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As Md. Reopens, ‘Hardest Decisions are Coming,’ Health Expert Warns

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A top health expert praised Maryland’s cautious approach to reopening its economy following the COVID-19 outbreak, but he said Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) and his team face much tougher decisions in the weeks ahead.

The state faces particularly wrenching tradeoffs regarding how to reopen schools, he said.

Adding to the decision-making challenge are multiple unknowns, including whether the recent increase in travel and activity will produce a spike in infections, and whether people who participate in large demonstrations are at greater risk of coronavirus exposure.

Maryland has fully entered Phase 1 of its reopening — allowing limited retail, outdoor dining and selected sporting and leisure activities — and will soon move into Phase 2, Hogan announced at a news conference late Wednesday afternoon.

Dr. Thomas V. Inglesby/Johns Hopkins photo

But the state faces tougher questions about the next phases of what the governor has dubbed the “Roadmap to Recovery,” said Thomas V. Inglesby, director of the Center for Healthy Security at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a top Hogan health adviser.

Among the tough calls that lie ahead, he said: how and when to resume indoor dining, reopen theaters and other entertainment venues, allow larger gatherings, and permit K-12 and university students to return to the classroom.

“All those activities will have more risks than the things that we have so far,” Inglesby told the legislature’s COVID-19 Workgroup. “Some of the hardest decisions are coming, and I don’t think there are clear answers to those yet.”

Inglesby said the lessons learned in the hard-hit New York City area, Europe, Asia and elsewhere can help guide the state’s decision-making process.

While the incubation period for the virus is believed to be around 14 days, he told lawmakers the state won’t know for close to a month whether Phase 1 activities produce a spike in COVID-19 infection.

“To see big changes probably would take more like four-to-six weeks,” Inglesby said. “It takes time for people to develop the disease, they have an incubation period, [and] it may take them days, at least days, to be sick enough to be hospitalized.”

If people get sick in such numbers that it strains the health care system, Inglesby warned, the governor will be forced to act.

“We do need to be prepared to pause on the reopening process if things move in the wrong direction. If the hospital indicators in particular move dangerously in the wrong direction, it might be that we need even to reverse some of the decisions, if that is the only available tool that we have.”

The same concern holds true for the racial justice demonstrations that are taking place across the state. “There definitely will be a risk posed by large gatherings of people,” Inglesby said.

Most outbreaks around the globe have followed indoor events, like the religious gathering in Malaysia that brought 16,000 people to a mosque in February.

He advised wearing masks, maintaining distance from others, and to use noisemakers or drums (rather than shouting) when participating “in these important events.”

“I do think we should be prepared for the possibility of a rise in cases in the next two-to-four-to-six weeks,” Inglesby told the panel.

To continue moving forward with reopening, Maryland must sustain its testing efforts and its contact tracing program, so that infected — and potentially infected — persons can be identified, isolated and quarantined.

“This process is also called ‘case-based management’ and it is the process that has led to success in places in the world where things have been better,” he said.

Bringing children back to the classroom 

Inglesby said there “there is still a big debate in the public health community” about how to reopen schools.

“Everyone agrees that it’s been terrible for children to be out of school for so many reasons — educational, support, safety. On the other hand, we haven’t had a lot of experience [in other places] with schools being open since this started.”

Given the pattern of COVID-19 exposure — with adults being more at risk than children — the biggest concern surrounds teachers, administrators, parents and grandparents who live in multi-generational households.

“Those questions haven’t really been answered by research yet,” he said.

Just this week, schools in Israel were forced to close following an outbreak.

“We’re going to have to find a way to tolerate some level of risk and balance all the good from schools with some level of risk for spread,” Inglesby said.

He said university decision-makers face the “additional problem of congregant living” — dorms, bathrooms and dining halls.

Tense questioning over test kits 

The legislature’s COVID-19 Workgroup received a lengthy update on the state’s response to the pandemic from Hogan’s top health advisers, including Health Secretary Robert R. Neall, Health Department CEO Dennis R. Schrader and Deputy Secretary Fran B. Phillips.

Because of their lingering suspicions surrounding the 500,000 test kits that Maryland procured from South Korea, a purchase many lawmakers believe was over-hyped by Hogan, lawmakers pressed the trio about their use — and whether the kits are missing key components.

Most of the questioning was done by Sen. Clarence K. Lam (D-Howard), a physician.

“Something doesn’t compute,” Lam said at one point. “You have, you say, all the pieces, but we’re not testing to the degree that we really ought to.”

“If we have 500,000 tests that are in hand here in the state, and we have identified a priority for strike teams to go into nursing homes, why is it taking two months for the specimen collection kits to get out there and make it back?” he asked.

Phillips defended the state’s testing program.

“There is no shortage of test kits to distribute to the nursing homes,” she said.

“We’re not missing any component that’s necessary to operate these tests,” Phillips replied during another flurry of questions.

The briefing, scheduled to last 35 minutes, ran an hour and a half. If lawmakers were satisfied with their responses, they didn’t say so.

Phillips said the state is now benefiting from a new “signature lab” at the University of Maryland Baltimore that will continue to boost testing capacity — and that any resident who wants a screening can get one.

“We’re using [the South Korean tests] judiciously as part of a long-term strategy,” Phillips added. “Meanwhile we are maximizing our available contracts right now, for these out-of-state labs. For as long as they’re good, we’re going to use them.”

She said the state is “in a bit of a lull” when it comes to confirmed coronavirus cases but warned there could be “a very rocky period” in the fall. Schrader cautioned that “there could be second, third and fourth waves” of coronavirus infection come autumn.
Because “there is not a vaccine on the horizon any time soon,” Phillips added, residents should expect that “this deadly and highly-transmissible virus will be with us for months and months to come.”
Last week, at another briefing, state procurement officials defended the decision to purchase masks and PPE from a
newly-formed Delaware firm — a company started by two Republican political operatives just days before winning a $12.5 million contract with Maryland.
The company, Blue Flame Medical, is now in a legal tussle with the state regarding the delivery of items Maryland ordered. The firm was referred to the Department of General Services, the state’s lead procurement agency, by an unidentified member of the governor’s staff.
Although the head of DGS repeatedly urged lawmakers to direct questions about the Blue Flame deal to the Department of Health, they posed no questions about the contract during the 95-minute briefing Wednesday.
By Bruce DePuyt

Hogan Outlines Phase 2 Reopening, Which Will Start Friday

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With a new University of Maryland Baltimore lab set to greatly expand the state’s COVID-19 testing capabilities, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced Wednesday that many business establishments can reopen beginning Friday evening.

Phase 2 of the state’s economic recovery “roadmap,” which takes effect at 5 p.m. on June 5, permits manufacturing, construction, retail establishments, “specialty vendors,” wholesalers and warehouses to allow employees to resume operations as long as they undertake efforts to reduce social interaction and keep work environments clean.

A variety of offices — including information technology companies, law offices, accounting firms, banking and financial institutions, insurance agencies, design studios, advertising and architectural firms, and media production companies — can also reopen their doors.

Also getting the green light to reopen:

  • real estate offices
  • travel agencies
  • auto dealer showrooms
  • bank branches

Nail salons, massage therapists, tanning salons and tattoo parlors may resume operations at up to 50% capacity and on an appointment-only basis — and with appropriate health guidelines.

The state Motor Vehicle Administration will open select branches on an appointment-only basis.

