BATON ROUGE — Gov. John Bel Edwards ordered all 4.6 million people in Louisiana to voluntarily stay at home starting at 5 p.m. on Monday unless they’re performing an essential task like getting food or medicine.
First-responders and workers in grocery stores, pharmacies, doctors’ offices and other critical infrastructure are exempt from his directive, which will remain in effect until April 12, and could be extended beyond that.
The directive doesn’t describe any details on enforcement, and leaves people with plenty of maneuvering room.
Essential activities, it says, include getting exercise and fresh air, walking their pets, going to family homes and places of worship. But in all cases, people should practice social distancing, avoid groups of 10 or more, and shouldn’t visit friends or family without an “urgent need.”
“The bottom line is we are in a race against time when it comes to this coronavirus and its rapid spread in Louisiana,” Edwards said at a news conference on Sunday.
Edwards said voluntary compliance is the best way to contain the virus, he said.
“We’re not going to be doing checkpoints and asking people to tell us why they’re out and about,” the Democrat said. “If the people of Louisiana demand that we enforce it before they honor it, we are in deep trouble, so I’m asking people to be good citizens.”
Edwards said Louisiana could run out of health care capacity between seven to 10 days.
“There is no reason to believe we won’t be the next Italy,” Edwards said. Already, Louisiana has the third highest number of cases per capita among U.S. states, he said.
New York, California, Illinois and some cities have issued similar shelter in place orders in the last few days. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell had issued a similar order for that city two days ago.
State health officials said infections in Louisiana climbed to more than 830 on Sunday, with 20 deaths, as testing became more available. Edwards described a tenfold increase in just one week.
“I do not take this action lightly, but there are some basic facts that we just simply cannot deny or ignore,” Edwards said.
Edwards said restaurants can remain open for carry-out or delivery, and critical manufacturers, agriculture and utilities must continue. But he said businesses such as theaters, concert halls, hair salons and children’s play places should close.
As for day care centers, he said they should follow guidelines from state education and health officials; it’s important, he said, that some of these remain open so health care employees can go to work.
The mayor of New Orleans on Sunday said testing is increasing, but they need public cooperation to help control the spread of the virus.
“The message we are here to make very clear to the public: Stay home,” Cantrell said. “Your health care providers are at work to protect you … but they can not protect us from ourselves if we are not following the rules.”
TENNESSEE
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Sunday urged residents to work from home and ordered bars and restaurants to close for 14 days starting Monday with the exception of drive-thru, take-out and delivery services in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Lee’s sweeping order closed gyms and fitness centers from Monday until April 6. He also barred most visitors to nursing homes, retirement homes and long-term care facilities and prohibited social gatherings of 10 or more people.
Residents were told to work from home “where feasible,” but Lee stopped short of mandating that people shelter in place. They can go grocery shopping, pick up food orders and medications, and even exercise outdoors.
A group of Tennessee doctors believe Lee didn’t go far enough, saying he should have ordered all residents to shelter in their homes for 14 days.
Dr. Aaron Milstone, a physician at Williamson Medical Center in Franklin, and Dr. David Aronoff of Vanderbilt University said on a teleconference Sunday that they have children who are in self-quarantines after returning from out-of-state trips.
They and other doctors fear that coronavirus cases could increase as college students come back from spring break trips in places like Florida.
“I still believe this is a fluid situation and we can do more,” Milstone said. “A shelter in place is required.”
The number of confirmed cases in Tennessee on Sunday rose to more than 500. A third of the cases are in Davidson County, home of Nashville.
Meanwhile, a second death was announced in the state. Vanderbilt University Medical Center confirmed the Saturday death of a patient with underlying health complications who was from a county adjacent to Nashville. The first death was confirmed Friday.
The order on bars and restaurants allows for the sale of unopened alcoholic beverages, including beer, for take-out or delivery orders as long as they are accompanied by food.
In Nashville, Mayor John Cooper on Sunday ordered that all nonessential businesses close for 14 days starting Monday.
All Tennessee schools are closed at least until the end of the month. Some plan on being closed later.
In the state’s largest county, Shelby County Schools announced Sunday that the YMCA will be taking over community meal distribution for students, two days after Superintendent Joris Ray said food preparation and distribution had been suspended because a central nutrition services employee tested positive for the virus.
Ray said the district, which includes Memphis but not a handful of suburban municipalities in Shelby County, is working to identify people the employee had been in contact with. In the interim, he asked for the help from the community to feed children while schools are closed.
The YMCA will begin offering free meals at more than 40 churches, community centers, libraries and other locations starting Monday. Shelby County Schools has an enrollment of about 100,000 students.
A statement from the school district said it received a “tremendous outpouring of support” from elected officials, community organizations and businesses after the suspension.
On Friday, a 73-year-old man in Nashville with underlying health conditions became Tennessee’s first fatality linked to the new coronavirus.
For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For people with existing health problems and older adults, it can cause more severe illness requiring hospitalization.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.