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State Workers Being Pulled In To Help Restart Unemployment System

Governor Beshear

Employees from more than one state cabinet are working to get Kentuckians re-enlisted for unemployment benefits.  The need for the reset came following a four-day shutdown to tighten the computerized system against more sophisticated fraudsters. 

At Governor Andy Beshear's coronavirus update Thursday, Labor Cabinet Legal Counsel Amy Cubbage said increased security includes using a new access code with each visit. “You will need to get that access code every time you access the site.  It’s not just for the initial registration and it will be a different access code every time,” Cubbage said.. 

Governor Beshear reported 834 new cases of coronavirus and 17 additional deaths.  Five of those deaths occurred in April.  The governor said the positivity rate continues to tick up at 3.45 percent.  Beshear said that serves to emphasize the importance of filling the thousands of available vaccination appointments. 

Governor Beshear said there are enough vaccination slots available, if filled, to pave the way for removing capacity limitations within a week or so.  He calculated that will occur when just over 877,000 more Kentuckians get vaccinated. 

Of the coronavirus cases reported Thursday, Beshear said 116 came from those 18-and-under.  The governor said a slightly older group is also a concern.  “Now I think some of the statistics that are important are 50-and-under for instance," the governor explained.  "To show how this virus is changing because it can’t get to most people that are vaccinated and more older Kentuckians are vaccinated and that means it’s going to spread primarily among the unvaccinated which statistically right now are younger Kentuckians.” 

Beshear said his administration is looking for the best way to demonstrate that and is expected to get the vaccination message to younger Kentuckians in the weeks to come. 

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