Category Archives: WCCB

Governor Allows Virginia Beach Reopening with Restrictions

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From Governor.Virginia.gov:

May 18, 2020—Governor Ralph Northam announced that he will allow Virginia Beach to open its beaches for recreation, with restrictions, on Friday.

Virginia Beach officials created a plan for reopening the beach, with restrictions on groups and activities. Secretary of Natural Resources Matt Strickler helped make that proposal stronger. As finalized, Virginia Beach’s plan includes increased cleaning of high-touch areas, compliance monitoring by beach ambassadors, and a 50 percent reduction in parking in beach lots. While families and individuals will be allowed to sunbathe, swim, and surf, the new rules prohibit beach sports and gatherings by large groups, and require those using the beach to adhere to social distancing rules.

Governor Northam also announced the members of a working group that will craft guidance for how schools, from preK to higher education, can move forward with classes later this year. The group includes diverse stakeholders, including school superintendents, college presidents from private and public schools, and members with other educational backgrounds.

Governor Northam Announces Education Work Group to Help Guide Process for Safe, Equitable Reopening of Schools

Governor Northam Announces Phase One Guidelines to Slowly Ease Public Health Restrictions. Phase One will begin no sooner than Friday, May 15.

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View at Governor.Virginia.gov:

RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam signed Executive Order Sixty-One and presented a detailed framework for the first phase of the “Forward Virginia” plan to safely and gradually ease public health restrictions while containing the spread of COVID-19. The Phase One guidelines will be implemented when the data meets the public health criteria outlined by the Commonwealth. The new executive order modifies public health guidance in Executive Order Fifty-Three and Executive Order Fifty-Five and establishes guidelines for Phase One.

The Governor’s phased approach is grounded in science and data and includes mitigation strategies to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus through enhanced safety practices. The plan allows localities to consider delaying implementation of Phase One guidelines based on local conditions.

“I am proud of the millions of Virginians who have stayed home and helped to flatten the curve, but our work is not done,” said Governor Northam. . . .

Phase One guidelines for specific sectors are available here or at virginia.gov/coronavirus/forwardvirginia.

View the graphs and slides from the Governor’s presentation here.

 

Governor Outlines Phased Plan to Safely, Gradually Ease Restrictions

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View at Governor.Virginia.gov:

May 4, 2020—Governor Ralph Northam outlined a three-phase plan to ease restrictions on businesses and gatherings, when health data supports doing so.

Governor Northam said he will extend key provisions of Executive Order 53, which places restrictions on businesses and gatherings of more than 10 people, at least through next Thursday, May 14, at midnight. The Northam administration will continue to monitor health data to ensure that trends of positive cases are going downward, that hospital capacity remains steady, that testing is increased, and that hospitals and medical facilities have necessary supplies of PPE. For more information on key metrics, please see here.

Phase I of easing restrictions would continue social distancing, teleworking, recommendations that people wear face coverings in public, and the ban on social gatherings of more than 10 people. It would ease some limits on business and faith communities, and would transition the stay at home directive to a “safer at home” guideline, especially for those in vulnerable populations.

It is expected that Phase I would last two to four weeks, as would the two subsequent phases, depending on health metrics.

More specific guidance on each phase will be available in the coming days. Slides from the Governor’s briefing are available here.

Accurate, reliable information about COVID-19 can be found on the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) website.

Click to view slides from press conference.

View VIRGINIA FORWARD BLUEPRINT here.

View DATA BRIEFING MAY 4 2020 here.

Governor Northam Unveils Blueprint for Easing Public Health Restrictions

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Read entire news release:

‘Forward Virginia’ blueprint informed by diverse health and business stakeholders, includes testing, tracing, and PPE priorities

RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam today presented the “Forward Virginia” blueprint, which will help guide the Commonwealth on when to safely begin easing public health restrictions. The blueprint includes a phased approach that is grounded in the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and has specific goals to contain the spread of the virus through increased testing, personal protective equipment and supplies, and medical capacity.

“We will move forward, but in a way that prioritizes public health and builds public confidence,” said Governor Northam. “Businesses know that customers will return only when they feel that it is safe to do so. Our blueprint for the path forward is data-driven and provides clear guidance, so Virginians will know what to expect and understand how we will decide to when to lift certain public health restrictions.”

Virginia is looking at a wide range of public health data. The Governor emphasized that key indicators will include a 14-day downward trend in confirmed cases as a percentage of overall tests and in reduced COVID-19 hospitalizations. While hospitalization rates have largely stabilized in the Commonwealth, confirmed cases continue to rise.

