Governor Ned Lamont is continuing to mirror neighboring states and has activated what he described Friday afternoon as the "Stay Safe — Stay At Home" policy of social distancing, and is calling for all nonessential workers to stay home, and nonessential businesses to close or restrict all work to employees working from home.

Newtown First Selectman Dan Rosenthal told The Newtown Bee earlier Friday he was expecting some type of mass social distancing initiative to be launched imminently.

"If you're over 70, stay home," Lamont said, distanced by more than a dozen feet from a handful of reporters gathered March 20 at the State Armory in Hartford. The governor is also calling for everyone to subscribe to "solitary exercise," and to "stay off public transportation," while imploring non-essential retail operations: "don't open...for the foreseeable future" unless they provide essential services.

"Nobody is indefensible when it comes to this virus — especially young people," Lamont said.

The governor said those involved with major construction and manufacturing projects will be exempt from Stay at Home program.

He also called for any business and non-emergent medical businesses to scour their shelves and stock for personal protection equipment and even respirators to sell or donate to the state for critical response to an anticipated surge of COVID-19 cases in the coming weeks.

As of Friday afternoon, Lamont reported that 35 new cases were identified, totaling 194 across the state with 40 being cared for in hospital. He said the state has increased its capacity and is testing close to 1,000 a people a day.

"That number of reported cases is a reflection of more people being infected," Lamont said. He also related there has been a fourth death from COVID-19, in Fairfield County, and that New London County had logged its first positive case overnight.

The coronavirus emergency is beginning to have a broader impact on government financial and political initiatives from the federal level on down to Newtown's local municipal and school budgets as well.

June 2 Budget Vote?

With Governor Lamont's announcement March 19 that state political primaries are being delayed until June 2, First Selectman Rosenthal said he will recommend Newtown's annual budget referendum be held on that same date.

Rosenthal said he will be making that recommendation to the Legislative Council, which has the authority to orchestrate that date shift statutorily. The first selectman said the town will concurrently need clearance to move the annual budget vote out to early June from state officials.

"I plan to reach out to the Governor's Office about this, and will make that recommendation to the council," he told The Newtown Bee following a Friday morning briefing with key local emergency services and health personnel.

By holding both the primaries and budget vote on June 2, Rosenthal said it will maximize potential turnout while saving taxpayers and the local registrars the expense and logistical challenges of holding two separate voting sessions in close proximity.

In announcing the shift in the primaries date late Thursday, Lamont said, “During these difficult times, we also want to make sure that democracy is not impacted and voters can still cast their ballots safely.

"Rescheduling the primary election will enable voters to still safely participate in our state’s elections while also protecting their health and the well-being of those who help to carry out elections — our town clerks, registrars, voters, and dedicated poll workers.”

Locally, CW Resources, Newtown's Senior Center meal site provider, will be providing prepackaged lunches for senior citizens beginning Tuesday, March 24. Meals will be provided for a nominal fee, cold, in containers that can be heated in a home microwave.

(Click through the link above for full details, or contact the Senior Center at 203-270-4310 for ordering information.)

Newtown Health District sanitarians and Newtown Water Pollution Control Authority are reminding residents who may be facing shortages of toilet paper, or who may be inclined to flush other materials besides toilet paper, that substitute materials can be harmful to Authority processing equipment and septic systems.

Public Works Director Fred Hurley told The Newtown Bee Friday that any kind of personal "wipes" can be particularly harmful.

"Whether they are 'baby wipes' or 'medicated wipes,' they don't readily break down and have a nasty habit of fouling pumps," Hurley said.

The Health District similarly reminds residents with septic systems to never pour or flush:

*Excess water like that required for more than two or three consecutive loads of laundry;

*Fats, grease, cooking oils;

*Waste garbage, vegetable peelings, coffee grounds;

*Bleach, unless it is part of a regular laundry load;

*Disposable diapers, paper towels, sanitary napkins, condoms;

*Petroleum products, anti-freeze, pesticides, non-biodegradable detergents and cleaners; or

*Soil, cat litter, cigarette butts, and hair.

On Friday, the local water utility Aquarion announced it has implemented several measures to limit in-person employee interaction in its facilities, including a work-from-home requirement for employees who can do so, as well as enhanced cleaning measures at its facilities.

Aquarion has also taken measures to alleviate any financial concerns its customers may face by:

*Suspending customer shutoffs for nonpayment, late fees, and security deposits;

*Assisting customers with its financial support programs;

*Reminding customers about Aquarion’s online portal which allows them to easily check their account, pay their bill and more at their convenience; and

*Warning customers of increased scam activity due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Customers should be wary of any unsolicited calls that threaten to shut off water service and that demand payment by unusual means.

Aquarion says it is making sure its field resources and support staff continue to be ready in the event of an unscheduled water service disruption not related to COVID-19.

'Tax Day' Delayed

At the federal level Friday morning, Treasury Secretary Steven Muchin announced the federal income tax filing date has been pushed back from April 15 to July 15.

"All taxpayers and businesses will have this additional time to file and make payments without interest or penalties,” Mnuchin said.

If people are expecting refunds, federal officials say they should file now so that they can get their refunds from the IRS more quickly. The delay is available to people who owe $1 million or less and corporations that owe $10 million or less.

