The number of cases of the coronavirus in Kentucky has now topped the 17,000 mark, with another big spike over the weekend, according to data released by Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday.

Since the first case was reported on March 6, Kentucky has now seen at least 17,152 cases.  State health officials said there were 776 new cases over the three-day period ending Monday.  That includes 255 on Saturday, 280 on Sunday and 268 on Monday. That comes to an average of 258 per day during that time.

“While the day-to-day reported cases fluctuate somewhat, our numbers have been holding remarkably steady even as other states have experienced sharp increases,” the governor said. “We can stay on this plateau and hopefully move to a steady decline in cases only if we follow the guidelines for social distancing, hand-washing, wearing cloth face masks and limiting our exposure to crowds. We also need to get tested regularly and to answer the call when contact tracers reach out with information.”

There were no deaths reported on Saturday or Sunday, but eight on Monday, making it 593 during the pandemic.  They include two women, ages 100 and 103, from Fayette County; a 72-year-old man from Hopkins County; two women, ages 51 and 89, and a 90-year-old man from Jefferson County; an 88-year-old man from Nelson County; and a 96-year-old woman from Shelby County.

“Even knowing that our response in Kentucky is rightly being recognized nationally for keeping COVID-19 in check, we need to remember this is still a deadly virus,” Beshear said. “These eight Kentuckians were unique and loved individuals whose families and communities are hurting.  Let’s honor them by recommitting ourselves to keeping one another safe.”

As of Monday, there have been at least 435,471 coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky. At least 4,785 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, go to kycovid19.ky.gov.

In an effort to protect Kentuckians from unfairly being overcharged for goods or services during the pandemic, Gov. Beshear again extended his executive order prohibiting price gouging.  Anyone with information about unfair sales or billing practices is encouraged to contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection hotline at 888-432-9257, or fill out the complaint form online.