Name: Louisiana reports increase in coronavirus cases from Phase 1 of reopening; see regional data
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Louisiana reports increase in coronavirus cases from Phase 1 of reopening; see regional data

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You are the owner of this article.A barker outside the Royal House waves in the French Quarter as New Orleans begins to open up again amid the coronavirus pandemic Friday, May 29, 2020.Louisiana saw the number of newly reported infections rise over the past week as cases during the first phase of the state's re-opening began showing up in official data.An analysis by The Times-Picayune and The Advocate of data from the Louisiana Department of Health shows 20% more new infections were reported between May 29 and June 4 than had been detected in the week before, an increase that outpaced the rise in the prevalence testing that occurred during the same period.Public health experts estimate that it takes about 14 days before changes to stay-at-home orders and other pandemic restrictions will to show up in coronavirus case data. That suggests that the Phase 1 re-opening — which occurred statewide on May 15 — has led to at least some greater spread of COVID-19.On Monday, Gov. John Bel Edwards said that officials are still reviewing the data to determine the cause of the jump in cases and whether it represents a worrying trend, particularly for regions in central and northeastern Louisiana that saw some of the largest increases.“We need to know whether the spike in cases was a function of the increased testing, whether we believe the spike suggests community spread or it was in congregant settings, whether it's leading to additional hospitalizations or not, and if so, are the hospitalized patients more acute or less acute,” Edwards said. “There's so much that goes into this. And if we get to the point where we see a spike in cases, we'll sit down with all the experts at the local and the state level and try to figure out what response is most appropriate.”Edwards moved Louisiana to Phase 2 on June 5, a move that allowed restaurants to increase capacity and led to the re-opening of bars, spas, fitness classes and several other businesses. Orleans Parish is the only parish in the state that remains in Phase 1.Susan Hassig, an epidemiologist at Tulane University, said that the increase is worth monitoring but not yet at levels that should ring alarms. Officials need to learn more about why these cases are popping up, whether they represent isolated spikes or more serious community spread and whether they appear to be enough of a change to put hospitals in any particular region once again in peril, she said.“I am aware but not seriously concerned at this moment,” Hassig said. “It could change, that’s the thing. If all of a sudden we start seeing a much more accelerated rise and it’s happening in more urban areas like Jefferson and Orleans, I’d be more concerned.”The state reported 2,756 cases during the week ending June 4, compared to 2,292 during the week before. The growth in cases was 7 percentage points higher than the 13% increase in tests administered during that period.Those increases come as other states that re-opened before Louisiana have seen their cases spike.That growth was far from evenly distributed across the state. Most areas saw cases climb modestly, though some regions — including the Monroe area and central parts of the state — where the rise may be more concerning.Louisiana Department of Health Region 1, which includes the New Orleans area, saw its cases spike briefly around June 1 before settling back into what has overall been a steady decline from the thousands of cases a day that hit the area in late March and early April.New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell held back on loosening restrictions in her city to allow more data to come in on the effects of the Phase 1 reopening.Cantrell is expected to address that decision when she takes questions during a scheduled radio appearance on WBOK 1230 AM Tuesday afternoon.So far, neither New Orleans itself or its two largest suburbs, Jefferson and St. Tammany parishes, appear to have seen much change in trajectory from their Phase 1 re-openings. All three parishes have seen their daily counts of new cases remain steady, and at a lower rate than many other regions of the state.Hassig said it wasn't yet clear why those parishes have been able to avoid a rebound. She said the lower case counts were likely not because people had been infected without realizing it early in the outbreak, something she said early results from serological tests refutes.But Hassig said individual choices, both about whether to risk exposure and whether to get tested, may be playing a role in the lack of increases in those areas.“It’s really difficult tracking something that’s so influenced by individual behavior and individual choices,” she said.Meanwhile, nearly every other area of the state has been experiencing increases, including the Baton Rouge area and Lafayette and its surrounding parishes. In both those areas, the increases appeared to have leveled off as test results rolled in through the weekend and into Monday.Other regions have seen more serious impacts.Central Louisiana, which began seeing a surge of cases even before the beginning of Phase 1, has continued to see its case counts grow. The same pattern is occurring in the Monroe area. Both those regions are now significantly above the daily threshold of 10 new cases per 100,000 residents that epidemiologists use as a benchmark for whether the outbreak is under control.“We still have concerns, particularly up in Monroe, in Region Eight, which is that area in northeast Louisiana, where we're still seeing — and it's not approaching anything that would threaten our capacity to deliver healthcare — but we are seeing more hospitalizations, we're seeing more cases,” Edwards said. “So we're trying to figure out now what exactly is going on there and what steps we need to take, whether it's testing or communication and so forth in that region.”And, of course, things can still change. Hassig said the first signs of trouble from Memorial Day would likely just be starting to show up in the data and noted that the fact they haven’t is a good sign.There’s another fear: the still-unknown impact of the massive protests against police brutality on infection rates after thousands gathered in New Orleans and other Louisiana cities.“That’s going to be a concern,” Hassig said. “It’s not as big as Mardi Gras and the crowds aren’t as heterogenous, but still it’s a lot of people very close together. Most of them wore masks, which I was very happy to see. But it’s a potential looming problem for us.”Success! An email has been sent with a link to confirm list signup.Error! There was an error processing your request.© Copyright 2020 , 840 St. Charles Avenue New Orleans, LA&nbsp;| &nbsp;|Powered by from .

You are the owner of this article.A barker outside the Royal House waves in the French Quarter as New Orleans begins to open up again amid the coronavirus pandemic Friday, May 29, 2020.Louisiana saw the number of newly reported infections rise over the past week as cases during the first phase of the state's re-opening began showing up in official data.An analysis by The Times-Picayune and The Advocate of data from the Louisiana Department of Health shows 20% more new infections were reported between May 29 and June 4 than had been detected in the week before, an increase that outpaced the...

Louisiana reports increase in coronavirus cases from Phase 1 of reopening; see regional data

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