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As residents prepare for the statewide stay-at-home order, Gov. Mike Parson assured Missourians the order will not significantly hinder essential food and hospital supplies.
Missouri will be under a stay-at-home order from 12:01 a.m. Monday until 11:59 p.m. April 24.
"We're going to win the battle, and eventually, we're going to win that war," Parson said during Saturday's COVID-19 briefing. "But everyone must do their part, must step up in a time of need and they must make sacrifices for others."
Parson emphasized the stay-at-home order will not hinder the state's food supply chain.
Missouri Department of Agriculture Director Chris Chinn said food distributors are catching up with public's demand for food, adding the "food supply remains strong."
"We're starting to see the shelves fill back up," she said. "They're catching up with that demand."
As part of the stay-at-home order, essential businesses must limit the number of people inside at a time, either to 25 percent or less of the locally set fire or building code occupancy for a store of less than 10,000 square feet, or to 10 percent or less of the occupancy limit for a store that's 10,000 square feet or more.
While the limitation may impact essential businesses by creating long lines outside the stores, Parson said it's "much better having them spaced out outdoors than having them bunched up inside the building."
Non-essential businesses can't allow more than 10 people in their businesses and must ensure people are 6 feet away, according to the order.
While the order limits the number of people in stores, Parson said, it's not because of a shortage of food.
"The one thing we have to ensure is that we keep people separated because of the coronavirus," he said. "That's what those orders were all about so that's why people need to be patient and will have an opportunity to buy groceries."
The state is also monitoring hospital data, such as the number of beds and ventilators, he said.
As of Saturday morning, about 3,500 of the 10,000 total hospital beds in Missouri were available, DHSS Director Randall Williams said.
Of the approximately 2,000 ventilators in Missouri, he added, about 1,100 are available.
It will be up to the local health departments to enforce the statewide stay-at-home order, Parson said. He added the health departments could bring civil action lawsuits against individuals who violate the state orders.
While local officials will enforce the statewide stay-at-home order, Parson said the state government is using technology to see whether individuals are complying with the order. This includes looking at data from traffic patterns on state highways.
"We're seeing parts of the state do a better job than others," he said. "You're seeing a lot, frankly, in the urban areas that are seeing a swing downward in that. Rural Missouri still has a part to play and needs to do a better job at staying at home and staying off the highways."
As of Saturday afternoon, there were 2,291 positive COVID-19 cases and 24 deaths in Missouri, according to DHSS.
Of the 31 positive COVID-19 cases in Cole County, there are 18 active cases, 12 recovered and one death, according to the Cole County Health Department's website.