DATA: North Carolina – The Skinny – April 24

By the Numbers:
• LINK: 8,207 known cases in NC (as of 5:31 p.m.)
• 8,052 positive cases confirmed by NCDHHS
• 890,524 cases in the U.S. (as of 5:31 p.m.)
• 100,584 completed tests in North Carolina
• 477 people currently hospitalized due to COVID-19
• 292 deaths in North Carolina
• 51,017 deaths in the U.S. (as of 5:31 p.m.)
• 93 counties in NC with cases

Latest Developments

• LINK: The Division of Employment Security opened up applications for independent contractors and self-employed individuals to file for federal unemployment benefits.
o Since March 15, 733,917 people have filed for unemployment. Of those 628,244 are COVID-19 related.
o So far, 288,565 people have received benefits. That is nearly 40% of applicants.
o LINK: DES’s phone lines will now be open on the weekends. 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Saturdays, and 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. on Sundays.

• Gov. Cooper closed schools for the rest of the year.
o LINK: Related: The North Carolina High School Athletic Association canceled spring sports for the rest of the year because of COVID-19.

• LINK: ICYMI: It was announced that we will not take up the budget veto during the short session.

• LINK: Mission Health is taking down tents outside of its regional hospitals since it hasn’t seen a surge of COVID-19 patients. The tents can be reconstructed quickly if needed.

Quick Hits

• The second wave of stimulus payments will make their way out to taxpayers in the next few days.

o LINK: From The Wall Street Journal: “These payments will likely go to two groups: One set is tax filers who successfully used the Internal Revenue Service website’s ‘Get My Payment’ tool to add bank information by midday on April 22, according to the IRS. The other set is people who don’t file tax returns but who receive Social Security or Social Security disability benefits, according to the Treasury Department.”

• LINK: Today the Federal Reserve announced that it was eliminating a rule that limits individuals from making more than six withdrawals from savings accounts without paying a fee.

• LINK: The Congressional Budget Office says the federal budget deficit could reach $3.7 trillion by the end of the fiscal year. The CBO also estimates that the economy will likely shrink by 12% in the second quarter and the jobless rate will average 14%.