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In response to a question about when the peak of the illness will come, Raimondo said it could be anywhere from mid-April to mid-May – or possibly later. She said hospitals will be better prepared if people continue to observe social distancing and other directions.
“If, however, on a beautiful day, people crowd around the parks, crowd at the beaches, crowd in lines to get your takeout food, the peak will be sooner and worse,” Raimondo said. “Mortality will be worse. That’s just the brutal reality of this.”
During her daily briefing, the governor announced 160 additional confirmed cases, bringing the state’s total to 1,082, and two more deaths. Dr. James McDonald, a top official with the Department of Health, said the latest deaths involved a person in their 90s who resided at Golden Crest Nursing Center (where there are now 10 cases). The other death involved a person in their 80s.
The number of hospitalizations increased slightly from Sunday, to 109. Of those, McDonald said, 37 are in intensive care, and 26 of those are breathing with the aid of a ventilator.
Raimondo prefaced her remarks by saying the growing death toll and the increased number of cases is not surprising.
“I’ve said all along these numbers are going to go up,” the governor said. “They’re not cause for alarm, they’re certainly not cause for panic. They’re very consistent with what we’re expecting, and I expect every day for the numbers to continue to increase, for many weeks.”
Raimondo said the good news is how CVS Health, working with the state, has opened a testing center at Twin River’s Lincoln site that offers same-day results, after people make an appointment at cvs.com. This site, unlike those at CCRI, RIC and URI, does not require a referral from a doctor. Raimondo said the Lincoln site should be used by people with symptoms who need to work in an office or other setting with co-workers. Only people 18 or older should go to the Lincoln site.
The CVS testing site doubles the state’s capacity, the governor said.
Meanwhile, thanks to the federal stimulus package, people who were not previously eligible for unemployment benefits — gig workers, independent contractors and the self-employed – can apply starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday through the state Department of Labor and Training.
Raimondo said workers laid off during the pandemic are eligible for an increase of $600 a week in unemployment benefits through the end of July.
