BATON ROUGE, La. (LOCAL 33/FOX 44) – Louisiana health leaders said the state is ready for the Coronavirus also known as COVID-19.
“We do have a plan. That plan fits for COVID-19,” Dr. Frank Welch, the Medical Director for Community Preparedness for Louisiana said.
Dr. Welch said they have been planning for something like the virus for 20 years.
Dr. Welch added, “What we’ve been told to prepare for is, it’s probably going to spread in the United States just as it’s spreading in many other places.”
There is a multi-part plan in place:
- To detect if the virus comes to Louisiana.
- Try to contain those first cases so that it doesn’t spread
- When it spreads, making sure there are laboratory testing to know who has it and who doesn’t
- Preparing the healthcare community
- Planning with the business community to make sure they can still function with fewer employees.
This plan is for the worst-case scenario, but Dr. Welch said they are hoping for the best.
“but by making sure the public health community, the healthcare community, and also our infrastructure are prepared for something like this is the best way to respond when it does get here,” Dr. Welch said.
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