‘Don’t panic, be smart’
Reassuring Raimondo talks coronavirus while announcing new travel restrictions
PROVIDENCE — Gov. Gina M. Raimondo on Thursday announced new travel restrictions to limit and prevent the spread of disease in response to the growing concern over coronavirus, as about 200 people statewide are in quarantine.
The governor was joined by Rhode Island Department of Health Director Nicole Alexander-Scott and Department of Administration Director Brett Smiley at a press conference at the Department of Administration in Providence, where the state leaders provided an update on Rhode Island’s coronavirus response and how the state will progress moving forward.
Among the additions to the state’s ongoing response to combat coronavirus (COVID-19), Raimondo called on all Rhode Island high schools, colleges, and other “large organizations” to cancel or postpone any organized trips abroad. She also announced a directive that will order all state employees who’ve traveled to China, Italy, Iran, South Korea, or Japan within the last 14 days to stay home from work for at least 14 “symptom-free days.”
“If any state employee has traveled to one of those countries, from this point forward, we need you to stay home for 14 symptom-free days,” the governor said. Smiley noted that the policy went into effect on Thursday and that there had been no reports of such travel from state employees.
Raimondo also called on all Rhode Island employers to consider implementing a similar policy, saying “this is a matter of public health. We want to stop the spread of the disease.”
Recognizing it could be an “extreme inconvenience,” Raimondo said it was important that
policies be enacted to ensure people who may have been exposed to coronavirus, to a per
son with COVID-19, or who does not feel well to “take the time off that they need, so that this disease does not continue to spread.”
Shortly after the governor’s announcement, Saint Raphael Academy in Pawtucket announced the cancellation of a planned trip to Spain, which was scheduled for the school’s April break.
“On Monday, March 2, we began the process of canceling the trip to Spain that was planned for April break. Saint Raphael Academy has been in talks with EF Educational Tours, the company through which SRA plans its international travel, and they have agreed to issue travel vouchers to all SRA participants that may be used on a future EF Educational Tours trip,” the statement from the school read. “If you choose not to go on a future EF Tour, participants will be contacted separately with details regarding compensation. We will be in touch with each family as details are solidified.”
Despite these latest travel restrictions, and a growing level of concern in the state about the arrival of the virus – which has infected nearly 100,000 people and killed about 3,400 worldwide – Raimondo during Thursday’s press conference urged residents to exercise calm.
“There is a high level of concern and I want to again remind Rhode Islanders that the level of risk in Rhode Island is low. That’s an important message. We have to be vigilant, but we cannot panic,” Raimondo said.
“I want to assure the people of Rhode Island that we have an incredibly coordinated and robust, evidence-based response to coronavirus. The risk is low and I ask everyone to continue to be vigilant,” the governor said, noting that among the steps she’s personally taken has included stopping shaking hands for the time being.
“Our number one goal right now, in addition to treating folks, is containment. Every minute we buy, every day we can buy, containing this is critical...” Raimondo said. “Don’t panic, be smart. Don’t panic, be prepared … I cannot emphasize this enough: we have to be smart about this and we can’t panic.”
The situation at Saint Raphael Academy
The state’s two confirmed cases of COVID-19 are both connected to Saint Raphael Academy and an ill-timed European vacation in mid-February.
Three positive cases of coronavirus have already stemmed from that trip to Italy, including two Saint Rays staff members and a student. One of the staffers – a man in his 40s – remains hospitalized and is “clinically stable,” Alexander-Scott said, while the student – a teenage girl – is recovering and “doing well.” The other staff member was identified as a Massachusetts woman in her 20s who tested positive for COVID-19 by the Massachusetts Department of Health. She’s also recovering at home.
Saint Raphael Academy was closed for the week and remains closed next week, school officials said on Wednesday.
“All three of those have been associated with the one trip to Italy...” Alexander-Scott said. “In total, there are approximately 200 people who are self-quarantining right now because they have had direct, face-to-face contact with someone who was positive for COVID-19 and demonstrating symptoms.”
However, a fourth person who was on the trip – a woman in her 30s who chaperoned on the trip and is a staff member at Achievement First Academy in Providence – tested negative for coronavirus, Alexander-Scott said on Thursday.
Speaking to how “rapidly evolving” the situation in Rhode Island is, Alexander-Scott noted that when the Saint Rays group returned from Italy, the country was not yet part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance for evaluating COVID-19 cases, but that has happened since their return.
“Because we have known how this situation has been evolving so quickly, we had the person who later became
our first positive case tested as quickly as possible at our State Health Laboratories … We started monitoring for illness among all the other travelers in advance of CDC announcing Italy as one of the areas of concern that we should evaluate,” Alexander-Scott said. “Because we were monitoring for illness, we were able to get the second person – the teenager – tested and then work with school leadership to get the school appropriately closed.”
The cooperation of the 200 people who’ve had direct interaction with those showing symptoms has been “excellent,” as Alexander-Scott called them “our unsung heroes.”
“They’re people who recognize that being able to stay home for these 14 days during this time to monitor themselves for symptoms helps protect all of us as Rhode Islanders … Everyone understands, they have worked with us, and we need to acknowledge them and celebrate them,” she continued. “It is a heroic effort and it’s an important one to help reduce the spread of illness.”
Looking ahead
With two confirmed cases, Alexander-Scott said she would not consider Rhode Island a “hot spot” for COVID-19, saying the state was “certainly in the forefront in terms of our response.”
Alexander-Scott further said a state of emergency was considered, but after following leadership from the governor, there is not “widespread community transmission at this time. Other jurisdictions are tending to use that as a consideration for when you need to activate a public health emergency.”
“This is a situation that has been shifting quickly at the international and national levels, as well as here in Rhode Island...” she noted. “We fully anticipated having cases of COVID-19 in Rhode Island. We were not at all surprised.”
Jonathan Bissonnette on Twitter @J_Bissonnette