Greg Abbott

Abbott says Texas is headed in a great direction and will continue to increase testing so the state's economy can continue to open up even more.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott joins Rebecca Thomas on FOX 7 Austin to discuss COVID-19 in Texas and the reopening of the state's economy.

HHSC is currently working with the Texas Department of State Health Services to expand testing to the 4,700 patients and all 18,000 employees at the state-run facilities.

The order goes into immediate effect and will terminate all restrictions contained in the Governor's previous Executive order (GA-20).

DPS will launch a statewide driver license appointment system that will allow customers to book appointments up to six months in advance, and the limited services being offered will be by appointment only. 

The governor's office says that late fees will be waived on any renewals with an expiration date on or after March 13, 2020. 

DSHS received an initial 30 cases of remdesivir from the federal government last week and distributed it to 15 hospitals throughout Texas. 

Abbott said all of his openings were unanimously supported by his panel of experts that he is consulting on how to handle COVID-19 and businesses.

Erika Boyd with the Texas Travel Alliance joins FOX 7 Austin to speak about a letter she recently sent to Gov. Abbott calling him to action.

Each team is equipped with unique supplies such as advanced personal protective equipment, ionized sprayers, and vital oxide.

Bar owners are hoping to be included soon since the Governor allowed Texas restaurants, malls, movie theaters, retail stores, salons, malls, gyms, and museums to open with some restrictions.

Nationwide, the Associated Press says 26,000 COVID-19 deaths have come from nursing homes, a third of all cases in the U.S.

HHSC has received approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide more than $1 billion through the federal Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program.

The directive comes after the White House strongly recommended to governors Monday that all nursing home residents and staff be tested for the coronavirus in the next two weeks.

Abbott’s meeting with the President was preceded by two White House tweets.

The governor says that the modifications are being applied retroactively and in his announcement highlighted particular cases like the Dallas salon owner who was sentenced to jail time.

In addition to the new guidance on graduations, Abbott announced Tuesday he will be issuing an Executive Order to expand the list of businesses and activities allowed to reopen in Texas.