The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth has jumped to 4,042, with 34 additional deaths, for a total of 109.
The Virginia Department of Health also saw the number of confirmed cases increase by 397 since Wednesday.
There have now been a total of 35 deaths at a nursing facility in Western Henrico County. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that more than doubles the fatalities at Canterbury Rehabilitation and Healthcare in less than a week.
Medical Director Dr. James Wright said Wednesday that three additional residents had died, two at the facility and one at a local hospital.
He told the newspaper his facility had not recorded any more deaths in the previous 24 hours, but added "we have a number of patients we’re still concerned about, so we expect additional deaths in the future."
Meanwhile, result turnaround time for COVID-19 tests continues to be an issue for some areas across the state – including in the Roanoke City and Alleghany Health Districts.
Dr. Molly O’Dell with the Virginia Department of Health says those districts are still waiting on the federal government for quick-testing capability.
“I was told two weeks when I got on the first day of the job that we would hopefully have quick testing, but the lag time is definitely in FDA approval," she said.
O’Dell also warns that just because a locality has few or no confirmed cases, like several counties in southwest Virginia, that does not mean the virus isn’t present.
She said testing so far has been limited to people who have shown symptoms.
With so many people now working from home and so many places closed, national parks are more popular than ever, and weekend crowds have gotten so big at Shenandoah National Park – the largest on the east coast – that officials decided to close it.
Kristen Brengel is with the National Parks Conservation Association.
“Many people in D.C. flock to Shenandoah on the weekends, because there’s some great hiking there, but at this time when we’re trying to minimize our interactions with each other and stay safe, it’s not the best place to go," she said.
Her group lobbied hard for the shutdown – and public safety wasn’t their only concern.
“We have been pushing really hard to make sure especially the political appointees at the Interior Department hear the public loud and clear – that we want to keep our park rangers safe,' Brengel said.
There’s no word yet on when the park might re-open.
Virginia Senator Mark Warner orchestrated a conference call Thursday with local officials from the Roanoke and New River Valleys.
It was an opportunity for those officials to voice concerns about response efforts to the novel coronavirus – as well as their opinions about priorities in relief measures going forward.
Carilion Clinic CEO Nancy Agee said her hospital system is managing – but they’ve had to basically shut down ambulatory services:
“And this is beginning to worry us, because we know a lot of patients are out there who are not COVID-19 patients that need services and are delaying care," she said.
Carilion is now able to get test results back in about two days, but Agee stressed that the FDA needs to be quicker in rolling out and approving quick-testing capabilities. Vital personal protective equipment has to be used to protect staff attending to patients while test results are processed – so a quicker turnaround for those results is key.
As Congress mulls a fourth relief bill, Senator Tim Kaine says any legislation going forward must contain appropriate oversight measures.
“We have to get the White House and others to agree that there will be complete transparency and appropriate conditions on how these funds will be distributed," he stresses. "The American taxpayers deserve that, and I think Congress made its intent very clear and I’m deeply concerned that the president is making an effort to end-run those.”
However, Kaine is confident a bi-partisan agreement can be reached as with previous legislation.
**Editor's Note: Carilion Clinic is a financial supporter of RADIO IQ.
