Edwards: More communication, enforcement to battle COVID upsurge

The late-June surge in Louisiana COVID-19 cases has drawn the attention of a top federal health official as some local governments turn to mandatory masking to slow the spread while hoping to avoid more drastic measures.

On Wednesday, the same day the Office of Public Health reported more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases statewide, East Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome announced her intention to make face covering mandatory in public. The rapid rise in the number of East Baton Rouge cases, along with the rise in cases state wide, led federal coronavirus response coordinator Deborah Birx to call Gov. John Bel Edwards on Tuesday, he said at a Wednesday press conference.

Jefferson and Orleans parishes have already imposed mask requirements.

Other troubling signs have emerged, including a steep increase in hospitalizations. The OPH reported that 799 people are hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment across the state, the highest total since May 27 and up from a pandemic low of 542.

"Over the second half of June, we lost all the progress we made in June," Edwards said.

The timing is an important piece of the puzzle. Louisiana moved into less restrictive Phase Two mitigation measures June 5, and Memorial Day, the traditional beginning of summer activities, was May 28. The incubation period for COVID-19 is from two to 14 days, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Other Sun Belt states, from California and Arizona east to Florida, are experiencing rapid growth in the number of new COVID-19 cases.

People 18-29 account for a disproportionate share of new cases, and within that group 18- to 25-year-olds are over-represented.

Edwards continues to insist that the Louisiana surge in cases is related not to the easing of economic restrictions but to failure to comply with mitigation practices.

"Everybody has a role to play," the governor said. "There are things everybody can do."

Those things include wearing masks in public, washing hands often, staying home when sick and avoiding businesses where people are not complying with masking and social distancing requirements.

"If you're in the business community and you want to make sure the economy does as well as possible during this public health emergency," Edwards said, "and as many businesses as possible are open and employees are back at work and customers are in restaurants and stores, you need to do your part. ...

"I will tell you, the surge we're seeing is not because we went into Phase Two. It's because people aren't engaging in the proper behavior."

Edwards said he doesn't want to go backward into more serious mitigation measures. Instead, he hopes to succeed with more communication to the public and enforcing restrictions already in force, including capacity limits.

But he left the door open for stricter measures if hospital resources appear likely to be overwhelmed by new COVID-19 cases.

"We are not going to threaten our ability to provide health care," Edwards said.

To monitor the situation in Baton Rouge, additional testing sites are scheduled to begin Tuesday at Cortana Mall, LSU and Southern University, and the Greater Baton Rouge State Fairgrounds.