The Forward Virginia blueprint includes the following priorities:

TESTING AND TRACING

To ensure the continued safety of Virginians, the Commonwealth aims to test at least 10,000 individuals per day. Karen Remley, former Commissioner of Health and current co-chair of Virginia’s Testing Work Group, outlined a four stage approach to meet this goal prior to safe reopening. The expanded testing plan includes hiring contact tracers, who will support local health departments in identifying individuals who may be exposed to COVID-19 and helping them self-isolate.

PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

Personal protective equipment (PPE) is critical to ramping up testing, ensuring the safety of healthcare staff, and expanding the medical workforce. Virginia’s PPE pipeline is improving, and hospitals are successfully managing their supplies. The Governor cautioned that safely easing restrictions will require an ongoing stable PPE supply chain across all sectors of healthcare, and ensuring that the supply is regularly replenished.

Virginia has ordered 17.4 million N95 masks, 8.3 million surgical masks, 17.1 million gloves, 1.7 million gowns, and 1 million face shields. This includes a contract signed jointly with Maryland and the District of Columbia for 5 million N95 masks.

Governor Northam announced that a second shipment from Northfield Medical Manufacturing is scheduled to arrive today and will be promptly distributed. The latest shipment includes 3 million nitrile exam gloves, 100,000 N95 masks, 500,000 3-ply procedure masks, and 40,000 isolation gowns.

HOSPITAL CAPACITY AND STAFF

Hospitalizations and ICU admissions are largely stable across Virginia, even as case counts continue to rise. To ensure continued capacity as Virginia move towards “Phase One” of easing restrictions, Governor Northam yesterday extended the ban on elective surgeries through May 1 and expanded the ability of physicians’ assistants and nurse practitioners with two or more years of clinical experience to practice without a collaborative agreement.

The Virginia Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) continues to recruit and deploy medical and non-medical volunteers to bolster the work of local health departments, hospitals, and healthcare providers. The MRC currently has over 16,500 trained volunteers, more than halfway to Virginia’s goal of 30,000.

PHASE ONE OF EASING RESTRICTIONS

Governor Northam outlined key benchmarks Virginians can expect in the first phase, which will begin no sooner than two weeks from now to allow for a 14-day downward trend in confirmed COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

Phase one includes continued social distancing, teleworking, limits on travel and public gatherings, and recommended use of face coverings. Any easing of restrictions will be informed by public health experts, members of the Governor’s COVID-19 Business Task Force, state and local officials, and other stakeholders.

The Commonwealth is developing two sets of guidance: one with broad based recommendations for all businesses, and another with industry specific recommendations for public-facing businesses like restaurants and non-essential retail. The guidance will be provided to businesses in early May.

The slides from today’s presentation are available here.

# # #

“Current social distancing efforts starting March 15 have paused the growth of the epidemic in the Commonwealth of Virginia. In this scenario, “paused” growth means that the rate of new cases is holding steady rather than increasing.”

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View yesterday’s Governor’s briefing here.

Key takeaways from infectious disease models developed by the UVA Biocomplexity Institute include:

  • Current social distancing efforts starting March 15 have paused the growth of the epidemic in the Commonwealth of Virginia. In this scenario, “paused” growth means that the rate of new cases is holding steady rather than increasing.

  • Current trends suggest that Virginia’s statewide hospital bed capacity will be sufficient in the near future.

  • Lifting social distancing restrictions too soon can quickly lead to a second wave.

And:

“Currently, it appears as if the Commonwealth of Virginia is tracking with the pause scenario, which means that the residents of Virginia are doing an excellent job with mitigation,” said Bryan Lewis, Research Associate Professor for the Network Systems Science and Advanced Computing division for the Institute.

Additional links from Press Release includes:

RAND Healthcare Virginia COVID19 Models Initial Analysis.

Estimation of COVID-19 Impact in Virginia April 13, 2020 (data current to April 11, 2020) Biocomplexity Institute Technical report: TR-2020-048

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UVA Biocomplexity Institute report includes:

BIOCOMPLEXITY COVID-19 RESPONSE RESOURCES at UVA.

CURRENT SOCIAL DISTANCING EFFORTS ARE WORKING

How Privacy-Friendly Contact Tracing Can Help Stop the Spread of Covid-19

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h/t Kottke.org

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/04/apple-and-google-partner-on-covid-19-contact-tracing-technology/

Virginia Uses Genetic Technology to Combat COVID-19

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Governor News Release:

“This genetic fingerprint gives us tremendous insight into this novel virus, helping us understand where Virginia cases originated and how they are being transmitted in our communities,” said DCLS Director Dr. Denise Toney. “Providing this information in real-time is unbelievably valuable for public health officials as they determine how to reduce the impact of COVID-19 in our communities.”

