Informed leadership in COVID-19: Dr. Cohen & Governor Cooper

ROBIN HUANG: While COVID-19 has ravaged the American South, North Carolina has stuck out in this group for its effective handling of the pandemic. With the combination of effective executive leadership and guidance from public health officials, North Carolina has been viewed as a regional leader in COVID-19 response.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, North Carolina’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, has become a household name across the state. Before the first case arrived in North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper assembled a COVID-19 task force in February 2020 to address the serious public health threat. Since April 2020, Cohen and Cooper have appeared on television to deliver daily COVID-19 updates. North Carolina’s proactive COVID-19 response stands out from its Southern neighbors, many of which have refused to issue more stringent rules such as mask mandates or stay-at-home orders. Cohen has earned several awards for her proactive response amid the pandemic.

The state’s COVID-19 policies have not been met without resistance. In the early months of the pandemic, Cooper’s executive orders were met with weekly public protests, where hundreds of protesters congregated in the capital to demand that the state reopen for economic reasons. During the 2020 gubernatorial election, challenger Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest pledged to repeal the state’s lockdown restrictions.

Most prominently, in June 2020, Governor Cooper requested that the Republican National Convention follow social distancing and use face coverings. After a public dispute, then-President Trump moved the convention to Florida briefly before returning it to Charlotte, North Carolina, citing concerns of a COVID-19 surge at the time. The convention was also scaled down in length and size due to the last-minute changes.

While North Carolina has been a leader in COVID-19 policy, the state has still been faced a heavy economic toll from the pandemic. The state has reported three million unemployment claims since the beginning of the pandemic, costing over $10 billion, although claims have declined in recent months. In February, Cooper signed the first relief bill of the year, which includes $335 checks for parents and relief money for schools. The pandemic’s economic impact is only one issue of the state’s response, among other criticisms such as its impact in prisons or racial disparities.

As with the rest of the United States, school reopenings in North Carolina have become a new battleground in COVID-19 policy. While the Republican-controlled General Assembly has pushed for public school reopenings across the state, Cooper has indicated that he prefers more discussions before legislation is passed. Nonetheless, Cooper and Cohen have also encouraged a return to in-person learning. The North Carolina Association of Educators has called for school staff to be vaccinated before reopenings. Vaccines are set to be available for educators and other staff on February 24 in North Carolina.

With the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccine, North Carolina may see relief from the pandemic with the rest of the nation. Nevertheless, Cooper has continued to double down on executive orders to prevent the pandemic’s spread. While the COVID-19 pandemic has posed a deep threat for North Carolina, its transparent leadership based on public health principles is a model for effective response.

Robin Huang is a sophomore in the Walsh School of Foreign Service. Her interests include local government and public health.