FRANKFORT, Ky.  — Governor Andy Beshear said day-by-day cases are rising and Tuesday was the single biggest one-day increase in cases, 39 positive results reported.

“With this being the single biggest day that we have had so far with an increase in cases, we are going to have to keep taking increasingly significant steps as we move forward,” Gov. Beshear said. “We know we are in the time in any pandemic when we have escalating cases and we have to act, act now and act in a significant way that protects our people.”

Kentucky now has 163 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and four people have died because of the virus. The governor announced one of the new cases today, came because the individual participated in a "coronavirus party."

With the number of positive cases rising quickly across both the country and the commonwealth as more testing capabilities come online, Beshear urged everyone against stepping back from being diligent.

The increase in patients has been expected and Beshear said that's why the state has been preparing. 

Gov. Beshear has urged all Kentuckians to keep doing their part by following the rules of social distancing.

"With the rise in cases and knowing that these next probably two weeks are going to be some of the most important, we are going to take the next step; so effective Thursday at 8:00 pmwe are going to be asking all non-life-sustaining businesses to close to in-person traffic,” Gov. Beshear said. “Even for those who are going to be excepted under this order, we are going to mandate that type of social distance that we have to see out there to protect our people.”

Beshear said the order will be out on Wednesday to give businesses more guidance. He said many businesses provide life-sustaining services and will be allowed to stay open, even though they must maintain social distancing.

Another announcement Tuesday, was that the Kentucky Department of Education canceled plans to administer the K-PREP assessment for the 2019-2020 school year. The move comes after a waiver was granted by the U.S. Department of Education. K-PREP testing will resume in spring 2021 and current assessments will be in effect until then.