June 12, 2020
By News Director Jared Atha
Beckham County is once again COVID-19 free.
According to the latest report from the Oklahoma State Department of Health, all seven cumulative cases of the virus in the county are now being reported as recovered.
Another recovery is being reported in Custer County, however there are still 14 active cases, 11 of those cases are in Weatherford. Jackson County has seen two additional cases added to its total. The county now has seven active cases. Greer County and Kiowa County have two cases each, while Washita County still has one active case of the virus.
As a state, Oklahoma had nearly another 100 active cases reported by health officials when compared to Thursday’s numbers. Currently there are 1,098 Oklahomans with COVID-19.
There are another two deaths being reported due to the virus. The state’s death count is now at 359.
Gov. Kevin Stitt on Friday issued an Amended Executive Order, which allows for visitation to long-term care facilities to resume in a phased approach effective Monday, June 15.
According to the governor’s office, the Oklahoma State Department of Health’s guidance was created based on best practices from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state trade associations.
The guidance contains three phases based on the prevalence of COVID-19 in each facility and its surrounding community, personal protective equipment availability, staffing levels and local hospital capacity, according to the governor’s office.
All nursing and skill nursing facilities, assisted living, adult day care, residential care and intermediate care facilities for individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities will be required to submit the name, phone number and email of a licensed health care professional to serve as their infection preventionist. Evidence the infection preventionist completed a CDC training course and a monitoring plan for the facility’s infection surveillance, staff training and infection prevention and control.
The state is in the process of finalizing a grant program to use CARES Act funding for long-term care facilities to enhance infectious disease prevention and mitigation, according to the governor’s office. Further details and application information will be released in the coming days.
