Monthly Archives: April 2021

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has further eased some of the restrictions previously in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic with Executive Order 209 until June 1, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. A copy of the Order is available here.

Here is a breakdown of Executive Order 209:

Face coverings are required while indoors for anyone over age 5 and recommended for anyone over age 2.

Indoor gatherings are limited to no more than 100 people and outdoor gatherings are limited to 200 people.

Open Indoors up to 100% Capacity

Museums

Aquariums

Retail businesses

Salons, personal care and grooming businesses

Open Indoors at 75% capacity and Outdoors up to 100% Capacity

Restaurants

Breweries, wineries, and distilleries

Recreation (e.g. bowling, skating, rock climbing)

Fitness and physical activity facilities (e.g. gyms, yoga studios, fitness centers)

Pools

Amusement parks

Open Indoors and Outdoors up to 50% Capacity

Bars

Meeting, reception, and conference spaces

Lounges (including tobacco) and night clubs

Auditoriums, arenas, and other venues for live performances

Sports arenas and fields (including professional, collegiate, and amateur)

Movie theaters

Gaming facilities

Guidance from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services for businesses, education, child care, law enforcement, housing, individuals, families, and more is available here.

Testing Sites

The Pitt County Health Department through a collaboration with Pitt County Emergency Management and Vidant Medical Center is offering daily community COVID-19 testing. For more information about the locations and times of the free testing, click here.

Vaccine Information

According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, a tested, safe and effective vaccine will be available to all who want it, but supplies will be limited at first. For more information about vaccines, click here.

City of Greenville Services

City of Greenville offices are open with a modified schedule. Offices are open from 9 a.m. to noon on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

When possible, members of the public are still asked to conduct business with the City of Greenville online or by phone. Examples of services that can be conducted online include payments, parking permit requests, building, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permit applications, employment applications, and building inspection requests. Additionally, residents can submit work requests for issues such as street light repairs, potholes, or missed trash pick-ups by using theCity Compasstool.

Below is a list of helpful phone numbers for those seeking to contact City staff.

*In the case of an emergency, please dial 9-1-1.

The following changes have also been made to City services, programs, and meetings:

Transit

Recreation and Parks Operations

The City of Greenville Recreation and Parks Department will continue to follow the guidelines provided by state and local health officials to help staff determine the status of indoor public facilities, departmental programs and events. Here are the latest updates:

The City continues to encourage the use of open spaces and greenways while maintaining the appropriate social distance.

Should you have questions about any Recreation and Parks Department operations, please emailGRPD@greenvillenc.govand a member of our staff will get back to you as soon as possible.

Additional City Changes:

Sheppard Memorial Libraryhas reopened for limited public access with limited activities. All branches of the library except for Bethel are open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The main branch on Evans Street is also open 8 a.m.-12 p.m. on Saturday, while the Winterville Library is open 1 p.m.-5 p.m. on Saturday. There is a limit of 20 patrons in the main library, five patrons at the Children's Library (or one family of 5+), and eight patrons at the branch libraries. All children must be accompanied by an adult. There is limited computer access and no meeting room use at this time. Virtual programming will continue, and curbside service will continue at only the branch libraries. All returned items will be quarantined and remain on an individual's account for up to seven days.

If you have specific questions or concerns related to Coronavirus, visit

COVID-19 Information from Across State Government

Business and Community Guide to Resources for COVID-19 Recovery

Business Resources from the Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce

Business Resources from the North Carolina Department of Commerce

U.S. Small Business Administration Lenders

Excerpt from:

COVID-19 Updates & Resources | Greenville, NC

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the relationship between the market economy, state, and society in the G-7 countries and beyond. While economies collapsed due to the shutdown of broad swathes of the economy, the state and civil society have gained new significance in protecting people from the pandemics effects. This dramatic shift has recalibrated the publics perception of the role of markets, government, and society in response to the worldwide shock. This is a central finding of this study, which examines the effects of the pandemic in terms of normative foundations for societal well-being.

