Governor Edwards Expected To Give COVID Phase 3 Update Today

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UPDATE (1pm) - Sources tell now KEEL News there will NOT be an update today

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ORIGINAL STORY - Anticipation has been building in the State of Louisiana for a couple of weeks now. Honestly, this building bubble started when the White House Coronavirus Task Force first put forward their 3-Phase Reopening plan. But over the last couple of weeks specifically, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has taken an optimistic tone that has caught a lot of attention.

After the Governor put a mandatory mask policy into place across the state, the COVID numbers have started to see heavy declines. As the Governor has pointed out, these are all good trends, which is where his optimism about a move into the state's Phase 3 of reopening has come from.

The current extension of Phase 2 is set to expire this Friday, so Governor Edwards will have to make some kind of decision soon. This has increased the anticipation for today's press conference, which The Advocate reports will happen at 2pm.

Louisiana moved into Phase 2 on June 5th, with multiple extensions added since. Then on July 13th, Phase 2 had a modification added closing bars and mandating mask usage while inside businesses.

Many aren't sure what a Phase 3 plan will look like, but it's almost certain it will contain the mask mandate.

Louisianan Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley certainly hopes the state can progress to Phase 3, where classroom sizes can expand and students can get more in-person education than they currently are. Brumley says schools have demonstrated they can comply with necessary safety rules like mask usage.

The first official case of COVID-19 in the state of Louisiana was confirmed on March 9th, 2020. The state recorded the first COVID-19 death on March 14th, 2020, at Touro Infirmary Hospital and Medical Center in New Orleans. In Caddo Parish, the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed on March 11th, 2020. That patient would go on to provide some of our first in-depth experiences of dealing with the virus, and recovery.