As if the COVID-19 pandemic wasn’t frightening enough, watching the stock market plummet into what will likely be the next economic recession is only adding to the anxiety of these challenging times.

So much business is done face-to-face, and businesses are trying to strike a balance between keeping their employees working and keeping everyone healthy. It’s especially hard for businesses, such as restaurants and inns, which cannot eliminate human contact. On Wednesday, Park County Health Officer Dr. Aaron Billin urged all non-essential businesses to close.

On Tuesday, Jessica Laughlin, co-owner of WYOld West Brewing Company, was on a conference call with 10 other breweries around the state, discussing how they can stay open without putting the public they serve at risk. She said the others on the call were receptive to the aggressive approach the establishment is taking.

“We seem to be one of the leaders on this,” Laughlin said.

Expecting they’d have fewer people anyways, they’ve removed some seating and spread them out more to keep people distanced a bit better.

Like most restaurants, they wipe things down with a bucket of soapy water and cloth rags. Now, they’re using strong disinfectants in spray bottles and disposable rags every hour so that there’s less means by which a virus could jump from one surface to another.

At the taproom in Cody, they’re no longer allowing customers to fill their own glasses at the taps. Only staff can do that now.

They’re urging customers to use credit cards to reduce the handling of cash, and they’ve got a parking space reserved out front for people to do pick-up orders. They also have a sanitation station for cleaning growlers (the large beer bottles people take home). They may even start doing delivery.

Laughlin said her employees are doing a great job adhering to the new procedures.

“We’re doing what we can to stay open but also keep people healthy,” she said.

Julie Norberg is co-owner of the Lamplighter Inn. She mostly runs the restaurant, while her husband mostly takes care of the guest rooms. Norberg said they are cleaning surfaces a lot more, especially those that are regularly touched. Being a higher-end restaurant, they have always used linen napkins, but to be on the safe side, they’ve switched to paper.

“And we’ve upped our glove consumption quite a bit,” she said.

Before news came on Tuesday night of Park County’s first confirmed case of COVID-19, Norberg said there is a chance that government mandates may force them to close their doors for a while, and she is looking at ways to implement more take-out and possibly delivery options if it comes to that.

“People are going to get tired of their Ramen noodles,” she said.

Norberg said it’s hard to know if the restaurant is seeing less traffic as this is typically a slower time of year for them. Saturday night and Monday were pretty slow, but she said Tuesday lunch was quite busy.

Her husband, Rick Norberg, said the virus is “certainly having an impact” on the inn. The hotel still has some guests, but they’ve also had some cancellations.

In one case, some guests were coming for the birthday of an 80-year-old relative. That’s been postponed until May.

Rick Norberg is trying to be proactive, taking steps to sanitize the rooms much more thoroughly, just as his wife is doing in the restaurant.

He said it was fortunate this is happening at a slower time for his business. Summer months tend to be busier, and he’s hoping the situation is better by then.

“The hope is this thing is arrested ... in the summer months,” he said.

Of course, it’s unlikely this will be all over come summer, and it could continue to impact foreign travel to the U.S. for a long time to come. While most of the Lamplighter’s guests are American, Norberg said the influx of international travelers to Cody during warmer months leaves less lodging available there. He receives at least some of the spillover.

But the hotel gets travelers to weddings, family and high school reunions, and funerals. All those are being restricted, postponed, or canceled.

Some businesses, such as Powell Drug, are too essential to close their doors.

“We’re on the front lines. We can’t back off, and we’re doing what we can to be here to help people,” said David Klingler, Powell Drug owner.

He said as people try to fill their prescriptions in case they get sick later, he’s seen business pick up. The pharmacy is doing all it can to sanitize anything people touch, from countertops to door handles — several times a day.

“That’s really all we can do,” Klingler said.

Bruce Morse, regional director for the Wyoming Small Business Development Center, said the state is coordinating to get some federal support for businesses impacted by this pandemic. The effort includes the Wyoming Business Council and Small Business Administration.

If successful, the process is similar to USDA programs that help farmers impacted by sugar beet losses. The state has to gather data across all counties to demonstrate substantial impacts to local businesses. Then the governor has to declare a state of emergency. After that, the application can be made to the feds.

In the meantime, Morse said Tuesday that he hadn’t had a lot of calls from local businesses in distress. In typical Wyoming fashion, he said most are trying to find ways over and around the challenges. One example is a yoga instructor who is holding the yoga group online.

“People are being creative in how they are delivering their services while keeping their customers safe,” Morse said.

Rebekah Burns, executive director of the Powell Economic Partnership, said business owners are trying to stay positive.

“We will come out on top, and we’ll see things come back,” she said.