The Recoupling Dashboard is an outgrowth of the research initiative on Recoupling Economic and Social Prosperity.1 The underlying motivation is simple: In view of the social fragmentation and environmental degradation that has accompanied economic growth over the past decades, it is apparent that economic prosperity (in terms of GDP) can become decoupled from social prosperity (in terms of well-being in thriving societies). Economic prosperity is not an end in itself, but a means to the end of social prosperity. The aim of economic and social policies should be to promote social prosperity and to recouple economic prosperity with it.

The Recoupling Dashboard provides a simple empirical framework to measure economic and social success. The Recoupling Dashboard 2020 provides a new picture of how countries have responded to the COVID-19 pandemicone that tells quite a different story from the conventional analyses focusing on GDP alone. Social prosperity depends primarily on the functioning of four domains: the economy, the state, civil society and the environment. The pandemic was an attack on the economy, since public health concerns demanded shutting down or reorganizing economic activities requiring close interpersonal physical contact. If societies were to be cushioned from the health crisis and its economic fallout, the cushioning would have to come from the state and civil society. The Recoupling Dashboard 2020 uncovers the divergent experiences of countries in this regard. This paper focuses on the G-7 countriesCanada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United Statesas the first step towards a wider appraisal.

The Recoupling Dashboard 2020 provides a new picture of how countries have responded to the COVID-19 pandemicone that tells quite a different story from the conventional analyses focusing on GDP alone.

Just as the drop in economic response to the pandemic was predictable, so the environmental response was broadly predictable as well, since the environmental consequences largely followed from the economic consequences. (For example, reduced economic activity led to lower CO2 emissions, while increased production and consumption of personal protective equipmentsuch as face masks, disposable gloves, and clothingled to greater biomedical waste.) Since the environmental effects of the pandemic have already received detailed attention elsewhere,2 we focus primarily on the social effects with regard to the responses of civil society and the state.

The Recoupling Dashboard is composed of four main indexes: Solidarity (S), Agency (A), GDP (material Gain, G) and Environmental sustainability (E)SAGE for short.

Solidarity (S) covers the need for social belonging and embeddedness in the society, as such, it deals with solidarity in the civil society and as opposed to institutionalized solidarity such as social security systems or cross-national support. It may be directed inwardly to ones national, religious, ethnic, racial, or class groups, or outwardly to groups with regard to which one does not define ones social identity. Inward Solidarity by itself may promote the well-being of ones in-group members, but lead to conflict with out-groups (which often detracts from the well-being of both in- and out-group members). Populism, for example, represents a form of Inward Solidarity that often generates hostility to immigrants, from which social conflicts within nations can arise. Under these circumstances, Inward Solidarity generates positive externalities for ingroup members, but negative externalities for out-group members. But Inward Solidarity could also be positively related to Outward Solidarityas when people with a strong sense of national identity welcome immigrants and benefit from the resulting cultural exchangethereby generating positive externalities for in- and out-group members alike. The psychological relationship between Inward and Outward Solidarity is complex.3

Economic prosperity is not an end in itself, but a means to the end of social prosperity.

The Agency (A) covers the fundamental human purpose of individual mastery and personal growth. It aims to measure how empowered people in a society are to influence their own fate through their own efforts.

Our measure of material Gain (G) is GDP and that of environmental sustainability is also conventional, covering a broad index (the Environmental Performance Index) and two narrower indexes (CO2 emissions and greenhouse gas emissions).4

These indexes are not inherently substitutable for one another and thus need to be assessed separately. The dashboard suggests that when people have a secure sense of social belonging (S), are empowered to influence their fate through their own efforts (A), are materially well off (G) and live within planetary boundaries (E), then a groundwork for satisfying their fundamental needs and purposes is established.

