Saying Louisiana does not meet the White House criteria for entering Phase One of reopening the economy, on Monday Governor John Bel Edwards said he is going to extend his order for Louisianians to stay at home.  Edwards said he will issue a new proclamation extending the date to May 11^th.

Overall the state is trending down on new cases and hospitalizations from COVID-19.  That certainly has been the case in northwest Louisiana.  But not in all regions.  Edwards said, “Unfortunately, we still have a little work to do before we meet the criteria to safely move to the next phase of reopening, so I will extend the state’s Stay at Home order until May 15, with a few minor changes.”  Edwards added, “While this is not the announcement I want to make, I am hopeful, and all of Louisiana should be hopeful, that we will enter into the next phase of reopening soon, in mid-May. I am anxious to get all areas of our economy reopened, but if we accelerate too quickly, we may have to slam on the brakes. That will be bad for public health and for businesses, bad for our people and bad for our state.”

There are three changes to the Governor’s order concerning businesses:

1. Malls will remain closed to the public, but stores may open for curbside delivery.
2. Restaurants will be allowed to open their outside areas for patrons to eat meals only, without tableside service.
3. All employees of a business who have contact with the public must wear a mask.

Additionally, both the CDC and the Louisiana Department of Health strongly urge everyone to wear masks when in public.  “Wearing cloth masks or protective face coverings is part of the new normal,” Gov. Edwards said. “Wearing a mask is being a good neighbor and in Louisiana, we pride ourselves on being good neighbors. Your mask protects me, and other people and my mask protects you.”

Looking around Red River Parish the three changes should have little impact on the way business is done, with one exception.  Expect to see all workers in all businesses that are open wearing masks while on the job.  And if everyone adheres to the Governor’s order expect to see more people wearing masks in public.

It does not appear from hearing the Governor on Monday that many businesses in the parish that are now closed will be allowed to open between now and May 15^th.  The barber and beauty shops and other entities that had been ordered to close are still on the “closed list.”  Some restaurants may add an outdoor dining area however they would not be able to offer table service.

It also appears that the order would not change the way the town and parish conduct their business.  And it does not appear to have an impact on the way churches are conducting worship services.