North Carolina’s new stay at home order begins Friday
Featured News, News December 9, 2020
MURPHY, NC – On Tuesday, Governor Roy Cooper and NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen announced a modified stay at home order that will go into effect Friday, December 11, and last until January 8, 2021. Cooper has the option to extend the order if necessary.
They cited the “rapid” increase in key COVID-19 trends in the state. From November 21 and December 4, 2020, “over three-fourths of North Carolina counties were experiencing substantial (orange)” or “critical (red)” COVID-19 community spread, according to the County Alert System.” The system was put into place to easily evaluate a county’s COVID-19 cases, percent positives, and hospital capacity.
As of December 9, Cherokee County was listed as critical with low impact to its hospital. Clay and Graham Counties experienced significant spread, but both are low on the County Alert System scale.
Executive Order 181 called for “urgent and immediate action is therefore necessary to protect the lives of North Carolinians and to avoid further strain on the state’s health care system capacity.”
Under the order restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, personal care businesses, and more must close at 10 p.m. The sale of alcohol is prohibited from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Essential businesses that may remain open after 10 p.m., such as grocery stores, pharmacies, and gas stations. Restaurants can continue to serve take-out and deliver after 10 p.m., just can’t be open to the public.
Anyone who refuses to leave an establishment at 10 p.m. may be subject to criminal trespassing prosecution.
All individuals in North Carolina must stay at home between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., unless an exception applies. Events outside of the home must end by 10:00 p.m. and guests must leave the establishment and travel to the place they are staying that night. Gatherings are still limited to 10 indoor and 50 outdoor.
A face covering is required in all public indoor settings if there are non-household members present, regardless of social distancing. Additionally, in public outdoor settings, face coverings are required if social distancing can’t be maintained from non-household members.
During the nighttime stay at home order, people can leave their homes to travel to and from work, pick up essentials, take care of family, friends, or pets, attend religious services, and/or cross state lines. The order doesn’t prohibit visiting friends or family members, but it does stress that multiple households gathering together has led to the spread of COVID-19. Also, the face coverings rules apply when visiting other households.
North Carolina’s new stay at home order begins Friday
Featured, Featured Stories, News December 9, 2020
MURPHY, NC – On Tuesday, Governor Roy Cooper and NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen announced a modified stay at home order that will go into effect Friday, December 11, and last until January 8, 2021. Cooper has the option to extend the order if necessary.
They cited the “rapid” increase in key COVID-19 trends in the state. From November 21 and December 4, 2020, “over three-fourths of North Carolina counties were experiencing substantial (orange)” or “critical (red)” COVID-19 community spread, according to the County Alert System.” The system was put into place to easily evaluate a county’s COVID-19 cases, percent positives, and hospital capacity.
As of December 9, Cherokee County was listed as critical with low impact to its hospital. Clay and Graham Counties experienced significant spread, but both are low on the County Alert System scale.
Executive Order 181 called for “urgent and immediate action is therefore necessary to protect the lives of North Carolinians and to avoid further strain on the state’s health care system capacity.”
Under the order restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, personal care businesses, and more must close at 10 p.m. The sale of alcohol is prohibited from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Essential businesses that may remain open after 10 p.m., such as grocery stores, pharmacies, and gas stations. Restaurants can continue to serve take-out and deliver after 10 p.m., just can’t be open to the public.
Anyone who refuses to leave an establishment at 10 p.m. may be subject to criminal trespassing prosecution.
All individuals in North Carolina must stay at home between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., unless an exception applies. Events outside of the home must end by 10:00 p.m. and guests must leave the establishment and travel to the place they are staying that night. Gatherings are still limited to 10 indoor and 50 outdoor.
A face covering is required in all public indoor settings if there are non-household members present, regardless of social distancing. Additionally, in public outdoor settings, face coverings are required if social distancing can’t be maintained from non-household members.
During the nighttime stay at home order, people can leave their homes to travel to and from work, pick up essentials, take care of family, friends, or pets, attend religious services, and/or cross state lines. The order doesn’t prohibit visiting friends or family members, but it does stress that multiple households gathering together has led to the spread of COVID-19. Also, the face coverings rules apply when visiting other households.
NCDHHS provides safety guidelines as early voting begins
Community, Feature News, Featured, Featured News, Featured Stories, News, Press Release October 15, 2020
RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is providing guidelines for voters and local polling locations to help protect the health of North Carolinians during the voting process. In addition, NCDHHS and the NC Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management provided personal protective equipment to local election boards and locations.
