Charlotte hospitals applaud NC stay-at-home order amid ‘widespread’ coronavirus outbreak
Charlotte-area hospitals applauded Gov. Roy Cooper’s statewide 30-day stay-at-home order for North Carolinians Friday.
Cooper and others say the decision was made to protect public health and avoid an onslaught of critically-ill patients with COVID-19, which would likely overwhelm even large hospital facilities in the state.
“As our state works to navigate this ever-evolving situation, a stay-at-home order can make a significant difference in our ability to keep our communities healthy, while also ensuring our team members have the resources to care for those who need it most during this unprecedented time,” leaders from Atrium Health, CaroMont Health, Cone Health, Novant Health and Wake Forest Baptist Health said in a joint statement Friday.
Cooper announced Friday that the statewide stay-at-home order will take effect Monday evening. North Carolina faces “widespread” transmission of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus, Cooper said.
Mecklenburg County residents have been under a local stay-at-home order since Thursday morning. That order is expected to last at least three weeks. If there are discrepancies between the local and state order, Cooper said the more restrictive measure applies.
Both Cooper and Mecklenburg’s orders are largely similar in their efforts to restrict movement and promote social distancing. Mecklenburg residents are still allowed to venture outdoors for activities deemed “essential” — for example, caring for loved ones, buying groceries and seeking medical treatment.
Identical to Mecklenburg’s order, violating Cooper’s action could result in a Class 2 misdemeanor charge. That means residents can be fined up to $1,000 — and face up to 60 days in jail, according to state statute.
Still, Cooper and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police say they’re asking residents for voluntary compliance to avoid taking someone to jail or writing a ticket.
“We hope and believe that people will voluntarily abide by this order because of the seriousness of this and because this virus is being so easily transmitted from one person to another,” Cooper said in a press conference Friday afternoon.
Hospital systems from across North Carolina have urged the governor repeatedly in recent days to intensify his state directives.
‘It’ll be brutal, man.’ Coronavirus has shut down Charlotte’s economy. Can it recover?
The two stay-at-home orders slightly differ. Cooper’s order allows people to leave their homes for volunteering and to travel to and from places of worship, but Mecklenburg does not allow those exceptions.
Cooper’s order also deems religious entities, insurance companies, real estate brokers and defense and military contractors as essential businesses, while Mecklenburg does not.
Still, the state’s broader business exceptions won’t change much for Mecklenburg residents, who must comply with the stricter rules already imposed locally, according to Cooper.
Mecklenburg’s order
Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio had announced the local action Tuesday afternoon — coming moments after Cooper stopped short of issuing an executive but empowering local governments to use their own authority to safeguard residents and make “unique decisions.”
“We respect the authority of county government,” Cooper had told county commissioners statewide during a conference call Tuesday. “We respect you as units of local government and understand you have the best interests of your folks at heart.”
Pandemic debate: Can you save people and save the economy at the same time?
George Dunlap, the chairman of the Mecklenburg County commissioners, had said he was worried about a patchwork of local orders in the absence of an executive order. Surrounding North Carolina communities — potentially, those with looser restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19 — could continue to fuel community spread of the virus in Mecklenburg, Dunlap said.
Dunlap and a number of county commissioners said their restrictions could last much longer than the stipulated 21 days, depending on the trajectory of the coronavirus outbreak. And based on Cooper’s order, Mecklenburg residents will now stay at home for at least an additional week.
Public and private gatherings of more than 10 people were banned under Mecklenburg’s order, superseding a prior state directive that limited gatherings to 50 individuals. Certain businesses — grocery stores and pharmacies, for example — are permitted to stay open.
The orders’ primary intent is to avoid inundating local hospitals, especially if there’s a surge of COVID-19 cases.
“What we know is we need less people to get sick at the same time so we don’t overwhelm the capacity of our local hospital systems,” Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state Department of Health and Human Services, said Friday.
A Harvard University analysis shows that if 20% of people were hospitalized for COVID-19 in Charlotte over six months, the area would need about twice as many hospital beds than are currently available, according to ProPublica.
Mecklenburg Public Health Director Gibbie Harris said Friday that officials are working on models to try to predict when the outbreak will peak in the county. There were 259 confirmed cases in the county as of Friday, Harris said.
Nearly half the county’s cases so far have been in residents between 20 and 39 years old. About one in five patients have been hospitalized, and about one in 10 have been released from isolation after positive test results, according to Harris.
