Gov. Beshear: With Vaccines in Sight, Fight Harder Than Ever

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Dec. 4, 2020) – Today, Gov. Andy Beshear encouraged Kentuckians to stay strong in the fight against COVID-19, as the commonwealth is just days away from beginning to administer life-saving vaccines.

“These vaccines are right around the corner. Within the next 10 days or so we might be giving out the first vaccines,” said Gov. Beshear. “That means every loss of life and every extra infection that happens between now and then is entirely avoidable. So let’s fight harder than we ever have and do our part as Team Kentucky.”

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 4, Gov. Beshear reported the following COVID-19 numbers:

• New cases today: 3,614
• New deaths today: 25
• Positivity rate: 9.93%
• Total deaths: 2,039
• Currently hospitalized: 1,792
• Currently in ICU: 409
• Currently on ventilator: 230

Top counties with the most positive cases today are: Jefferson, Fayette, Boone, Kenton, Warren and Daviess. Each of these counties reported 100 or more new cases; Jefferson County alone reported 576.

The red zone counties for this week can be found here. Community leaders, businesses, schools and families in these counties should all follow red zone reduction recommendations, as well as other orders and guidance.

Those reported lost to the virus today include a 76-year-old man from Boone County; a 69-year-old woman from Caldwell County; an 84-year-old woman from Christian County; a 70-year-old woman from Crittenden County; a 70-year-old man from Elliott County; a 74-year-old man from Franklin County; a 72-year-old woman and two men, ages 74 and 87, from Greenup County; an 87-year-old man from Hopkins County; two men, ages 67 and 71, from Jefferson County; two women, ages 40 and 64, and a 99-year-old man from Johnson County; a 55-year-old man from Lawrence County; an 82-year-old man from Lewis County; a 73-year-old woman and an 81-year-old man from Madison County; a 94-year-old man from Marion County; a 97-year-old woman from Marshall County; a 91-year-old woman from Martin County; an 83-year-old woman from McCracken County; a 77-year-old woman from Monroe County; and an 85-year-old woman from Muhlenberg County.

Travel Advisory
The Kentucky Department for Public Health advises against travel to states with a positivity rate of 15% or higher. Those states currently include: Idaho (50.64%), Kansas (44.58%), South Dakota (44.09%), Iowa (42.24%), Oregon (40.18%), Alabama (34.72%), Pennsylvania (32.03%), Arizona (25.39%), Mississippi (24.91%), Utah (22.20%), Missouri (19.21%), Oklahoma (19.01%), Nevada (16.42%), Arkansas (16.17%), Ohio (15.49%) and Tennessee (15.34%).

Pharmacy Refills Update
Today, Gov. Beshear signed an executive order that extends previous orders allowing pharmacists to dispense 30-day refills. The current executive order is set to expire Saturday at midnight; the new order will be effective for 30 days beginning Dec. 4.

Week in Review
For more information on the state’s first vaccine shipments, Kentucky’s first day with more than 4,000 new cases, two days of record COVID-19 deaths and the state surpassing 2,000 deaths and a 10% positivity rate, visit governor.ky.gov/news.

More Information
To view the full daily report, incidence rate map, new statewide requirements, testing locations, long-term care and other congregate facilities update, school reports and guidance, red zone counties, red zone recommendations, the White House Coronavirus Task Force reports for Kentucky and other key guidance visit, kycovid19.ky.gov.

New requirements impact restaurants, bars, social gatherings, indoor fitness and recreation centers, venues and theaters, professional services and schools. See the full executive orders here and here.

Audio public service announcements about the new requirements (created in partnership with RadioLex) are published here in: Bosnian, Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Russian.

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