Today’s update discusses:

• Governor Parson’s plan to reopen businesses by May 4
• face masks being made by Missouri inmates
• Attorney General’s lawsuit against the Chinese Government

ECONOMICS

• Governor Parson announced that while Missouri is working on the policies and guidelines for businesses to reopen, he anticipates that almost every business in Missouri will be able to open their doors on May 4, 2020. The Governor is confident that so long as proper guidelines are in place, such as how many people can be in groups at a time, the state can continue to flatten the curve while also reopening its economy. Specific areas of the state, however, have different plans. For example, both St. Louis County and St. Louis City are planning to keep restrictions in place until at least mid-May, while Franklin County expects to reopen businesses next weekend.

HEALTH

• The Missouri Department of Corrections stated this week that prison inmates across the State of Missouri have produced more than 120,000 face masks since the beginning of April in Missouri Vocational Enterprises factories at the facilities. Of those 120,000 masks, the Department stated that 62,000 of them have gone to the inmates and 1,100 have gone to the state legislature.

GOVERNMENT ACTION

• The State of Missouri this week filed a lawsuit against China, alleging that the Chinese government is responsible for the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including death, suffering, and economic loss. It is unclear whether the lawsuit will have any impact, and some have called its filing merely a political stunt by the attorney general.