Raimondo: 'Keep it local' for Thanksgiving

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As the latest COVID-19 data in Rhode Island and across the United States continue to paint a troubling picture, Gov. Gina Raimondo on Wednesday again urged Ocean State residents to rethink Thanksgiving travel plans.

“Like everything about 2020, Thanksgiving is going to be different … My request to you is to keep it local this year,” the governor said during her weekly briefing.

Recent numbers, including Thursday’s data update from the Rhode Island Department of Health, point to a continued resurgence of the coronavirus locally.

Thursday’s update showed 398 new COVID-19 cases identified among 14,916 tests – the highest single-day case count since April, albeit with many more tests than were being run in the spring.

Rhode Island has now conducted more than 1 million COVID-19 tests since the onset of the pandemic, although that figure includes both repeat and first-time tests. The positivity rate for Thursday’s update was 2.7 percent.

Thursday’s numbers included another four virus-related deaths, which bring the state’s overall toll to 1,173, and showed 140 Rhode Islanders hospitalized as a result of the disease.

Week-to-week metrics also showed concerning signs. Last week’s percent positive rate was 2 percent, up from 1.7 percent the week prior. The number of new cases per 100,000 residents surged during the same timeframe, from 126 to 149, a figure Raimondo said is “highest that it’s been in several months.” And while new hospitalizations decreased from 116 to 94 last week, the governor noted that number still represents double-digit new hospitalizations each day.

“The numbers aren’t good. I’m not going to sugarcoat it,” the governor said, adding: “The bottom line is, we’re not in a good place … It’s clear that we have community spread all across the state.”

Wednesday’s briefing included little in the way of new announcements or major news, outside of the ongoing statistical increases.

Thanksgiving was a central focus of Raimondo’s remarks as she implored state residents to follow guidelines for a “safe” celebration. Traveling to be with loved ones for the holidays, she said, inherently involves interacting with people outside of one’s normal social circle – and that creates risk of exposure, or exposing others, to the coronavirus.

“No one’s forbidding you. There’s no official regulation … it’s in the state’s best interest if everyone stays local,” she said.

Raimondo asked those who do travel to “be very careful in the 14 days leading up to Thanksgiving,” as well as during the days following their return. She cautioned that people who become ill while traveling might find themselves stranded and should consider that possibility.

“In light of everything,” she said, “it’s probably not worth it to travel this one year.”

Despite the warnings, Raimondo sought to provide some reassurances to anxious Rhode Islanders on Wednesday. While acknowledging it’s “going to be a rough couple of months” as temperatures drop, people are forced to spend more time indoors and flu season arrives, she said there is “light at the end of the tunnel” in terms of a vaccine.

“Rest assured, when they’re ready, Rhode Island will be first in line,” she said.

The governor also said the upswing in COVID-19 numbers locally is not yet a “runaway train” or “second wave.” Elsewhere during Wednesday’s briefing:

* Raimondo said 300,000 Abbott BinaxNOW rapid COVID-19 tests – which require no machine to process and provide results in roughly 15 – are scheduled to arrive in Rhode Island in the weeks ahead.

The tests will be deployed in three key areas, she said – the K-12 community, community health centers in high-density areas, and colleges and universities. That is set to occur by, or around, Thanksgiving.

The governor and Health Director Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott said part of the focus on younger populations with the new testing stems from the “invisible spread” that can occur among asymptomatic people of a young age.

“The name of the game right now is to identify as many positive cases as possible as fast as possible,” Raimondo said, adding: “This is a very strange virus … There’s a lot of folks out there who test positive but have no symptoms.”

The governor and Alexander-Scott also urged asymptomatic people to seek COVID-19 tests – on a regular, even weekly, basis – through the website portal.ri.gov.

“Testing is not a silver bullet, but it’s a very important tool in our toolbox,” Raimondo said, noting that roughly 3,500 asymptomatic tests were conducted in the past week. * Raimondo said pending additional talks, she is supportive of an arrangement between Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts on coronavirus control measures similar to the Tri-State partnership between New York, Connecticut and New Jersey.

“I’m very interested in that … It’s something that I would favor, and I hope that we can do it,” she said. * Raimondo announced the launch of a “Safe and Spooky” Halloween contest sponsored by the Rhode Island Foundation and Rhode Island Department of Education. Students in four age categories can submit ideas for creative, alternative Halloween plans through backtoschoolri.com, and three winners in each group will receive a $50 prize. The deadline for submissions is Oct. 27. * A virtual career center and artificial intelligence-powered job matching tool – dubbed “Skipper” – will be added to the backtoworkri.com website through a partnership between Google and the nonprofit Research Improving People’s Lives, or RIPL, Raimondo announced.

The governor said the focus of the initiative and the new tools is to more effectively pair jobseekers or those currently out of work with opportunities for retraining and new employment.

“If you’re out there, if you’ve been laid off or furloughed … check this out. We want to get you a job,” she said.

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