MAINE, USA — KEY MAINE CORONAVIRUS FACTS
- 55 Mainers have died out of 1,123 confirmed COVID-19 cases
- 177 Mainers have been hospitalized, 657 Mainers have recovered. Trend remains more recoveries and less hospitalizations. Scroll down for county by county search options.
- Governor Janet Mills has extended Maine's statewide stay-safer-at-home order to May 31
- Read Maine Governor Janet Mills' detailed plan to reopen Maine economy during coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic
- Read Maine Phase 1 COVID-19 Prevention Checklist to help business reopen with reduced coronavirus restrictions
- A timeline of the coronavirus pandemic in Maine
- Filing for unemployment still dominating discussions around Maine. Here's our story on how to file for Maine unemployment. You can scroll down for more resources available to Mainers
- Local businesses are the backbones of our communities. NEWS CENTER Maine cares about our state and asks that you support your local business and restaurants right now. If you are a business owner, please register your business. If you want to support a local business, enter your zip code and find out what’s OPEN NEAR YOU.
- Subscribe to 'break time with NEWS CENTER Maine' our new newsletter. Delivered to your email inbox for your break time.
LATEST CORONAVIRUS UPDATES
FRIDAY MAY 1
2 p.m.
Maine CDC Director Dr. Nirav Shah provides the daily coronavirus update. Gov. Janet Mills is joining the briefing to give a statement as Maine enters Phase 1 of her plan to reopen Maine.
Mills explains the first steps that go into effect today under her staged approach to reopening the Maine economy. You can read about stage one here.
"As we step into this next stage, as we talk about reopening, there will be a lot of debate. And I welcome that; that’s how the process should work. There will also be a lot of frustration. I understand that. Yes, and there is anger, and I share that. But let’s keep talking."
Mills ended by saying, "I'm not a quitter. Maine people are not quitters. Some people are angry, and frustrated, and losing patience. But no matter what, I will keep hearing you, I will keep listening to you, and we will listen to each other."
Dr. Shah says the two additional individuals who died due to COVID-19 were a man in his 40s from Waldo County, and a woman in her 80s from Cumberland County.
Dr. Shah is not able to comment any more on the death of a Waldo County firefighter, whose death is under investigation as possibly being COVID-19-related.
Currently, 37 people are hospitalized; 17 of those are in intensive care. Nine individuals are on ventilators.
Overall, 657 have recovered, an increase of 26 since Thursday.
Of the 28 new confirmed cases, eight are outbreak-related at long-term care facilities and congregate settings. There are now 253 health care workers that have COVID-19.
Dr. Shah confirmed that the Maine CDC will be receiving some fraction of the swabs from Puritan on a weekly basis.
There are no new cases at the Augusta Center for Health and Rehabilitation (76 total cases), at the Edgewood Rehabilitation & Living Center in Farmington (14 total cases), at the Hope House shelter in Bangor (21 total cases), at the Tall Pines facility in Waldo County (43 total), or at The Cedars in Portland (15 total).
At Falmouth by the Sea, there are six new cases.
The Maine Veterans' Home in Scarborough has two additional cases for a total of 53.
At the Tyson food plant, there are now 11 total cases. The Maine CDC has been working very closely with Tyson since the outbreak was identified to conduct testing. Tyson is planning on idling production for deep cleaning.
12 p.m.
The Maine CDC announced two additional deaths due to COVID-19, for a state total of 55. There are 1,123 confirmed cases, 657 recoveries, and 177 have been hospitalized at some point during their illness.
Maine CDC Director Dr. Nirav Shah will provide the daily coronavirus update at 2 p.m. today. We will be broadcasting that live on-air, streaming on our website, mobile app, YouTube channel, Facebook, and Twitter.
9 a.m.
8 a.m.
- Face coverings required in public places in Maine starting Friday, May 1
- Somerset Career & Technical Center feeding kids, families during coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic
- Read Maine Phase 1 COVID-19 Prevention Checklist to help business reopen with reduced coronavirus restrictions
- Maine DOT facing big revenues drop from coronavirus health crisis
- Amazon, Target, Instacart workers urged to walkout Friday to protest conditions
- Whole Foods asking customers to cover faces in stores, will offer free masks
- Under Phase 1, Maine dentists can still only provide emergency care amid coronavirus, COVID-19
- VERIFY: Headlines are taking a quote about COVID-19 transmission rates from child to adult out of context
- What can you do if your stimulus check was for the wrong amount?
- Portland Sea Dogs offering ticket refunds, exchanges for 2021 tickets amid coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic
- 45% of Maine households have filled out the 2020 U.S. Census so far
- US accounts for third of world's over 3 million coronavirus cases
- "What a day." Multiple fire and police departments salute health care workers at Northern Light Sebasticook Valley Hospital
- Maine club sports navigate uncharted turf during coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic
- 8 employees at Tyson food plant in Portland test positive for coronavirus, COVID-19
- Maine CDC is investigating a case of a firefighter death with possible COVID-19 connection
- Maine Department of Labor to accept expanded Pandemic Unemployment Assistance applications starting May 1
- Maine Tourism Relief Fund will grant money to tourism businesses and employees impacted by coronavirus, COVID-19
- Augusta to lay off city employees amid coronavirus
- Tapping into retirement funds to get through the COVID-19 financial crisis
- VERIFY: Here's the basics of the food supply chain amidst COVID-19
- Fewer Mainers filed for unemployment last week; numbers remain historically high amid coronavirus, COVID-19
TAKE A MOMENT FOR 'A BREATH OF FRESH AIR'
RESOURCES
- Maine food resources and retail adjustments
- How to file for Maine unemployment
- Will you get a stimulus check if you receive Social Security or disability, or didn’t file a tax return?
- Stimulus check calculator: See how much you'll likely be getting
- Millions of Americans will soon get stimulus checks. But here's who won't.
- Maine small businesses can apply for 'forgivable loans'
- Maine school and business closings
- What shelter-in-place, stay-at-home orders mean
- What Homeland Security deems 'essential businesses'
MAINE CDC BRIEFINGS
Coronavirus, COVID-19 Background
The official name for the coronavirus is “SARS-CoV-2” and the disease it causes is named “coronavirus disease 2019” or “COVID-19” for short. Coronavirus is a family of viruses, which can infect people and animals. The viruses can cause the common cold or more serious diseases like SARS, MERS, and COVID-19.
The CDC says symptoms of the coronavirus include fever, cough, difficulty breathing, and in some cases sore throat.
The CDC says there are simple steps to take to reduce the possible spread of COVID-19:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
- Stay home while you're sick and avoid close contact with others
The Maine Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced on Tuesday, March 10 that they would be holding daily coronavirus briefings with director Dr. Nirav Shah to keep the public up to date on the situation in Maine.