FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 12, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Friday updated Kentuckians on the state’s ongoing fight against the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

“I know this has been an extraordinarily difficult year for many Kentuckians,” said Gov. Beshear. “But we will finish the fight against COVID-19 because of your compassion for each other and dedication to protecting those around you.”

Today, pursuant to the Governor’s request, the Historic Properties Advisory Commission met and, in a bipartisan vote, voted to remove the statue of Jefferson Davis from the Capitol Rotunda. To read Gov. Beshear’s full statement, click here.

Case information
As of 4 p.m. June 12, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 12,166 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 331 of which were newly confirmed Friday.

“Remember, due to a backlog in the data management system we use to report data to the federal government, today’s numbers include some cases that should have been reported yesterday,” said Gov. Beshear.

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported four new deaths Friday, raising the total to 497 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

“I grieve with these four new families, along with all 497 families in Kentucky who have lost a loved one to COVID-19,” said Gov. Beshear. “This dangerous disease is still out there and we must stay vigilant to protect more people going forward.”

The deaths reported Friday include an 89-year-old woman from Fayette County and 54- and 79-year-old men and a 90-year-old woman from Jefferson County.

Currently, there are 418 Kentuckians hospitalized with COVID-19 and 67 are in the ICU. At least 3,390 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 10, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Wednesday updated Kentuckians on the state’s efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

“Hopefully the Kentucky that we build as we come out of COVID-19 is one where we are more together,” the Governor said. “All of us, as one community, as one Team Kentucky, are ready to take on the challenges of the future, but knowing that if we are more united and more connected, there is so much more that we can get done.”

Gov. Beshear and other administration officials also spoke Wednesday about expanded testing that will launch next week.

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. June 10, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 11,883 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 191 of which were newly confirmed Wednesday.

“At this point, we have seen COVID cases in all but one Kentucky county. Robertson County is the only county that we don’t have a COVID case in,” the Governor said. “It means the virus has no geographic boundaries and any place can become a hotspot.”

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported seven new deaths Wednesday, raising the total to 484 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

The deaths reported Wednesday include an 84-year-old woman from Hardin County; a 66-year-old man from LaRue County; two women, ages 78 and 79, and a 66-year-old man from Logan County; an 83-year-old woman from Jefferson County; and a 55-year-old woman from Simpson County.

At least 3,375 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus. For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.

Testing expansion
Gov. Beshear on Wednesday announced that the state’s ongoing partnership with Kroger will bring expanded COVID-19 drive-through testing next week in several locations across the commonwealth.

“Testing is absolutely critical if we want to reopen safely,” the Governor said.

Next week’s testing will include:

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 9, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Tuesday updated Kentuckians on the state’s efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

The Governor also spoke about his plan to address racial disparities in health care and a proposal to hold the Kentucky State Fair.

“All around the commonwealth, I have seen people going the extra mile, and taking these precautions very seriously,” the Governor said. “It’s very important that we follow the Healthy at Work guidelines so we can do this and do it right. Our goal is to be able to reopen our economy without pausing, and get our kids back in school this fall.”

J. Michael Brown, secretary for the Governor’s Executive Cabinet, followed the Governor’s COVID-19 updated with new information on the Kentucky State Police investigation into the death of David McAtee.

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. June 9, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 11,708 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 245 of which were newly confirmed Tuesday.

“These new cases are a reminder that this virus is everywhere in Kentucky, and we need to continue to follow the good practices that we know help us manage this virus,” the Governor said.

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported five new deaths Tuesday, raising the total to 477 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

The deaths reported Tuesday include an 82-year-old man from Barren County; a 69-year-old woman from Jefferson County; a 53-year-old woman from McCracken County; a 58-year-old man from Shelby County; and a 95-year-old man from Warren County.

“We continue to lose Kentuckians of all ages, and it continues to be a time when our compassion is needed,” Gov. Beshear said. “Even with everything else going on in the world, let’s make sure we have enough compassion for these families that have lost someone.”

At least 3,365 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus. For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 8, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday updated Kentuckians on the state’s efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) and address the deep societal problems laid bare by the deadly pandemic.

“Already with COVID-19, the world was going to be different afterwards, the United States was going to be different afterwards and Kentucky was going to be different afterwards,” said Gov. Beshear. “Our commitment is to make sure it’s not just different from a public health perspective, but it is truly different from an equality and a justice perspective.”

The Governor and top officials in his administration also spoke about racial disparities in health care access in the commonwealth, a review of criminal justice training protocols, changes in our education system, and updates on skilled nursing facilities and pandemic food benefits.

Case information
As of 4 p.m. June 8, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 11,476 COVID-19 cases in Kentucky. The Governor provided updated information about coronavirus cases newly confirmed Sunday and Monday in Kentucky.

On Sunday, 70 new cases of coronavirus were confirmed. On Monday, 120 new cases were reported.

“Both Sunday’s and Monday’s numbers are down, but we will have to be watching as this continues,” the Governor said. “Keep getting tested. Every week since the week of May 11, we’ve had over 40,000 tests conducted in the commonwealth.”

