As NoVa Vaccinations Expand, 4,530 New COVID-19 Cases, 10 Deaths
VIRGINIA — As Phase 1b of distribution of the coronavirus vaccines begin on Monday, new confirmed cases of COVID-19 across Virginia continue to surge although not at the record levels they have in recent days
A day after the Virginia Department of Health reported a record 5,798 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, state health officials announced another 4,530 new cases on Monday. The new cases are more than 1,200 fewer than what occurred on Saturday, which was the third time in four days a new record for new daily cases was established. Saturday’s spike came a day after 5,328 cases on Friday, and the state's seven-day average stands at a new high of 5,121.
The seven-day positivity rate for the virus is 16.7 percent as of Monday.
A total of 403,386 coronavirus cases have been reported in the state; 19,182 hospitalizations have been recorded as of Monday. To date, a total of 5,393 deaths have been caused by COVID-19.
On Monday, select health districts in Virginia will be allowed to begin the next phase of COVID-19 vaccinations, called phase 1b. This phase includes people aged 75 and older, people living in correctional facilities, homeless shelters and migrant labor camps, and front-line essential workers who are "essential to the functioning of society, are at substantially higher risk of exposure to SARSCoV-2, and cannot work remotely," state health officials said.
Included in the 1B group are police, fire and hazmat; corrections and homeless shelter workers; child care, K-12 teachers and staff; food and agriculture, manufacturing; grocery store workers; public transit workers; and USPS and private mail carriers.
These health districts will be allowed to start phase 1B on Monday: Alexandria, Arlington, Cumberland Plateau, Fairfax, Lenowisco, Lord Fairfax, Loudoun, Mount Rogers, New River, Prince William, and Roanoke County/Allegheny. The Fairfax Health District includes the cities of Falls Church and Fairfax, while the Prince William Health District includes the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
Residents should check to see when Phase 1b begins in their community on the VDH COVID-19 Vaccine webpage.
SEE ALSO: Next Phase Of Vaccinations To Begin In NoVA Health Districts
As of Sunday, 177,945 vaccine doses have been administered in Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Health. To date, 510,800 total doses have been distributed in Virginia.
According to the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, 3,117 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19 on Monday. A total of 571 COVID-19 patients are in intensive care units around the state; 352 patients are on a ventilator. To date 33,142 confirmed COVID cases have been treated and discharged from the state's hospitals.
Ventilator use among all hospital patients is at 35 percent capacity, with 1,036 of the 2,947 available in use. ICU occupancy is at 82 percent.
Death data is available as both the date of report and by date of death and are updated as amendments to the death records as they are received by VDH.
Below are the latest coronavirus data updates for our coverage area on Sunday:
· Alexandria: 8,156 cases, 454 hospitalizations, 91 deaths: no change
· Arlington County: 10,117 cases, 687 hospitalizations, 186 deaths: 16 new hospitalization, 1 new death
· Fairfax County: 49,840 cases, 3,072 hospitalizations, 707 deaths: 4 new hospitalizations
· Fairfax City: 331 cases, 25 hospitalizations, 10 deaths: no change
· Falls Church: 208 cases, 18 hospitalizations, six deaths: no change
· Loudoun County: 15,443 cases, 668 hospitalizations, 164 deaths: no change
· Manassas: 3,149 cases, 148 hospitalizations, 29 deaths: no change
· Manassas Park: 995 cases, 65 hospitalizations, eight deaths
· Prince William County: 28,532 cases, 1,258 hospitalizations, 264 deaths: 2 new hospitalizations
· Fredericksburg: 1,162 cases, 67 hospitalizations, 11 deaths: no change
· Spotsylvania County: 5,468 cases, 222 hospitalizations, 71 deaths: no change
· Stafford County: 6,050 cases, 240 hospitalizations, 29 deaths: no change
All of Virginia has been in phase 1a of vaccinations since Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines started to be distributed in December. This phase includes vaccinating health-care workers and long-term care facility residents and staff. Hospitals gained access to vaccine doses for their staff, while health departments were tasked with giving doses to health care workers not affiliated with hospital systems.
There is a separate federal program for vaccinations at participating long-term care facilities in partnership with CVS and Walgreens. Those vaccinations got underway in Virginia during the week of Dec. 28.
VDH estimates it will take weeks to months to vaccine Virginians in phase 1b, with an estimated 1.2 eligible Virginians. The federal government allocates around 110,000 doses of vaccine to Virginia each week. That supply could increase gradually over the next few months depending on manufacturer capabilities.
Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines require two doses; Pfizer's doses should be taken 21 days apart, and Moderna's doses should be 28 days apart.
This article originally appeared on the Fredericksburg Patch
