LOUISVILLE, Ky. — This blog will be updated daily with the latest information on COVID-19 in Kentucky. You can also see the newest stories in our Coronavirus section.
Saturday, May 23
On Memorial Day weekend, two groups of protesters gathered in Frankfort hoping to call the governor into action. One group says the governor is violating their constitutional right. The other group called for inmates to be treated better during the pandemic.
5 p.m.
Kentucky has confirmed 148 new cases of COVID-19. The new cases bring the state's total to 8,571. Fortunately, no new deaths related to the virus were reported. So far, 3,102 people have recovered.
4 p.m.
Louisville has confirmed 16 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases to 2,249. Another death related to the virus has also been confirmed, bring the total number of deaths to 147.
In a tweet, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer provided the updated numbers and asked the community to stay home as much as possible and follow social distancing guidelines.
Friday, May 22
5:20 p.m.
Kentuckians planning to vote in the state's primary election on June 23 must register by May 26. Absentee voting is available to all. Applications for absentee ballots must be requested by June 15. Voters can register to vote and request an absentee ballot online.
As more businesses continue to open across the state, automatic two-week unemployment payments will no longer be available. Those in need of unemployment benefits will need to apply every two weeks.
Some youth sports (low touch) will begin reopening on June 19. The state has posted new guidelines for that online.
5:15 p.m.
Kentucky COVID-19 updated cases numbers:
- 141 new cases, 8,426 total
- 170,338 tested
- 2,076 ever in hospital with 477 currently hospitalized
- 889 ever in ICU, 90 currently in ICu
- 3,069 recovered
- 5 more deaths
4 p.m.
Louisville confirmed 89 new cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths. That brings the total to 2,233 cases and 146 deaths. The number of people who have recovered from the virus is 1,432.
Thursday, May 21
5:15 p.m.
Kentucky confirms 135 new cases, bringing the total number to 8,286. So far, 166,240 people have been tested and 3,008 have recovered. Ten more deaths related to the virus have been confirmed.
5:20 p.m.
Childcare in Kentucky will begin to reopen on June 8 with small, in-home providers who care for 10 or fewer children. On June 15, center-based programs may reopen. The state has outlined guidelines for childcare providers to follow upon reopening.
Wednesday, May 20
5 p.m.
Kentucky has confirmed 10 more deaths related to COVID-19 and 166 new cases. That brings the total cases to 8,167. So far, 2.919 people have recovered and 158,672 have been tested.
The governor's Memorial Day guidance is "hands, face, space." He is reminding everyone to wash their hands, wear a mask and stay six feet apart.
The state has been granted $300 million in funding from the CARES Act. The funding will reimburse city and county governments for COVID-19 related expenses.
Tuesday, May 19
5:42 p.m.
June 15, the governor says, would be the target opening dates for summer camps. He says if the camps can meet the same requirements as child care centers, they will be allowed to reopen.
Beshear also says sports related camps will need to meet requirements as well. Those groups must be small and not contact other groups.
5:28 p.m.
The governor has announced another phase of Healthy at Work will begin on June 8 which include educational and cultural activities (Museums, outdoor attractions, aquariums, libraries and distilleries).
5:15 p.m.
Gov. Andy Beshear has confirmed 169 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the statewide total to 8,069.
The governor was very somber in announcing 20 deaths, one of the largest single-day totals since the epidemic began. Kentucky has now lost 366 people to the virus.
"We never want to see losing 20 Kentuckians on a given day," Beshear said. "To these families, we want to grieve with you. We want to be there for you."
Other numbers:
153,800 tested
2,010 ever hospitalized ---> 443 currently
875 ever in the ICU ---> 269 currently
2,826 have recovered from the virus
4 p.m.
As of Tuesday, there have been 58 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Louisville, bringing the total to 2,067 with 1,290 recoveries. There have been three additional deaths since Monday. The confirmed Louisville total is 132.
Gender/age details
- Female/84
- Female/77
- Male/64
Currently, 53 members of LMPD, Louisville Fire, Metro EMS, Metro Corrections and the Sheriff’s Office are off-duty due to COVID-19:
- 14 are off with positive tests and in self-isolation.
- 28 are off and quarantined due to exposure to someone with a positive test.
- 11 are “screened off” with symptoms and tested, or due to be tested, but have not received test results.
Positive test numbers for first responders/public safety since the incident began:
- 47 positive tests.
- 33 have fully recovered and returned to duty.
Metro Corrections inmate data for May 19:
- 573 inmates have been tested.
- 7 positives.
- 30 tests are pending.
Monday, May 18
5:21 p.m.
Gov. Andy Beshear says two more children have developed inflammatory symptoms related to COVID-19. He didn’t give specifics but said a 5-year-old was hospitalized over the weekend but is now recovering at home. An 11-year-old is currently hospitalized.
The initial case, a 10-year-old who came down with the syndrome, is still in intensive care.
5 p.m.
After taking the weekend off from COVID-19 briefings, Governor Andy Beshear has released new numbers for both Sunday and Monday.
Sunday saw 122 new cases and three deaths. He said among those positive cases were a 7-year-old from Bell County and a 16-year-old from Hardin County.
Monday, 138 positive cases were confirmed along with 9 deaths. 52 of those cases were probable and the rest were lab confirmed.
Kentucky totals
7,935 positive cases
346 deaths
145, 238 Kentuckians tested
1,980 ever hospitalized / 447 currently
866 ever in ICU / 277 currently
2,785 Kentuckians have currently recovered from the virus
4. p.m.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer has confirmed 74 new cases of COVID-19 in Jefferson County and also reported one additional death.
The Louisville-Jefferson County area has 2,009 total cases and 129 deaths due to the virus.
Mayor Fischer confirmed one additional case at Louisville Department of Metro Corrections.
47 first responders have tested positive since the pandemic began.
31 are back at work
16 are recovering at home.
Hospitalized
79 currently in hospital with 32 of those cases in ICU.
1,244 people have recovered.
17,806 have been tested.
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Find previous Kentucky updates here.
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