The Rundown: Latest on stay-at-home opinions, death totals and what health care workers say
Today in The Rundown: The latest numbers on coronavirus cases and related deaths in Louisiana; what the Trump administration says about who should decide when Louisiana’s stay-at-home order ends; a New Orleans health care worker talks to Trump; and more news.
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The Countdown…
Days until the Governor’s stay-at-home order is lifted: 8
Days until the Louisiana legislative session must end: 26
Days until the newly-scheduled Louisiana presidential primary: 67
Days until the presidential/senatorial/congressional election: 181
Days until the Louisiana runoff election (as needed): 213
Coronavirus in Louisiana
The Numbers…
Cases: 30,399
In Hospitals: 1,465 (On ventilation: 187)
Deaths: 2,094
Tests administered (state and privately reported): 194,672
**Numbers reported as of noon May 6. For updated numbers see: The Louisiana Department of Health.
The News…
Stay-at-home order: At the same time that a State House panel hearing stretched for several hours over whether Gov. John Bel Edwards has the authority to determine when a state-wide stay-at-home order should expire, President Donald Trump’s spokeswoman said the administration stands by governors.
“This is a governor-led effort,” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during Wednesday’s press briefining. “Let me emphasize that. The President has said that governors make the decisions as to how to move forward and we encourage them to follow our phased approach.”
“It's a governor-led decision,” she later added.
Some House Republicans are challenging whether Edwards, a Democrat who has built a close relationship with Trump and was at the White House last week to promote the president’s approach to states, has the authority to mandate a continued shut-down through May 15.
Health care workers: A New Orleans-area nurse raised concerns about inadequate protection equipment faced pushback from President Donald Trump during his celebration of nurses at a White House meeting Wednesday.
Sophia Thomas, president of American Association of Nurse Practitioners and a nurse at the Daughters of Charity Health System in Kenner, began by encouraging Trump’s opportunities with respect to coronavirus. “I think this is an opportunity, through COVID-19, to really look at the overall health of our country, look at the health disparities, and to see what we can do differently,” she said. “I think you are in a very unique position to do some very innovative things with healthcare as we look forward on the horizon.”
Trump asked her for ideas, but he seemed less receptive to her views on what’s happening on the ground.
“As I talk to my colleagues around the country, certainly there are pockets of areas where PPE is not ideal,” Thomas said. “But this is an unprecedented time. And the infection control measures that we learned back when we went to school -- one gown, one mask for one patient a day or per time -- this is a different time. And I've been reusing my N95 mask for a few weeks now. I just broke out a new one to come here, just in case I needed to wear it…
“I practice in New Orleans at a community health center,” she continued. “My youngest patient has been four days old -- a four-day-old infant. And so PPE has been sporadic, but it's been manageable, and we do what we have to do. We're nurses, and we learn to adapt and we do whatever the best thing that we can do for our patients to get the job done and get the care provided. And that’s what we’re going to continue to do as COVID-19 continues.”
Trump, after questioning about testing, said that her account conflicted with what he’s heard: “Sporadic for you, but not sporadic for a lot of other people … Because I’ve heard the opposite.”
The president continued, before ultimately turning to another health care professional in the room: “: I’ve heard that they are loaded up with -- with gowns now. And, you know, initially we had nothing. We had empty cupboards. We had empty shelves. We had nothing. Because it wasn’t put there by the last administration.
And I’ve heard that we have -- I just saw it yesterday, where they're making millions of masks a month in a factory from -- you know, in that case, it was Arizona. It’s great. We have other factories being built now for masks. And, for the most part, I have -- I mean, that was fine, but I’ve heard we have tremendous supply to almost all places. Tremendous supply. To a point where we’re going to start having some of our supply go to other countries which need it very badly.”
Happening today…
The Louisiana House and Senate both come in at 5 p.m. (CT)
The U.S. Senate meets at 9 a.m. (CT) to debate the override of President Trump’s veto on the Iran war powers resolution, with a vote scheduled at around 12:30 p.m.
Louisiana House committees
Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture, and Rural Development meets at 9 a.m. in Room 3.
Judiciary meets at 9 a.m. in Room 1.
Labor and Industrial Relations meets at 9 a.m. in Room 5.
Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs meets at 1 p.m. in Room 6.
Retirement meets at 1 p.m. in Room 1.
Senate committees
Natural Resources meets at 8 a.m. in Room A-B.
Transportation, Highways and Public Works meets at 10 a.m. in Room A-B.
Education meets at noon in Room A-B.
Labor and Industrial Relations meets at 2 p.m. in Room A-B.
Natural Resources meets upon adjournment in Room A-B.
Tweet beat…
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