North Carolina residents who plan to vote in-person should wear a face mask and keep it on throughout the voting process, stay 6 feet apart from others while at the polling location, and wash their hands with soap and water for 20 seconds before and after voting.
“Everyone should make their voting plan, and just like going to the grocery store, take your mask and wait apart from others. I’ll be voting in person during early voting,” said NCDHHS Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D.
NCDHHS also issued guidelines to local polling locations to protect people while they vote, work or volunteer at voting locations. Masks are required in public and voting places must have enough masks to provide one to anyone who does not have one. If a voter has an exception for wearing a mask, election workers should try to accommodate them and should not turn voters away.
Election workers at voting locations must routinely clean and disinfect high-touch areas, such as doors, tables and chairs, with an EPA-approved disinfectant for SARS-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — especially during peak voting times. Many locations are providing single-use pens to voters.
The guidelines, adapted from the CDC’s Considerations for Election Polling Locations and Voters, also require elections officials to post signage at each voting place reminding voters and workers about social distancing by staying at least 6 feet away from others. Officials are required to provide physical markers, such as tape on floors or signs on walls, to help ensure people remain at least 6 feet apart.
Additionally, county boards of elections must:
- Require election workers and observers to wear a mask when social distancing is or may not be possible, unless they state an exception applies.
- Require election workers to encourage people to wear a mask while they vote or campaign and offer masks to those who are not wearing them.
To monitor the health of elections workers, county boards of elections are required to:
- Immediately separate and send home election workers who have symptoms when they arrive at work or become sick during the day.
- Conduct daily symptom screening of workers before opening the voting place each day.
- Post signage at the main entrance asking people who have a fever and/or a cough not to enter. Signage from the NCDHHS Know your Ws campaign is available to download.
All 100 county election offices have received gloves and face shields for poll workers; disposable masks for workers and others who do not have a mask; and hand sanitizer, disinfectant spray and paper towels. Anheuser-Busch and McDonald’s donated a portion of the hand sanitizer to the Association of State Election Directors. NCDHHS and NCDPS are providing the rest of the supplies and equipment. Additionally, the NC State Board of Elections is sending single-use pens to county election offices for use as needed.
Interim Guidance for Election Voting Locations and guidelines for Voting Safely During COVID-19 can be found at https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/guidance#election-voting.
Governor Cooper Announces $35 Million to Support Child Care Programs
Feature News, Featured, News, Press Release October 9, 2020
RALEIGH: Governor Roy Cooper announced that the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is providing $35 million in operational grants from federal Coronavirus Relief Funds to help child care programs providing in-person child care during the COVID-19 pandemic. From April through July, NCDHHS has provided over $80 million in monthly operational grants for child care programs that served over 105,000 children statewide throughout the pandemic.
“These grants will help offset the significant financial strains placed on child care to meet health and safety guidelines while serving fewer children,” said Governor Cooper. “Our child care programs have been on the frontlines since the start of this pandemic, keeping their doors open so other workers could keep our economy running and the public safe. A strong and safe child care system is essential to our recovery.”
“Our response and recovery are dependent upon having a strong, high-quality child care system open and available. These operational grants help families go to work and children’s learning to be nurtured,” said NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen, M.D.
The grants will be awarded to licensed child care providers operating in-person during the months of August through October 2020 to help offset the significant financial strains due to the additional expenses to meet health and safety guidelines, while experiencing reduced revenues from lower enrollment. Providers have the flexibility to use these grants to meet their unique individual business and operational needs.
All eligible licensed child care programs will receive some level of operational grants. Specific grant amounts are based on program size, quality, and whether the program serve infants and toddlers.
Throughout the pandemic, NCDHHS has maintained North Carolina’s long history of investments in child care by providing monthly operational grants since April, child care teacher and staff bonuses in April and May, and an emergency subsidy child care program in April and May.
For more information about child care during COVID-19 in North Carolina, visit www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/public-health/covid19/child-care.
North Carolina requires face coverings and social distancing for schools
Featured, Featured Stories July 14, 2020
RALEIGH: Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen were joined by education and health leaders to announce health and safety plans for K-12 public schools for the new school year. Schools will open for in-person instruction under an updated Plan B that requires face coverings for all K-12 students, fewer children in the classroom, measures to ensure social distancing for everyone in the building, and other safety protocols.
