Jun 13, 2020
Tulsa World – Expressing concerns about COVID-19’s increasing spread, the Tulsa City-County Health Department’s director said he wishes the campaign rally for President Donald Trump at the BOK Center on June 20 would be pushed back to a later date.
In an interview with the Tulsa World on Saturday, Dr. Bruce Dart said Tulsa is seeing a “significant increase in our case trends” that makes a large gathering like the rally dangerous for not only attendees, but the president himself.
“I think it’s an honor for Tulsa to have a sitting president want to come and visit our community, but not during a pandemic,” said Dart. “I’m concerned about our ability to protect anyone who attends a large, indoor event, and I’m also concerned about our ability to ensure the president stays safe as well.”
State officials on Saturday reported 225 new cases of COVID-19, once again marking a new high in daily increases for both the state and Tulsa County.
“COVID is here in Tulsa, it is transmitting very efficiently,” Dart said. “I wish we could postpone this to a time when the virus isn’t as large a concern as it is today.”
Dart said his concern stems from a sudden spike in cases he said likely comes from a combination of factors, but not increased testing. Health department data shows Tulsa County’s 7-day rolling average for COVID-19 cases has risen from 24.9 cases on June 7 to 51.4 as of Friday … Read more.
