Update: June 5 8:00 p.m. – State Response to Coronavirus

Friends and Neighbors,

In a press release and during his daily press briefing, Governor Lamont announced Executive Order 7XX which modifies Order 7TT regarding religious gatherings, provides safety rules for graduations and suspends the involuntary discharge of certain nursing home and residential care residents.

More information and the governor’s full press release can be read here: https://portal.ct.gov/Office-of-the-Governor/News/Press-Releases/2020/06-2020/Governor-Lamont-Coronavirus-Update-June-5

Executive Order No. 7XX enacts the following provisions:

• Modification of safety rules for drive-in religious gatherings: Makes modifications to Executive Order No. 7TT to provide that “drive-in” religious, spiritual, and worship gatherings at which all attendees remain in their vehicles may be held with no limitations on capacity if either vehicle windows remain closed or vehicles remain at least six feet apart and participants wear masks or cloth face coverings.
• Safety rules for drive-in graduations: Permits drive-in graduation ceremonies at which all attendees remain in their vehicles except for graduates briefly leaving their vehicles to receive diplomas to be held with no limitations on capacity if either vehicle windows remain closed or vehicles remain at least six feet apart and all attendees wear masks or cloth face coverings.
• Suspension of the involuntary discharge of nursing facility residents and residential care home residents who may be discharged to homeless shelters, except during emergency situations or with respect to COVID-19 recovered discharges: Suspends the involuntary discharge of residents from nursing homes or residential care homes to homeless shelters for the duration of the declared emergency. This suspension excludes emergency situations when the individual presents a danger to the health, safety, or welfare of the resident or other residents or staff, including the refusal to comply with established COVID-19 infection control or social distancing measures that could also endanger staff, and does not apply to specific aspects of the Department of Public Health’s COVID-19 medical surge plan as addressed in Executive Order No. 7Y.

**Download: Governor Lamont’s Executive Order No. 7XX

*****

Phase 2 of Connecticut’s reopening efforts moved earlier to June 17

Governor Lamont today announced that Phase 2 of Connecticut’s reopening efforts is being moved up a few days to Wednesday, June 17 to avoid having it take effect during the busy Father’s Day weekend. It previously had been scheduled for Saturday, June 20. The governor will release additional safety guidance for businesses that fall under Phase 2 early next week.

*****

As of 4:00 p.m. – Friday, June 5^th – the state is reporting a total of 43460 cases of Coronavirus. Updated virus totals and Town-by-Town statistics can be accessed here: https://portal.ct.gov/Coronavirus

The total statewide number of COVID-19 associated fatalities is 4038.

*In Connecticut during the early months of this pandemic, it became increasingly clear that it would be necessary to track probable COVID-19 cases and deaths, in addition to laboratory-confirmed (RT- PCR) cases and deaths. This was needed to better measure the burden and impact of this disease in our communities and is now part of the national surveillance case definition for COVID-19. Probable cases of COVID-19 involve persons who have not had confirmatory laboratory testing (RT-PCR) performed for COVID-19, but whose symptoms indicate they are likely to have a COVID-19 infection. In Connecticut, most of the probable COVID-19 cases involve persons whose death certificates list COVID-19 disease or SARS-CoV-2 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death. Prior to June 1, probable and confirmed cases were reported together.

Latest COVID-19 Testing Data in Connecticut

Updated 4:00 p.m. on Friday, June 5, 2020

Total patients who tested positive: 41387 confirmed/2073 probable

Fairfield County: 15204/293

Hartford County: 9982/309

Litchfield County: 1343/21

Middlesex County: 1112/35

New Haven County: 11282/144

New London County: 1045/25

Tolland County: 784/14

Windham County: 398/1

Pending address validation: 237/0