Kentucky

Six cases of a rare coronavirus-related inflammatory condition have been identified in Kentucky youth since March, according to public records from the state.

Case data suggest the syndrome is disproportionately impacting young people of color.

MIS-C, or multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, has been identified in Kentuckians as young as five and as old as 19. Symptoms of the rare but serious condition include the inflammation of multiple body parts, fever, rash or vomiting. The cause of MIS-C is unknown, though it’s linked to the new coronavirus.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is calling for Kentucky schools to remain closed to in-person instruction until September 28. 

Jodie Thomas was earning $62,000 a year until she was let go from her job in December.

A new poll shows Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell leading Democratic challenger Amy McGrath by 17 points in Kentucky’s U.S. Senate race this year.

The survey of 793 likely voters in Kentucky by Washington D.C. based firm Morning Consult shows McConnell leading McGrath 53% to 36%. The poll was conducted between July 24 and Aug 2.

McConnell is running for his seventh term in the Senate, though this is the first year he is running while also serving as the majority leader, the high-profile position that allows him to set the agenda of the chamber and wield influence on which bills come up for votes.

Kentucky’s top election official says he doesn’t want all voters to be eligible for mail-in voting during the November General Election, though he still wants to allow older and more vulnerable voters to do so.

Secretary of State Michael Adams, a Republican, says he’s worried that local election officials and the Post Office will not be able to handle the influx of mail-in ballots if absentee voting is again expanded to all eligible voters, as it was during Kentucky’s primary election in June.

“I’m dubious we can fully replicate the primary election plan in all respects, as we believe turnout will be 250% higher in November than it was in June. And that was pretty high as it was,” Adams said during a legislative committee on Tuesday.

The Midwest could be the next area to see a big surge in coronavirus cases, the top U.S. infectious disease specialist warned Tuesday. But there's still time to stop the upswing, he said, if states follow the national guidelines on reopening safely.

While the Southern United States has been seeing the fastest rise in cases, that now appears to be on the downswing, Fauci told George Stephanopoulos on ABC's Good Morning America.

Gov. Andy Beshear says he will announce further steps on Monday to try to slow the spread of coronavirus in Kentucky. Beshear made the statement shortly after a meeting in which a White House coronavirus adviser recommended that the state close bars and reduce restaurant capacity.

Gov. Andy Beshear says he will announce further steps on Monday to try to slow the spread of coronavirus in Kentucky. Beshear made the statement shortly after a meeting in which a White House coronavirus adviser recommended that the state close bars and reduce restaurant capacity.

In recent days, Beshear has repeatedly warned that he would take action to close bars and reduce crowds at restaurants if the number of COVID-19 in the state continued to rise.

“I will not let us become an Alabama, a Florida or an Arizona. We’ve got to take proactive steps and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Beshear said on Sunday during a press conference.

Kentucky has reported its highest daily numbers of coronavirus cases over the last week—the highest came last Sunday when there were nearly 1,000 new cases and the second highest came on Saturday.

Several U.S. states reported new record-breaking coronavirus case counts over the weekend as the nationwide death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 140,000 and President Trump insisted again that the virus would "disappear."

States such as Florida, California and Kentucky were reporting record or near-record numbers of new cases, and in Texas a hospital official told NPR that funeral homes and morgues were overflowing from the bodies of COVID-19 victims.