The governor said the move to Phase 2 was made possible by an increase in testing capability, a drop in the state’s coronavirus “positivity” numbers and a gradual but steady decline in hospitalization rates.

By week’s end, the state will have conducted more than 400,000 tests, Hogan said. In a dig at the White House, the governor said the federal government failed to make federal labs available to the state, despite a pledge from the president.

“Although the White House publicly offered the use of federal labs, after several months of effort, the reality is that we still have not been able to access any of them,” he said.

Hogan announced that the Institute of Genome Sciences at the University of Maryland Baltimore School of Medicine has converted a research lab into a “full-scale clinical testing” operation that “will be the backbone of our sustained, long-term testing strategy.”

The governor said companies that reopen their doors must adhere to local, state and CDC guidelines for reducing the spread of COVID-19 to workers or customers.

That means face coverings should be worn during face-to-face interactions, temperature checks, rotating or altering employee shifts, and shortening the workweek where possible.

Companies that can utilize telework should continue to do so, Hogan said.

As with the state’s move into Phase 1, Hogan’s order gives counties the option of moving in tandem with the state or advancing at a later date.

Local leaders didn’t know of Hogan’s plans until he announced them at a 4 p.m. State House news conference on Wednesday.

Several of Maryland’s larger counties made the move to Phase 1 later than those in less-populated jurisdictions and were reviewing the governor’s decision late Wednesday.

Sean Naron, a spokesman for Baltimore County Executive John A. Olszewski Jr. (R), said the county “will be evaluating the announcement made today, consulting with experts, and identifying next steps in the near future.”

In Howard County, Executive Calvin S. Ball (D) said his jurisdiction would adopt Phase 2 on Friday.

“We continue to see progress on the building blocks needed to reopen safely and effectively,” he said in a statement. “We expect our case numbers to increase as we test more of our population and we will be keeping a close eye on our hospitalization, ICU and ventilator rates over the coming weeks.”

Within moments of Hogan’s announcement, Harford County Executive Barry Glassman (R) said his county would take full advantage of Phase 2.

Hogan’s order leaves bars and restaurants closed, except for outdoor dining and carryout. Churches may only operate at reduced capacity. Gyms, casinos and indoor movie theaters remain closed.

Transit schedules “will begin to return to a more normal schedule” under Phase 2 and the state Department of Education will continue with its gradual plan to reopen child care centers.

By Bruce DePuyt

Hogan Easing More Restrictions on Businesses and Public Gatherings

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Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced Wednesday that he is easing the state into the “completion” of his administration’s “stage one recovery plan” from the COVID-19 outbreak, allowing restaurants to serve customers outdoors and expanding recreational activities in the state.

At a late afternoon State House news conference, Hogan said he was comfortable taking additional steps to reopen the state’s economy and lift certain restrictions on Marylanders’ movements and activities because key metrics — including the state’s COVID-19 testing capacity, hospitalization rates and number of patients in intensive-care units — are “trending in the right direction.”

Hogan emphasized that the ultimate call for restricting activities in the state rests with local leaders. He pointed out that officials in 23 of the state’s 24 jurisdictions — with the exception of Montgomery County — have taken steps to reopen their economies and ease travel restrictions, or have announced their intention to do so.

Hogan’s announcement comes as the death toll from the coronavirus topped 2,200 in Maryland Wednesday. But the governor said the state has just hit its goal of conducting 10,000 COVID-19 tests a day, and that 334,000 tests have been taken overall. He said the rate of tests that come back positive, along with the number of COVID patients in hospitals and ICU units, have dropped dramatically over the past month.

Hogan said that even in the state’s coronavirus hot spots — Prince George’s and Montgomery counties — the percentage of positive tests is declining significantly.

“I understand — some people believe we’re moving too quickly, other people believe we’re moving too slowly,” Hogan said. “I understand there’s going to be criticism on both sides and we’re not going to make everybody happy.”

Hogan said polls have suggested that about 80% of Marylanders believe restrictions are being lifted at about the right pace.

Two weeks ago, Hogan announced the first phase of his stage one plan to ease restrictions in the state. He reopened state parks, playgrounds and beaches, and said certain retail outlets could open if they employed self-distancing practices and emphasized curbside pickups.

Under the new order, beginning at 5 p.m. Friday, restaurants — many of which have relied on takeout and delivery orders, if they haven’t shuttered altogether — can begin serving patrons on decks, patios and other outdoor settings. Hogan said he was also encouraging local governments to “find innovative ways” to enable restaurants to expand their outdoor seating capacity, by closing certain streets to vehicular traffic.

Under Hogan’s guidance, no more than six people can sit together at an outdoor table, and patrons must be spaced at least six feet apart. Restaurants — along with VFW halls and social clubs, which are also covered by the order — must adhere to strict sanitation and safety practices as laid out by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Hogan said all restaurant workers must be screened daily for fever.

Business owners and the groups that represent them were cautiously optimistic about Hogan’s announcement, but also wondered how quickly local governments would adopt Hogan’s guidance.

“Restaurants operate on the thinnest of margins under normal circumstances, so giving us more opportunities to get our customers back is very much appreciated,” said Andrew Fox, owner of two Annapolis restaurants, Fox’s Den and Vida Taco Bar.

Mike O’Halloran, Maryland director of the National Federation of Independent Business, called Hogan’s announcement “welcome news.”

“But serious concerns remain with how this will play out in each jurisdiction and if restaurateurs will be able to staff up appropriately,” he said.

In a Facebook post, state Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot (D) said he was “exceedingly pleased” with Hogan’s announcement.

“This action is essential to the survival of Maryland’s hospitality industry, which is responsible for nearly half a million jobs in our state,” said Franchot, whose office has run one of its patented social media campaigns to urge Hogan to allow restaurants to serve customers outdoors.

Also beginning at 5 p.m. Friday, outdoor swimming pools will be allowed to reopen at 25% capacity, Hogan said. Children’s day camps can reopen for outdoor activities only, with a limited number of participants. Youth sports leagues can resume “low contact” outdoor practices. All children and staffers must be checked regularly for COVID-like symptoms.

Hogan said that if COVID-19 public health trends continue, and if his latest moves to reopen the state prove successful, he’ll consider activating Phase Two of his reopening plan next week, which would enable businesses deemed nonessential to reopen.

Still no movement in Montgomery County

Even as Prince George’s County, Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia take tentative steps on their first phases of reopening, Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) told a media briefing Wednesday, about five hours before Hogan spoke, that the first steps in his jurisdiction’s reopening probably won’t come until early next week.

“I feel pretty good about the numbers being where they are,” Elrich said — but he added that he was worried about a possible spike in cases following a big turnout on the beach and boardwalk at Ocean City during the Memorial Day weekend.

Hogan was asked several times at his news conference about the resistance of certain large counties to follow his guidelines on reopening, and replied, “I don’t want to criticize the local leaders.” But he did suggest at one point: “The county leaders aren’t paying attention to the state metrics. They seem to be making up their own plans.”

In a statement, Patrick Moran, president of AFSCME Council 3, a public employee union, criticized Hogan’s move.

“With the Governor’s latest public announcement, it would seem the Governor has turned to taking cues from those groups demanding to ‘open Maryland’ versus public health experts,” Moran said.

He expressed concern that Hogan was jeopardizing the health of government workers — and in turn, their ability to operate and maintain state facilities.

