N.C. Governor Roy Cooper extended Phase 3 and lowered the state’s indoor gathering limit from 25 to 10 through a new executive order issued Tuesday to lower the spread of Covid-19.
The new order is targeted at family and social gatherings; religious, wedding, funeral, and other spiritual gatherings are exempt from the more restrictive rule.
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The mandate comes ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, where families are sure to congregate indoors, which could drive up another spike.
Gov. Cooper said a large part of the outbreaks from October came from family gatherings, according to contact tracing.
Friday, the state saw its highest number of daily cases to date, with 2,908 new cases identified. “We are seeing a new peak,” North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said Tuesday.
The state’s percentage of positive tests has remained level since mid-October, but is now approximately 7%, up from the 5% the state averaged in September. Statewide hospitalizations are up since September, reaching 1,230 Tuesday, the second-highest amount since the pandemic began. Cohen said state health officials are concerned about capacity with cooler winter months ahead, which typically increase the strain on smaller hospitals — even without Covid-19.
Cohen encouraged everyone to download the app “Slow Covid NC” (it doesn’t track users but runs on Bluetooth). It notifies users when they’ve been in close contact with someone who has uploaded their information, i.e. a positive Covid-19 test result, in the app.
“People tend to let their guard down when they’re with family,” Gov. Cooper said. “We’ve come too far to lose our focus now. We don’t want a spike in infections and deaths.”
Around the holidays and travel, Cohen noted North Carolinians would see more communication from the state about wearing a mask and social distancing throughout the holidays. She also encouraged everyone to get a test four days ahead of traveling to holiday gatherings. Combined with wearing masks and social distancing, it will strengthen preventative measures for families across the state, she added.
There are no travel bans or quarantine requirements included in the latest executive order for folks traveling in from other states.
Restaurant restrictions remain at 50% capacity — Executive Order 176 does not affect how they operate. Nor does it affect church gatherings. Dr. Cohen said they’ve been encouraging faith leaders to host virtual services or limiting in-person congregation. The state has a tool they’ve been disseminating to churches to ensure they’re passing on precautions to their parishioners.
The governor also announced that starting Thursday, full-service restaurants can apply for assistance through the Mortgage, Utility and Rent Relief Program (MURR), administered by the NC Department of Commerce. Eligible restaurants could get up to $20,000 to help with rent and utilities from the program.
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