the state had documented just shy of 400 positive COVID-19 cases in 49 counties. That number has since grown and officials had anticipated cases in virtually every North Carolina county by the weekend. "This virus is a killer," the governor emphasized. Eighty percent of the people who contract the coronavirus are expected to recover in their homes without hospitalization, but a full 20 percent of the infected population will need hospital access, and 5 percent of that group will require critical care, public health experts on the call said. The high-risk group includes seniors, people with compromised immune systems and with other pre-existing conditions like lung disease, among others. That said, it's vital that people are conscious of the stress falling on hospitals and make choices to prevent overwhelming caseloads. State Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said partners are "ramping up medical capacity to meet the demand," but that it's vital that communities take social-distancing and smart business measures seriously to prevent an overload of otherwise preventable cases.
Current supply-chain issues are amounting to shortages of medical gear, like masks and ventilators. The governor's cabinet has been working with the private sector and federal government to address the issue, which is global at this point. State health officials are also analyzing all global efforts and techniques around the world that seem effective in slowing the COVID-19 spread. As of this writing, in North Carolina,
executive orders have closed businesses that have congregational or human-contact elements, from movie theaters to nail salons. Congregations of 50 people or more are banned. Church services are included, the governor pointed out, adding he had a call with 800 faith leaders from around the state to bring them all to the same page and remind them that they're still serving their communities regardless. "We know that this virus is prevalent in that it can be transmitted so easily, so we are taking the appropriate steps to try and suppress the virus," Governor Cooper said. Stay home as much as possible, he said repeatedly.
Said Dr. Cohen, "Most people can call their doctor, get monitored from home and recover."