Governor Parson Highlights Data Supporting “Show Me Strong Recovery” Plan

As Missouri prepares to reopen economic and social activity on May 4, Governor Parson today highlighted data supporting the state’s “Show Me Strong Recovery” Plan.

The “Show Me Strong Recovery” Plan rests on four essential pillars designed to give Missouri a benchmark for moving forward:

1. Expand testing capacity and volume in the state
2. Expand reserves of PPE by opening public and private supply chains
3. Continue to monitor and, if necessary, expand hospital and health care system capacity
4. Improve ability to predict potential outbreaks using Missouri’s public health data

“Because Missouri took aggressive actions to combat COVID-19 from the start, we are in a good place with each of these pillars and confident that we are ready to move forward into the recovery process,” Governor Parson said.

The state uses multiple Missouri specific sources to monitor these pillars and inform its decisions. One of the most important pieces of information the state tracks is the number of hospitalized COVID-19 cases and people under investigation.

This is an important measure of how much strain COVID-19 is placing on the state’s health care system. Governor Parson emphasized that Missouri’s health care system is not currently overwhelmed.

According to the state’s data, Missouri reached peak hospitalization on April 7 at 1,242 cases. With the exception of the St. Louis region, the total number of hospitalizations had decreased significantly in every region across the state by April 25:

– The Kansas City region went from 411 hospitalizations to 243 (41 percent reduction)
– The Central Region went from 40 hospitalizations to 25 (38 percent reduction)
– The Northwest Region went from 17 hospitalizations to 10 (41 percent reduction)
– The Northeast Region went from 6 hospitalization to 2 (67 percent reduction)
– The Southwest Region went from 73 hospitalizations to 27 (63 percent reduction)
– The Southeast Region went from 56 to 31 (45 percent reduction)
– St. Louis region went from 639 to 692 (8 percent increase)

Additionally, as of yesterday, Missouri has over 1,100 ventilators available across the state according to data from the Missouri Hospital Association. This does not include the ventilators in the state’s strategic stockpile.

“These are just some examples of the data we track and monitor every day to make our decisions,” Governor Parson said.

“The overall trends in the data show that Missouri’s health care system is under control,” Governor Parson continued. “Our hospitals are not overwhelmed, and things are improving, which is why we have made the decision to move forward and begin reopening Missouri on May 4.”

Also during today’s briefing, Governor Parson was joined by Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry President and CEO Dan Mehan, Associated Industries of Missouri President Ray McCarty, and Missouri Restaurant Association President Greg Hunsucker to talk more about the reopening of Missouri businesses.

Yesterday, Governor Parson announced all businesses can reopen on May 4 as long as social distancing guidelines are followed. Some businesses will be required to take additional precautions to protect their employees and the public, such as occupancy limits at retail locations.

To view the full economic reopening order, additional guidance, and frequently asked questions, please click here. For more information on the “Show Me Strong Recovery” Plan, visit showmestrong.mo.gov.

Pictures from today’s briefing are available on Governor Parson’s Flickr page.