Gov. Beshear Provides Update on COVID-19

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 26, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Friday updated Kentuckians on the state’s marathon battle against the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

“Kentuckians have what it takes to move into a new normal,” said Gov. Beshear. “It will be tough, but we can do it. Just remember: hands, face and space. Wash your hands, wear a mask on your face and stay six feet apart from other people.”

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. June 26, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 14,859 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 256 of which were newly reported Friday.

“The simple preventative steps we all know about – wearing masks, social distancing and washing your hands – can prevent our neighbors and family members from getting sick,” said Gov. Beshear. “Never before in my lifetime have such small actions had this much power to save lives.”

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported seven new deaths Friday, raising the total to 553 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

“The people we’ve lost are why we have to keep up the fight for as long as this virus is out there,” said Gov. Beshear. “We owe it to each of them to do continue doing everything we can to make a difference.”

The deaths reported Friday include a 90-year-old woman from Clark County; 85- and 88-year-old women and an 83-year-old man from Jefferson County; a 47-year-old man from Monroe County; and 92- and 97-year-old women from Warren County.

As of Friday, there have been at least 383,636 coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky. At least 3,730 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here.

Long-Term Care Visitation Update
Yesterday, Gov. Beshear announced that starting Monday, June 29, the state will resume visitation at assisted living and personal care homes; group activities (10 or fewer) in facilities; communal dining; and off-site appointments.

Starting July 15, visitation will resume in nursing homes and in Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF-IIDs).

School Opening Guidance
Gov. Beshear, Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman and Kevin Brown, interim commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education, on Wednesday released long-awaited initial guidance for Kentucky schools looking ahead to opening this coming autumn.

For more information, click here.

Testing Expansion
Gov. Beshear reminded Kentuckians to take advantage of the state’s partnership with Kroger, which has brought free drive-through testing across the commonwealth.

Information on how to register at more than 200 sites throughout the commonwealth can be found here.

More Information
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov, kycovid19.ky.gov and the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Kentuckians can also access translated COVID-19 information and daily summaries of the Governor’s news conference at tinyurl.com/kygovespanol (Spanish) and tinyurl.com/kygovtranslations (more than 20 additional languages).

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