Georgia Governor Brian Kemp announces plans to sign a shelter-in-place order in response to growing cases of the coronavirus during a Wednesday press conference.
“We are taking action to protect our hospitals, help our medical providers and prepare for patient surge,” Kemp says in the conference.
The governor says the order will go into effect Friday and will continue until April 13, 2020. More details will be released on Thursday.
Essential businesses will continue to remain open. Georgia State University is considered an essential business, according to Provost Wendy Hensel, in a message to faculty on March 25.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Georgia climbs to 4,748, with the number of deaths reaching 154, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.
On March 23, Governor Kemp issued a shelter-in-place for vulnerable populations in the state until April 6.
Governor Kemp declared a public health state of emergency in response to COVID-19 on March 17. But, leaders in the state have been critical of the governor’s action towards the situation.
Local leaders across the state have already issued versions of stay-at-home orders. On March 23, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued a 14-day stay-at-home order to residents in the city.
Early Wednesday, the Democratic Party of Georgia listed 10 ways Governor Kemp “failed Georgians” amid the pandemic, in a press release ahead of his announcement.
Nikema Williams, a state senator and chairwoman of the state party, was diagnosed with COVID-19 over two weeks ago and says Georgians across the state are worried about how the disease will impact them.
“I have spent the last two weeks recovering from this disease and I know very well that Georgians across our state are terrified of how this virus will impact our families, our communities, and our jobs,” Williams says in the release. “Our governor refuses to take the statewide action that medical professionals and public health experts tell us will save lives.”
During the press conference, Governor Kemp also announces an executive order to close K-12 public schools statewide for the remainder of the school year.
Note: This article was written for PRN, the student-led news station at Georgia State University.
