By MARIE ALBIGES AND ROBYN SIDERSKY, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
There have been 77 cases of the coronavirus identified in Virginia, a top state health official said Wednesday morning. The numbers include three “outbreaks,” one of 13 people in James City County and two others in the Richmond area, said Dr. Norm Oliver, the deputy commissioner for population health for the Virginia Department of Health. An outbreak is two or more cases that can be traced to common exposure.
By STAFF REPORT, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The city of Richmond reported its first cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday as the number of positive cases statewide rose to at least 77 and the largest hospital system in Virginia suspended drive-thru screening and testing due to a shortage of tests. The 77 cases in Virginia represent an increase of 10 from the 67 cases that were reported around the same time on Tuesday, although a shortage of tests likely means the real number of cases is higher. There are now at least 13 cases in the Richmond area.
By CATHY DYSON, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
A second Stafford County resident has tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Virginia Department of Health, making it the third confirmed case in the Fredericksburg area. That patient and a Stafford man in his 60s, who was diagnosed at Stafford Hospital on Sunday, are being treated at Mary Washington Hospital.
By LIZ ANDERSON, WTOP
As COVID-19 cases spike in Virginia and the D.C. area, Arlington County is stepping up its efforts to test those who are showing symptoms of the novel coronavirus: A temporary drive-through sample collection center has been set up along North Quincy Street, across from the David Brown Planetarium. Some 60 samples were taken by the time the drive-through closed Wednesday afternoon.
By BEN PAVIOUR, WCVE
A Democratic lawmaker who came down suddenly with a fever, cough, and muscle aches earlier this month says he struggled to access COVID-19 testing. Del. Lee Carter (D-Manassas) told VPM his calls were shuffled between five different health care agencies and private facilities on Sunday and Monday in an ultimately fruitless attempt to get tested.
By ROBERTO ROLDAN, WCVE
More than 100 people were tested for the coronavirus disease at the first drive-through testing site in Central Virginia on Wednesday. All of those tested had been pre-screened and referred to the pilot testing site by their local health departments. Patients pulled up to a series of four tents at Dorey Park in Henrico, and healthcare workers took mouth swab tests created by the private company LabCorp. The patients were then told to go home and self-quarantine until they get their test results, which could take up to four days.
By ELISHA SAUERS, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
Sentara officials said they are suspending drive-thru testing for the coronavirus because of limited supplies. The announcement came just two days after the hospital system began offering the service at three sites throughout the region
By LUANNE RIFE, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
The number of Virginians with COVID-19 rose to 77 on Wednesday, but getting a truer picture of the spread of the virus has been stymied by the lack of testing capabilities. “As of this afternoon, according to the Virginia Department of Health, we do not have a positive or a presumptive positive case of COVID-19 in our region,” Dr. Patrice Weiss, Carilion Clinic’s chief medical officer, said during a news conference in Roanoke on Wednesday. “
By SARA GREGORY, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The Red Cross is facing a critical blood shortage because social distancing guidelines during the coronavirus pandemic have led to the cancellation of drives at schools, churches and other mobile sites. James Hatcher, CEO of the Red Cross Virginia region, said during a press conference with state officials Wednesday that they’ve collected 100,000 fewer units in the last two weeks alone, largely because of canceled drives.
By KATE MASTERS, Virginia Mercury
Blood has become the latest casualty in the ongoing battle against coronavirus. Donations across Virginia dropped by 30 percent in the past few days as high schools, office buildings and college campuses — some of the biggest blood drive organizers — shut their doors. More than 4,000 blood drives have been canceled nationwide, leading to at least 100,000 fewer donations to the American Red Cross, said Jonathan McNamara, a spokesman for the nonprofit’s Virginia chapter.
By BROCK VERGAKIS, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The Defense Department wants the Norfolk-based hospital ship USNS Comfort to get ready to deploy to New York in an effort to aid civilian hospitals that may need to relocate patients who aren’t diagnosed with coronavirus, according to the Department of Defense. The Comfort is one of two 1,000-bed hospital ships that the Navy has frequently used to conduct goodwill missions and respond to natural disasters and humanitarian crises around the world.
