Ohio and Louisiana announce ‘stay at home’ orders

(AP) — Ohio and Louisiana are the latest states to enact “stay at home” orders as cases of coronavirus continue to rise across the country.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s administration’s order will begin Tuesday by local law enforcement and health departments.

He said the order includes things he’s already been asking residents to do, such as stay at home except for essential needs.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards also issued a statewide “stay at home” directive, ordering all 4.6 million people in Louisiana to stay at home starting at 5 p.m. on Monday unless they’re performing an essential task like getting food or medicine.

Workers in grocery stores, pharmacies, doctors’ offices and other critical infrastructure are exempt from the Louisiana governor’s directive.

“The bottom line is we are in a race against time when it comes to this coronavirus and it’s rapid spread in Louisiana,” Edwards said Sunday.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell had issued a similar order for that city two days ago.

As of Sunday, coronavirus infections in Louisiana have climbed to more than 830. Twenty people in the state have died of COVID-19, state health officials said.

Both states join Connecticut, Illinois, New York and California in ordering nonessential workers to remain at home to slow the spread of coronavirus, which means more than 1 in 5 Americans live in a state under general stay-at-home orders.