It is well-known that there already exist many indexes of societal welfare that extend beyond GDP. For example, there are indicators that adjust GDP (such as the Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare, Green GDP, Genuine Savings, Brynjolffsons GDP-B metric); others measure human capacities (such as the Human Development Index); there are psychological measures of wellbeing (such as the Personal Wellbeing Index and Happy Life Years Index) and sociological measures of wellbeing (such as the Physical Quality of Life Index and the Social Progress Index of the Social Progress Imperative (2020)). Furthermore, there are indexes of happiness (such as Gross National Wellbeing and the World Happiness Report). Finally, there are hybrid indicators (containing objective and subjective measures, such as the OECD Better Life Index (OECD (2019a,b)) and indexes of desirable outcomes (such as Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development).

The Recoupling Dashboard breaks new ground in being the first measure of social progress resting entirely on a few major ethical foundations. The S is the focus of communitarianism (covering peoples social needs and purposes), A is the central value of classical liberalism (focusing on individual empowerment, civil liberties, and human capabilities), G is central to the utilitarian consequentialism that underlies the discipline of economics, and E covers the domain of environmental ethics (the value and moral status of the environment). This normative basis for measuring wellbeing is significant, for three reasons. First, living in accordance with ones moral values is a major source of wellbeing. Second, most of our moral values can be understood as potent instruments for inducing social cooperation among people. As such, they can be recognized as a key to assessing the social prosperity that lies beyond economic prosperity. Third, moral values are imbued with normative force, inducing people into action. Thereby our dashboard aims to capture components of wellbeing that people are especially inclined to act on.

The Recoupling Dashboard combines this distinctive feature with the characteristics of brevity, regularity, and breadth. Regarding brevity, the dashboard contains only four indexes, matching the four things that humans can be kept simultaneously in working memory.5 As for regularity, the dashboard is assessed on an annual basis, comparable with annual GDP statistics. Finally, regarding breadth, the dashboard covers a large number of countries (currently over 150), so as to allow country comparisons to be made. For the purposes of this paper, we focus solely on the G-7 countries.

The four indexes of the dashboard are not closely correlated with one another. In particular, movements of GDP do not provide an adequate account of how Solidarity, Agency and Environmental Sustainability evolve. If GDP grows while S, A, and E stagnate or decline, we can say that economic prosperity has become decoupled from social and environmental prosperity. Then the aim of policy should be to recouple these separate domains, ensuring that all four fundamental needs and purposes are met.

The political and social implications of decoupling are momentous. For example, two years before Donald Trump won the U.S. Presidential election, Agency suffered a steep decline, Inward Solidarity stagnated, while Outward Solidarity fell. (See Figures 1 and 3 below.) In the period 2006-2016, Solidarity (both Inward and Outward) fell by 6 percent and Agency dropped by 12 percent in the U.S. These psycho-social developments were masked by a steady rise in GDP. Had such phenomena received the serious attention that they deserved, we could have gained a deeper understanding of Donald Trumps electoral appeal and new insights into ways of dealing with the underlying discontent. (This time, its not the economy, stupid.)

One year before the Brexit referendum, Outward Solidarity in the U.K. plummeted, Inward Solidarity rose, while Agency declined (as shown in Figures 1 and 3 below). Over 2006- 2016, Inward Solidarity in the U.K. fell by 2 percent, Outward Solidarity was stagnant, and agency fell by 5 percent. This, too, provides a very different picture of British well-being than the steady rise of U.K. GDP. Once again, prominent recognition of these developments would have given rise to a different assessment of the social problems leading to Brexit than the ones on which Prime Minister David Cameron was focused. (Again, Its not the economy, stupid.)

Download the full working paper

Read this article:

How COVID-19 changed the world: G-7 evidence on a recalibrated relationship between market, state, and society - Brookings Institution

Unlike two months ago, those vaccinations are available now, Pritzker said during an appearance in Normal, Illinois. If you want to get vaccinated, essentially over the next two weeks and beyond, youre going to be able to raise your hand and go somewhere today to get vaccinated.