“The Hogan administration has still failed to protect state employees, which in turn is a failure to protect the public,” Moran said.

By Josh Kurtz

One by One, County Leaders Put Brakes on Hogan’s Reopening

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Three weeks ago, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) said a regional reopening of the state’s economy risked a spike in Maryland’s COVID-19 caseload.

“You could possibly do things in different regions or different parts of the state,” he told reporters at an April 20 news conference. “But what we don’t want is to have one place open, everybody rushes over there and then infects that county.”

With several of Maryland’s largest counties and the City of Baltimore declining to embrace the governor’s move to Stage 1 of the “Roadmap to Recovery” Friday, the state is — for all intents and purposes — moving into the sort of regional reopening that Hogan warned against.

A public health expert said on Thursday that the state will discover in roughly two weeks (COVID-19’s incubation period) whether the move was wise.

Pushback from local leaders on Hogan’s decision to replace Maryland’s “stay-at-home” order with a “safer-at-home” guideline began within hours of his announcement on Wednesday — and it accelerated on Thursday, as local leaders from Maryland’s largest counties and Baltimore City declared, one after another, that they will keep in place restrictions on commerce and social interaction.

Hogan’s order, which takes effect Friday evening, effectively shifts responsibility for managing the crisis to local leaders, many of whom lack the staff resources and access to experts that the governor enjoys, political leaders and health experts said.

There were also questions about whether Maryland has met the health criteria Hogan has for weeks said were essential to loosening restrictions.

“It’s … put the ‘Big 7’ or the ‘Big 8’ in a tough spot, to have to make their own decisions,” said a Democratic official, referring to the large county executives and the mayor of Baltimore.

“The local governments, the county executives have the least amount of staff to be able to figure out the health implications and everything else,” said the official, who would speak candidly only on the condition of anonymity. “Honestly, a countywide basis is kind of silly.”

Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) was one of several local leaders to keep existing restrictions on social interaction and business activity in place.

Montgomery’s coronavirus case load — the second highest in the state — and other key metrics “have not changed enough” to reopen on Hogan’s timeline, he told reporters outside the county administration building in Rockville Thursday.

Elrich also cast doubt on the wisdom of Hogan’s decision.

“I think he went farther than he probably should have right now,” he said. “I think he should have waited until the cases were at least on a downturn for some period of time, so that you knew that you had more control over the virus than we have right now.”

Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D) is also keeping current restrictions.

She said Prince George’s, which has the highest caseload in Maryland, has been hampered by a lack of support from the state.

“We need the state to do its part,” she told reporters. “At this point, we do not have it. We do not have gowns that we have needed. We do not have enough PPE. We don’t have enough tests to expand the capacity for what we need. We don’t have enough contact tracers. And these are metrics that were set out by the governor.”

Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young (D) announced an extension of Baltimore City’s “stay-at-home” order on Thursday, saying it would be “irresponsible” to allow more commerce and interaction until the crisis subsides and testing increases.

“As I have said from the beginning of this state of emergency, we are going to follow the data and listen to what our public health experts are telling us – and right now, they are saying it is still too soon to reopen,” Young said in statement.

Currently the city is able to test 570 residents per day, he said. Under World Health Organization guidelines, the city should test approximately 2,700 residents.

“Without more testing capacity, it would be irresponsible to begin the reopening process,” the mayor said.

Baltimore County Executive John A. Olszewski Jr. (D) declared on Thursday that most restrictions will remain in effect.

“After examining the available data and consulting with our public health team, it’s clear that we are not yet in a position to safely move toward a significant reopening,” he said.

Gatherings of 10 people or more are prohibited, malls must remain closed, and churches and beauty salons remain off-limits. Retail stores can utilize curbside pickup, he said, and the “vast majority” of manufacturing firms can reopen as long as they follow guidelines to protect workers.

Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman (D) and Howard County Executive Calvin Ball (D) made announcements in line with Olszewski’s.

Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner (D) opted for “a phase-in of the phase-in.”

All retailers in Frederick will be allowed to use curbside pickup, manufacturing plants can open, and small retail shops can open at 50% capacity as long as an employee is stationed at the door and customers wear masks.

In addition, pet adoption, car washes and pet grooming can resume.

She noted that many Frederick residents work outside the county and expressed a concern about increased movement.

In Ocean City, Maryland’s top tourist town, Mayor Richard W. Meehan took a different approach, lifting the town’s restriction on hotel bookings and short-term rentals, effective immediately.

“We encourage residents and visitors to follow health and safety guidelines, including physical distancing and gathering limits,” he said.

“Personal responsibility and individual comfort levels are incredibly important to exercise during each phase of recovery.”

Moving the goalposts?

For weeks leading up to Wednesday’s announcement, Hogan described the foundation that Maryland would need to see before it could safely start to reopen, and on Thursday there are questions about whether the state had hit those targets.

As recently as late April, Hogan said the state needed to see a two-week decline in hospitalizations and ICU use before Phase 1 could be considered.

“The federal guidelines issued by the president last week call for states to meet specific gating metrics before considering lifting restrictions. That includes a 14-day downward trend in key numbers,” Hogan told reporters on April 24.

“We’ve had a couple of days of things that look better, but a couple of days, three days does not make a trend. Right? We need like 14 days,” he added.

At the same press event, Dr. Tom Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a top Hogan adviser, offered reinforcement.

“At this point, for the state to move forward in easing social distancing in a lower risk way, there needs to be a period of declining hospitalization and ICU stays and deaths from COVID in Maryland,” he said.

But the latest numbers — including an analysis shared with Maryland Matters — show little evidence of a sustained decline.

The data do show a leveling off. And in recent days, Hogan has spoken less of a need for a steady “decline” and more of a “plateauing.”

New hospitalizations averaged 158 for the week ending May 7, higher than the week before, when there were, on average, 155 per day. For the most recent seven-day period, the state averaged 127 new hospitalizations per day.
ICU utilization has remained in a narrow band over the last two weeks — between 563 and 611 beds. On the day Hogan announced the start of reopening, there were 569 ICU beds in use.
As Hogan spoke Wednesday, Maryland was seeing a spike in new cases, 1,091, up from 751 and 688 the two days prior.
Also on Wednesday, the state saw a spike in its “positivity rate,” 22.4%, up from 16.2%, 14.6% and 18.4% the three days prior.
“Because we’ve plateaued doesn’t mean we’ve started on a downward curve,” said Elrich.

A noted public health expert who declined to be quoted by name said “there has been a moving of goal posts.”

Hogan “set some very high standards originally — declining hospitalizations, declining number of cases, declining infections,” the expert said. “I don’t think we’ve met all that. It’s kind of been shaded. ‘It’s generally gone down.’”

In a letter to Hogan Thursday, the presiding officers of the General Assembly, House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County) and Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City), asked Hogan to provide more data to justify his decision for partially reopening the state.

“Many of the actions you have taken throughout the COVID-19 public health emergency undoubtedly have saved the lives of countless Marylanders, and we appreciate your efforts,” the lawmakers wrote. “While your early actions should be applauded, we have concerns about your plan to reopen Maryland without first understanding and having access to the data guiding those decision points.”

Ferguson and Jones went on to ask 15 specific questions of the governing, requesting a response by May 20.

