Editor's note: This is a daily briefing updating the latest information on the COVID-19 pandemic at 4 p.m. each day.
As the number of positive tests for COVID-19 increased, Butler County officials were getting questions regarding the stay-at-home order and working.
Emily Goodin, administrator of the Butler County Health Department, as well as city officials, said they received calls from employees wanting to know if they are allowed to work in a factory setting under Gov. Mike Parson's stay-at-home order.
Under the order, businesses that are not deemed essential must follow social distancing guidelines using 10 or fewer people and with each person 6 feet apart. Those businesses that perform essential functions, as defined by the federal Department of Homeland Security can continue to operate. Businesses can also file a waiver request to the state Department of Economic Development.
Goodin said her office received calls from Briggs & Stratton employees who were being told to report to work Monday.
Sources told the Daily American Republic on March 23 that the plant was stopping production until Monday, April 13, due to an inability to acquire component parts.
When reached by a reporter to see if the city's second-largest employer was reopening, a company representative declined to answer.
Steve Halter, president of the Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce, said in the daily meeting of area leaders he would get Goodin in contact with the human resource department at Briggs.
"I can assure you that Briggs & Stratton is taking the utmost precaution on safety out there," Halter said. "That's their MO anyway."
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Butler County saw four new positive tests for COVID-19 over the previous day, bringing the total to 10 since March 31.
Goodin said during the daily meeting of area officials that the number of positive cases will not decrease when a patient recovers.
With each new positive test the health department starts an investigation tracing the patient's contact in the community.
"We're asking two days prior to their symptoms who were you around," Goodin explained.
She said the number of calls to those possible contacts varies with each case depending on if the patient was staying at home and practicing social distancing.
Health officials cannot release information about a patient due to the privacy law under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
During the governor's daily briefing in Jefferson City, Randall Williams, director of the Department of Health and Senior Services, was asked about the difference in the number of deaths being reported by the state and those tracked by Johns Hopkins University.
The state total of deaths was 58 on Wednesday while Johns Hopkins listed 86.
"We're required to official by law," Williams said. "So we have to vet those to make sure because those are the official numbers that we give to the CDC and others."
On Saturday, the state required that all deaths related to COVID-19 be reported within 24 hours.
Williams said the state also wants to track and release the number of recovered patients but is having troubling getting that from all 150 hospitals around the state. The data suggests that about 80% of those admitted to the hospital are later released.
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The state announced Wednesday it is moving forward with its first alternate care site to help assist hospitals in the St. Louis area.
A hotel in Florissant is being converted into a facility that could open next week and take in more than 100 people who test positive for COVID-19. It would be for those with mild or no symptoms or those exposed to the virus and referred by health care professionals.
"This model will focus on the use of hotels, rather than larger arena sites for care delivery," said Todd Richardson, director of MO HealthNet Division. "It will allow the state to move more quickly. It is a model that can be scaled as need arises and it is a model that can be used to support care delivery across our state."
St. Louis City and County account for 52% of the total positive cases in the state and 21 deaths.
Along with the Missouri National Guard, site assessments around the state were conducted with state and federal agencies. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers were assigned to convert hotel rooms into temporary medical care rooms with 75% of the cost being paid by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Guard will provide medical professionals to staff the site.
"We've got to support the health care deliver system across the state, not just in our large metropolitan areas, but in our small rural areas as well," said Richardson, a Poplar Bluff native.
"That's why we've developed the model of supportive housing and alternate care sites that really is flexible enough to be deployed in rural areas to support additional capacity."
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• Chris Rushin of the Boys & Girls Club of Butler County said the meals for R-1 students for Thursday will feature four sets of breakfast, lunch and dinner because the program will be close for Good Friday.
• Jenny Fears with Deliver Hope said over 4,000 meals were delivered to seniors in the county by Northside Nutrition Center, which has seen an increase of 130 meals in recent weeks. Deliver Hope also packed 182 bags for emergency meals and looking to distribute them. There were also 560 wellness checks and volunteers are needed to help make calls.
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A look at stories you might have missed from the DAR:
• Butler County has two more COVID-19 cases • Reynolds County tells non-residents not to visit • R-1 staff dish up over 6,000 meals a day
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A look at three stories from the Associated Press:
• Even as virus deaths mount, governments eye exit strategies • Feds eye loosening rules to allow some to return to work • ONE GOOD THING: Cats, dogs, Quillie the hedgehog source of comfort in crisis Latest coverage from AP.
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As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 8:
US DEATHS: 14,262 Mo. Deaths: 58 (+5) Mo. Cases: 3,327 (+290)
Cases by area county: Butler County: 10 Carter: 3 (1 death) Dunklin: 9 Stoddard: 8 Reynolds: 2 Ripley: 2 Wayne: 0 Perry: 30 Cape: 23 (1 death) St. Francois: 20 Scott: 11 New Madrid: 5 Pemiscot: 4 Bollinger: 2 Madison: 1
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From the AP: For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover.
Here are the symptoms of the virus compared with the common flu.
One of the best ways to prevent spread of the virus is washing your hands with soap and water. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends first washing with warm or cold water and then lathering soap for 20 seconds to get it on the backs of hands, between fingers and under fingernails before rinsing off.
You should wash your phone, too. Here’s how.
The Missouri coronavirus information hotline is 877-435-8411.
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