Name: Schools, nonessential businesses to stay closed in Connecticut through at least May 20; deaths, infections rising while new COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to slow
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Schools, nonessential businesses to stay closed in Connecticut through at least May 20; deaths, infections rising while new COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to slow

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AdvertisementBy Hartford CourantApr 09, 2020 at 7:49 pmNonessential businesses in Connecticut will remain closed through at least May 20 along with public schools, Gov. Ned Lamont’s office said Thursday, signaling life in the state won’t return to normal anytime soon.Lamont’s plan to extend the closures came as the rate of new COVID-19 hospitalizations continued to slow, while deaths and infections rose steadily again.Advertisement“May 20 will be the earliest to reconsider opening,” he said. “Even though we are seeing a little bit of good news ... I don’t want us to get complacent, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that May 20 date extends as well.”Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona said officials were planning for a closure that could last the remainder of the school year.Advertisement“We know we may need to cancel classes for the remainder of the year and, while we’re not announcing that today, we are planning for the worst-case scenario,” Cardona said. “All superintendents and high school principals are already planning what it might look like if high school classes are canceled through the end of the year.”An executive order extending business closures is anticipated in the coming days.Connecticut saw its total number of hospitalizations increase by only 46 from Wednesday to Thursday, the state’s smallest daily increase in two weeks. In Fairfield County, the epicenter of the crisis, the number of hospitalized patients even dropped slightly, Lamont said.“I am encouraged by these numbers,” he said. “We thought that this surge ... may go for a few more weeks, just looking at Wuhan and Italy and other places. So I am encouraged by the fact that the social distancing, which we started very early in this state, may be paying off, and the fact that you have one less hospitalization in Fairfield County I’m hoping is an indicator of things to come.”The daily increases in hospitalizations have lessened over the past week or so, leading Lamont and other officials to suggest that social distancing has been effective in corralling the outbreak.Connecticut now has 1,464 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, out of 9,784 who have tested positive for the virus. Lamont announced an additional 45 deaths Thursday, bringing the state’s total to 380.For the first time Thursday, the state released statistics on those who had been released from the hospital. Of the roughly 3,000 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 since March 10, about 1,250 (41%) have been discharged.Hover over or touch chart for a detailed view.Hover over or touch chart for a detailed view.SOURCE: CT Department of Public HealthIn other news:AdvertisementThe town of Stratford said Wednesday it would have police issue $100 citations to those failing to observe social distancing measures.Mayor Laura Hoydick directed police to enforce the measures at town recreational areas, and to issue the fines to those who fail to maintain a 6-foot distance from one another, or gather in groups of five or more, after receiving a warning.Hoydick said most people are observing the guidelines on social distancing, “but there are some who are failing to do so.”“We need to make it understood that we are very serious about enforcing the governor’s executive orders at our public facilities, and those who disobey will be cited,” she said.CVS Health Corp. has committed to opening a large-scale, COVID-19 testing site in Stamford or New Haven, a spokesperson for Gov. Ned Lamont said, though the governor is continuing to push for both Connecticut locations to expand the state’s testing capacity.Lamont had announced the planned sites Wednesday, indicating they were official following his conversations with CVS CEO Larry Merlo.AdvertisementA CVS spokesperson would not confirm the planned sites on Thursday morning, saying talks are ongoing. However, Max Reiss, a spokesman for the governor, responded that the pharmacy giant has committed one location — in either Stamford or New Haven — and that Lamont is still seeking both.“The goal is to have those two sites, and we know CVS is going to be a great partner and we’re going to get this done,” Reiss said.Lamont said he is “working with a number of different companies” producing antibody blood tests, which will let the state test not only who is currently infected but also anyone who has been previously infected over the past 60 days.“This would be a broad-based program that allows you to see what people can get back to work first,” he said.Lamont said antibody tests would likely focus first on first responders and advanced manufacturing workers. He said he would know more in the next few weeks about how the state might roll out those tests.Experts say widespread antibody testing will be essential in eventually allowing residents to return to work.AdvertisementThe parent company of St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford is one of four health systems in the country approved to treat critically ill coronavirus patients with plasma collected from those who’ve recovered from the virus.As it happensGet the latest updates on Coronavirus and other breaking news events happening across Connecticut &gt; Starting Friday, the hospital will be screening and identifying its own donors, who must be symptom-free for two weeks, test negative for COVID-19 and meet other criteria for eligibility, Dr. Latha Dulipsingh of St. Francis said Thursday.Trinity Health of New England received FDA approval Wednesday for the clinical trial, which aims to prove antibodies from recovered patients can safely provide immunity to those who are still suffering from COVID-19. The therapy has been used with good outcomes in China.“By end of next week, we should be giving the first transfusion,” Dulipsingh said.Trinity Health plans to share results as soon as it has data from 10 to 15 transfused patients, Dulipsingh said.In other developments:AdvertisementCourant staff writers Russell Blair, Kenneth R. Gosselin and Zach Murdock contributed to this report.Alex Putterman can be reached at aputterman@courant.com. Advertisement

AdvertisementBy Hartford CourantApr 09, 2020 at 7:49 pmNonessential businesses in Connecticut will remain closed through at least May 20 along with public schools, Gov. Ned Lamont’s office said Thursday, signaling life in the state won’t return to normal anytime soon.Lamont’s plan to extend the closures came as the rate of new COVID-19 hospitalizations continued to slow, while deaths and infections rose steadily again.Advertisement“May 20 will be the earliest to reconsider opening,” he said. “Even though we are seeing a little bit of good news ... I don’t want us to get complacent, and I...

Schools, nonessential businesses to stay closed in Connecticut through at least May 20; deaths, infections rising while new COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to slow

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