If You Go Out In Public, Gov. Lamont Wants You Wearing A Mask

It’s been 24 days since Gov. Ned Lamont’s “Stay Safe, Stay Home” initiative went into effect. It’s been 39 days since the first Connecticut resident tested positive for COVID-19.

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Lamont has extended the closures until May 20, which is still 34 days away -- and that is the earliest that things may open up. Until then, make yourself a mask.

Here’s the latest on the coronavirus in Connecticut...

Topline

• Gov. Ned Lamont is considering an executive order requiring more people to wear masks or other face coverings in public.
• Nationwide, more than 22 million people have filed for unemployment benefits in the last month.
• A computer fix will help break a logjam of 180,000 unemployment claims in Connecticut. The projected wait time has been reduced from six weeks to seven days.

By The Numbers

All numbers are as of April 15 at 6 p.m.

• 868 deaths from COVID-19
• 14,755 confirmed cases
  • Fairfield County: 6,480
  • New Haven County: 3,758
  • Hartford County: 2,570
  • Litchfield County: 490
  • Middlesex County: 379
  • New London County: 236
  • Tolland County: 216
  • Windham County: 89
  • Pending address validation: 537
• More than 50,143 people tested

The Latest

• Gov. Lamont is urging more people to wear masks when in public, and he’s even considering an executive order on it. At the local level, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker signed his own executive order requiring face coverings in retail stores that are still open, and allowing businesses to refuse customers who don’t wear masks. That goes into effect tomorrow morning.
• Nursing homes in Connecticut say they need financial assistance from the state because they’re just days away from a “collapse of the system.” The CT Mirror reports the state’s largest nursing home association sent a letter warning of a financial catastrophe because of staffing needs and the cost of personal protective equipment. About half of all nursing homes in the state have at least one COVID-19 case in their facility.
• The PGA Tour’s Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut is planned to go on as scheduled. The event will be held from June 25 to June 28, but fans will not be permitted to attend. It will be the third event in the PGA’s new schedule. 

Other Reads On The Coronavirus

• What's It Going To Take To End The Shutdown? 5 Keys To Containing Coronavirus - Selena Simmons-Duffin and Allison Aubrey for NPR
• An Army of Virus Tracers Takes Shape in Massachusetts - Ellen Barry for The New York Times
• The Coronavirus Is Splitting America in Two - Ronald Brownstein for The Atlantic

Banksy’s Back

The artist known as Banksy has successfully kept his identity hidden despite making art in public locations. But he didn’t risk being exposed with his latest work … much to his wife’s dismay. 

Stay safe. Stay sane. Stay distant.