The COVID-19 vaccination effort has been a confusing one in Virginia up until this point. The governor worked to address frustration with the process Wednesday.
Northam said part of the problem can be attributed to mixed messaging from federal officials in the previous administration.
“15 days ago, the outgoing federal Secretary of Health told states, ‘Open up eligibility to everyone 65 and older. We’ll send more doses,’" Northam explained. "Then two days later, states learned that there were no more doses to release”
He added that Virginia has immunized over 500,000 people in a month – more than actual infections from the virus since the beginning of the pandemic. But, Northam said that’s not enough and the process will be more transparent going forward.
“We are launching a new vaccine dashboard. You can see how many doses have come into Virginia, where they have been delivered and where they are sitting," he said. "You can see how many people have received their first shot, how many people have received their second and how much of Virginia’s population has been vaccinated.”
The Virginia Department of Health has also administered new guidance to health districts across the state to try and make the process as simple as possible.
Northam said the state will soon get a heightened level of vaccines from the federal government, which is expected to be maintained going forward.
The governor has also extended restrictions put in place last month to cut down on further spread of COVID-19 through the end of February. They were originally set to expire this week.
“We are ramping up vaccinations. This is no time to let down our guard,” he said.
Those restrictions include a stay-at-home order from 12 to 5am each day, a universal mask mandate for everyone five and older and a cap on social gatherings to 10 people.
New River Valley Health District Update: Number of Infections Trending Down, But Still a Long Road Ahead for Group 1B Vaccinations
There was some good news out of the New River Valley Health District Wednesday – as officials continue to respond to the pandemic there.
“We had a peak around December 12th with about 700 cases in that week," said Dr. Noelle Bissell, the district's director. "Over the last week, it was down to about 460. I’m cautiously optimistic that we are kind of getting over the bump from the holidays, even with filling in more on the right side and the data lag, that we will continue to see things going down.”
However, Bissell stressed that it will still take some time to get everyone in group 1B vaccinated. She’s hopeful that everyone who wants a vaccine in the district will be able to get one by the summer.
In the meantime, Bissell said the health guidelines in place for almost a year now – wear a mask, frequently wash your hands and avoid large gatherings – remain just as vital.
Centra Health Update: Lower Number of Infections Has Lead to the Freeing Up of Hospital Floors
Meanwhile, Centra Health – which operates hospitals in the Lynchburg area and southside Virginia – is also seeing the number of COVID-19 patients come down.
During a press call Wednesday, officials said they were treating 70 such patients this week. That’s down from 133 two weeks ago.
Dr. Christopher Lewis said the lower number has brought about some positive changes.
“It has allowed us to reclaim some of our floors," he explained. "So the pediatric floor, which we had to make COVID, now is a regular floor again. And we’ve been able to take back half of entire surgical floor for regular patients.”
Officials also said Centra has administered more than 12,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses so far.
Near Southwest Region Update: Hospitalizations, ICU and Ventilator Patients All Trend Down
The number of hospitalizations from COVID-19 in the Virginia Department of Health’s near southwest region has come down again this week.
That region includes Roanoke, Lynchburg, Danville, Martinsville and parts of the New River Valley.
A coalition of hospitals there reported 345 hospitalizations. That’s down from 432 last week.
The number of patients in need of intensive care services and a ventilator also dropped from last week’s figures.
Richmond Mayor Tests Positive for COVID-19
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney has tested positive for COVID-19.
I’ve tested positive for COVID-19. Definitely not feeling 100%, but I’m managing my symptoms from home. This should serve as a reminder to everyone that the pandemic is still very real. We can’t let our guard down. https://t.co/XfK8u7F8En
— Mayor Levar M. Stoney (@LevarStoney) January 27, 2021
In a statement, officials say Stoney received a test Monday after experiencing mild symptoms. He will isolate and close contacts have been informed so they can quarantine.
The mayor’s State of the City address has also been moved from tomorrow to February 11th.