(Lincoln, NE) -- during his statewide coronavirus update on Monday, Governor Pete Ricketts announced that he is in quarantine after being exposed to someone who has tested positive for the virus.
The governor attended Monday’s news conference remotely. His office says, “Governor Ricketts came into close contact with someone on Saturday who tested positive today for coronavirus. The exposure that occurred was work-related. The Governor will complete the required seven-day quarantine. The Governor is not showing any symptoms, and will get tested at the appropriate time. The Governor will host his Friday coronavirus briefing virtually.”
During the briefing, Ricketts said that nearly 45,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Nebraska so far. In recent weeks, the state has been getting 23,500 doses weekly, and expect to get more than that this week. The state has administered 184,045 of the 254,000 doses of vaccine that it has been sent. Ricketts reminded Nebraskans of the vaccination dashboard, noting that the state has been keeping up with its supplied doses and getting them distributed.
Ricketts says local health directors will be putting together plans to get meat-packing plant employees vaccinated, working with employers to come up with the best ways to do so. Those distribution plans may look different for each plant, he said. Douglas County Health Director Dr. Adi Pour agreed it would depend on the community, saying that in some cases, nurses will go into the facilities, and in others, those employees will be asked to come into a specific site to be vaccinated.