Citing spikes in COVID-19 cases in areas of the country that have lifted safety restrictions, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said that the county would stay in Phase Two of Maryland’s reopening plan “for the time being.”
鈥淲e鈥檙e watching cases skyrocket in a number of states,鈥� Elrich said Wednesday at a remote media briefing, adding that he was 鈥渃oncerned about rises in cases around us.鈥�
He added, 鈥淚t鈥檚 harder to control this than people realize.鈥�
Elrich said re-closing businesses, such as what has happened in Florida, California and Texas, would be even more difficult than the earlier shutdowns.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to do this now,鈥� he said; 鈥渋t would be hard to do it twice.鈥�
Elrich also said that cuts to various county departments are in the works, though specifics are still being worked out. He said he asked departments to submit plans to cut spending by up to 6%, though he won鈥檛 make all of them 鈥� the Department of Health, he said, is a perfect example of what not to cut in the middle of a pandemic.
- Sign up for WTOP alerts
- Latest coronavirus test results in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Coronavirus FAQ: What you need to know
- Coronavirus resources: Get and give help in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- How the pandemic might be changing people鈥檚 perceptions about bike rides
- Johns Hopkins discusses return to class in the fall
Looking for more information? D.C., Maryland and Virginia are each releasing more data every day. Visit their official sites here:聽听触听听触听
As for the county鈥檚 overall fiscal picture, he said, 鈥淚 will not dismantle county government 鈥� in order to keep reserve numbers untouched. This is what a reserve is for.鈥�
Officials were asked about recent statements by President Donald Trump, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that schools should reopen on schedule in the fall.
County Health Officer Dr. Travis Gayles pointed out that states are instituting a variety of policies regarding schools 鈥� Florida鈥檚 governor has declared that all schools will open for in-person classes on schedule Aug. 24, while Hawaii has said they will wait until at least four weeks have gone by with no cases.
Gayles said he would be touring a few schools to look at measures they are taking to reopen if it comes to that, but he added that 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 reckless to come through with mandates that aren鈥檛 informed by data and science. We鈥檝e been very thoughtful鈥� with data, 鈥渁nd I鈥檓 confident that officials here and at the state level will look at the data 鈥� moving forward.鈥�
Dr. Earl Stoddard, the county鈥檚 director of emergency management and homeland security, said that while 鈥渢here is clearly [developmental] benefit to having children in schools,鈥� comments such as those by federal officials are 鈥渘ot going to take precedence over student and staff safety.鈥�
鈥楢 plateau鈥�
All that said, Elrich and Gayles had reasonably bright news about the county.
鈥淲e鈥檝e reached a plateau鈥� in cases, Elrich said, describing the 68 cases recorded on Tuesday as a 鈥渂lip鈥� that can sometimes happen when tests from multiple days are counted at the same time.
Gayles said the county had reached a milestone, with 10% of residents having been tested 鈥� one of the benchmarks set out on Gov. Larry Hogan鈥檚 COVID-19 plan. He added that Wednesday鈥檚 daily number of 34 cases was the lowest since April.
Gayles also reiterated his emphasis on 鈥渟ystemic鈥� and 鈥渟tructural鈥� factors that contribute to certain population groups becoming harder-hit than others, such as access to health insurers, overcrowding and the demographics of who is considered an essential worker.
Enforcing the rules
Stoddard said inspectors will continue to visit businesses in the county to make sure they are operating under the rules, using a combination of education and enforcement where appropriate.
He said a 鈥渉andful鈥� of businesses had been cited or closed down, and that he had about 70 complaints in his inbox just on Tuesday about businesses not complying.
But, Stoddard said, 鈥渢he vast and overwhelming of our businesses鈥� are complying.
鈥淲e cannot and will not allow a handful of irresponsible businesses to ruin it for our whole business sector,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e just want everyone to follow the rules that got us to where we are now.鈥�
Asked about pressure to reopen businesses in the face of economic hardship, Elrich said, 鈥淚鈥檓 under more pressure from people not to open than to open,鈥� judging by the number of people who email him.
He acknowledged he got many repeat emails from 鈥渟ome who want to fill up my mailbox,鈥� while Gayles characterized those who want to lift restrictions as 鈥渁 vocal minority.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 not that big a death rate until you鈥檙e the one who dies, or someone you love dies,鈥� Elrich said.
