The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in Arkansas has risen to 22, the state Health Department reported Monday.
The total, posted Monday morning to the Arkansas Department of Health’s website, means six additional cases have been confirmed since Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson held a news conference Sunday afternoon.
At a news conference later Monday morning, state health secretary Dr. Nate Smith said four of the new cases are from Central Arkansas, where cases had previously been detected. The other two were confirmed in Cleburne County, the first cases outside the central part of the state.
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Most of the new cases were from contact in healthcare settings, Smith said, though two were from out-of-state traveling.
Hutchinson said restaurants in the state will remain open, but he noted that new Centers for Disease Control guidelines recommend against gatherings of more than 50 people.
Previous guidelines recommended no gatherings of more than 200 people. Hutchinson emphasized the guidelines apply to events, and gatherings of 50 people may continue in commercial and transportation settings.
This story was originally published at 10:24 a.m.