State’s virus total rises to 22; schools now closed

FAYETTEVILLE — Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Monday announced six new cases of covid-19 in Arkansas, bringing the total to 22. The disease also has spread to a fifth Arkansas county: Cleburne.

Cleburne County is in north central Arkansas and doesn’t adjoin the other four counties where the virus has been confirmed. They are Pulaski, Saline, Jefferson and Grant.

Hutchinson on Sunday closed all public schools in Arkansas for nearly two weeks to help the state get a better understanding of the local spread of the new coronavirus.

The closing begins today, but many schools in Arkansas were already closed. The plan is to reopen public primary and secondary schools March 30, the governor said Sunday, although there may be additional spot closings in some areas for a few days as new infections are found.

The governor and other state officials held a briefing on the situation at Washington Regional Medical Center on Monday.

Johnny Key, secretary of the Arkansas Department of Education, suggested parents with children out of school try to establish routines as much as possible.

“School districts are also making extra efforts to continue to feed students, so I’d suggest that you visit with your school district to see

how students within your district can continue to be served,” said Debbie Jones, superintendent for Bentonville Public Schools, who at- tended the briefing.

Jones said the school district will take extra steps to protect students’ health when in-person instruction resumes.

Hutchinson praised Washington Regional for establishing a testing site apart from its main buildings.

He said the state is increasing its testing capability, and people can expect to see more positive test results as more people are tested.

The Arkansas Department of Health was able to test about 40 people a day as of Monday, said Meg Mirivel, spokeswoman for the department.

In a letter Sunday to U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health Adm. Brett P. Giroir, all six members of the state’s congressional delegation urged federal officials to help the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences obtain testing kits that are compatible with diagnostic machines made by Roche, a Swiss pharmaceutical company.

The new test obtained U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval this month.

UAMS has access to the diagnostic machines, but needs to obtain a supply of the testing kits, the lawmakers wrote.

“We know that Roche has the capacity to produce [or distribute] 400,000 testing kits per day, but that they are currently prioritizing supplying large multi-state laboratories,” the lawmakers wrote.

“Efficient, widely available, and accurate testing is crucial as we work to contain this outbreak,” the lawmakers wrote. “It is imperative that we increase this capability before a significant increase in volume of cases occurs.”

In a conference call Sunday with Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Sen. John Boozman, U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton and U.S. Rep. French Hill told him about “the critical role that the UAMS plays in Arkansas’s comprehensive plan to protect the public health of its citizens,” according to a news release issued by lawmakers late Monday.

UAMS expects to receive a machine that will allow the university to test about 140 people a day, spokeswoman Leslie Taylor said. UAMS plans to start using the machine late next week, she said. The university also is working on creating its own test, which would enable it to test about 250 people a day, Taylor said.

UAMS isn’t testing onsite, but is collecting specimens to be tested at the Health Department or a commercial lab, she said.

Taylor said Monday afternoon that UAMS had seen 445 patients total in its drive-thru triage, including 184 at that point Monday.

Covid-19 is a respiratory illness that originated in Wuhan, China, late last year. The World Health Organization has declared the virus spread a pandemic. Symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath, according to the CDC. The agency recommends people wash their hands, avoid close contact with sick people, and avoid touching their eyes, noses and mouths with unwashed hands.

Medical conditions thought to contribute to an increased risk of complications from covid-19 include diabetes, heart disease, lung disease, high blood pressure and cancer, as well as a history of smoking, experts have said.

Hutchinson on Monday encouraged families to stay in the state for spring break, which begins March 23 for most Arkansas schoolchildren.

Dr. Nate Smith, the state’s secretary of health, said this is not the time to travel to large gatherings.

“This is a great time to go fishing with a friend as opposed to a big party,” he said.

At the morning announcement, Hutchinson said restaurants and other venues may continue operating, but noted guidelines from the CDC recommend no more than 50 people together indoors.

However, by Monday afternoon, the federal recommendations changed. President Donald Trump urged people to avoid meeting in groups of more than 10. He also said people should avoid restaurants and bars as well as unnecessary trips.

Later Monday, the state Department of Corrections announced that it was suspending visitations for 21 days to protect both inmates and employees; furloughs are also being suspended.

The department is reducing the price of phone calls during this period, with no connection fee and a charge of 15 cents a minute. Video calls will be $2.50 for a 30-minute visit at prisons and 15 cents a minute at community correction centers.

The Parole Board will hold its hearings by telephone. Comments on an inmate can be emailed to ParoleBoard@arkansas.gov.

The Department of Human Services’ county offices, where people can apply for benefits such as food stamps and Medicaid, remained open Monday, although spokesman Amy Webb said it is encouraging people to apply online at access.arkansas.gov or by phone at (855) 372-1084.

She said the department is also setting up a call center to conduct phone checks on Medicaid recipients who receive help with daily tasks, such as dressing and bathing, to ensure they have food and are getting the care they need.

She said the department is testing “to ensure we have the capacity for large numbers of people to work remotely if that becomes necessary.”

“Much of the work we do at DHS is critical for the people we serve and that won’t change with this virus,” Webb said in an email. “We’ll still need to provide essential services, we’re just looking at ways that we can do that that are safe for our clients and our employees.”

Larry Shackelford, president and chief executive officer of Washington Regional Medical Center, encouraged people to stay home if they are sick and use screening hotline services to speak with nurses before going to be tested. He also emphasized that people should call their primary care physician if they suspect they have the virus.

“If you’re sick, call your doctor,” Shackelford said in an interview after the briefing.

Melisa Laelan, director of the Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese, said a language barrier mutes much of the state’s message about avoiding large gatherings to Marshall Islanders. Her group and others are doing what they can to get the message out to avoid crowds. Northwest Arkansas has the second-largest concentration of Marshall Islanders in the U.S. behind Hawaii.

“You’re dealing with a community where congregating is a very important part of the culture,” Laelan said. “It is not unusual at all to have 1,000 or even 2,000 at a child’s first birthday party.”

All birthdays, but especially a child’s first, spark major celebrations in her culture, she said. Even other, relatively minor social events can easily draw 100 or 200 people, she said.

The islander community faced a similar situation during a mumps outbreak in Springdale schools in 2016, she said.