About 64 Kentuckians have recovered from diagnosed COVID-19 infections, Gov. Andy Beshear said in an optimistic news conference Saturday afternoon.
The number could be even greater, he added, but multiple factors — the slow travel of information, the untested cases, the carriers who never had symptoms — make an exact total hard to estimate.
Kentucky, like its neighbors in Ohio and Indiana, still anticipates a sharp upswing in the number of coronavirus cases its medical system will have to treat during the spring and early summer. Despite the nugget of good news, Beshear said Kentuckians must continue to practice social distancing, avoid gathering in public places and practice good hygiene to keep that number as low as possible.
“These next two weeks are critical,” Beshear said.
Later, he added: “Our safety depends on us caring more about each other than ever before.”
Ninety-two new cases were diagnosed between Friday and Saturday afternoons, bringing the statewide total to 394.
Although Beshear was enthusiastic to announce there had been no new deaths overnight when his news conference began at 5 p.m., the Northern Kentucky Health Department announced its first recorded COVID-19 fatality fewer than 15 minutes after it ended.