The weekly average of COVID-19 vaccinations administered in Illinois continues to decline even as the supply of vaccines remains steady. Over the last seven days, an average of 100,823 vaccines were administered daily in Illinois, the lowest since an average of 99,936 cases was recorded for the week ending March 26.

Meanwhile, Officials on Wednesday reported 2,728 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 33 additional fatalities.

Heres whats happening Thursday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area:

10:33 a.m.: Chicago will reopen United Center, expand outdoor festivals, allow more people indoors as Mayor Lori Lightfoot eases COVID-19 restrictions

The city of Chicago is loosening up its pandemic rules including increased capacity for indoor events at the United Center and elsewhere, while allowing outdoor festivals and farmers markets to expand as part of a sweeping plan to reopen the economy to normal events, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday.

The United Center and other large indoor venues will be allowed to open at 25% capacity. Large indoor venues for meetings, conference rooms and conventions can now operate at the lesser of 25% capacity, or 250 people, the city said. Large houses of worship also will be allowed to operate at 25% capacity, the city said.

Lightfoot officials also announced that festivals and general admission outdoor events can now operate with 15 people per 1,000 square feet. Farmers markets and flea markets will be allowed to operate at 25 percent capacity or 15 people per 1,000 square feet, the city said.

Lightfoots eased restrictions bring the city in line with state rules. The latest steps toward reopening come after the city postponed further moves due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. But the city said it feels confident making the moves due to improvements in metrics, including a decrease in the number of people testing positive for the virus, and continued vaccine distribution.

As part of the reopening plan announced Thursday, the Windy City Smokeout, scheduled for July 8-11, will be the first street festival to resume this year. Officials said they expect up to 12,500 people at the United Center per day and it will take place in the parking lot of the United Center.

9:35 a.m.: McDonalds arches glitter as pandemic restrictions lift; chicken sandwich, spicy nuggets power sales

The bounce back for McDonalds as restrictions were lifted across the U.S. was so strong in the first quarter that the company surpassed sales during the same period even in 2019, long before the pandemic broadsided the country.

McDonalds revenue jumped 9% to $5.1 billion for the January-March period, better than most had expected.

Last year at this time stores were closing globally and the world sheltered from spiking COVID-19 infections, so an improvement in sales during the same stretch this year was expected. How easily it topped 2019s first-quarter sales of $4.95 billion, however, was not.

U.S. same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, rose 13.6% in the January-March period. Fewer diners visited, and many dining rooms remain closed. But those who did visit ordered more. McDonalds said new products, including acrispy chicken sandwichand spicy nuggets, helped draw customers.

Restaurant companies with drive-thrus, such as McDonalds, escaped the worst of the economic damage over the past year because they could continue to sell food even during the worst stretches of the pandemic. The Chicago company has drive-thru windows at nearly all U.S. stores and two-thirds of stores in its biggest European markets. And at least 30,000 stores worldwide now offer delivery.

9:33 a.m.: October taco lunch at Naperville warehouse leads to 23 COVID cases, one death and an OSHA fine

An employee at a Naperville warehouse brought in restaurant tacos for an office lunch on a Friday in late October. Less than three weeks later, 23 workers had COVID-19 and one had died.

This week, Midwest Warehouse and Distribution System was cited for a serious violation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for allegedly failing to take immediate steps to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. The company faces a $12,288 workplace safety fine.

This case is a tragic reminder of the importance of fully implementing coronavirus prevention measures that include wearing face coverings, physically distancing and quarantining workers who exhibit symptoms to protect other workers from coronavirus exposure, Jake Scott, OHSA area director, said in a news release Tuesday.

The 39-year-old logistics company, headquartered in Woodridge with 500 employees and more than a dozen Chicago-area warehouses, plans to contest the fine at an upcoming OSHA hearing, according to Aaron Gelb, a Chicago-based attorney representing Midwest Warehouse.

