PROVIDENCE – Gov. Gina M. Raimondo took a starkly different tone toward Rhode Island residents at her briefing on Wednesday afternoon, warning them of how many states across the country are seeing spikes in new coronavirus cases.
“Not every state is in the situation that we’re in,” said Raimondo and cited how 33 states are now having a rolling average of new cases that are higher than last week’s averages, and seven states are reporting all-time highs for hospitalizations that are higher than two months ago.
“This is about science. This isn’t about politics. This isn’t about what you want to do,” said Raimondo, who explained that the state of Arizona had to cancel elected surgeries to make room for the coronavirus-related hospitalizations and how Texas recently saw a doubling in hospitalizations – from about 1,800 to nearly 3,200. “This is just about the facts.”
She urged Rhode Islanders to continue following the rules; to wear a mask around other people, to practice social distancing, to get tested if they feel symptoms, among other health guidelines.
“Right now, we have a winning formula in Rhode Island,” said Raimondo. “Stick with it so we can continue to reopen.”
Raimondo previewed that while in upcoming Phase III, which she said she hopes to have further clarification on for the June 29 briefing, guidelines around youth and adult sports will be relaxed. She said the state will allow no-contact and low-contact sports games to be played between stable groups with no limit on overall group sizes. Some of these sports include baseball, softball, tennis and golf. Teams will be allowed to play other Rhode Island teams as well as out-of-state teams, as long as their state of origins are not under a stay-at-home order.
Spectators will be allowed at these games, but each player will be limited to two visitors and masks will be required.
Close-contact sports such as basketball, soccer and football will be discouraged, according to the governor.
Raimondo said that state beaches saw less-than-ideal issues over last weekend, including visitors not wearing masks, crowding, less than compliant visitors and waiting lines due to parking restrictions. These issues led to some beach closures. However, starting this upcoming weekend, the governor said that parking restrictions will be eased, going from a 50% capacity to a 75% capacity, which will immediately allow more than 2,000 new parking spaces. She encouraged visitors to purchase beach passes online in order to reduce person-to-person interactions.
Starting June 27, Raimondo said a new tool will be launched in order to have beach goers check if parking lots are available by going to RIParks.com/beachpass to check any state beach at any time.
The governor’s briefing comes as reported cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 73 on Tuesday, pushing the total number of cases reported since the start of the pandemic to 16,606, the R.I. Department of Health said Wednesday.
“We’re in a good place with the virus in Rhode Island,” said Raimondo, but acknowledged that the picture across the country is not looking good as some states are seeing spikes in new cases. The governor credited Rhode Islanders for following the rules and staying informed to keep themselves safe.
The state also reported six new deaths due to the virus. Rhode Island’s COVID-19 death toll now stands at 912. R.I. Department of Health Director Dr. Nicole Alexander Scott said that out of the six deaths, one person was in their 70s, two people were in their 80s, one person was in their 90s and two people were over the age of 100 years old.
The state tested 3,531 people for the virus on Tuesday, with a positive rate of 2.1%. Rhode Island has now performed 224,993 COVID-19 tests.
“We need to test more people. We have the capacity to test more,” said Raimondo.
Raimondo said the state has the capacity to test more than 5,000 people per day, but only about 4,000 tests are being conducted on most days. She urged anyone feeling sick or in key groups, such as close contact workers, to be tested.
Raimondo said that Saturday, June 27, will be the last day of testing at the Twin River site in Lincoln, Rhode Island, operated by CVS Health, which is only testing a couple hundred per day.
“That was always meant to be temporary,” said Raimondo, who explained the state is “full prepared” and has been preparing for the closing of this rapid-test site. In addition, there still is a partnership with CVS Health, where they have 10 drive-thru testing sites.
There are 104 current hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients in Rhode Island, a decline of one for the day before. Of those hospitalized, 20 were in intensive care units and 16 were on ventilators. To date, 1,573 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from the hospital in Rhode Island.
Alexander-Scott said that during Phase II, the state has been preparing for nursing home visitations to begin in Phase III. However, it will be a “measured, gradual approach.” The director said that RIDOH sent nursing homes and assistant living guidance about communal dining for residents only. Assistant living facilities started on Monday, while nursing homes began communal dining Wednesday.
“The health and well-being of residents and staff are absolute priorities,” said Alexander-Scott, and explained that visitations for nursing homes will involve visitations outside, masks will be required, social distancing and appointments.
This story has been updated to include details of the governor’s press conference.