Hogan has been under pressure for weeks from business groups, Republicans in the General Assembly and U.S. Rep. Andrew P. Harris (R) to ease back on social and business restrictions. The group Reopen Maryland formed several weeks ago, held one protest in Annapolis and has another planned for Friday.

“The problem is, all these indicators are lagging indicators,” said the public health official. “There’s a two- to three-week lag between when you open things up and when you’re going to see cases go back up.”

‘Open’ counties may be a temptation

Elrich said counties that follow the governor’s guidance can expect to see lots of visitors from neighboring jurisdictions that keep current restrictions in place.

“I do worry about things opening up in other jurisdictions and people going there because they can do things,” he said. “If you think about some of the rates in the D.C. metropolitan area, I frankly don’t think you want residents from here going to places where there aren’t restrictions.”

Elrich said Maryland’s big-county executives intend to act in unison. But a municipal official wondered how long that unity can withstand pressure from business owners and groups like Reopen Maryland.

“It’s a massive shift in responsibility to the locals,” said the official. That includes the responsibility not only for decision-making but communicating effectively with the public without the media platform the governor can command, the person said.

Supplies lacking in Prince George’s

Michael Ricci, a spokesman for the governor, told Maryland Matters the state has never received a request for PPE from Prince George’s County.

But Alsobrooks’ aides quickly produced an April 26 letter from the executive to Steve Schuh, Hogan’s liaison with local governments during the COVID-19 crisis, making the case for additional hospital capacity, testing, contact tracing and PPE.

“I appreciate the fact that the State has many requests for support, but since we continue to lead the State in the number of positive cases and hospitalizations, we ask that our requests be prioritized,” Alsobrooks wrote to Schuh, a former Anne Arundel County executive.

“These requests are critical to stopping the spread of the virus in our County, flattening the curve in our State and successfully navigating through the Maryland Strong: Roadmap to Recovery plan proposed by the Governor.”

Speaking Thursday at Alsobrooks’ news conference in Hyattsville, U.S. Rep. Anthony G. Brown (D) said Maryland has “fallen behind” in testing and he called on Hogan to “quickly” deploy needed test kits to Prince George’s County.

“This is a commitment the governor has made repeatedly and now he needs to deliver,” Brown said.

“We rank 27th in the country for per capita testing, and the positive daily infection rate is still in the double digits,” he added. On Wednesday, “Maryland was second highest in the nation. Scientists say this simply means we are not testing enough.”

By Bruce DePuyt

Hogan Lifts Stay-at-Home Order Effective 5 P.M. Friday

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Because of strides Maryland has made in containing the COVID-19 outbreak, the state will lift its stay-at-home order on Friday, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced Wednesday.

The move means most businesses can reopen and churches can hold services — both at limited capacity.

But Hogan cautioned that the adoption of “Stage 1” of the state’s reopening plan depends on residents wearing masks and practicing social distancing.

And he acknowledged that several of the state’s largest jurisdictions will not move into reopening mode at the same time as lesser-populated communities, due to elevated coronavirus infection levels.

“We are going about this in what we believe to be a safe way,” he told reporters at a late afternoon State House news conference.

“A lot of it depends on how everyone treats this first phase. If everybody goes crazy and does things that are unsafe, we’re going to balloon back up and slow down the process.”

Beginning Friday, at 5 p.m.:

• Most retailers can reopen at 50% capacity, provided customers abide by social distancing precautions and wear masks;

• Barber shops and hair salons can open at 50% capacity; and on an appointment-only basis

• Churches can hold services at 50% capacity

• Manufacturing plants can reopen if workers can be spaced sufficiently apart and wear masks, and if high-touch surfaces are kept clean

• Maryland bars and restaurants remain limited to carry-out orders.

Hogan said the move into Phase 1 of what he’s dubbed the “Roadmap to Recovery” was endorsed unanimously by the public health experts with whom he has been consulting.

“Maryland has achieved the 14-day trend of plateauing and declining numbers,” of hospitalization and ICU rates, he said.

In reality, the 12 highest days of total hospitalizations since the pandemic began occurred in the last 15 days. The reduction in total hospitalizations, to the extent the state has seen one, has come in the last 72 hours.

As of Wednesday, Maryland has had 34,812 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection, a jump of 751 from the day before.

The state reported 51 deaths Tuesday, bringing the total to 1,694.

Hogan said suburban Maryland, the District of Columbia and Northern Virginia “are the hotspots in the country, behind New York.”

Hogan has been under growing pressure from GOP lawmakers and the business community to ease restrictions. Unemployment has spiked and many business owners have said they are at risk of failure.

Christine Ross, president and CEO of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce, said the organization is “grateful that the day has come to begin moving into the first phase of economic recovery.”

The governor stressed that day-to-day life will continue to be affected by the pandemic. Maryland’s stay-at-home order is being replaced by a “safer-at-home” guideline. Hand-washing is strongly advised.

“It does not mean that we are safe or that this crisis is over,” Hogan said. “Low-risk does not mean no-risk.”

He encouraged businesses to use curbside pickup and delivery to reduce interaction between customers and store employees. He said workers who can telework should do so. And he urged people — particularly the elderly and those with health conditions — to avoid crowds.

With schools closed, many workers will soon find themselves in a child-care bind. Hogan said State Superintendent of Schools Karen B. Salmon will announce a daycare plan “early next week.”

“Like the governor, I am hopeful that this stage will go well and we can quickly open other businesses,” Talbot County Council President Corey Pack said in a statement. “But we must continue to take precautions to keep our residents, businesses, and workers safe.”

Talbot County Health Officer Dr. Fredia Wadley agreed.

“The COVID-19 virus is more dangerous now. But we are confident that by using some simple preventive measures we can slow the spread of this virus,” Wadley said. “We will continue to do everything we can to keep Talbot County safe and to work with our businesses so they can operate in a safe and effective way.”

Though the governor’s Stage I reopening plan offers a hope to Talbot County’s business community, Emergency Services Director Clay Stamp said we still have a long way to go before daily lives return to normal.

“We must continue promoting the use of safety measures for both individuals and our businesses to ensure a balance between getting people out but in a safe manner and helping some of our businesses and their teams get back to work,” he said. “We must remember: this is a marathon, not a sprint.”

Talbot County had 63 cases and one death as of Wednesday afternoon.

Prince George’s and Montgomery counties account for half of the state’s 34,812 infections, and local leaders in those counties have said they will not relax restrictions on business and social gatherings.

Baltimore County has 12% of the state’s case count and Baltimore City has 10%.

In a joint statement on Wednesday evening, County Executive John A. Olszewski Jr. (D) and Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young (D) also signaled that those two jurisdictions would also likely lag behind the rest of the state.

“For the Baltimore region to safely move into all of Phase One, we need more access to personal protective equipment, as well as increased testing capacity and more robust contact tracing,” they wrote.

“We’ve seen some progress in each of these areas, but we have to do even more.”

Young and Olszewski said they would take “a close look” at Hogan’s actions and determine their course in the next 24 hours.

“We acknowledge that this will not be welcome news to all of our residents,” the leaders said. “Individuals and businesses continue to make real sacrifices, and those sacrifices are preventing the spread of a deadly virus. However, rushing to reopen in our large, densely populated jurisdictions jeopardizes the lives of our neighbors and loved ones.”

The leaders of Howard County and Anne Arundel County also reacted with caution to Hogan’s announcement.