It is expected that Connecticut will follow the lead of the federal government and delay their tax filing deadlines as well. That information will be reported once the decision is made by Gov Lamont and the State Department of Revenue Services.

In other actions tied to Lamont's latest executive order, the state is:

*Suspending non-critical court operations and associated requirements, deadlines, and statutes of limitations.

*Permitting certain restaurants and other eating establishments to sell alcohol with take-out food orders and certain other licensees to sell for off-premise consumption under conditions specified in the order and implementing orders to be issued by the Department of Consumer Protection.

*Directing the temporary closure of barbershops, hair salons, tattoo or piercing parlors, and related businesses effective 8 pm Friday, March 20.

*Temporarily suspending in-person investigation visits regarding suspected elder abuse and extending timelines for reporting investigation results.

*Expanding the ability of patients and doctors to use telehealth for healthcare services.

On March 17, the Trump Administration announced expanded Medicare telehealth coverage that will enable beneficiaries to receive a wider range of healthcare services from their doctors without having to travel to a healthcare facility.

The federal and state announcements come at a critical time as these flexibilities will help healthcare institutions across the nation offer some medical services to patients remotely, so that healthcare facilities like emergency departments and doctor’s offices are available to deal with the most urgent cases and reduce the risk of additional infections.

State Implications, Updates

Connecticut's Executive Order allows patients and healthcare providers, consistent with federal revisions to HIPAA, to communicate over a broad range of platforms. Those platforms can include audio-only telephone calls for patients and providers with a prior relationship.

In addition, it allows patients to access out-of-state telehealth providers, allows commercial health insurers and Medicaid to cover telehealth services for all in-network providers, regardless of communication platform or the provider’s state of practice, and it allows providers to offer telehealth services from a location other than their licensed facility.

Finally, the order also caps the amount providers availing themselves of this new flexibility may charge patients for telehealth services in Connecticut when providers are out-of-network or when patients are uninsured.

Among other points announced by Gov Lamont Thursday:

*In addition to the State Laboratory, there are now 15 alternative sites in Connecticut that are offering drive-through testing.

*The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine (JAX-GM) is partnering with the state to improve the capacity to process tests that are conducted in the state. JAX-GM estimates that with its current staffing and equipment, it will be able to test 100 to 150 samples per day, and is already working to increase its staff and equipment to meet the growing needs of the state.

*The State Department of Transportation is making changes to its bus operations to ensure the safety of passengers and drivers.

Effective immediately, passengers will board from the rear door with the exception of passengers in wheelchairs and others who require the bus to kneel. Additionally, approximately 100 CTtransit buses have been equipped with transparent, impermeable barriers providing a partition between drivers and passengers.

Buses are operating on normal weekday and weekend schedules. CTtransit service updates can be found by CLICKING HERE

Also, the CTrail Hartford Line and Shore Line East train schedules have been reduced, and the Metro-North New Haven Line continues to maintain operations. Commuters should check hartfordline.com, shorelineeast.com, and mta.info/mnr for service updates.

Federal officials and Connecticut's elected delegation continue to work to address national and global fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

On Friday, US Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, led 16 Senate Democrats, including Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn) in calling on the health insurance companies to remove barriers to care for Americans who find themselves diagnosed with COVID-19.

In a letter to CEOs for Kaiser Permanente, Aetna, Humana, Cigna Corporation, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Anthem, and UnitedHealth Group, the senators specifically asked the insurers to cover all COVID-19 related treatment and services without cost sharing requirements and allowing Americans to get tested, assessed, and treated without the fear of unexpected medical bills.

“We ask ... that you suspend all cost sharing requirements connected with treatments for COVID-19 and associated health complications," the letter states. "The waiver of cost sharing should extend to emergency department care, virtual care and telehealth visits, health center and urgent care settings, and 90-day refills of prescription medications. With the US lagging in testing potential cases of COVID-19, the last thing we need is for people to be scared off from seeing their provider or seeking treatment because of the cost.”

Also on Friday, Sen Murphy and Marco Rubio (R-Fla) introduced the Strengthening America’s Supply Chain and National Security Act, bipartisan, bicameral legislation to combat America’s supply chain risk and dependence on China for pharmaceuticals.

“Coronavirus has exposed a serious risk in our supply chain. Being dependent on China for pharmaceuticals — especially at the height of this pandemic — poses a serious threat to US national security and public health across this country. I’m glad to work with a group of bipartisan senators to prioritize American manufacturers and ensure adequate pharmaceutical supply throughout this crisis and beyond,” Murphy said.

Specifically, the Strengthening America’s Supply Chain and National Security Act would direct the Department of Defense (DoD) to determine the extent of its dependency on foreign entities for drugs, active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), and pharmaceutical components.

Additionally, DoD would be required to determine whether this creates a national security issue and to make recommendations to eliminate US dependency on foreign sources. It also requires drugmakers to provide the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with information to determine volume of APIs used in pharmaceuticals.

Currently, the FDA requires drug makers to include the sources of the drug’s API, but it does not require them to provide the volume of API deriving from each of its sources. As a result, the FDA cannot determine the extent of dependency or target potential risks for drug shortages.