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Numbers Show More North Carolinians Leaving Home Despite Stay-At-Home Order

A shopper loads groceries at a Whole Foods Market in Durham, N.C., Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

North Carolina residents may be tiring of social distancing, as numbers show that more people are starting to venture out of the house.

Research from the University of Maryland indicates that North Carolinians left their homes more and traveled longer recently than in the first weeks of a statewide stay-at-home order, which went into effect March 30th. 

The results come from a formula that tracks privacy-protected data from cell phones, government agencies, health care systems, and other sources.

The News & Observer reports North Carolina registered a 45 on the study's latest social distancing index, the lowest score in four weeks. A zero means no social distancing is being observed, while a 100 represents strict adherence to stay-at-home guidelines.

The data indicate that North Carolina residents began traveling less in March and early April. But the weeks of April 10 and April 17 showed a significant drop in social distancing.

Mark McClellan is the director of the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy. He acknowledges that people are getting frustrated with enforced isolation, but says the state's policies have made a substantial impact on slowing the spread of COVID-19.

For the most up-to-date information on coronavirus in North Carolina, visit our Live Updates blog here. WFDD wants to hear your stories — connect with us and let us know what you're experiencing.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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