2020 March On March 4, Governor
Roy Cooper identified the first case of COVID-19 as a person who had traveled to
Washington state and was exposed at a long-term care facility. On March 7, North Carolina had five new positive cases reported in
Wake County — all five had traveled to
Boston in late February to attend a conference by the pharmaceutical company
Biogen. that has become
to-go only as a result of Roy Cooper's executive order. on a Monday morning, nearly deserted due to COVID-19 After five more presumptive confirmed positive cases were reported on March 9, North Carolina governor
Roy Cooper issued an executive order declaring a
state of emergency on March 10. Erik A. Hooks, Secretary of Public Safety, was charged with seeking federal aid and implementing the order, which protected consumers from price gouging, suspended some transportation regulations and healthcare licensing restrictions, and authorized temporary hiring and expansion of testing capacity, among other provisions.
Duke University also cancelled all on-campus classes the same day. On March 12, hours after Cooper requested that large events be postponed or cancelled, organizers canceled the 73rd annual
North Carolina Azalea Festival. On March 14, Cooper issued an executive order that prohibited gatherings of 100 or more people, closed public schools for two weeks, and encouraged the practice of social distancing. On March 15,
Charlotte and Mecklenburg County jointly declared a state of emergency, restricting non-essential travel and gatherings. On March 16,
Buncombe County Schools (BCS) began serving "drive-thru" breakfast and lunch every weekday and delivering meals to population centers throughout the district. As of March 1, 2021, the BCS School Nutrition Department had served more than 2.6 million meals. On March 17, Cooper ordered all of the state's bars and restaurants to suspend dine-in service. On March 19, the state confirmed its first community spread of the coronavirus. In order to address the economic damage due to the pandemic, the North Carolina government extended the deadline for paying taxes to July 15, the same extension that the
IRS made for federal taxes. On March 20, the
National Guard was called in to assist with
logistics and transportation of medical supplies. On March 21, Cooper waived restrictions to increase access to caregivers, to provide child care and elder care during the coronavirus pandemic. On March 22, Mecklenburg County announced a partnership with local charities to cover one week cost of people staying in hotels and motels to keep the tenants from being evicted. On March 23, Governor Cooper closed all K-12 public schools statewide through May 15, banned mass gatherings of over 50 people, and closed some businesses, including gyms, movie theaters, sweepstakes parlors, health clubs, and other similar facilities. Madison County, Pitt County, and the Town of
Beaufort all issued shelter-in-place orders. On March 24, Mecklenburg County announced a
stay-at-home order that came into effect on March 26. On March 25, state officials confirmed the first coronavirus death. The death was a patient in their 70s with underlying medical conditions, who was residing in Cabarrus County. Guilford County issued a stay-at-home order to curb the coronavirus spread. The order remained in effect until April 16. On March 26,
Cabarrus County,
Durham County,
Orange County, and
Wake County all issued stay-at-home orders. On March 27, Cooper issued a statewide stay-at-home order scheduled to go into effect on March 30 and to last for at least one month. The order also banned gatherings of 10 or more people, with the governor calling it "truly a matter of life or death." On March 30, Governor Cooper's statewide stay-at-home order went into effect at 5 p.m.
April On April 9, Governor Cooper issued a new executive order that restricted the number of customers inside grocery and retail stores, increased hygiene requirements of
food service, and implemented stricter guidelines for long-term care facilities. There have been outbreaks of COVID-19 at several such facilities across the state. Effective April 20,
Durham County began requiring residents to wear face masks in public places. On April 23, Cooper extended the stay-at-home order to last until May 8. At the same time, he announced plans for a three-phase process to reopen the state based on the state meeting certain benchmarks for "testing, tracing and trends." While the federal guidelines called for a decrease in confirmed cases, percentage of positive tests, and hospitalizations, Cooper and state health secretary
Mandy Cohen said they would be content with "sustained leveling" of hospitalizations and confirmed cases. Cooper also pressed for significantly ramping up testing, as well as the ability to perform
contact tracing. He also wanted to supply more
PPE to the state's hospitals. Under this plan, the stay-at-home order would be significantly eased on May 8, and rescinded altogether as early as May 22.