The total number of reported deaths attributed to coronavirus stands at 472 Kentuckians.

The death reported Sunday was of a 51-year-old woman from Daviess County. The death reported Monday was a 66-year-old man from Hardin County.

The Governor reminded Kentuckians to light their homes, places of business and places of worship green for compassion.

“While the number of deaths the past two days are so much lower than what we’ve been reporting recently, these are two other families who are grieving,” said Gov. Beshear. “Let’s make sure we don’t treat their loss any differently than we have treated others.”

State reports third health care worker death

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 5, 2020) – On Friday, Gov. Andy Beshear provided an update on case information and encouraged people to follow public health guidance this weekend as Kentuckians continue the fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

Gov. Beshear also noted on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter that today would have been Breonna Taylor’s 27^th birthday and he asked all Kentuckians to keep her family in their thoughts.

Gov. Beshear said, “We grieve with her mother, Tamika Palmer, and we are committed to building a more just and equitable commonwealth.”

Case information
As of 4 p.m. June 5, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 10,977 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 289 of which were newly confirmed Friday.

“Remember, COVID-19 is still out there spreading aggressively and it can be lethal to certain populations,” said. Gov. Beshear. “Let’s make sure we’re keeping our social distance, let’s make sure we’re wearing masks and let’s protect one another.”

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported eight new deaths Friday, raising the total to 466 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

The deaths reported Friday include a 66-year-old man from Daviess County, a 48-year-old man from Fayette County, an 82-year-old woman from Franklin County, an 86-year-old woman from Graves County and an 89-year-old man and 52-, 77- and 87-year-old women from Jefferson County.

“We’ve lost a third health care worker, and like the first two we lost, this person worked in a long-term care facility,” said Gov. Beshear. “We’ll be reaching out to her family to see if they want us to share her story. Let’s make sure that we remember not only the seriousness of COVID-19 but that we continue to show our compassion to these families.”

At least 3,316 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus. For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 3, 2020) – On Wednesday, Gov. Andy Beshear detailed the efforts undertaken to combat the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

Sadly, the Governor reported the tragic loss of one of the youngest Kentuckians to fall victim to the deadly virus.

“Today we’ve got to announce that we have on our list of deaths a 9-month-old child from Hopkins County,” Gov. Beshear said. “We grieve for everybody we have lost from COVID-19. This is a reminder of how deadly this virus can be, how precious all of our lives are.

“As a father of two kids, one of which I was scared at birth might not make it, I want this family to know – and it’s a family I have never met even in my dad’s hometown county – that we, regardless of what will ultimately be listed as the cause of death, we are grieving for you, we care about you, and I cannot imagine how you are feeling right now.”

Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner for the Department for Public Health, said the child’s death initially was ruled to be a case of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS. He said a later COVID-19-positive test requires the death to be included in the reporting. Dr. Stack said the death of such a young person to coronavirus was rare yet devastating.

“I would encourage parents to not worry overly, but that you should be concerned because for the individual, for the families, they suffer the illness or loss of child,” Dr. Stack said. “For them it is real. It doesn’t make a difference if it is rare. For them it was 100% occurrence. They lost their loved young one. So it’s important we are all careful with this disease.”

Early Action
Gov. Beshear spoke of the unimaginable loss suffered by all of the families and communities as this deadly virus has taken its toll. Deaths nationwide have surged to more than 105,000, with nearly 450 Kentuckians’ lives lost among them.

But months into the fight, several studies now show that the fast and focused response by the Governor’s administration, along with the sacrifices of people across the commonwealth, benefited Kentucky greatly.

“Every day I worried it would not be enough to blunt that curve,” Gov. Beshear said. “And we didn’t know when it was going to happen and thank goodness it did.”

Among other actions, on March 6, the day of the first confirmed coronavirus case in Kentucky, Gov. Beshear declared a state of emergency and activated the Emergency Management Operations Center. In the weeks that followed, the Governor’s administration continued to take actions daily across a spectrum of issues to keep Kentuckians safe.

At all times, the guidelines and orders issued by Gov. Beshear and his cabinet officials have hewed closely to recommendations from the White House and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Gov. Beshear launched Healthy at Home on March 26, providing information, advice and restrictions aimed at ensuring social distancing and protecting the state’s health care operations. The results are in: studies by the CDC, the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky all show that these early and decisive actions saved the lives of thousands of Kentuckians.

“Healthy at Home was a significant step. It was asking a lot of the people of Kentucky, and they did it and because of their efforts we saved thousands of lives. I believe when we look back on this it will be 10,000-plus lives,” the Governor said. “I remember that the first modeling suggested we would lose 80,000 Kentuckians, and in the first couple of weeks people were scared.”

As a result of this hard work, Kentucky is nationally recognized as among few states that are meeting the White House and CDC guidance for reopening the economy. Our cases are on a downward trend, our hospitals are able to handle the patient load, and our COVID-19 testing program is robust.