State Rep. Milton Nicks tests positive for COVID-19

Local legislator 22nd to test positive for coronavirus since start of pandemic

ralphhardin@gmail.com The General Assembly will be short one lawmaker for a while as a local legislator has tested positive for the coronavirus just days after the Legislature began this year’s session.

State Rep. Milton Nicks told the House speaker Wednesday he had tested positive for the virus, spokeswoman Cecillea Pond-Mayo said. Nicks, a Democrat from Marion, had minor symptoms, Pond-Mayo said.

Nicks is the 22nd Arkansas legislator to test positive for the virus since the pandemic began. The state has had one of the biggest known outbreaks of the virus in a state legislature.

Nicks was at the Capitol on Monday for the beginning of this year’s session, Pond-Mayo said. Video showed he was listed as present as lawmakers gathered for Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s State of the State address. Pond-Mayo said officials had begun contact tracing procedures.

Legislative leaders have implemented safety measures in response to the virus, including installing plastic partitions in both chambers, temperature checks and limited seating in committee rooms. The Senate on Monday passed a rule requiring members and staff to wear a mask in its chamber, and similar rules were advanced by a House panel Wednesday.

In its Thursday update, the Arkansas Department of Health reported 2,491 new cases and 24,740 active cases. There were 1,295 Arkansans hospitalized, which was down 67 from Wednesday, and 241 patients were on ventilators, which was down 14 from Wednesday.

There were 42 deaths added Thursday, for a total of 4,228 fatalities due to the pandemic. There have been a total of 264,511 cases reported in the state with 193,321 recoveries.

The Health Department reported that the top counties for new cases are Pulaski, 327; Washington, 212; Benton, 175; Garland, 127; and Sebastian, 99.

“Today’s report shows over 800 fewer cases with higher testing than this time last week,” Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a press release Thursday. “We also saw a decrease in hospitalizations and ventilator usage. This will relieve some of the strain on our health care system as we continue to distribute vaccine doses.”

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Photo courtesy of argleg.gov NICKS COVID-19 (cont.)

Four percent of the state’s 1,170 intensive care unit beds and 21 percent of its 8,925 hospital beds are available, according to the Department of Health.

Local cases have continued to trend upward. As of Friday, there were 4,926 confirmed cumulative cases in Crittenden County, with 79 deaths from coronavirus- related illnesses.