ARKANSAS COVID-19 RISING - The state of Arkansas has experienced a steady rise in Covid-19 cases and deaths from mid June through July. Arkansas reported 637 more confirmed cases of COVID-19 Sunday. The Arkansas Department of Health says the new tally bring the state’s total to 43,810 confirmed cases of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. Officials say the state has a 10% positivity rate for new cases.
During a recent appearance on CNN, Governor Asa Hutchinson was asked if the state’s high numbers of new cases and deaths could have been prevented had he imposed restrictions earlier.
"If we would have shut down four months ago, we would still be in a position of having to shut down and no one could survive that long," Hutchinson explained. "And so you look at Louisiana, and I have such a regard for my neighbor in the south and Governor John Bel Edwards; but they had a shut down, they peaked and then they came back and now they're -it's going to peak again at an even higher level."
Back in April, Governor Hutchinson chose not to issue a stay-at-home order and take a more targeted approach, yet Covid-19 cases continued to steadily rise.
