The state reports more than three thousand new COVID cases today and current hospitalizations have exceeded a thousand. Governor John Bel Edwards will hold a 3 pm press conference today along with health officials to address the ongoing fourth surge of cases.
The fourth surge has sparked the Mayors of New Orleans and Shreveport to issue indoor mask advisories. LSU Health Shreveport Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. John Vanchiere says the Delta variant is responsible for eighty percent of the current cases and the variant is fifty percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant which was fifty percent more contagious than the original.
For a list of vaccination and testing sites visit LDH-dot-LA-dot-gov forward slash Coronavirus.
Shreveport joins New Orleans in issuing an indoor mask advisory due to the Delta-fueled surge in COVID cases. Roughly 30 percent of northwest Louisiana is vaccinated according to KSLA TV. Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins says returning to masking will save lives and save the economy.
Perkins says he made this decision after consulting with healthcare experts.
The N-F-L Network reports Saints star receiver Michael Thomas will miss the start of the regular season after undergoing surgery in June to repair ligaments in his injured ankle. Saints analyst Mike Detillier says Thomas has not been able to fully recover after injuring his ankle in the 2020 season opener
Recovery from the surgery is an estimated four months