Story at a glance
- Abott said businesses that opened under the previous phases can continue to stay open at the current designated occupancy levels.
- He said the state does not want to go backwards and close businesses again.
- The move comes as Texas Wednesday reported more than 5,000 cases in a 24-hour period.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said Thursday the state will halt any further phases of reopening as the state continues to grapple with record increases of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations.
Abbott said businesses that opened under the previous phases can continue to stay open at the current designated occupancy levels.
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“The last thing we want to do as a state is go backwards and close down businesses,” Abbott said in a statement. “This temporary pause will help our state corral the spread until we can safely enter the next phase of opening our state for business.”
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“I ask all Texans to do their part to slow the spread of COVID-19 by wearing a mask, washing their hands regularly, and socially distancing from others,” he said, adding, “the more that we all follow these guidelines, the safer our state will be and the more we can open up Texas for business.”
Abbott, however, has not mandated Texans wear a mask in public as governors in some other states have done.
The state will also be suspending elective surgeries at hospitals in Bexar, Dallas, Harris and Travis counties due to a rise in hospitalizations.
“These four countries have experienced significant increases in people being hospitalized due to COVID-19 and today’s action is a precautionary step to help ensure that the hospitals in these counties continue to have ample supply of available beds to treat COVID-19 patients,” the governor said.
The move comes as Texas Wednesday reported more than 5,000 cases in a 24-hour period.
BREAKING NEWS ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
COUNTRIES LED BY WOMEN HAVE FARED BETTER AGAINST CORONAVIRUS. WHY?
MORE THAN 8.7 MILLION CORONAVIRUS CASES WENT UNDETECTED IN MARCH
EXPERTS: 90% OF CORONAVIRUS DEATHS COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED
FAUCI PREDICTS ANOTHER CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK IN THE FALL WITH A ‘VERY DIFFERENT’ OUTCOME
TEXAS REPORTS SINGLE-DAY HIGH IN CORONAVIRUS DEATHS TWO WEEKS AFTER REOPENING
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