LONGVIEW, Texas — On Thursday Longview Mayor Andy Mack addressed city council to announce how the city is approaching the presence of COVID-19 in Gregg County.
Mack stressed the importance of limiting the spread of the coronavirus while, as far as officials know, it is currently contained to just one patient. He talked about the need for good hygiene and announced the city would be canceling certain events.
Following an initial briefing of the situation, Mack said city officials want to be as transparent as possible but can’t release personal information about the patient in question.
“There are federal laws in place, HIPAA violations, CDC health rules that we are not allowed to give information out about a patient,” Mack said.
Mack expressed the need to be cautious and observe good hygiene while avoiding overreacting.
“Our hospitals are being overrun by everyone that thinks they've got this virus because they sneezed or they coughed. Use some judgment before you bombard our public safety officials with things that are not relevant at this point in time,” Mack said.
In addition, the City of Longview will be canceling city-sponsored events, and events scheduled to be held at city venues such as Maud Cobbe Convention Center.
Mack said the city encourages people to conduct business over the phone and avoid large gatherings of people. He encourages the people of Longview to work together to fight the spread of coronavirus.
“Longview, this will not be the worst thing ever happens to us. Let's buckle up, let's band together, let's do what we know is right for our fellow citizens and let’s whip this thing because the last thing you want to see is something in our community that spreads that we can't control,” Mack said