Too Early To Read Into Fluctuating COVID Numbers, Governor Says

By JOSH JAMES

Kentucky’s COVID-19 numbers have been seesawing in recent days, but Gov. Andy Beshear says it’s still too early to draw any conclusions.

CREDIT AP PHOTO/GERALD HERBERT

With the state in the midst of a gradual economic reopening and large-scale protests, health officials are keeping a close eye on how COVID-19 trends might be affected. Cases had been holding steady for weeks and then starting to drift downward, but some recent jumps have observers wondering if the virus is back on the upswing.

Beshear says it’s too soon to tell.

“We simply don’t have enough right now to suggest that there is a new bump,” he explained. “I still believe that, if we are not plateaued, we are decreasing, but the data is going to bear that out and we’re going to have to watch and see.”

The state saw 155 new cases and 3 new deaths linked to the outbreak on Tuesday.

Updates on COVID-19 have become less frequent as the state grapples with widespread demonstrations over police treatment of African-Americans. Beshear has said the pandemic, which has disproportionately affected black communities, is laying bare inequalities in society that must be addressed.