By FRANK GREEN AND ALI ROCKETT, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The ACLU of Virginia, Richmond’s public defender and other legal advocate groups are calling for the release of many nonviolent inmates given the threat of the coronavirus to vulnerable incarcerated populations. Also this week, Richmond’s top prosecutor said her office is working with the Richmond Magistrate’s Office and the Police Department to allow the release of individuals awaiting trial who are charged with nonviolent felonies and do not pose a risk to the community.
By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The number of students being home-schooled in Virginia has risen substantially over the past decade. There were 23,290 home-schooled students in the state in the 2009-10 school year, according to data from the Virginia Department of Education, and that number has surged to 38,282 this school year. With every K-12 school in the state shuttered due to the coronavirus pandemic, the state’s roughly 1.5 million public, private and ordinarily home-schooled students are at home.
By GORDON RAGO, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
It was the first morning schools were closed for the coronavirus pandemic, and Nick Goodwin had bitten his bottom lip. His bus was supposed to arrive at 8:15. Nick knew that, because he knows his schedule and likes to go outside and ride the bus from his Suffolk home to Mack Benn Elementary. But when the 8-year-old learned he wouldn’t be going to school that day, he got upset and bit into his lip, causing it to bleed.
By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
School closures in the Richmond area have been extended. Hanover County Public Schools, Henrico County Public Schools and Chesterfield County Public Schools announced Wednesday that schools will be closed through spring break, meaning the earliest day they would reopen in Henrico and Chesterfield is April 14, while Hanover students could return April 13.
By CAT MODLIN-JACKSON, WVTF
Deanna Fierro spends most Monday mornings in the classroom teaching. But on the first day of a statewide school closure, she was in a cafeteria, packing bags with sandwiches and milk. She’s one of about 500 Richmonders who signed up to volunteer at schools now operating as emergency food distribution centers. Fierro’s taught in Virginia for nine years, and in that time she’s come to understand how school resources offer a safety net for those most vulnerable.
By BRIDGET MANLEY, Harrisonburg Citizen
After the Harrisonburg City Public Schools shut down amid the COVID-19 pandemic, dedicated staff and nutritionists worked out a plan to continue providing meals for students whose primary source of nutritious food came through the schools. The team reworked a summer feeding program that has been helping children stay nourished for the last four years.
By EMILY SIDES, Inside NOVA (Metered Paywall)
As many residents across the region take on new challenges, with some facing the reality of being out of work or caring for family members during the COVID-19 outbreak, area nonprofits are building up a network of services to try to lend support.
By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
For the elderly and at-risk afraid of stepping foot inside a grocery store for fear of catching the coronavirus, a group of Norfolk residents say they’ll take that step for them. Calling itself Norfolk Grocery Runs, the group has already amassed about 100 volunteers in less than two days to coordinate and deliver groceries to the elderly and those with a weak immune system during the COVID-19 outbreak.
By VERNON MILES, ArlNow
While Arlington teachers put together grocery gift cards for low-income families and nonprofits band together to address the economic impacts of the coronavirus, several local restaurateurs and the nonprofit Real Food for Kids are working to provide meals to families hit by the pandemic.
By VERNON MILES, ArlNow
As Arlingtonians scramble to stock up on emergency supplies to weather the coronavirus pandemic, some local nonprofits that are helping those most in need are starting to see the strain on the county’s most vulnerable populations. “We’re still trying to get used to the new reality,” said Andrew Schneider, executive director of Arlington Thrive, a nonprofit that provides emergency funding to people in crisis.
By ALEXA DOIRON & JULIA MARSIGLIANO, Williamsburg-Yorktown Daily (Metered paywall - 3 articles per month)
Older populations are at greater risk of complications from the coronavirus (COVID-19) and local senior care facilities have had to ramp up their precautions to protect their residents. At Edgeworth Park, an assisted living and memory care facility in Williamsburg, staff and residents are taking extra precautions to make sure the virus doesn’t reach them.
By COLLEEN CURRAN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
Joseph Papa, 37, and his husband, John-Stuart Fauquet, 38, haven’t been feeling well for a week. On Tuesday, they got the test results and found out why: They tested positive for the coronavirus. They live in Richmond’s West End but spend much of their time traveling back and forth to New York for work.
