Good Evening,
After speaking with Dr. Crystal Miller of the WEDCO District Health Dept. today at 5:00 pm, we still have NO confirmed cases in Scott County of Coronavirus at this time.
With that said, the reality of the situation is that we fully expect cases in Scott County as the availability and capacity to test individuals increases. The state lab is efficient in a 24 hour turn around time for tests but the private labs that are increasing capacity to test have been reporting a 3 to 5 day turn around. If you haven’t already, please like WEDCO District Health Department Facebook page where they share pertinent information to COVID19.

We have been asked why testing isn’t available to all residents. Please know that testing everyone for COVID19 isn’t helpful because this is a virus. If someone is tested and they are negative at the time of testing but have been exposed (knowingly or unknowingly), they can still develop symptoms and potentially have the virus later. This is why it is important for us to test people who have symptoms (flu like, chills, fever, difficulty breathing, etc.). This is also the reason that the best tool that we have to combat COVID19 is social distancing. We know this virus is community spread (person to person) and there isn’t a vaccine so it is extremely important to follow Governor Beshear’s mandates and recommendations to stay home and social distance.

The best thing you can do for you, your family and for your community is to stay home. Please do your part to keep our community safe. During this pandemic, ALL tests for this virus have to go through Frankfort to be reported. When we have a confirmed case, I will share that here.

After meeting with Law Enforcement and Mayor Prather and I issued an Executive Order today focusing on the following:
(1) No one eighteen (18) years of age or younger shall be in public after 9:00 pm EST nor before 6:00 am EST any day of the week, unless:
(a) Said person is accompanied by at least one of their parents or their legal guardian;
(b) Is on the way to or from work or actively engaged in employment.
(2) No persons shall congregate together in a group of ten (10) or greater in any place open to the public at large. This shall not, however, prevent unassociated persons from being in a public place, such as a grocery, as long as the social distancing provisions set out by the Governor are observed.
I will continue to share info from Dr. Miller and the State on this page, I would encourage you to follow the local health dept’s Facebook page @WEDCO District Health Department. They are sharing pertinent information to the COVID19 event.

I CANNOT stress enough, the importance of social distancing, and no gatherings of more than 10 people per the CDC, President Trump, and our own Governor Beshear.

We will get through this TOGETHER!

Joe Pat Covington