“Howard County does not meet many of the criteria that the Governor outlined in his four building blocks to reopen,” County Executive Calvin Ball (D) said in a statement.

In a statement on Twitter, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman (D) said he would review the provisions of Hogan’s recommendations with local officials and make decisions on how to proceed “in the coming days.”

Dr. George Askew, the top health adviser to Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), told the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments on Wednesday that a number of factors are forcing Prince George’s to retain current restrictions.

Among them: the large number of “imported” infections from outside the county, the high number of “essential” workers who are at greater risk generally, and the disproportionate toll the virus has taken on people of color.

“While the rest of the state may continue to reopen, we have to take a measured and smart approach,” Askew said.

Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) issued a statement on Wednesday night saying that even though “our situation is improving,” the county will not reopen immediately.

These are the retailers that can partially reopen on Friday: Animal adoption shelters, art galleries, bookstores, car washes, clothing and shoe stores, florists, furniture stores, jewelers, lawn and garden stores, pawn shops, pet groomers, sporting goods stores, and tobacco and vape shops.

Even with Hogan’s announcement, the group ReOpenMD has a picket scheduled for Friday afternoon in downtown Annapolis, which it is calling “a peaceful assertion of our ‘right to protest’ Gov. Hogan’s lockdown and civil liberties violations.”

By Bruce DePuyt

Education Reform Plan Among Three Dozen Bills Vetoed by Hogan

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With a trio of unusual veto letters, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) vetoed nearly three dozen bills passed by the 2020 General Assembly, including a proposed multibillion-dollar education reform plan, as well as the revenue bills to fund it.

Citing economic challenges brought on by COVID-19, Hogan vetoed Democrats’ top priority: House Bill 1300, the 235-page Blueprint for Maryland’s Future bill, which lays out a broad education reform plan that would have increased state and local annual education spending by almost $3.4 billion in 10 years.

Policy changes at the heart of the years-long reform effort are meant to address economic and racial disparities in education by expanding pre-kindergarten programs and career education for high schoolers, bolstering pay and career opportunities for teachers, and increasing state funding for schools with high concentrations of poverty.

The entire House Republican caucus opposed the bills during the legislative session, but last-minute financial protections in the Blueprint bill attracted support from a half-dozen Republicans in the Senate.

“The economic fallout from this pandemic simply makes it impossible to fund any new programs, impose any new tax hikes, nor adopt any legislation having any significant fiscal impact, regardless of the merits of the legislation,” Hogan wrote in a letter vetoing the Blueprint bill, as well as 21 others that would have required increased spending.

That includes House Bill 1260, which would have provided an extra $577.7 million over the next decade for the state’s four historically black colleges and universities, with the aim of settling a years-long lawsuit against the state for disparity in funding and resources.

Hogan announced final action Thursday on the more than 680 bills passed by the General Assembly during the truncated 2020 session. The governor can sign bills, veto them or let them take effect without his signature.

His actions come during an uncertain time for government finances ― from the federal level down to cities and towns.

Maryland’s Bureau of Revenue Estimates has suggested that the state may lose as much as $2.8 billion in revenues because of the COVID-19 pandemic before the end of this fiscal year, with more losses to come next year. Last month, Hogan froze discretionary spending in state agency budgets, instituted a widespread hiring freeze and warned agencies to begin looking for ways to trim budgets. And the state’s fiscal experts have warned that the COVID-19 pandemic response could completely drain Maryland’s $1.2 billion rainy day fund.

Hogan grouped 10 other vetoed bills into two groups: those that raised taxes and others that “failed to meaningfully address violent crime,” an issue over which he regularly clashed with legislators during the 2020 session.

He vetoed five other bills on disparate topics, including a ban on the pesticide chlorpyrifos, a bill that would have expanded MARC train service into Virginia and Delaware, and a measure to limit the authority of the Board of Public Works in purchasing property.

On the tax front, Hogan vetoed the two primary measures pressed by Democrats to fund the Blueprint education reforms.

House Bill 732 would have levied an increased tax rate on tobacco and vaping products, and would also create a first-of-its-kind tax on digital advertising.

The bill would have increased the tax on a pack of cigarettes from $2 to $3.75 and apply a new tax to vaping products and e-cigarettes to generate about $90 million in new state tax revenue next year.

Other provisions of the bill would have imposed a gross receipts tax on ads by digital platforms with more than $100 million in annual, global advertising revenue. The tax could generate up to $250 million a year.

House Bill 932, the 21st Century Economy Fairness Act, would have applied the state’s 6% sales tax to downloads of products like books, music and streaming services. The bill could have generated more than $80 million next year.

The first year of revenue from the new tax would have been dedicated to costs associated with the state’s COVID-19 response, while future years would be dedicated to education reforms.

“These misguided bills would raise taxes and fees on Marylanders at a time when many are already out of work and financially struggling,” Hogan wrote. “With our state in the midst of a global pandemic and economic crash, and just beginning on our road to recovery, it would be unconscionable to raise taxes and fees now.”

Gun bill vetoed

On crime bills, Hogan vetoed Senate Bill 907, a Democratic priority that would establish a statewide Law Enforcement Coordinating Council to prevent and reduce crime by focusing on interagency communication and intelligence-sharing, and Senate Bill 929, The PROTECT Act, which would have required the state to identify 10 high-crime micro-zones and target additional crime-fighting resources in those areas.

The governor also vetoed House Bill 4, which would have required background checks for people acquiring rifles or shotguns from private sales or transfers.

The bill has been a Democratic priority for the last two legislative sessions. The bill’s sponsor, Del. Vanessa Atterbeary (D-Howard), tweeted that she was “beyond disappointed” with the veto of the bill.

Other lawmakers took exception to Hogan’s veto letter, in which he highlighted the failure of the House of Delegates to pass his own crime bill proposals.

“I expressed my strong willingness to consider other proposals, including some of those passed by the legislature, if they were included as part of a comprehensive crime package which included my proposals,” Hogan wrote.

While the Senate incorporated portions of Hogan priorities into a package in that chamber, the House did not take up the package “and thus failed to meaningfully address violent crime,” Hogan wrote.

“Pouting doesn’t solve gun violence,” Del. Brooke E. Lierman (D-Baltimore City) tweeted in response to the veto letter. “Tragic & frustrating.”

House Majority Leader Eric G. Luedtke (D-Montgomery) said his party would consider overriding a number of the vetoes issued Thursday, and he questioned the rationale for some of the governor’s actions.

“The governor is trying to sell this as fiscal responsibility, but he vetoed a bill closing the last loophole in our background check system for guns, he vetoed a bill banning a toxic pesticide. This is right-wing red meat,” Luedtke said. “…The governor had a chance to rise above politics a little bit with the leadership he’s shown on coronavirus and these vetoes demonstrate he hasn’t done it.”

How to move forward

Legislative leaders ― who recently announced they wouldn’t meet in special session this month, as they’d originally hoped after the regular legislative session was cut short ―reacted with disappointment immediately after the final actions were announced.

“Throughout this Session, the General Assembly took steps to ensure we left the state with a historically high fund balance and rainy day fund, together with a variety of tools to deal with this crisis,” Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) said in a statement. “At the same time, we passed legislation that looked to the future of the state, and made certain to pass policies which will help our state emerge strongly from this crisis. With today’s actions, instead of setting us on a path to a secure recovery, the Governor is stopping all progress where it stands.”

He and House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County) said they will consult about how to move forward.