“The most important opening is that of our classroom doors. Our schools provide more than academics; they are vital to our children’s’ health, safety and emotional development,” said Governor Cooper. “This is a difficult time for families with hard choices on every side. I am committed to working together to ensure our students and educators are as safe as possible and that children have opportunities to learn in the way that is best for them and their families.”
The Strong Schools NC Public Health Toolkit outlines the updated requirements for Plan B. Districts may choose to operate under Plan C, which calls for remote learning only, and health leaders recommend schools allow families to opt in to all-remote learning. Modifications have been made to Plan B since it was released in June to make it more protective of public health.
“After looking at the current scientific evidence and weighing the risks and benefits, we have decided to move forward with today’s balanced, flexible approach which allows for in-person instruction as long as key safety requirements are in place in addition to remote learning options,” said NCDHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen, MD. “We will continue to follow the science and data and update recommendations as needed. We ask every North Carolinian to do their part to slow the spread of COVID-19 and follow the three W’s: Wear a face covering when in public, Wait 6 feet apart, Wash your hands.”
Governor Cooper also announced that the state will provide at least five reusable face coverings for every student, teacher and school staff member in public schools. In June, the state provided packs of personal protective equipment to schools that included a two-month supply of thermometers, surgical masks, face shields, and gowns for school nurses and delegated staff who provide health care to students.
“Educators and stakeholders across our state have worked tirelessly to reopen our school buildings safely for our students, teachers, and staff. Today, we take another critical step towards that goal. We also know families need to choose the option that is best for their children, so all school districts will provide remote learning options,” said Eric Davis, Chairman of the State Board of Education.
“In-person education is important for children, and it happens in the context of a community. This plan strikes the right balance between health and safety and the benefits of having children learn in the classroom. We must all continue with proven measures to reduce COVID-19 transmission like wearing a face covering, keeping distance between people, and frequent hand and surface cleanings so we can move closer to safely re-opening public schools,” said Dr. Theresa Flynn, M.D., M.P.H., FAAP, a practicing pediatrician who serves on the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Pediatric Society and joined today’s announcement.
Under Plan B, schools are required to follow key safety measures that include:
- Require face coverings for all teachers and students K-12
- Limit the total number of students, staff and visitors within a school building to the extent necessary to ensure 6 feet distance can be maintained when students/staff will be stationary
- Conduct symptom screening, including temperature checks
- Establish a process and dedicated space for people who are ill to isolate and have transportation plans for ill students
- Clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces in the school and transportation vehicles regularly
- Require frequent hand washing throughout the school day and provide hand sanitizer at entrances and in every classroom
- Discontinue activities that bring together large groups
- Limit nonessential visitors and activities involving external groups
- Discontinue use of self-service food or beverage distribution
In addition, schools are strongly recommended to follow additional safety measures that include:
- Designate hallways and entrance/exit doors as one-way
- Keep students and teachers in small groups that stay together as much as possible
- Have meals delivered to the classroom or have students bring food back to the classroom if social distancing is not possible in the cafeteria
- Discontinue activities that bring together large groups
- Place physical barriers such as plexiglass at reception desks and similar areas
More details can be found in the Strong Schools NC Public Health Toolkit. Read the Screening Reference Guide for schools and the Infection Control and PPE Guidance.
In addition to the announcement about school plans, Governor Cooper shared that North Carolina will remain paused in Safer At Home Phase 2 after the current Executive Order expires on Friday, July 17.
“As we continue to see rising case numbers and hospitalizations, we will stay in Safer At Home Phase 2 for three more weeks,” said Governor Cooper. “Our re-opening priority is the school building doors, and in order for that to happen we have to work to stabilize our virus trends.”
School Groups on Today’s Public School Announcement
“While all school re-entry plans have their challenges during this pandemic, our superintendents, principals, and other school leaders will continue to prioritize student and staff safety in reopening schools under the cautious parameters outlined today by the Governor,” said North Carolina Association of School Administrators Executive Director Katherine Joyce. “We look forward to continuing work with the Governor, the General Assembly, and other state leaders to ensure our schools have the support needed to get student learning back on track in the safest manner possible in each local district.”
“I recognize Governor Cooper faced a very difficult decision. The good news is that local school boards can now begin to officially put their school reopening plans in motion,” said Brenda Stephens, President of the North Carolina School Board Association. “While the current situation may not be ideal for all, I’m confident North Carolina’s educators will continue to provide students with the best education possible.
To see the press briefing click here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=591404655097644