By Patrick Svitek, Texas Tribune
Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday announced initial steps to begin the process of reopening the Texas economy during the coronavirus pandemic, including those that in the next week will loosen surgery restrictions at medical facilities, allow all retail stores to provide product pickups and reopen state parks.
Abbott also named a "statewide strike force" devoted to getting the economy going again. Austin banker James Huffines will chair the task force, while veteran lobbyist Mike Toomey will be its chief operating officer. The group will oversee what Abbott described as a phased reopening.
The first phase came in a series of executive orders issued Friday. One order allows for product pickup at retail stores — what Abbott described as "retail-to-go" — that will begin April 24. Outlets will be allowed to bring orders straight to customers' cars in a manner similar to how many restaurants are currently offering curbside pickup.
Another order, which goes into effect Tuesday night, will allow a limited amount of nonessential surgeries at hospitals, as long as those surgeries don't deplete the hospitals' supplies of personal protective equipment and allow the facilities to keep at least 25% of their capacity available for the treatment of patients with COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus.
A third order will allow state parks to open Monday. Visitors to parks will be required to wear masks and keep a safe distance from people outside their households.
Additional openings will be announced April 27 "after further input from medical staff," Abbott said.
"Even more openings will be announced in May when it is determined that the infection rate continues to decline and when testing capabilities are sufficient to test and contain" outbreaks of the virus," he said.
Abbott didn't say what those later openings would entail. He did announce, however, that schools — public schools, private schools and universities — will remain closed for the rest of the school year.
State officials, including Abbott, have lately struck a more optimistic tone about the state of the pandemic. While continuing to decry the loss of life, Abbott has noted in recent days that social distancing measures appear to have slowed the spread of the virus.
"We're now beginning to see glimmers that the worst of COVID-19 may soon be behind us," he said Friday. "We have demonstrated that we can corral the coronavirus."
Still, he stressed that the process of reopening will be "guided by data and doctors."
The task force will feature multiple leaders in the medical field and more than 30 business executives. Huffines, the chair, previously served as Central and South Texas chairman of PlainsCapital Bank in Austin. From 2003-10, he served on the University of Texas System Board of Regents, including two stints as chair.
Toomey, who will be the top full-time staffer for the group, is best known as a close adviser to former Gov. Rick Perry, for whom he was chief of staff. Toomey, a former state representative, also was chief of staff to ex-Gov. Bill Clements. Toomey is currently a partner at Texas Lobby Group.
Abbott's news conference came as the number of coronavirus cases in Texas climbed to at least 17,371, including 428 deaths, according to the latest numbers from the Texas Department of State Health Services. Out of Texas' 254 counties, 192 are reporting cases.
The number of tests done in Texas stands at 169,536, according to the state figures. That continues to amount to a tiny fraction of Texas' nearly 29 million people, fueling concerns that the extent of the outbreak across the state is not fully known.
In recent days, Abbott has faced pressure from some in his own party to reopen the state's economy, while Democrats have argued Texas is nowhere near ready to do so, citing the testing numbers. Among the Republicans agitating for a return to normal have been President Donald Trump and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who formed his own task force on restarting the economy 10 days ago.
Abbott, for his part, began previewing late last week the executive order that he issued Friday.