Louisiana virus cases top 100 as lawmakers continue session
Columbia Basin Herald | UPDATED 4 years, 10 months AGO
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The number of coronavirus cases in Louisiana tops 100, health officials said Monday, as more state agencies shut down face-to-face business and calls grew for the Legislature to stop moving ahead with its lawmaking session.
The latest figures released from the Louisiana Department of Health showed 114 positive tests for the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus, with 79 of those in Orleans Parish. Two people have died in Louisiana.
For most people, coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. People with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover, according to the World Health Organization.
In hopes of slowing the spread of the virus across Louisiana, Gov. John Bel Edwards closed K-12 schools and banned public gatherings over 250 people until April 13. The Democratic governor also delayed the state's presidential primaries.
In New Orleans, Mayor LaToya Cantrell chastised people who were ignoring the ban on large public gatherings. Meanwhile, state offices that handle food stamps, welfare payments and other social services were closed to the public in the Orleans Parish area, and some motor vehicle offices closed as a precaution. State agencies are encouraging people to do their business by phone or online.
On Sunday, New Orleans instituted new rules requiring that full service restaurants close at 9 p.m. and increase space between tables when open. Fast-casual or quick-service restaurants are not allowed to serve food inside but are allowed to have drive-thru services. Bars and nightclubs in the tourism-dependent economy will close at midnight but have to keep the number of patrons at half whatever their posted occupancy is. And tour groups, which are frequently seen in large buses or bike tours around the city, must be limited to seven people.
But the Louisiana Legislature continued its work in the second week of a three-month legislative session. Committees held meetings Monday morning, discussing tax policy, the budget and other issues — as calls grew louder for lawmakers to suspend their work.
A list of advocacy groups urged a delay in session work, while some lawmakers refused to attend. New Orleans state Sen. Karen Carter Peterson, the head of the Louisiana Democratic Party, said she was staying home, posting several messages on Twitter that described it as irresponsible for the session to continue.
“Tired of explaining to people who should be paying attention and looking out for the masses why we shouldn't be convening on non urgent matters,” Peterson tweeted. “Just sad they won't follow the recommendations of the health care professionals.”
Visitors to the Louisiana Capitol had to pass a temperature test to gain access to the building, and seating in hearing rooms was limited, with individual chairs blocked off to ensure people were sitting apart from each other.
"The virus and its impact on our state are changing by the hour,” Senate President Page Cortez, a Lafayette Republican, said in a statement. “The (House) speaker and I have been and will continue to be in constant communication as we make decisions regarding the legislative session. Our upmost priority is the welfare of our members, staff and visiting public.”
___
The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
___
Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak