1 00:00:02,500 --> 00:00:04,433 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky is one of the many leaders across the country 2 00:00:04,433 --> 00:00:09,133 competing with the federal government and with other states to secure critical medical 3 00:00:10,266 --> 00:00:12,600 equipment needed by hospitals in his state. 4 00:00:12,600 --> 00:00:15,266 Governor Beshear joins us now from Frankfort. 5 00:00:15,266 --> 00:00:17,533 Governor, thank you so much for talking with us. 6 00:00:17,533 --> 00:00:22,533 Give us an update. I believe Kentucky is a state with a population of, what, 4.4 million 7 00:00:24,466 --> 00:00:28,066 people. Give us an overall update on how you are handling coronavirus at this point. 8 00:00:29,466 --> 00:00:31,633 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR (D-KY): Well, thank you for having me. 9 00:00:31,633 --> 00:00:35,966 And let me start the way I start every time I talk to Kentuckians at every day at 5:00. 10 00:00:35,966 --> 00:00:40,700 And that's saying that we will get through this, and we will get through it together. 11 00:00:40,700 --> 00:00:45,666 Battling this coronavirus is our patriotic duty as Kentuckians and as Americans. And 12 00:00:47,666 --> 00:00:51,200 I could not be prouder of how Kentuckians have banded together to address this coronavirus. 13 00:00:53,266 --> 00:00:57,700 We address it in three ways right now. Number one is using social distancing to make sure 14 00:00:59,733 --> 00:01:03,566 that we can flatten our curve. And I believe that our people have bought in and are actively 15 00:01:05,533 --> 00:01:09,533 doing that. And I couldn't be prouder of them. We have had to change our way of life. 16 00:01:09,533 --> 00:01:14,533 We have had to close and hundreds, thousands of small businesses. We have people not going 17 00:01:16,500 --> 00:01:20,300 to work that otherwise would have, but they understand that sacrifice is going to save 18 00:01:20,300 --> 00:01:22,300 lives. 19 00:01:22,300 --> 00:01:25,233 Second is, we work every day to increase our health care capacity, to make sure, when we 20 00:01:25,233 --> 00:01:30,233 have our surge hit, that we have a bed for those that need it and that we have a ventilator 21 00:01:31,033 --> 00:01:33,566 for those that need it. 22 00:01:33,566 --> 00:01:37,166 And, third, we work on increasing our testing as a state. That is a challenge. All the across 23 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,466 the country right now, the major issue is having enough swabs. It's not our testing 24 00:01:42,466 --> 00:01:44,566 capacity. 25 00:01:44,566 --> 00:01:48,500 Now, number two and three there are limited by personal protective equipment. And I, like 26 00:01:50,566 --> 00:01:54,900 every other governor, are out there trying to scratch and claw to buy as much as we can. 27 00:01:56,900 --> 00:02:00,700 I don't place blame in any of that. And none of us knew about this specific virus four 28 00:02:02,566 --> 00:02:06,933 months ago. But it is a difficult system, where our people on the front lines don't 29 00:02:08,433 --> 00:02:10,500 have what they need. 30 00:02:10,500 --> 00:02:14,633 But if I can, really quickly, it just makes what they are doing more heroic. Doctors, 31 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:19,900 nurses and others in my state go to work every single day knowing that their co-workers have 32 00:02:21,933 --> 00:02:25,533 contracted the coronavirus and that they don't have enough personal protective equipment. 33 00:02:27,500 --> 00:02:30,633 And that just makes their sacrifice and their willingness to do it that much more amazing. 34 00:02:32,333 --> 00:02:33,400 This is National Public Health Week. 35 00:02:33,400 --> 00:02:34,633 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor... 36 00:02:34,633 --> 00:02:36,666 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: And we appreciate them. 37 00:02:36,666 --> 00:02:39,266 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor, you said over the weekend that every order for personal protective 38 00:02:39,266 --> 00:02:44,266 equipment had been, in your words, circumvented by the federal government. 39 00:02:45,466 --> 00:02:47,633 So are you getting what you need now? 40 00:02:47,633 --> 00:02:51,600 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: We are not getting nearly what we need on personal protective equipment. 41 00:02:53,700 --> 00:02:57,500 And that's not just me. And I'm not feeling sorry for myself or for Kentucky. That's everybody. 42 00:02:59,533 --> 00:03:03,133 One of two things will happen. Either an order that we believe is coming in will be diverted 43 00:03:05,166 --> 00:03:08,700 by the federal government, by FEMA, and sent to a place that needs it. I know we need it. 44 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:13,733 And there are other places that need it too, many of which have a spike in cases right 45 00:03:15,166 --> 00:03:18,766 now. And my heart goes out to them in New York or New Orleans. 46 00:03:18,766 --> 00:03:23,133 But the other thing that will happen is, those who've contracted with will call you right 47 00:03:23,133 --> 00:03:27,900 at the end and say, well, we don't have it or it went to another place. 48 00:03:27,900 --> 00:03:32,033 Buying personal protective equipment right now is one of the most difficult things that 49 00:03:32,033 --> 00:03:37,000 any of us have ever had to do through government. And we are reaching out through every possible 50 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:42,000 lead. That's what I do in large part of my day every day, is try to chase down these 51 00:03:42,466 --> 00:03:44,466 leads. 52 00:03:44,466 --> 00:03:46,466 JUDY WOODRUFF: So, my question is, is the current system that requires governors to 53 00:03:46,466 --> 00:03:51,300 compete the way you are the best way to have done this? Should this have been something 54 00:03:51,300 --> 00:03:54,566 where it was allocated in one central place? 55 00:03:54,566 --> 00:03:58,866 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: Oh, I mean, a system where governors are competing against each other 56 00:03:58,866 --> 00:04:01,033 is a bad system. 57 00:04:01,033 --> 00:04:05,633 But, again, I try not to place blame, because we didn't know that we would need this much 58 00:04:07,633 --> 00:04:12,100 personal protective equipment as a world, not just as a country, until the coronavirus 59 00:04:16,233 --> 00:04:18,466 truly hit. 60 00:04:18,466 --> 00:04:23,366 We -- I hope that we don't just learn our lessons, but that we can increase our capacity, 61 00:04:23,366 --> 00:04:28,366 and we can have a better way to get this out where it's needed as we move forward. It is 62 00:04:30,366 --> 00:04:33,100 tough to say, as a state, you should go out and get it on your own, and then have to compete 63 00:04:33,100 --> 00:04:34,300 with the federal government. 64 00:04:34,300 --> 00:04:35,766 But we're just doing what everybody else is. 65 00:04:35,766 --> 00:04:37,833 JUDY WOODRUFF: Yes. 66 00:04:37,833 --> 00:04:39,166 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: But let me mention two other ways that we get it, both of which are 67 00:04:39,166 --> 00:04:41,200 important. 68 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:45,166 We're working with our local businesses to try to manufacture it. And we have got a company 69 00:04:47,566 --> 00:04:50,666 that changed their leather-making into a face shield manufacturing, which has been really 70 00:04:52,666 --> 00:04:56,166 significant and helpful. And we're working with others to try to create masks and gowns 71 00:04:56,166 --> 00:04:58,200 and the other forms of PPE. 72 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:02,633 But let me say that the third way we do it is donations. And we have seen everything 73 00:05:02,633 --> 00:05:07,633 from our veterinarians to our large industrial manufacturers step up and provide us hundreds 74 00:05:09,566 --> 00:05:13,033 of thousands of pieces of PPE that are going directly to our health care providers. 75 00:05:13,033 --> 00:05:14,600 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor, very... 76 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:16,666 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: That's what happens when we unify as a state. 77 00:05:16,666 --> 00:05:20,633 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor, very quickly, you obviously have had a stay-at-home order in 78 00:05:21,766 --> 00:05:23,700 Kentucky. 79 00:05:23,700 --> 00:05:27,766 Two states, not your neighboring states, but they're close, they are Arkansas and then 80 00:05:29,666 --> 00:05:33,400 South Carolina, which is a couple of states away, but still in the region where you are, 81 00:05:34,566 --> 00:05:36,933 do not have stay-at-home orders. 82 00:05:36,933 --> 00:05:41,933 Does that affect the ability of people in Kentucky to stay healthy, to stay safe? 83 00:05:43,533 --> 00:05:46,300 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: Well, in Kentucky, we have taken aggressive action. 84 00:05:46,300 --> 00:05:50,433 And what that means is, we don't just issue what we call a healthy-at-home order, but 85 00:05:50,433 --> 00:05:55,433 it means we have had to shut businesses. We have our houses of worship doing virtual services, 86 00:05:57,366 --> 00:05:59,433 tens of thousands of people not going to work. 87 00:05:59,433 --> 00:06:04,433 We have made sacrifices. And this coronavirus doesn't know boundaries, state boundaries 88 00:06:06,400 --> 00:06:10,133 or county boundaries. And when others don't take aggressive action, what they do is at 89 00:06:12,066 --> 00:06:15,700 least thwart the sacrifice of millions of Kentuckians and residents of other states 90 00:06:17,066 --> 00:06:20,133 that are doing what it takes to defeat this virus. 91 00:06:20,133 --> 00:06:24,266 And so I wouldn't ask another governor to look at me and explain it. I would ask them 92 00:06:24,266 --> 00:06:29,266 to look at my people, who aren't going to work, who have shut down a small business 93 00:06:30,700 --> 00:06:33,533 that was their dream, because they want to protect each other. 94 00:06:33,533 --> 00:06:38,333 This is a test of our humanity, whether we will put each other's lives ahead of our own 95 00:06:38,333 --> 00:06:43,333 economic self-interest. I know we're passing it here in Kentucky. We need to pass it as 96 00:06:43,933 --> 00:06:46,066 a country. 97 00:06:46,066 --> 00:06:48,666 JUDY WOODRUFF: Governor Andy Beshear, thank you very much for talking with us. And we 98 00:06:48,666 --> 00:06:51,733 wish you and the people of Kentucky the very best in all this. 99 00:06:51,733 --> 00:06:52,900 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR: Thank you.