8:38 a.m.: To mask up outdoors or not? Some Chicagoans welcoming loosened CDC rules, others find it harder to let go of a new habit

America and masks have had a complicated relationship during this pandemic, even in the places where state officials havent tried to turn the featherweight little face-hole blockers into symbols of an oppressive government.

But a semi-random sampling of Chicagoans this week after the Centers for Disease Control officially OKd maskelessness under certain conditions found a populace thats happy to have some reins removed but still pretty amenable to the idea of covering up for the sake of themselves and others you know, the way doctors have done for decades.

Im vaccinated and Im wearing a mask even outside, pronounced Alan Singleton as he loaded his clubs into the truck after finishing a round of golf at the citys West Side Columbus Park course Tuesday afternoon.

A big reason for that is my wifes a nurse and a paranoid schizophrenic, the telecommunications manager said, with only a touch of hyperbole.

Moreover, his extended family was hit hard by COVID-19, the Austin resident said, and he has to weigh the caution born of that personal experience against the freedom offered by the new CDC guidelines, issued Tuesday.

6 a.m.: Indiana watching counties near Michigan for COVID-19 risk

The counties near Indianas border with Michigan are showing persistent risk of coronavirus spread, with top state health officials saying Wednesday they were trying to turn around declining COVID-19 vaccination rates.

The State Department of Healths weekly tracking map updated Wednesday showed four of the five Indiana counties that border Michigan with orange risk the second highest of the four ratings. Two other nearby counties also have orange ratings, while 10 more northern Indiana counties have the next-highest yellow rating.

Indiana officials have been watching those northern counties because Michigan has posted more new COVID-19 cases than any other state in the country over the past two weeks. Those infections could continue to spread among unvaccinated people with so much travel between the two states, health officials said.

When most of the U.S. went into lockdown over a year ago, some speculated that confining couples to their homes with little to entertain them beyond Netflix would lead to a lot of baby-making. But the statistics suggest the opposite happened.

Births have fallen dramatically in many states during the coronavirus outbreak, according to an Associated Press analysis of preliminary data from half the country.

The COVID-19 baby boom appears to be a baby bust.

Nationally, even before the epidemic, the number of babies born in the U.S. was falling, dropping by less than 1% a year over the past decade as many women postponed motherhood and had smaller families.

But data from 25 states suggests a much steeper decline in 2020 and into 2021, as the virus upended society and killed over a half-million Americans.

Births for all of 2020 were down 4.3% from 2019, the data indicates. More tellingly, births in December 2020 and in January and February 2021 nine months or more after the spring 2020 lockdowns were down 6.5%, 9.3% and 10% respectively, compared with the same months a year earlier.

December, January and February together had about 41,000 fewer births than the same three-month span a year earlier. Thats an 8% decline.

When theres a crisis, I dont think people are thinking about reproduction, said Dr. John Santelli, a Columbia University professor of population and family health who reviewed the APs analysis.

The analysis included 24 states that provided data on births to residents. Joining them in the analysis was California, the most populous state, which provided data on all births that happened in the state, including among visitors.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to provide a national picture later this year. But the data for the 25 states is not expected to change substantially; preliminary birth numbers usually end up being pretty close to the final counts, experts say.

North Central College in Naperville has announced it will hold four outdoor, limited-capacity graduation ceremonies May 8-9 to honor this years graduates and those in the class of 2020.

Breaking from the virtual commencements it held last year, North Central is planning events that will comply with COVID-19 safety protocols, a school news release said. There will be reduced seating capacity at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium, physical distancing between attendees and required face coverings.

After hosting a virtual graduation last fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this spring North Central College graduates from the classes of 2020 and 2021 will get the opportunity theyve been waiting for: To walk across the stage in front of their family and friends, the release said.

It is expected 270 members of last years graduating class and 614 students receiving graduate and undergraduate degrees this year will participate in one of the four ceremonies.

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Here are some recent stories related to COVID-19:

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COVID-19 in Illinois updates: Heres whats happening Thursday - Chicago Tribune