As the number of new coronavirus cases in Texas continues to rise and hospitals get more crowded, Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that a state shutdown is not looming.
Abbott said last week that if the spread of the virus did not slow, “the next step would have to be a block.” But in a television interview on Thursday, he said that there have been rumors of such a move and emphasized that they were not true.
“Let me tell you, the closure is not coming,” he told KRIV-TV in Houston.
Abbott pointed to steps he has taken in recent weeks, including a state-wide mask mandate and a bar shutdown order, to curb the spread of the virus. It will take a few weeks to see a reversal in coronavirus cases, he said.
He has repeatedly stressed this week that if people wear masks, he will be able to avoid closing the state. On Wednesday, she told KPRC-TV in Houston that people seem to ask her about a shutdown “about a thousand times a day.”
“People are panicking, thinking that I’m about to close Texas again,” he said. “The answer is no. That is not the objective. I have been very clear.”
As of Thursday, there were 10,457 people in Texas hospitals with the coronavirus. That decreased slightly from a peak of 10,569 on Tuesday, but it still represents an 8% increase from the previous week and more than four times the number a month ago. Abbott described seeing a “flattening” of hospitalizations. The state has reported 3,561 deaths from the virus.
“We are certainly not out of the woods yet, but this could be a ray of hope,” Abbott said of recent hospitalization numbers. “But the only way we can avoid a closure is if we get everyone to buy this process of wearing a face mask.”
Earlier Thursday, Abbott defended his response to the coronavirus at the Texas Republican convention after acknowledging widespread discontent among party members. Several Republican officials have voiced their criticism of Abbott’s mask order across the state.
“The last thing any of us wants is to re-block Texas,” he said during the virtual convention.
But Democrats continued to push for Abbott to take further steps to stop the spread of the virus.
“Governor Abbott should start listening to public health officials and members of his own coronavirus task force before making general claims,” Abhi Rahman, a spokesman for the state party, said in an email. “After experiencing a record death toll today and more than 10,000 new cases, it is surprising that Abbott continues to duplicate his failed policies and positions.”
The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs and engages Texans about public policy, politics, government, and state affairs.
