Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on June 5
We’re keeping track of the most up-to-date news about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Daily cases hit record high
At least 33,294 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 1,015 have died, according to state and county health departments.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday reported 1,289 COVID-19 cases, marking the single-day high for the the second day in a row. The state reported 1,189 cases on Thursday.
Health officials reported completing 13,845 new tests for the virus on Friday, for a total number of 482,147. The percentage of positive cases was 9% for a second day in a row.
Hospitalizations reached a new peak on Friday with the state reporting at least 717 North Carolinians hospitalized from COVID-19, up 59 from the day before.
New nursing home outbreaks
At least three new outbreaks at nursing homes in the Triangle have been reported in the last week, state health department data show.
The outbreaks were reported at Pettigrew Rehabilitation Center in Durham, Barbour Court Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Smithfield and HeartFields at Cary, bringing the total number of nursing home outbreaks to 20 in the Triangle.
At least 17 are ongoing, according to the health department.
North Carolina’s long-term care facilities have had 4,360 residents test positive for COVID-19, and 579 have died.
Cooper vetoes bill to reopen bars
Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed House Bill 536 on Friday, which would have allowed bars to reopen under Phase Two of the state’s three-phased reopening plan.
In a statement, he said the bill “would limit the ability of leaders to respond quickly to COVID-19 and hamper the health and safety of every North Carolinian.”
Cooper’s decision comes on the heels of nearly 200 North Carolina bar owners filing a lawsuit seeking to be allowed to reopen immediately. The lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order from Executive Order 141 and argues the state’s line between bars and restaurants was arbitrarily drawn.
But Cooper has defended his authority and reasoning behind business restrictions. During a Thursday news conference, he suggested bars could be allowed to reopen as part of “Phase 2.5.”
Sheriff will stop speedway crowds
Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson said he will keep crowds in check at ACE Speedway on Saturday night in compliance with Gov. Roy Cooper’s order restricting outside gatherings to 25 people.
He does not, however, agree with it.
“We will go issue the citations,” Johnson told The News & Observer. “However I disagree with issuing the citations simply because (Cooper) marched in the streets in Wake County in Raleigh with 2,000 people side-by-side with no mask on his face.”
ACE Speedway in Altamahaw has allowed thousands of spectators to attend its races over the last two Saturdays, prompting Cooper to send a letter to county commissioners “demanding the rules be enforced,” according to the N&O.
Hispanics missing from COVID-19 data
Data collected by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on the number of Hispanics who have been infected or died from the coronavirus is incomplete, The News & Observer reported.
Only 16 of North Carolina’s 100 counties has made that data publicly available.
“Although the most populated counties such as Mecklenburg or Wake do have ethnic data, others do not, and it is very difficult to access them,” William Munn, a political analyst at the North Carolina Justice Cente, told The N&O. “Consequently, it is difficult to advocate and inform audiences about the impact on communities.”
Doctors concerned over rising hospital numbers
The number of North Carolinians hospitalized with COVID-19 on any given day has jumped in the last two weeks to more than 600. It’s exceeded 700 four times since May 25, hitting a new high of 717 on Friday.
That’s concerning for some doctors, who say hospitalizations are a better measure of slowing the spread than case numbers.
“If we’re seeing people get sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, that’s telling you we have not flattened the curve,” Dr. David Wohl, an infectious disease physician at the UNC School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, told The News & Observer.
Department of Health and Humans Services Secretary Mandy Cohen said the hospitals are well-equipped to treat coronavirus patients, but cautioned the numbers are worth monitoring.
“We continue to have capacity in our health care system to take care of people if they become seriously ill, so that is good,” she said. “But we would like to see this number declining, not increasing.”
Most pandemic relief went to large hospitals
Federal funds set aside to help struggling hospitals as COVID-19 forced aside elective procedures went mostly to North Carolina’s largest and more financially stable systems, according to an analysis by the Charlotte Observer.
North Carolina was given $600 million from the federal Provider Relief Fund.
But the majority of it was allocated to Atrium Health, Novant Health, Duke Health and UNC Health Care — four of the state’s largest hospital chains with billions of dollars in combined reserves.
Funding was based on how much money hospitals received from Medicare and other sources last year, meaning “the rich will get richer — and the poor will get poorer,” Dr. Robert Berenson, an expert on health care finance with the Urban Institute, told the Observer.
Executive order addresses racial disparities
Gov. Roy Cooper on Thursday signed an executive order addressing health care disparities among black and brown communities, The News & Observer reported.
People of color have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina. African-Americans account for 22% of the state’s population but 30% of confirmed coronavirus cases and 34% of deaths. Latinos account for 10% of the state’s population but 39% of its COVID-19 cases.
“I want to be clear. There is nothing inherent to black or brown people that makes them more susceptible to severe COVID-19 illness. The data should not be used to further racism or fear,” the governor during a news conference Thursday. “The disparity is because people of color have historically had less access to health care, housing, economic opportunity and more. This virus is exploiting those inequalities and it’s up to us to do something about it.”
The executive order creates a task force to address long-term disparities and directs the North Carolina Pandemic Recovery Office to ensure fairly distributed relief funds, including to minority-owned businesses. It also gives minority-owned businesses more access to opportunities and resources.
Legislation tries to keep RNC in Charlotte
In an effort to keep the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, two GOP state lawmakers plan to file a bill to require full-capacity attendance at the event in August.
President Donald Trump has threatened to move the convention to another state if the governor refused to allow full attendance of 19,000 people at the Spectrum Center.
Cooper said Thursday he told Trump and convention organizers he wants to keep the RNC in North Carolina, but he has expressed concerns about allowing a packed event because of the coronavirus pandemic.
N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore and Rep. John Torbett are the sponsors of the bill, according to North Carolina GOP chairman Michael Whatley, The Charlotte Observer reported.
This story was originally published June 5, 2020 at 7:09 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on June 5."