May On May 5, Cooper announced that the stay-at-home order would be significantly eased on May 8, beginning "Phase 1" of the reopening process. Retail stores will be allowed to reopen, provided they can maintain social distancing. People will also be allowed to socialize with friends outside, though gatherings will still be limited to ten people. If current trends continue, the stay-at-home order would be rescinded altogether as early as May 22, allowing the state to begin "Phase 2" of reopening. On May 12, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reported 23 meat processing plants were infected. On May 20, it was reported that 570 people at a Tyson Foods plant in
Wilkesboro had tested positive for the virus. On May 20, NCDHHS announced that its COVID-19 North Carolina Dashboard had been enhanced to include death counts by county or zip code, cases by date reported, and daily numbers. On May 22, Gov Cooper through Executive Order moved the state into Phase 2 "Safer at Home" of the reopening of state operations.
June On June 2, Cooper informed
Republican National Committee (RNC) officials that face coverings and social distancing would be required at the
2020 Republican National Convention planned for August 24–27 in Charlotte, prompting Trump and the RNC to announce their plans to move the convention out of North Carolina. In June, some local governments, such as those in
Raleigh,
Boone, and
Orange County, began requiring face masks. On June 24, Cooper announced that face masks would be required in public places statewide starting June 26. In light of increasing case numbers and hospitalizations as well as high positive test rates, he also announced that the state would "pause" reopening.
July On July 16, Governor Cooper signed executive order 151 keeping in place the Phase 2 of reopening until August 7. On July 17, The Jackson nursing facility in
Sylva reported an outbreak of the virus with an unknown number of cases. For two weeks during the month, 5 employees working at
Harrah's Cherokee Casino in
Cherokee were found infected with the virus.
August On August 10, the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill controversially started the semester with some classes conducted in person, but an outbreak after the first week of class led administrators to move all undergraduate classes online. A few days later,
North Carolina State University moved all undergraduate classes online too. On August 13, students at
Elon University held a
die-in to protest the university's reopening plans. On August 17, 177 UNC at Chapel Hill students had tested positive, and 350 students were quarantined in dorms and off-campus housing. On August 18, 112 workers tested positive at a tree farm in Alleghany County. On August 21, eight employees and 31 residents tested positive at a nursing home in Charlotte. On August 28, 267 inmates and 51 staff members at the
North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women had tested positive, and one woman had died. The Republican National Convention meeting in Charlotte had two cases among attendees, and two cases among staff. On August 31, nearly 800 students at North Carolina State University had tested positive.
September On September 1, Governor Cooper signed Executive Order 163 moving the state into Phase 2.5 of the reopening of state operations. On September 9, a cluster of cases had been identified at the
Caldwell County courthouse. On September 4, numerous nursing homes, and congregate living facilities had experienced outbreaks, with at least 13 facilities reporting 100 cases or more. On September 23, Governor Cooper announced that large venues would be allowed to hold events with a 7% occupancy. On September 24, at least 18 cases were linked to a hair salon in Haywood County.
October On October 12, the
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) Public Health and Human Services (PHHS) reported a cluster of eight cases at the Cherokee Boys Club. On October 13, three churches in Caldwell County had reported clusters, for a total of at least 39 cases. On October 21,
President Trump held a campaign rally at
Gastonia Municipal Airport, with attendance estimated at 15,000- 23,000 people. Lieutenant Governor
Dan Forest spoke, and said he would repeal the mask mandate if elected. The
Biden campaign responded with "a mobile billboard around Gaston County with the number of coronavirus cases and deaths in North Carolina," and an ad in Charlotte which said Trump was "holding potential super-spreader events in state after state." Also on October 21, more detailed reporting released by the state attributed more than 10,000 cases and 63 deaths to clusters, with a large proportion of cases and deaths in meat processing plants. 231 cases and two deaths were attributed to 23 clusters related to social gatherings. On October 24, the United House of Prayer for All People buildings in Mecklenburg County, including those located in the major North Carolina city Charlotte, was ordered closed. The Mecklenburg County Health director said the church had not cooperated with efforts to prevent the spread of the virus, and that many attendees had traveled from out of state. At least three deaths and over 121 confirmed cases had been linked to the church, which had held a weeklong event earlier in the month. On October 29, two attendees at the October 21 Trump rally in Gastonia tested positive. The Gaston County Department of Health and Human Services "recommends anyone who attended the president's Oct. 21 rally to assess their own risk, monitor for symptoms and get tested if necessary."
