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AccelerateSC concludes work with 41 recommendations around reopening the state

After a month and more than a dozen meetings, the AccelerateSC task force has come up with recommendations on reopening the state amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — AccelerateSC has come up with 41 recommendations when it comes to opening South Carolina during the COVID-19 pandemic.

All five task force committees -- Response, Protection, Governance, Resources and Information -- highlighted several recommendations for their respective areas.

Response

The Response Committee has given guidelines for businesses in their reopening process. That includes guidelines for restaurants, manufacturers, gyms, athletic fields, golf courses, hotels, close-contact services, salons, childcare facilities attractions and faith-based organizations.

All of the guidelines can be found here on the AccelerateSC website.

One recommendation suggests increasing consumer confidence by asking businesses to self promote, demonstrating that they are following CDC guidelines.

RELATED: City of Columbia officials continue to discuss reopening plans and safety

"There are people who still have a crisis of confidence and we need to help them to let them know that they can be secure, that they can be safe, that they can go back to their daily lives," says James Burns, executive director of AccelerateSC. "That is our obligation as leaders."

Protection

The Protection Committee dealt with increasing testing across the state. So far, DHEC has tested more than 2% of the state's population in the month of May. 

RELATED: More than 110,000 South Carolinians tested for COVID-19 in May

Continuing to test at risk populations is another one of the recommendations. DHEC has been working to test staff and residents living in the state's 194 nursing homes.

RELATED: Nursing homes should be virus-free for 28 days before opening, feds warn

RELATED: South Carolina to double virus testing, nursing homes the priority

RELATED: South Carolina to test all nursing home residents and staff for COVID-19

DHEC and employers are also preparing to change up testing strategies as the antibody testing market grows.

Governance

The Governance Committee focused on helping educational institutions, local municipalities and first responders.

One of the recommendations included implementing social distancing strategies at detention facilities in order to reduce the spread in the state's prison population.

The state is also working on a PPE stockpile, with the help of local manufactures and the State Emergency Management Division.

Resources

The Resources component deals with allocating money associated with the CARES Act funding. The state received $1.9 billion in funding in the CARES Act.

They are working to bring in a third-party grants manager to help allocate that funding.

One of the recommendations was also to help replenish the state's Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the trust fund had more than $1.1 billion. It now sits at around $800 million dollars.

RELATED: Lawmakers discuss testing, contact tracing, unemployment in South Carolina

That money comes from taxes from businesses to help with unemployment benefits.

"I am asking the General Assembly that a large portion of this $1.9 billion should go to replenish that trust fund at least to bring it up to a reasonable level, instead of taxing the very businesses that we are trying to help," says Governor McMaster.

Information

The Information Committee now has a call center for people who have questions about COVID-19 and the state's efforts to fight the virus.

All of that again, can be found on the AccelerateSC website.

These recommendations will now head to the General Assembly for approval. They are expected to receive the recommendations next week.

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