5 Major Coronavirus Developments — RI Infection Rate Equals Spring Peak
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5 Major Coronavirus Developments — RI Infection Rate Equals Spring Peak
As infections continue to spike in Rhode island, the business challenges and impacts continue to be felt.
As GoLocal reported on Tuesday, the news and the trade-offs are bad in all directions. Small businesses are closing due to the economic impact, community leaders are dying due to complications relating to the disease and the outbreak is now growing.
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On Tuesday, the Rhode Island Department of Health reported that there were a total of 421 additional cases and 288 of them were reported for Monday on limited testing. The difference is what the state calls catchup data - tests that were not recorded on their actual day due to data capture issues or late reporting by labs.
This comes on the heels of more than 900 new cases over the weekend and a single-day record number of cases on Friday.
Dr. Michael Fine, the former Rhode Island Director of Health, warns that cases and hospitalizations will continue to grow. And, data issues continue to complicate the ability to shift resources and strategies to address outbreaks.
Dr. Michael Fine Appears Each Week Day on GoLocal LIVE at 12:30 PM
Governor Gina Raimondo will address the media on Wednesday at 1 PM to discuss the latest developments -- Rhode Island has the biggest outbreak on the East Coast.
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5 Major Coronavirus Developments — RI Infection Rate Equals Spring Peak - Oct 28, 2020
Hospitalization Growth Across the Country
On Tuesday, Rhode Island recorded the highest number of hospitalizations linked to the coronavirus since June. And while Rhode Island may be getting hit amongst the hardest in the east, it is not alone.
The number of people hospitalized for the virus tells a different story, climbing an estimated 46 percent from a month ago and raising fears about the capacity of regional health care systems to respond to overwhelming demand.
Twenty-six states are at or near record numbers for new infections. More than 500,000 cases have been announced in the past week. No states are seeing sustained declines in case numbers.
And while the escalating case numbers had not been accompanied by a steep rise in deaths, that trend is starting to change. About 800 deaths are now being recorded across the country each day, far fewer than in the spring but up slightly from earlier this month.
Stock Selloff
This past week has been tough on Wall Street. Both Monday and Tuesday the market was down, but Wednesday expect a significant sell-off.
Top RI companies were mixed on Tuesday, CVS was down 2.37%, but Hasbro was up 2.04%.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
U.S. stock futures sharply fell Wednesday, suggesting that the selloff in markets may pick up pace after the opening bell, as the rising coronavirus infections shook investors’ confidence.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 dropped 1.4%, pointing to the broad index retreating for its third consecutive session. The benchmark has slipped more than 5% from its record closing level in early September.
Markets slid lower this week on a raft of uncertainties. Worsening coronavirus case numbers may make more stringent restrictions imperative across the U.S. and Europe, potentially dealing a setback to the fragile economic recovery. New U.S. cases climbed back above 70,000 as states across the country continued to report high levels of fresh infections.
Mental Health Trouble Ahead
There are growing mental health concerns tied to the coronavirus.
"A survey study published in the JAMA Network Open in September found that U.S. adults were reporting levels of depressive symptoms more than three times higher during the pandemic than before it.
A survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in June yielded similar results, with more U.S. adults reporting adverse mental health symptoms, particularly in young adults, racial and ethnic minorities and essential workers. (On the flip side, a survey done of U.S. teens from May to July found that teens actually fared well when it came to depression and loneliness.)," reports the Washington Post.
Rhode Island's Small Businesses Can Access Restore RI Monies
RI Commerce has announced that the maximum grant sizes for small businesses impacted by the coronavirus are doubling from previous amounts, with awards now ranging up to $30,000. Non-profit organizations and child care businesses are also now eligible to apply.
Who is eligible?
If you answer ‘YES’ to these three questions below, Commerce invites you to learn more and apply:
Are you a small business or non-profit in Rhode Island?
Businesses must have a physical location in Rhode Island and 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees or qualifying independent contractors (no limit for restaurants and caterers). Sole proprietors, non-profit organizations, child care businesses, and businesses without employees or contractors (1099s) may now apply.
Is your business or organization in an eligible industry?
A full list of eligible industries can be found here.
Did your business or organization experience a major revenue (sales) drop due to COVID-19?
Applicants must demonstrate a 30% or higher revenue (sales) drop in a month between March and July of 2020 (compared to the same month in 2019, January 2020, or February 2020) due to COVID-19.
RI Coronavirus Data Troubles
Here are some of the growing issues:
1) The Rhode Island Department of Health has not released city and town data in nearly three weeks. Thus, communities cannot take action to limit outbreaks.
2) Asymptomatic and symptomatic testing results are lumped together, thus the state cannot track increases in Rhode Islanders needing symptomatic tests due to a spike.
3) College and university testing which is nearly all asymptomatic testing is being mixed with the RI test results, thus falsely increasing the number of tests and artificially decreasing the infection rate.
