PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Maine hopes to find an alternative to coronavirus quarantines by the time lodging opens to out-of-state visitors this summer, as the Vacationland state contemplates a low-key kickoff to the summer season, official said Wednesday.
State officials hope to find a way to hold some scaled-down activities on Memorial Day weekend, but “we haven’t got there yet,” said Heather Johnson, economic and community development commissioner.
Officials also announced Wednesday that a food processing plant is the first non-health-related business to be hit with an outbreak of the coronavirus.
Tyson Foods is working with the state to test all workers at its Portland facility, the former Barber Foods plant, said Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control. Eight workers had tested positive as of Wednesday, Shah said.
Johnson and Shah spoke to reporters as the state prepared to post online a checklist for businesses that can reopen May 1 during the first phase of restarting the state’s economy.
The first phase of an executive order includes elective health care procedures including dental visits, personal services like barber shops and hair salons, and outdoor activities like golfing and visits to state parks. The executive order, signed by Gov. Janet Mills on Wednesday, also requires people to wear masks in public places where social distancing is difficult.
The state is flexible if there are other businesses that want to petition to reopen because they can do so safely, Johnson said.
Officials are also to open to accelerating the pace of reopening in rural areas that are largely unaffected by the coronavirus, she said.
As it stands, the state’s hotels and inns will reopen to state residents on June 1 and to out-of-state residents by July 1.
For now, out-of-state visitors are required to self-quarantine for two weeks, but the state is considering whether there are alternatives that could be in place before July 1, Johnson said.
“We are trying to find multiple options for tourism businesses and people who want to come to Maine, to find a way to do that. Quarantine is a last-case choice. We are actively working on some other choices,” she said.
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THE NUMBERS
Another person died and 16 more people tested positive for the virus over the past 24 hours, Shah said.
That brings the total number of deaths to 52 and the total number of confirmed cases to 1,056, he said.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
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EVENT CANCELLATIONS
The Maine Lobster Festival will not take place in 2020 because of fears about the coronavirus.
Organizers of the event said they were “deeply disappointed” to have to shutter the event but ultimately determined the closure was unavoidable. The event draws thousands of people to coastal Rockland.
Organizers also announced the cancellation of the state’s biggest road race, the Beach to Beacon, in Cape Elizabeth.
“This has been a heartbreaking decision for all of us but is the right and only decision to be made at this time of uncertainty and unknowns,’ said Joan Benoit Samuelson, Olympic gold medalist and race founder.
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HOSPITALS IN TROUBLE
Two small hospitals in Maine say they could close by the end of June without funding through a federal loan program meant to help small businesses during the pandemic.
Calais Regional Hospital and Penobscot Valley Hospital in Lincoln were disqualified from funds from the Paycheck Protection Program because they’ve both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Both hospitals argued in complaints filed Monday in federal bankruptcy court that there was no reference to bankruptcy being a barrier to funding in the original federal legislation created last month. Both hospitals filed for bankruptcy within the past 18 months.
Under the Payback Protection Program, businesses with fewer than 500 employees could apply for forgivable loans if they meet conditions, including spending at least three-quarters of the money on payroll.
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