“While we are in the midst of a public health and economic crisis of an extraordinary magnitude, stopping progress on education and school construction puts us even further behind. We know that there are students across this State that are losing millions of hours of learning,” Jones said in a statement. “The result of this short-sighted action is Maryland will continue to graduate students that are not ready for the real world.”

Legislative leaders did not discuss the possibility of summer or fall special session to address vetoes on Thursday.

If the legislature does not override gubernatorial vetoes on spending bills before July 1, Hogan does not have to consider funding for those bills in his proposed 2022 budget.

If lawmakers ultimately decide to forgo a special session, they could override the governor’s vetoes in January, when their regular session convenes and the state’s fiscal outlook may have improved.

The HBCU funding bill would have required a settlement before December. If lawmakers don’t meet in special session before then, a 13-year lawsuit against the state could be revived and a settlement could be dictated by the courts.

Hogan allowed hundreds of other House and Senate bills to become law without his signature.

That includes House Bill 1, the Built to Learn Act, which authorizes the Maryland Stadium Authority to issue up to $2.2 billion in bonds to pay for school construction projects around the state. However, the school construction bill, which was similar to a separate proposal from Hogan, was contingent on enactment of the Blueprint reform bill that was vetoed.

Hogan did not sign a single bill.

By Danielle E. Gaines

What Might Schools Look Like Next Fall?

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Protective films around bus drivers, temperature checks at schoolhouse doors, playgrounds marked with social distancing markers.

Those are just a few examples of what might become the “new normal” at Maryland public schools, if they’re reopened next fall.

Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Karen B. Salmon announced Wednesday that schools would remain shuttered for the rest of this school year. At the same time, she announced that the State Department of Education has published “Maryland Together: Maryland’s Recovery Plan for Education,” which included the recommendations above — and much more.

Karen Salmon, Maryland state school superintendent

With Maryland’s announcement, schools in 48 states will remain closed for the rest of this academic year. Distance learning in Maryland will continue through the end of the fourth marking period, Salmon said.

Come next fall, “schedules for instruction, meals and transportation may all require modifications,” Salmon said at a State House press conference. “Any return of students and staff to the classroom depends on the circumstances in each school system and local school systems will have the flexibility to adapt the model to best serve their needs.”

The recovery plan released on Wednesday includes suggestions, but not requirements, for school districts to consider. Day-to-day operations in all schools are likely to change to follow public health guidance.

Other precautions that may be necessary include reconfigured classrooms with desks six feet apart, or physically distanced instruction in gymnasiums, auditoriums or out on the lawn.

Suggestions in the report for modifying school schedules to reduce the number of students physically present in schools include:

• A one-day rotation, in which a quarter of students return to school buildings one day a week.

• A two-day rotation in which all students receive two days of at-school instruction each week.

• A and B weeks, where half of all students go to the school building for four days in a row, and learn from home the following week.

Because research shows that younger students have more difficulty processing lessons during online learning, school systems may also consider bringing younger students back on to campuses earlier than older students.

Based on research that shows a more significant “summer slide,” or learning loss, in math, school systems might consider prioritizing in-person instruction for that subject next fall over, say, English language arts, an area where more parents may be prepared to help with at-home lessons.

Schools might also consider “looping” teachers ― or keeping them with the same set of students ― next school year, which would take advantage of teachers’ familiarity with students and families during an uncertain time. Access to school counselors and school-based health clinics should be beefed up, and schools should begin planning to help staff members identify childhood reactions to stress and trauma, or to identify abuse or neglect.

Students learning English or enrolled in special education programs should be prioritized for in-person small-group instruction with student-teacher ratios of 10 or less.

The report says that fall diagnostic assessments for elementary and middle school students will be given at the start of next school year as planned, with results going to teachers within two days to help guide instruction.

If remote learning must continue, school systems should consider implementing low-cost methods of online instruction that can be accessed on the widest variety of technological platforms, including mobile phones. School systems may need to consider increasing information technology staff to help bolster distance-learning programs.

School systems should also consider ways to extend the quality and coverage of internet access in their counties; about 30% of families in Maryland do not have a reliable internet connection for distance learning, according to the report.

The report suggests additional changes and safeguards for students in career and technical education programs, including making sure students have access to work-based learning hours that follow public health guidelines, disinfecting student labs and creating a compressed curriculum that will allow students to graduate on time with their expected certifications.

Schools will have to change lunch and food service policies to allow for physical distancing, increased sanitation and other issues, including how to distribute meals with altered school day schedules. Since schools in the state were closed in mid-March, school systems have served more than 8 million meals to children in need, Salmon said Wednesday.

The report suggests that each school district should create a crisis team to implement local reopening plans and communicate with the public.

A separate “Child Care Recovery Plan” is in the works. About half of the child care programs in the state have been closed since late March, with about 3,700 providers remaining open to serve a small population of children of essential workers. A roll-out of the state-funded Essential Personnel Child Care Program was rocky, with providers going weeks without payment. But Salmon said Wednesday that the state has made more than $34 million in payments over the past two weeks, with all invoices to providers up to date.

The recovery plan for public schools will be updated as information changes, Salmon said Wednesday.

Cheryl Bost, president of the Maryland State Education Association and a Baltimore County elementary school teacher, said Wednesday that closing schools for the year was the right decision for health and safety, but called it a sad day.

“Educators miss our students. We wish we could see them, talk with them, laugh with them, and teach them in person. We wish we could say goodbye to them before the school year ends,” Bost said in a statement. “Instead, educators, families, and students will continue to do our best during this period of crisis distance learning, while knowing that we have a great deal of work to do now and moving forward. We must address the inequities within our community—whether of technology access for educators and students, food security, trauma care, or otherwise—that have been magnified by this crisis. We look forward to the day that we can return to our schools and the everyday joys, challenges, and work of educating our students.”

By Danielle E. Gaines

Schools to Stay Closed, More Outdoor Activities Allowed

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As cases of COVID-19 in Maryland hospitals and ICU units begin to plateau, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr .(R) announced moves Wednesday that foreshadow a slow re-establishment of the norm for state residents.

Effective 7 a.m. Thursday, Marylanders can resume a broad range of outdoor activities, including golf, tennis, camping, boating and fishing. Hogan also announced the reopening of state parks, playgrounds and beaches.

Additionally, the Maryland Department of Health is giving guidance for medical professionals, including dentists, to resume elective and non-COVID-19-related procedures.

“Marylanders have made incredible sacrifices in recent weeks and because of that, thousands of lives have been saved and the numbers of infections are so much better than they would have been,” the governor said at a State House news conference Wednesday afternoon. “And while we still do need several more days of good metrics, our Coronavirus Recovery Team … has agreed that there are some additional things that we can do safely right now.”

Hogan said that in the past week, the state saw a five-day streak of downward hospitalization trends, with a slight bump Monday, and an encouraging leveling-off of patients receiving care in state ICUs.

“If these trends continue into next week, we will be ready to lift the stay-at-home order and to begin stage one of our recovery plan,” he said.

Dr. David Marcozzi, the COVID-19 incident commander for the University of Maryland Medical System, said it is imperative for Marylanders to use caution and “common sense” when participating in these activities.

“The virus is still with us,” he explained, adding that people need to maintain social distance while enjoying activities outside, practice appropriate hygiene, only gather in small groups and, if possible, wear masks.

