Governor Ralph Northam held a COVID-19 briefing Tuesday – the first one in several weeks. And he said that Virginia thankfully hasn’t seen the virus come back with a vengeance like it has in states like Texas and Florida, but there is reason for some concern.
Virginia's positivity rate currently hovers around 7%. And while it has moved up slightly in recent weeks, Northam indicated there's a more alarming trend in eastern Virginia.
“A large portion of the increase in cases that we’re seeing in our state numbers are coming from the Tidewater region," explained Northam. "The percent positivity here is 10.1%, and it’s been rising for a number of days.”
To help remedy that, Northam has granted more authority to several state agencies, including the Department of Health, to enforce regulations.
“If you own a restaurant or a business and you’re not following the regulations, your license will be on the line,” he warned.
Northam also said that it’s unclear what the path forward looks like – with Virginia likely staying in Phase Three for a while.
Some other odds and ends from Northam's press conference:
- The number of cases has remained fairly steady in northwest Virginia. There have been slight increases in the southwestern and central portions of the state. And northern Virginia has seen a sharp decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases.
- The Virginia Department of Health is still working to hire contact tracers.
- Governor Northam is working to restrict sales of alcohol at restaurants after a certain hour.
- Hundreds of Virginians have already taken advantage of a state program meant to cut down on the number of evictions during the pandemic.
- Thousands of Virginians are still without work, with no jobs to go back to even as the economy begins to reopen. Northam said the Virginia Employment Commission is doing everything it can to keep up with the demand for unemployment benefits.
- Department of Motor Vehicles offices across the Commonwealth are slowly reopening. They're operating under extended hours to accomodate everyone who needs in-person services, which are currently being conducted via appointment.
- Northam has asked the federal government to continue helping fund the Virginia National Guard as it works to respond to the virus.
- Finally, the governor said details about the upcoming special session of the General Assembly would be announced soon.
