RICHMOND, Va. (WAVY) — Governor Ralph Northam says nine “presumptive positive” cases have now been reported in Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Health. That includes a couple in Virginia Beach.
In a press conference Wednesday, Northam said the coronavirus case is in the Hanover County area, making it the first in Central Virginia.
Gov. Northam said he will not be declaring a state of emergency at this time but said he is prepared to do so.
Virginia’s response is unique to our commonwealth and our situation, Gov. Northam said. “We are planning for every scenario.”
The number in Virginia is up from eight “presumptive positive” cases on Tuesday, and at least 1,000 coronavirus cases have now been reported across 37 states and Washington, D.C. A quarter of those were announced Tuesday, a sign of quickly the virus is spreading. So far at least 31 people have died due to the coronavirus, the Centers for Disease Control announced Wednesday.
The state has $10 million right now to battle coronavirus. Lawmakers are set to vote on more in the state budget Thursday.
Schools are also supposed to now report absences daily to the state for tracking purposes.
At the same time as Northam says he’s prepared to declare a state of emergency if necessary, one of Virginia’s U.S. senators is talking about the government’s role in what happens if people have to take long periods of time off.
Sen. Tim Kaine has introduced a federal bill to guarantee sick leave: up to seven days earned, and 14 days to start with in the event of a declared health emergency.
“… it is not our intent to subsidize, it is an expectation of employers but it’s in the employer’s benefit. No employer, none, would want a sick person to come in and infect everyone,” Kaine said.
The state has ordered the maximum number of tests allowed by the CDC. It will have enough kits to test 500-600 patients by the end of the day Wednesday.
Kaine says that’s not enough.
Kaine says fewer than 10,000 have been tested in the U.S. compared to 200,000 in South Korea. He wants to know why the U.S. chose to develop its own test instead of using one approved by the World Health Organization weeks before.
Virginia is meantime buying up masks and protective gear for health care workers.
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, says the country needs to start taking the virus more seriously and many more people could be infected.
“If we are complacent and don’t do really aggressive containment and mitigation, the number could go way up … many, many millions,” Fauci said Wednesday during a meeting on Capitol Hill.
“I can say we will see more cases, and things will get worse than they are right now,” Fauci said. “How much worse we’ll get will depend on our ability to do two things: to contain the influx of people who are infected coming from the outside, and the ability to contain and mitigate within our own country … bottom line, it’s going to get worse.”
He emphasized to Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Tuesday night: ” “The mortality for seasonal flu is 0.1 [percent]. The mortality for this is about two, two-and-a-half percent. It’s probably lower than that, it’s probably closer to one. But even if it’s one, it’s 10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu. You gotta make sure that people understand that!”
Virginia State Epidemiologist Lilian Peake said there have not been any coronavirus cases in Virginia’s nursing homes at this point, but those are people at particular risk for severe outcomes.
Two people in Chesapeake are also being tested for coronavirus. State officials said the patients are at the state-run Southeastern Virginia Training Center. That’s an intermediate care facility on Steppingstone Square, near South Military Highway. It provides services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The facility said no other individuals or staff have symptoms, but the staff is wearing masks “out of precaution” until the results come back.
So far, Virginia has not seen any “community spread” — which means the virus cannot be tracked back to a source, but health officials said they’re prepared for that possibility.
The Virginia Department of Health recommends you do the following to stop the spread of germs:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer only if soap and water are not available.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when coughing or sneezing.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Avoid contact with sick people.
- Avoid non-essential travel.
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