Despite Abbott’s coronavirus order, we should stay home, Tarrant commissioner says
Tarrant County’s stay-at-home order will expire Thursday and then Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent order that lets some businesses reopen on Friday will go into effect.
County commissioners decided Tuesday not to put their own order in effect, to avoid creating confusion with the governor’s order.
“I think he’s made it pretty clear,” Whitley said Tuesday, during a break in the county commissioners meeting.
Abbott on Monday said Texas businesses will reopen in phases. On Friday, restaurants, movie theaters, malls, retail stores and more will be able to open doors to limited occupancy. The governor stressed that, while businesses don’t have to reopen Friday, officials in communities across Texas may not put stronger or weaker rules into effect.
“With the governor’s order, it was pretty well taken out of our hands to do anything to lessen the restrictions or allow us to modify it in any way,” Whitley said after some residents clamored during the meeting for their businesses to be able to reopen as well. “It is totally in the hands of the governor and the state when or how we open or close businesses.”
That means beauty and nail salons, barbershops and other businesses will have to wait to see if they can reopen in mid-May, when Abbott indicated the next phase may go into effect.
But Public Health Director Vinny Taneja recommended that employees and customers wear masks.
“It’s a good practice,” he said. “It ‘s not a requirement. But it’s highly recommended.”
County officials stressed that Abbott’s new rules allow some businesses to reopen, but they don’t require people to go out.
“I appreciate the governor’s order,” Commissioner Roy Brooks said. “I feel he’s done a good job of tap dancing on the head of a pin. There’s a lot in the order that speaks to where we are.
“But Tarrant County statistics tell me that it is not yet time to ease up on stay-at-home,” he said. “It is a matter now of individual choice. As for me and my house, we intend to stay at home and I hope that the rest of the community will make the same choice.”
Tarrant County reported 2,088 cases of coronavirus on Tuesday. That number includes 58 deaths and 289 recoveries.
Flare up
Taneja said more testing is occurring in Tarrant County as new sites have opened. Another site run by the National Guard should open soon. No details about that site were available Tuesday.
The county also on Sunday launched a screening website to determine whether residents meet criteria for coronavirus testing. The site schedules appointments for those who qualify.
As new testing locations continue to open, Brooks said he’s “completely dissatisfied with the availability of testing, noting that locations are not in areas where large populations of black residents live, such as Stop Six and Como in Fort Worth, or in Benbrook or Forest Hill.
“We managed to find enough money to put testing sites in every community except the African-American communities,” Brooks said.
When Whitley suggested Brooks “stand in line” to get a testing site in his desired areas, Brooks replied: “If you want me to march an Army down to the (commissioners court building) to stand in line with me, I am prepared to do that.”
Whitley said there is a lot of demand for testing sites.
“I don’t care how many people you march down here,” he said. “We are Tarrant County. We are not just Fort Worth. We are not just Arlington.
“We are Tarrant County and we need to spread these test sites out throughout the county.”
Commissioners and residents alike expressed concern about the number of COVID-19 cases being logged in jails, retirement communities, nursing homes and other areas where people have little or no choice about being there.
Whitley said he has talked to U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, about cases in federal prisons, stressing that he hoped the federal government and Centers for Disease Control will respond to those cases.
‘Individual choice’
Taneja reviewed the number of COVID-19 cases and the available hospital beds in Tarrant County.
“Are we in good shape for hospital capacity?” Taneja asked. “Yes.”
There are 5,883 hospital beds In Tarrant County, with 2,727 are available. Of the occupied beds, 188 are being used by patients who have tested positive for coronavirus.
“The governor’s order required hospitals to hold open 15% of bed capacity,” Whitley said. “We are still well below the request by the governor as far as available beds ... for COVID-19 patients.”
