CARSON CITY — As coronavirus cases continue their steep climb, Gov. Steve Sisolak said Wednesday that he’s activating the Nevada National Guard and expanding the state’s health care workforce by allowing certain groups, such as retired doctors or medical students, to help treat COVID-19 patients.

The announcements came the same day Sisolak issued an emergency directive extending by two weeks the school and nonessential business closures through April 30, and another directing residents to shelter in place — something that the governor said “merely reinforces” previous guidance to stay at home. During a news conference Wednesday evening, the governor explained why the directive doesn’t carry any penalties for people not staying at home.

“The idea of this entire issue is not to fine people and to give them misdemeanors and give them (a) record,” he said. “I’m begging and encouraging and you’ve seen it before — I’ve had to ask and I’ve had to direct.”

Sisolak said police departments are busy enforcing other directives, such as disbanding groups of 10 or more people and ensuring nonessential businesses comply with the closure order.

“I don’t feel the time is appropriate to actually put a fine or a penalty in place for violators,” he said.

The activation of the Nevada National Guard follows actions taken in other states. Sisolak said the decision solidifies the state’s emergency operations structure in a bid to make it more “organized, responsive and efficient than ever before.”

Adjutant General Ondra Berry called it the “exact right time” for the governor to activate the Nevada National Guard, noting that units in other states have been helping with logistics, communication and transportation. He said guard members who are first responders, health care workers or other critical employees won’t be taken away from their civilian jobs.

Sisolak said he considers the guard members experts on logistics and managing crises, making them a natural fit to protect the state’s residents.

“The Nevada National Guard is made up of the very people we are trying to protect,” he said. “They are our sons, daughters and parents. They are doctors and teachers. They stock stores and warehouse shelves, and they manufacture products. They are neighbors helping neighbors. That's why I trust them. And that's why I know Nevadans will trust them, too.”

Ahead of activating the Nevada National Guard, Sisolak issued a request for a Major Disaster Declaration from the White House on Tuesday. Once that’s signed, the state can access more federal funds that will pay for the activation of the Nevada National Guard. It also gives more access to resources and personal protective equipment, such as masks and gowns for health care workers. 

Berry said they’ve been in touch with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to push that through, which could take 48 to 72 hours.

“Hopefully, it will be very soon,” Sisolak said.

The governor also called on critical health care workers to join the “Battle Born Medical Corps,” which will augment the existing workforce. 

“This directive will allow certain doctors, nurses, EMTs and even medical students to go to work right now caring for COVID-19 patients,” he said. “It will allow people who have retired to come back into practice without leaping over hurdles.”

The directive also allows professionals from other states and people with medical training in other countries to assist without fighting through the “red tape” that typically bogs down the approval process, Sisolak said. Other states, including California, have issued similar calls for help.

In a question and answer session with reporters, the governor fielded a range of queries, including about the status of the virus’ spread and his restriction on the use of a malaria drug that has shown promise in the treatment of COVID-19 but is not fully approved for that purpose.

Asked whether there was an empirical reason for the directive ending April 30 — such as medical professionals predicting the situation would be resolved by then — Sisolak indicated the extension was to help flatten the curve. 

“When things are going to be OK, is when the virus says it’s going to be OK, and we … stop assisting the virus in passing it on,” he said. “The medical experts have advised me that as much social distancing as we can provide is going to … help us get through this quickly.”

Told of the frustrations of the tens of thousands of people seeking unemployment benefits who are struggling to file their claims through an online system, he noted the small staff at the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation was fielding an unprecedented load of claims.

“If you can imagine the onset of 100,000 claims a week being filed. 100,000 claims a week being filed. Yes, you’re going to get a busy signal,” he said. “We’re doing everything we can and we ask for the public’s patience.”

On requests lodged last week by the ACLU of Nevada and other groups to release inmates early in a bid to prevent coronavirus spread in prisons, Sisolak said he’d had a discussion with Nevada Supreme Court Justice James Hardesty on the matter and that “we’re exploring all options.”

“There’s a lot to look at as opposed to just letting people out,” he said. “You have to look at housing, you have to look at medical care, you have to look at resources that are available. And we’re exploring that.”

He also spoke to a variety of controversial new rules he’s rolled out in recent weeks, including one that deems manufacturing, mining and construction as essential businesses. Critics question the safety at certain work sites and how “essential” certain factories, such as Tesla, are.

“The more people we put out of work and put on unemployment funds, the less it’s gonna last … it’s gonna eat up that money a lot quicker,” he said, noting the sites are still required to follow rules designed to prevent transmission. “But we’re constantly analyzing the situation.”

Sisolak also defended his decision to ban the use of the drug hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 diagnoses outside of an inpatient hospital setting. He said he wouldn’t consider lifting the ban unless the Board of Pharmacy recommended doing so.

“There were a lot of concierge doctors that were proactively prescribing prescriptions, of hydroxychloroquine, people were getting them and then those that had lupus or had rheumatoid arthritis couldn't get prescriptions filled. They went to their pharmacies and there was none and their life was just turned upside down for those who had a concierge doctor and wanted to have a prescription bottle in their medicine chest, in case something happened to that. That's not something I could accept.”

He added that he would not relax a rule that marijuana dispensaries may only deliver their products to customers’ homes, instead of allowing retail stores to open or permit curbside pickup.

“I am not going to loosen restrictions, I am not opening up the faucet. If anything, we’re going to close the faucet more and more and more.”

He urged people to take every hygiene and social distancing precaution they can to avoid people ending up in the intensive care unit and then on a ventilator — a point he described as “tough sledding.”

“I don’t want to deal with these worst-case scenarios. I want to deal with avoiding the worst-case scenario,” he said. “If you don’t do it for you, do it for your family, do it for your mom, your grandpa, your next door neighbor, somebody that has no one else to help them. Please join us in staying home for Nevada.”