State officials have extended closure of all public and private schools through the end of the 2019-2020 school year, mandating that education continue through distance-delivered services, in another effort to contain spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The new mandate said that the incident command working to contain spread of the virus would reconvene in April to consider if the state’s health outlook would safely allow for small groups of students to meet with their teachers in person for final student conferences before the end of the school year.
State officials also extended mandates on social distancing and limits on intrastate travel between communities through April 21, and extended postponement of elective oral health procedures until rescinded.
The latest update from the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services showed that 49 people have now recovered from bouts with COVID-19 and another 27 remain hospitalized.
As of Thursday, April 9, nine new cases for the 24-hour period ended at midnight April 8 brought the total number of people testing positive to the virus to 235. Five are residents of Anchorage one from Kenai, two from Fairbanks and another from Wasilla. Seven Alaskans have succumbed to the virus, including one who was getting medical treatment for unrelated issues in Washington state.
A mandate on all elective surgeries also remains in effect, with state officials saying they need to reserve all personal protective equipment to contend with an anticipated surge in the number of people testing positive for the virus.
Asked about social distancing issues during a media teleconference, Gov. Mike Dunleavy said that at this time government officials don’t feel a need to cite anyone for not following health mandates and encouraged everyone to go out into their communities for recreation while keeping a distance from others.
“We are a free society,” Dunleavy said. “We do best when we understand the urgency of it. So far, from our perspective, Alaska is doing pretty good. Can we do better? We can always do better, but that doesn’t mean the state should be chasing people around. We don’t believe that’s necessary at this point.”
The governor was also asked if individual communities have the legal right to invoke small community emergency travel orders. The city of Cordova had in fact posed several questions in a letter to the governor’s office on April 3 and was still awaiting a response.
Dunleavy was asked specifically in the case of Cordova, if the city have the power to close its airport or prohibit all travelers from entering the city except for those traveling for the purposes listed in the small community order.
Dunleavy was also asked if the city had the power to prohibit people onboard vessels from outside of the community from entering Cordova, except for those with purposes listed in the small community order. Cordova officials also want to know if they have the power to impose a 14-day quarantine on all travelers, including those traveling to and from Cordova on essential business. The governor said he would have answers to those questions at a news conference scheduled for 5 p.m. Friday, April 10.