“We are still in the early stages of this outbreak, but we must ensure that Virginia is ready when the surge of acute cases hits our healthcare system,”

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Story at Virginia Mercury:

The facilities — the Dulles Expo Center in Northern Virginia and the Richmond and Hampton Roads convention centers — will be able to provide beds for 1,107 acute patients or 1,848 non-acute patients, Northam said Friday.

“Sentara Healthcare is now processing COVID-19 tests at a newly-created laboratory in Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.”

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View update at Sentara.com:

The project involved the purchase and delivery of an Abbott m2000 RealTime testing instrument, related equipment and supplies, creation of a dedicated COVID-19 testing lab in a former laboratory conference room and train staff to use it in less than two weeks. 

“Sentara is fortunate to have the resources to respond to this crisis and begin our own testing within a few weeks,” says Tabetha Sundin, Ph.D., scientific director of the Sentara Molecular Laboratory. “Waiting for test results can be nerve-wracking for our patients. We are doing all we can to speed up results and provide answers.”

“Scientific models of how the coronavirus pandemic will unfold in Virginia vary wildly, but there is one thing they all agree on: The more people take social distancing seriously, the smaller the number of those who will get sick and die.”

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Pilotonline.com:

“We don’t want to have the numbers we have in Virginia, but we do,” said Daniel Carey, Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resource at a Monday press conference. “And we can help use that real data to land on a model that we feel comfortable predicting and planning on.”

State officials are using a model created by University of Virginia researchers with the Defense Reduction Agency to plan for the state’s healthcare needs. They want to release it soon, when they feel they have enough data, said Dr. Norman Oliver, Virginia’s Health Commissioner.

Governor Northam Issues Statewide Stay at Home Order

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Commonwealth of Virginia
Office of Governor Ralph S. Northam
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE · March 30, 2020
Office of the Governor
Governor Northam Issues Statewide
Stay at Home Order
RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam today issued a statewide Stay at Home order to protect the health and safety of Virginians and mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. The executive order takes effect immediately and will remain in place until June 10, 2020, unless amended or rescinded by a further executive order.
The order directs all Virginians to stay home except in extremely limited circumstances. Individuals may leave their residence for allowable travel, including to seek medical attention, work, care for family or household members, obtain goods and services like groceries, prescriptions, and others as outlined in Executive Order Fifty-Three, and engage in outdoor activity with strict social distancing requirements.
The executive order also directs all Virginia institutions of higher education to stop in-person classes and instruction. Private campgrounds must close for short-term stays, and beaches will be closed statewide except for fishing and exercise.
“We are in a public health crisis, and we need everyone to take this seriously and act responsibly,” said Governor Northam. “Our message to Virginians is clear: stay home. We know this virus spreads primarily through human-to-human contact, and that’s why it’s so important that people follow this order and practice social distancing. I’m deeply grateful to everyone for their cooperation during this unprecedented and difficult time.”
The full text of Executive Order Fifty-Five can be found here.
Last week, Governor Northam issued Executive Order Fifty-Three closing certain non-essential businesses, prohibiting public gatherings of more than 10 people, and directing all K-12 schools to remain closed for the rest of the academic year. A Frequently Asked Questions guide about Executive Order Fifty-Three can be found here.
For the latest information about the COVID-19 outbreak, visit virginia.gov/coronavirusor CDC.gov/coronavirus.

GOVERNOR NORTHAM LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE 2pm TODAY

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Everyone Must Do Their Part: Mayor Urges Compliance to Stop the Spread of COVID-19

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Businesses in violation of Governor Northam’s Executive Order may be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor, which in punishable by up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to $2,500, or both.

However, if you must go out, it doesn’t matter whether you are walking along the boardwalk, standing in line for food at a restaurant or shopping inside a home improvement store. Do not congregate in groups and keep six feet away from other people. It is as simple–and as important–as that if we are going to contain the outbreak.

Sentara Healthcare warns people about COVID-19 in-home testing scam

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Story at 13NewsNow.com

In one of its COVID-19 email updates, Sentara said: “We are heartsick that in the midst of a national health crisis, scammers would use our name to prey on worried people.”

Sentara said the person who got the call contacted it, and Sentara, in turn, reached out to police

“Sentara Healthcare said Thursday test results for the coronavirus could take 10 or more days”

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Story at SouthsideDaily.com:

Young said there is a very small percentage of tests being sent to the state lab because the Virginia Department of Health requires patients tested to meet certain criteria, such as travel history and particular symptoms.

People who don’t meet the criteria have to look to private labs for answers which creates a backlog.

Our Volunteers are now required to wear a face mask on every call.

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