November On November 19, the number of infected people that are linked to United House of Prayer for All People meeting in October increased to 213 cases with 12 deaths. The majority of the case are people who did not visit the church. An outbreak at a nearby nursing home, Madison Saints Paradise South Senior Living, has been traced back to the church.
December On December 7, some hospitals in North Carolina will begin to receive shipments of COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine would be prioritized for healthcare staffs and staff at long-term care facilities. North Carolina DDHS has stated that it could take until spring for the vaccine to be widely available. The vaccine would be free of charge in North Carolina. On December 8, Governor Cooper announced a new curfew as COVID-19 cases surge in some counties. Individuals should stay at home between 10 PM to 5 AM, unless an exception applies. The curfew is in effect until January 8, 2021. As of December 22, seventy-seven cases of COVID-19 were linked to a holiday celebration the weekend of December 5–6 at First Baptist Church in
Hendersonville. No deaths have been reported but there have been several hospitalizations.
2021 January On January 14, the state changed its vaccine eligibility criteria for Group 1, expanding it to include anyone 65 years or older. Previously, only those that are 75 years old are included in the first group to be vaccinated. On January 23, the first case of COVID-19 with B.1.1.7 variant, also known as UK variant, is detected in North Carolina. The case is found in Mecklenburg County.
February On February 11, the first case of South African COVID-19 variant found in North Carolina. On February 25, the governor announced significant rollbacks of restrictions on businesses and other venues, allowing non-essential business can stay open late, and allow alcohol to be sold until 11 PM.
March On March 1, North Carolina received the third vaccine as Johnson & Johnson's vaccine is now available on the state. On March 3, frontline essential workers, classified as Group 3 in the state, are eligible to be vaccinated. On March 13, Duke University ordered a temporary 'stay-in-place' restrictions on campus, due to increase of COVID-19 cases related to fraternity rush events. This restriction is lifted a week later. On March 17, North Carolinians that are under Group 4, which includes people with underlying health conditions such as high blood pressure and obesity, became eligible to be vaccinated in the state. On March 23, further rollbacks to restrictions are made by Governor Cooper. Museums, aquariums, retail businesses and shops, barbers/salons/personal care shops can open at 100% capacity, while restaurants, breweries and wineries, amusement parks, gyms, and pools can open at 75% capacity. Mandatory masks and social distancing would still be in effect on all of these establishments. On-site alcohol consumption curfew will be lifted, and mass gathering limit would be increased to 50 person indoor and 100 person outdoor. On March 26, Governor Cooper announced that all adults in North Carolina are eligible to be to sign up for vaccine appointments starting on April 7.
April On April 7, all North Carolina residents age 16 and older are eligible for vaccine appointments. On April 17, a Walgreens pharmacy in
Monroe accidentally gave some people injections of saline instead of COVID-19 vaccine.
September On September 9, Governor Cooper announced that North Carolina will not be following President Biden's mandated COVID-19 vaccination for federal employees and giving disciplinary measures for employees that are not complying with the mandate. Governor Cooper announced that there will be no change for state workers. Employees must still show proof of vaccination, but have an option to getting tested regularly and wearing a mask. On September 16, Fayetteville Veteran Affairs accidentally administered expired COVID-19 vaccines to 281 of its patients. On September 28, North Carolina hospital system
Novant Health fire 175 employees, around 1% of their total workforce, for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine.
October On October 6, North Carolina State Fair has announced that masks and vaccinations are not required to attend
North Carolina State Fair in October 14. ==Impact==