Tuesday COVID Update: Remdesivir here; Decisions coming for bars, team sports, summer camps

Gov. Hutchinson shows his mask made by a citizen that decided to use their stimulus money to make masks for people.

Here are some Key Notes, Statistics, and Video for Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson’s news update on the COVID-19 pandemic, along with updates and guidance from Mike Preston, Secretary of Commerce and Dr. Nate Smith, Secretary of Health.

The Governor displayed the usual charts to show how cases and hospitalizations are progressing. He noted a spike in cases in the community in St. Francis County. This is also the county where Forrest City Federal Prison is located. The concern is that spikes in case numbers could turn into outbreaks. Hutchinson referred to Dr. Anthony Fauci’s recent testimony to Congress saying this same thing. The Governor emphasized that Arkansans must continue to observe CDC guidance for wearing masks and social distancing to help prevent those outbreaks.

“We’re going to have spikes,” stated Hutchinson. “Let’s don’t let those spikes become outbreaks.”

When asked by a reporter to clarify whether customers in restaurants should wear a mask, the governor stated, “The answer is yes. The guidelines for in service dining are that the customer should wear a mask as well as the staff, and the customer should wear the mask until the order is taken or until the drinks or food are served. It is set forth in the [directive] of the Department of Health.”

Hutchinson then made a few announcements. The first is that Arkansas has received a shipment of Remdesivir. Hutchinson said that it’s a drug that’s used for COVID-19 patients who may have respiratory issues, and that this shipment is enough of the drug to treat about 50 patients.

Next he announced that the state would make a decision on May 18th concerning when Arkansas bars would be able to reopen. And on May 20th, there would be an announcement about summer camps and team sports.

Secretary of Commerce Mike Preston spoke yesterday about the status of several programs. He said that the Department of Commerce would issue over 100,000 unemployment insurance checks across Arkansas this week. Preston said the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation System is now up and running. He explained it’s for those who were unemployed prior to the pandemic hitting. This gives them an extra 13 weeks of eligibility via the CARES Act.

Preston said the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance System went live last week. “We’ve had about 23,000 individuals file for claims via that system, while we’re in the testing for that, to be able to file eligibility and for us to examine that eligibility and hopefully be able to issue checks here in the next couple of weeks.” Those who wish to file for PUA (freelancers, gig economy workers, self-employed, etc.) can go to arunemployment.com to apply.

Dr. Smith urged for more people to seek testing, saying that it’s available at hospitals, community health centers, clinics, and other places. “It’s important we work together to increase the testing. I am concerned about this increase in the number of cases – the hundred in the community, especially – but I’m even more concerned about the cases that we we don’t know about. That’s why it’s so important that we increase testing, not just in Forrest City, but throughout the state.”

The doctor addressed the acquisition of the Remdesivir drug, saying, “This is a bright spot… It’s not a miracle drug, but we are glad to have some donated supply in Arkansas.”

He said with a supply to initially treat 50 patients, the state had 52 patients yesterday who might meet the criteria. “This is really only for those more severely ill, either on a ventilator or with low oxygen levels. We don’t usually give this to someone who has severe liver disease or severe kidney disease.” He said it would be up to the physicians to judge whether each patient would benefit from it.

Dr. Smith stated that there is no current update from Forrest City Federal Correction Institution, but that 27 of the new cases are from St. Francis County, where the prison is located. Dr. Smith urges staff members at FCFCI to come forward and get tested.

“The most important thing is for us to prevent cases, and that’s what we’re doing everyday, in terms of the physical distancing, and the masks,” stated Smith.

Dr. Smith listed the current statistics for COVID-19 patients below:

95 deaths, up 2
4164 total cases, up 121
- 21 new cases in corrections
- 100 new cases in the community
849 active cases
3220 recovered, up 71
59 hospitalized, down 2
12 on a ventilator, up 1
Nursing Homes
- 50 facilities
- 299 residents, up 10
- 174 staff, up 2
Cummins State Prison
- 900 total inmate cases, up 3
- 60 total staff cases, no change