“To continue to flatten the curve, we as Marylanders need to be consistently making the right choices for ourselves, for our friends, and our family,” Marcozzi said.

Hogan’s decision to allow people to walk on state-owned beaches comes two days after the mayor of Ocean City decided independently to open beaches there this Saturday.

The state’s policy applies to beaches operated by the Department of Natural Resources — and it’s narrower than the one adopted by Ocean City.

Under Hogan’s guidance, beaches will open Thursday for “walking, jogging, running, swimming and fishing.” The ban on groups of 10 or more remains in effect. Chairs, blankets and picnics will be prohibited.

Asked if visitors to Ocean City can sunbathe and swim, Mayor Richard W. Meehan said in a text message, “As long as people are not violating the Governor’s Stay at Home Order, they are allowed to go on the beach. We do not encourage swimming before the life guards are on duty Memorial Day Weekend.”

While a few boardwalk establishments may begin serving takeout food, most will remain shuttered until at least Memorial Day weekend. Hotels and short-term rental apartments are also off-limits until then.

“Social distancing is required,” Meehan added.

Hogan and Meehan talked at length by phone before the town decided to open its beach. During the conversation, the mayor said the governor’s decision to open beaches in coordination with Virginia and Delaware “doesn’t really work for us.”

Although he didn’t criticize Ocean City’s decision, Hogan appeared to suggest that it’s too early for beach activity to ramp up too quickly.

“We’re encouraging people to walk on the beach and walk on the boardwalks,” he said. “But crowds of people all congregating together and going about their normal way that they would go, I think we’re not quite ready for that.”

Sen. Mary Beth Carozza (R-Lower Shore) said she is “very excited” about the lifting of restrictions on outdoor activity.

“I’ve had numerous constituents across my district — whether it’s boaters or golfers or tennis players or people who just love to walk in our parks — ask when can we expect to be outside again,” she said. “So today was welcome news.”

School’s out

While the state’s parks and beaches are reopening, Maryland public schools will remain shut.

Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Karen B. Salmon announced that she is canceling in-person learning for the remainder of the school year.

“After extensive discussions with the Maryland State Board of Education, the Maryland Health Department and additional health experts advising the governor, I am convinced this is the appropriate decision in order to continue to protect the health and safety of our students, educators, staff, and all members of school communities throughout Maryland,” she said.

As it stands, Maryland public school students have not attended any lessons taught in classrooms since March 13. Salmon said that students are to continue participating in distance learning through the balance of the year.

While schools remain closed, the Department of Education continues to consider plans for their slow reopening. Salmon announced that in a combined effort between stakeholders and local superintendents, the department has drafted the Maryland Together Recovery Plan for Education, a “comprehensive plan for long-term recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.”

Salmon said that while school systems do not have to follow this plan, the calendar for reopening schools may “dovetail” with Hogan’s recovery plan.

In mid-April, Hogan rolled out the “Maryland Strong: Roadmap to Recovery” — a three-phase plan to reopen the state.

In order for state officials to safely implement the beginnings of the reentry plan, Maryland must meet four “building blocks, including increased testing, greater hospital surge capacity, expanded supply of personal protective equipment, and a “robust contact tracing operation.”

Should it be enacted, the first phase of the state’s recovery plan would allow for the reopening of some businesses and the activation of “low-risk” religious and community events.

Steps in the right direction

Late last month, Hogan announced that he had acquired over 500,000 tests from South Korea.

When combined with an expansion of lab capacity and a shipment of swabs from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the governor said Wednesday that the state has been able to augment its testing ability, including at chicken processing plants on the Eastern Shore and state nursing homes, both of which the governor said are to be universally tested.

“We expanded testing on the Eastern Shore in response to outbreaks at poultry processing plants, testing 2,300 people at Perdue Stadium in Salisbury just last weekend,” Hogan said. “In addition, we will be conducting universal testing shift by shift at both of Maryland’s processing plants to ensure that every single poultry worker is tested and we are placing a surge tent at Easton Memorial Hospital to prepare for a spike in patients from that outbreak.

“The CDC is on the ground in Salisbury to assist with contact tracing and we continue to coordinate with our partners in Delaware and Virginia in an effort to protect the Delmarva region’s poultry industry and the national food supply chain,” the governor said.

Maryland lawmakers were told on Wednesday that the state’s nursing homes aren’t able to test residents and staff as often as they would like.

During a meeting of the General Assembly’s Joint COVID-19 Response Legislative Workgroup, the head of the association that represents Maryland nursing homes called testing “a major, major problem.”

“There’s a shortage of testing,” said Joseph DeMattos Jr., the president of the Health Facilities Association of Maryland. “It’s one thing for the state to order testing. But to order testing in an environment where testing is not available is a problem.”

DeMattos said Maryland nursing homes frequently receive only a fraction of the tests they request from their local health departments.

Part of the problem, he said, is that counties have adopted their own standards for deciding who is eligible for the tests.

DeMattos urged the legislature to pressure Hogan to adopt a statewide standard, and to stagger testing of nursing home staff, so facilities aren’t swamped with a sudden wave of positive results.

“Everybody can say that testing is mandatory and everybody needs to be testing,” he said. “The reality on the ground is there are not these tests deployed at this point.”

Hogan said Wednesday afternoon that universal testing in elder care facilities will “not be done overnight,” nor is the state “just handing out tests.” Rather, he explained that the state will begin testing “the hottest ones with the biggest problems and working our way down the list.”

Regarding contact tracing, the governor announced Maryland’s recent contract with the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center, which Hogan said is poised to “quadruple” the state’s investigating ability.

Maryland is in the process of hiring workers for its contact tracing program. The governor revealed that officials received more than 900 applications for these positions from across the state.

While the state beefs-up its contact tracing capabilities, it has also exponentially increased its ability to treat those who fall victim to COVID-19.

Hogan said that the state’s number of viable hospital beds for COVID-19 patients has increased by over 8,000 units and that the supply of personal protective equipment has grown by 4.5 million KN95 masks, 600,000 N95 masks, 150,000 medical gowns, over one million face shields and 3.5 million gloves.

He said that Maryland has spent hundreds of millions of dollars building up these stockpiles — something that he said the state has never had to do in such a short time before.

“We don’t do this on a normal basis,” said the governor. “But if we didn’t find them, people were going to die.”

Hogan also acknowledged that in its pursuit of this necessary equipment, the state may have fallen victim to fraud.

Last week, he directed the Maryland Department of General Services to cancel an emergency order of personal protective equipment, including masks and ventilators, from Blue Flame Medical, ordering Attorney General Brian E. Frosh (D) to launch an investigation.

Since then, the U.S. Department of Justice has started its own investigation of Blue Flame Medical, noting that other states have had similar interactions with the company, including California.

“We were lucky to catch this one situation. Hopefully, there aren’t others,” Hogan said.

By Hannah Gaskill and Bruce DePuyt

Ocean City Beaches to Reopen to the Public on Saturday

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As beach communities around the world struggle to decide when it’s safe to allow people to venture back to the water, the mayor of Ocean City has decided to reopen his town’s famous beach this weekend.

Mayor Richard W. Meehan signed a declaration Monday that will open the beach and boardwalk starting Saturday.

Though the town draws hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the Mid-Atlantic region each summer, people who live outside Ocean City are being encouraged to abide by the state’s travel restrictions.

