April 7. Right now NCDOT doesn’t have the authority to push back car inspection dates, but they are planning on asking for that authority when the legislature returns to session this month.

Meanwhile, liquor stores are open. How come?

NC Sen. Jeff Jackson says it’s because we have a lot of people who are chemically dependent on alcohol.

“If we suddenly cut off their access they would go into withdrawal and flood the emergency rooms, which we can’t have right now,” Jackson said, pointing out that all states except Pennsylvania that have closed non-essential businesses have made an exception for liquor stores.

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“Each year there are roughly 250,000 emergency department visits and 850 deaths related to alcohol withdrawal,” George F. Koob, the director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, a division of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

Abruptly limiting access to alcohol could lead to an increase in withdrawal among people with severe alcohol use disorder and add to the burden on the healthcare system.