“The declaration to open Ocean City’s beach and boardwalk, and inlet parking lot, on Saturday, May 9, is simply to give a way for individuals to have more opportunities to go outside and enjoy the fresh air, while still adhering to all social distancing guidelines and gathering limits,” Meehan told reporters on a video chat Tuesday.

“None of that has changed.”

States and localities from Florida to California, and around the world, have wrestled with the decision to reopen beaches. The question takes on growing urgency as temperatures warm and people grow restless from weeks of being cooped up at home.

During Monday’s meeting with the Town of Ocean City’s council and again on Tuesday, Meehan stressed that the change in policy “does not supersede” the travel restrictions that Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) imposed in March, at the beginning of the epidemic.

“You should only travel to Ocean City if doing so would not be in violation of the governor’s specific stay-at-home order,” the mayor told reporters.

Nevertheless, Meehan’s comments at Monday’s council meeting made it clear that Ocean City leaders favor a much speedier approach to lifting restrictions on social interaction and commerce than Hogan.

The mayor said he and the governor spoke for about 30 minutes on Friday. During the call, Hogan expressed a desire to coordinate the opening of Maryland’s beaches with neighboring Delaware and Virginia, Meehan said.

Delaware’s mayors “are not going to be opening up their beaches until after Memorial Day or June 1,” said Meehan. “I said to the governor, ‘That doesn’t really work for us.’”

While he agreed with the general idea that reopening the economy should come in stages, Ocean City needs to begin the process this week, the mayor said.

“I think there are certain components of our plan and his plan we can coordinate, but I think we need a phased-in opening in Ocean City, and I think we need to do it sooner rather than later, and I explained that,” Meehan said.

The mayor said he’s confident that the vast majority of residents and visitors will take recommended precautions.

“If you go to the grocery store, people are wearing masks. You see people social distancing. … So I really think we’ve come a long way.”

The Eastern Shore has a large and growing COVID-19 infection rate, one of the nation’s largest. It is clustered mostly around the region’s poultry processing plants, local officials have said.

But Meehan said the decisions about whether to travel — and what precautions to take — are “personal.”

“We have to look at what’s best for us and what’s best for our families,” he said.

Meehan said those who live elsewhere will not be turned away. “There will be no police officers patrolling for license plates,” Meehan said. “That’s not going to be the case here in Ocean City.”

Business owners in beach communities have a limited window to make the money they will need to survive the long off-season. But popular beaches like Ocean City bring huge crowds into close proximity to one another. Health experts have said that what makes COVID-19 so deadly is its relative ease of transmission from person to person.

Meehan stressed that non-essential businesses along the boardwalk will be closed, as will hotels and short-term rentals. The town of Ocean City has extended its restrictions on lodging until May 22, the Friday of Memorial Day weekend.

“The only thing that will really be open on the boardwalk will be some of the carryout restaurants,” he said. “This is strictly to open up the right-of-way along the boardwalk and along the beach.”

Meehan’s decision to reopen the beach appears to have caught many in Ocean City by surprise. OceanCity.com, the town’s tourism site, said on Tuesday it had reached out to local leaders for “additional clarity.”

Reaction on social media was decidedly mixed. Many town residents expressed concern about large crowds; others supported the decision to get back to normal.

“Protecting public health and the economy have to be considered jointly. They have to be symbiotic,” said former Ocean City mayor and ex-state Sen. James C. Mathias (D).

He said that reopening “must take into consideration” the views of the health department, local hospitals and first-responders — particularly since the Lower Shore has become a novel coronavirus “hot spot.”

“We are going to reopen. We will figure this out. What we have to do is figure out how to do it as safely as possible,” Mathias added.

Travis Brown, the public affairs officer for the Worcester County Health Department, refused to say whether the mayor consulted with the county’s health officer before announcing his decision.

Meehan said the governor is likely to discuss when Maryland can begin to dial back restrictions some time this week. Hogan has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday afternoon at the State House.

“The governor asked me, ‘Do you think you’ll have any problems?’ and I said yes. Because with anything you do, there will be some challenges. I believe most people will adhere to social distancing.”

While there may be “2%” who don’t cooperate, Meehan said, “We’re all going to have to work around them a little bit if we have to, because this is what’s best for the majority.”

By Bruce DePuyt

After Delay, Md. to Release COVID-19 Funds Intended for Smaller Counties

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It took weeks of prodding, but Maryland’s small counties will soon begin receiving federal COVID-19 funds from the state.

Department of Management and Budget Secretary David Brinkley informed county leaders of the Hogan administration’s decision to release the funds on Monday afternoon, in a memo obtained by Maryland Matters.

The decision means $182 million in federal funds intended to help local health departments and hard-hit small businesses will begin to flow to Maryland’s smallest counties.

The CARES Act, the federal legislation providing novel coronavirus funding to the states, stipulated that counties with populations of 500,000 or more would receive aid directly. The measures mandated that small counties apply to their governor.

That requirement left 19 Maryland counties wondering whether — and when — they would receive federal funds, a development that caused weeks of tension between local leaders and the Hogan administration, a reliable source said.

“I don’t understand why the smaller jurisdictions are treated differently than the larger jurisdictions,” said Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D).

Although Montgomery, Prince George’s, Baltimore and Anne Arundel counties received federal funds directly, the leaders from all five subdivisions signed a May 1 letter to Hogan urging him to release bottle-necked funds to their smaller brethren. (Officials from 22 of Maryland’s 24 subdivisions signed on, in a show of unity.)

CARES Act funds are intended to reimburse local health departments for personal protective gear and other items related to the COVID-19 epidemic. They can also be used for grants to businesses impacted by the crisis.

According to the Maryland Association of Counties, which coordinated the letter to Hogan, the state received $1.29 billion from the CARES Act, of which $364 million was intended for the counties.

In his letter to local leaders on Monday, Brinkley said counties with populations below half a million people will receive half their eligible funding now. They can seek the second half of the funding down the road, he wrote.

Harford County Executive Barry Glassman (R) said the monies will help his health department buy PPE and it will allow Harford to offer grants local businesses need to make modifications in order to reopen.

“This will allow our local economic development departments to set up some programs to set up some programs to get funding out to the community, which we think we can do quicker,” he said.

In a call with General Assembly leaders on April 22, Glassman said it was unfair to make smaller counties jump through an extra hoop to get federal funds when all governments are facing the same challenges.

“We’ve been working on this for about three weeks now, just pushing and pushing against the reimbursement method,” he said in an interview on Monday.

“Most smaller counties do not have the capacity to forward-fund programs and then come back and ask for reimbursement. The spirit of the CARES Act was to get that to us so we wouldn’t have to forward fund.”

Glassman said Harford business owners have been asking why the county isn’t offering programs similar to those that have been launched in neighboring Baltimore County.

Under the federal formula, a county the size of Harford qualifies for $44.6 million in aid. The Hogan administration’s decision will release the first $22.3 million.

“They’re just as trustworthy,” Elrich said of the smaller counties. “They deal with [grant] money all the time. There’s no reason to treat them differently.”

Local leaders said it’s unclear why small counties had to press so hard to get the Hogan administration to release CARES Act funds.

“I never got a good answer,” Glassman said.

“There just seemed to be some kind of disconnect that somehow Maryland’s medium and small counties were not able to handle these kinds of funds,” he added. “That’s the only thing I can think of.”

By Bruce DePuyt

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